Foreigners cannot directly own freehold land in Indonesia, but they can legally lease land or use a foreign investment company (PT PMA) to obtain land usage rights.

That is possible of course, if you are able to:

1. Find a notary/lawyer who you know you can rely on to check all ownership documents, rights of access, family rights, etc.
2. Find an architect who is familiar with the rules of what can be built in Rote, legally and practically.
3. Find a builder to quote & build the house for you, and get it in a valid contract.  This is especially difficult on an island like Rote where builders are scarce and no-one wants to give a fixed price (Rote builders only want to work on a day-rate + materials, so be prepared to be monitoring the building constantly and be able to source all the materials from other parts of Indonesia, getting it all shipped to Rote). 
4. Make sure you have your logistics all sorted out: There are no shops here for building materials, hardware and fittings. Everything has to be imported.  
5. Ensure your builder honors the contract by finishing it within the agreed timeframe and budget.
6. Do the landscaping, and buy furnirure and house hold supplies in Bali or Jakarta, and have them shipped to Rote.

If you already have experience of building in remote locations, speak good Indonesian and have 2-3 years to spare, then yes, you could save money by building your own dream house in this paradise.  But, even after going through all that stress, you still won’t have our location 🙂 

Yes, with 37 years left, the lease is paid up and transferred to you upon completion with a sales contract. 

We love Rote, but in the wet season, we, like most expats leave for a few months, shops close and the wind turns onshore. In those months we spend time on the other side of the world, but local staff looks after our place very well, we can organize the same for you. Staff costs are low in Indonesia.

Yes 

Yes that is no problem

Not with us, and it’s impossible for foreigners to get bank financing.

Sure you can, just don’t expect an answer,

We are lucky that we have a small rock shelf in front on the beach as a result we are one of the few properties that doesn’t suffer from beach erosion

We can organize a boat mooring for you

Yes, there is a small international school in the town

We have lived in several place around the world, we rate Rote as safe as Norway where we spend time in the off season. The main safety worry is not using enough sunscreen.

This isn’t Bali, it’s why we love it. There are basic surf shops, small covenience stores but no big supermarkets. What  we eat? Local foods or eat out in restaurants, ie Rote’s best pizza is 1 minute from us. There’s spanish food, taco tuesdays, burger nights.