khunPer

Chaweng Beach is mainly for younger folks and party-people, if you considers to live at that place; however great for elder and non-partyers for shopping, dining and cinema visits. However, Chaweng Noi and the hills are for all ages. Samui is for for all groups of retirees, depending of you personal life style – you might choose an area fit for you, plenty of possibilities – and what you can afford. A few things costs more on Samui than many other retirement options. Fuel is a few baht more per liter, as it's an island and fuel need to be transported by trucks on a ferry. Same for building materials, so construction prices are slightly higer, which means that general home costs – including rental – is little higher. But you can still find accommodation from about 10,000-15,000 baht per month depending of what you need. Another point for home- og rental costs is location; beachfront and sea view can cost quite a relative lot. Air fares too Samui are relative high, but if you can get registered in a House Book – or have a work permit – you can obtain a "Resident Card" and lower air fares with Bangkok Airways, at present around 2,700 baht all inclusive for a ticket between BKK and USM with a Resident Card. Daily needs are about same price as everywhere due to competition between between supermarket chains. You might need to take local transportation into consideration, also as the traffic can be quite chaotic for riding you own motorbike. In daytime – 6am to 6pm – you can use song thaews from about 20 baht to around 120 baht depending on distance. Otherwise there are taxis, but they are relative expensive and the drivers prefer to use fixed prices rather than the meter. A (very) short ride is 200 baht and a medium ride of circa 10 kilometers is 500-600 baht. Having your own car can be an excellent option, if you need to get around, and also for shopping. There are, as mentioned above, plenty of areas to chose for living, depending of what your are looking for and life style. In some areas most or almost all shopping can be within walking distance, in other areas transportation is a must. I've been living here as a retiree for 18 years now, and so far I don't regret my choice. Before I decided to settle on Samui, I checked a number of other possibilities in Thailand; so, get around a see places for yourself, before you make a decision...????

Yes, you always need permission of one or other kind to build something on others land. A superficies agreement is such instrument, see more HERE. It can be another person than the land owner that is "House Master" and can accept names to be registered in the House Book(s).

Chanote, is a nickname for Nor See 4 Jor title deed, the only real freehold title deed. You can find explanation for all the land title deeds HERE. "CHANOTE: from the land title documents issued by the Thailand Land Department only the Nor. Sor. 4 Jor or Chanote is a true land ownership title deed." "Nor Sor Si (4) Jor (Chanote) The N.S.4.J or Chanote is a certificate of true ownership for land and the only true ownership land title deed. Land held under Chanotes are accurately surveyed and GPS plotted in relation to a national survey grid and marked by unique numbered marker posts set in the ground. Chanote titles are found in the more developed areas of Thailand. Legal acts (sale) do not have to be published. There are no general restrictions on the use and the land can be sub-divided." Usufruct: Not really... "Section 1424. The usufructuary is bound to keep the substance of the property unaltered, and is responsible for ordinary maintenance and pretty repairs." You can read the Usufruct law HERE. Blue House Book and Yellow House Book for Aliens are address registration, nothing more.

Every house will have a Blue Book, but foreigners – and so everybody shall be happy: apart from people with "permanent residency" – cannot be registered in it. I own my house and I have a blue book, and I'm even "House Master", so only I can accept persons to be registered in "my" Blue Book. However, I cannot myself be registered in "my" Blue Book, as I'm an alien without "permanent residency", so my name is in a Yellow House Book for aliens; i.e., I have two house books.

Considered "Thai people"...????

It can even happen after a non-O extension based on retirement is issued – I talk from experience...

After you got your extension of stay-stamp, you can to my knowledge withdraw the money; they need to be there from 2 month before application and during the application process, if you get an "under consideration"-stamp.

The Blue Book is only registration of Thai people living in a house/on an address; it got nothing to do with ownership. Foreigners are registered in a Yellow House Book. The first name in a House Book is the first person registered to live at the address. The name on the back of a land title deed is the name of the owner of the land; it's freehold if it's a Nor Sor 4 deed, also called Chanote. Buildings on a land can be owned by the land owner; or separated from the land, and owned by someone else, who might have no ownership to any part of the land. A foreigner can for example own a house, but not the land under the house (with a few exceptions).

Yes, you hit it exactly correct... –Furthermore there can be some few stuff of affectional value like art and paintings, now you have the 20-feet container...???? I bought new TVs, furniture and almost everything else in Thailand, even that I would have space for some more stuff in the container...????

I presume you know the Thai-solution – get a young attractive mia noi – however, it might not be the cheapest method... I know Western men (some home country friends) with similar problem. They takes on "fishing holiday" with their friends – also facing similar situation – in Thailand; that is like your "kicks on the side" and saves an otherwise good relationship and family. Their wives are having their own holiday together with plenty of time to lady-shopping – without irritating males getting tired of waiting and disturbing them about moving on – and chatting all afternoons over coffee or tea and cakes. I think the wives knows what's going on, but it's never talked about with their spouses; kind of silent approval of a solution for all's best.

A good beginning you are performing, before moving to Land-of-Smiles. Even when not living in a room full of junk, but instead having lots of good stuff, requires a container when moving – I talk from experience... – even after I had given most of the stuff away before beginning to pack...????

Check with your local tessa ban office what is needed, there can be quite some difference from province to province. When two witnesses are needed, it's often requested to be persons that know you well, one shall a neighbor and one shall be a government employee.

You can make a last will; even a simple will written in your own language and signed by two witnesses is legal. You can sign the will and have it files at the local district office. You can appoint an executor in your will. As the will needs to be translated to Thai language, a lawyer might be a good idea to help you and have the will written in both English and Thai language. When you die it will be a court in the country of your primary residence that will handle the will; i.e. Thailand if you live or mainly stay there. The executor will handle the will after the court has finished, including transfer from eventual US bank account; however check if there are some local US-rules or fees there to be fulfilled. There is no inheritance tax in Thailand at the moment.

All are equal, but some are more equal than others...

I'm disappointingly boring straight, I just full time enjoy my life...????

Being non-married don't stop one from creating an heir and being a good parent – I made one (heir) after I decided to move to Thailand...

Easy, I didn't have a wife – I've never been married...????

Don't underestimate Chuwit's predictions, he has often shown to be correct...

Even that Thais have a reputation of being relaxed, if not lazy, then this might not be the case here. Farm work in a village can harder work than studying; 30% of the population works with farming, even that farming only counts for 10% of GNP. Of course not all, but probably most girls in the bars and nightlife comes from farming-area villages. A village farm girl may not have long enough school – often not completed high school, if even attended one – to fulfill requirements for University or like level education. Furthermore it's a question of money. Education costs – both fees and living costs – and their family might not be able to support them while studying. Also, numerous village girls get married at young age – could be from age 15, some even younger – often a marriage that don't last, but often includes a child, or more, wherefore they also often ends up with as single mum. Village marriages are not registered – even considered as full marriage in the village – so, easy to end. A single mum will find it even harder to get an education, she is often happy to get a well paid job while parents or grannies takes care of her child/children. Some girls finish high school and start education at a university. If their family cannot support the costs, you might be able to meet some of the in the nightlife of the university cities – for example in some of Bangkok's go-go bars – where they find easy support funds for their studies and living costs; they might even be able to find a regular sugar dad and stop in the bar. I know one that managed to study law that way, she later became a very succesful business lady later. By the way, she told me that she only dated foreigners (read: had foreign customers), not to spoil har later eventual career as a Thai lawyer. You might also meet university students on leave (summer holiday) in the nightlife at holiday destinations, where they are earning money for next term – and they are normally not be interested in marriage, especially not in the cliental you mentioned in the opening post. However, a younger handsome succesful investment bank broker could be of interest; and yes, I do know such a case first hand. He was introduced to me – a Brit working in Hong Kong – and he told me that Western girls were too difficult, so he preferred to find an Asian spouse. The past didn't matter, the future did...????

Your $3.5k per month can give you an excellent life 12 month a year in Thailand – it's more than 100k baht a month – however, you'll might need a little more for 7/365 ad hoc sugar-babe dates, but far from $5k, if you don't permanently need exclusive hi-so VIP babes...????

No. Why do you need to change, it's much more convenient with a non-O based on retirement and annual extensions of stay; i.e. only 800k baht in deposit and no claim for health insurance.

You don't need to apply for a new visa – you'll need to leave Thailand to do that – you are going to change your extension of stay based on work to one based on the conditions for retirement. Your funds, 800k baht, needs to be deposited in a Thai bank account two month before you apply for extension of stay based on retirement. There is no rule that the money has come from abroad, you can in principle have saved the up domestically from your work salary. I normally suggest – if you can afford it – just to leave the 800k baht deposit in a 12-month fixed bank account and withdraw the interest once a year, so the balance is always 800k baht. It makes it a lot more ease for the immigration officer to check your funds; and also yourself, as you can sleep well without thinking about when to top up from 400k to 800k before next extension of stay. There is no claim for health insurance – it's only when you originally entered on a non-OX visa for retirement – but it's always advisable to have one.

Not all bar girls are hardcore gold diggers; i.e., referring to your opening comment. Many girls and ladies head down from a remote village to find the knight on the white horse – or today perhaps rather in the white Bentley – but as they need money to survive, and often also need to support family back in the village, they need to work and make some income while waiting for the right knight to ride by. Working in a factory or like is not a solution – white knights normally doesn't ride there – so a bar, or free-lancer (to keep the knight-style language) in the nightlife, is the better option, if not the very best. So yes, you can meet nice girls in the nightlife – girls from bars might also head on the nightclubs or after parties efter closing time or a short time hotel visit – and those free birds can actually "fall in love" with a good man, especially if that man is also a good provider. I know several former ladies from bar- and nightlife that has been succesful married to some of those knights that rides by, and some of the knights have also been good providers, who even can afford to buy a Mercedes to the wife, when they for example moves home to Germany or Switzerland. I also know of several former both nightlife birds, and so-called nice girls and ladies that has a normal job, whom have been married to a foreigner, moved abroad and got disappointed. The life as housewife in a foreign country was not what they expected. And I know first-hand horror stories about well of men that have been ripped off by their Thai wife, and in the worst cases we are talking about the nice ladies, not those from the nightlife. So, perhaps it's safer to settle with a bird from the nightlife, than those well-educated clever gold diggers...???? And the nice girl you meet on a dating site or in the shopping mall; do you know if she earlier has been working in a bar. Statistically some 80-90% of the flesh-market customers are not foreigners. She could have been working in a karaoke bar, you might never know about... Then of course there are the cases you refer to as "i see them pretty much daily. all over weight, bald, with no teeth", who has better chances to find a companion based on money than their look – don't forget that "handsum" in Thai often refers to the wallet – and even you might have lost hair, being little to the obese side and lost some teeth, you might still be a kind man and can be a good husband. Where I live in Thailand, I don't see many of these men – "...over weight, bald, with no teeth" – but I see many working girls with in real Western-style handsome young or younger men. The reason that there might not be many of the type you mention, could be that the competition from the real handsome type is too hard. I know many of these working girls and ladies that got married to handsome younger men – and some of them got married to good-looking middle-aged men, more like the knight the white Bentley – and as I've known several of both these nightlife birds and nice ladies as friend, I've even been invited as guest to some of their weddings; or just introduced to their husbands. However, it might be different what you see, in different parts of Land-of-Smiles. And by the way, you don't need to marry the bird from the nightlife to live together with her for "long time" after less than a month...????

You only need to top up to 800k baht 2 month (60 days) before you apply for the next extension of stay. However, your balance cannot be less than 400k baht from 3 month after granted extension of stay and until 2 month before the next. Visa for for supporting a child is the same; i.e., non-immigrant type-O. It's the extension of stay and the conditions that are different. However – as a forum member mentioned it in another thread – your condition for extended stay might have been voided, if your deposit balance is not in accordance with the rules, and you must leave the country. The original non-O visa you entered on, ended with the original 90-days periode in Thailand. You can re-enter either with a new non-O visa or as tourist (visa exempt or 60-days tourist visa), and apply for change to non-O visa domestically.

Go back to the Amphor-office and get a new ID-card with correct transliteration to Latin characters issued – you can use the Thai passport as proof for spelling (not the Australian) – and the get the name corrected in the bank (it's same ID-number)...