Asiantravel

2 hours ago, JSixpack said:

 

Nah, most probably quite boring, your assertion BTW being an example of the Complex Question fallacy. The term of the guarantee is agreed upon at purchase via contract. Condos are purchased at different times so the expirations of the guarantees will be staggered over years. The owners have 5 - 20 years to prepare. So all that will happen at expiration is that the owner will live in the condo, rent it out himself, or sell it. Now according to latest brilliant TVF Real Estate Rules Of Sale, the sale will have to occur according to FIFO, meaning all other available condos ahead in the queue at the time must be sold first. Presumably then the owner will have a queue number and will reside or rent out until his number is called.

 

It'll only be interesting if the guarantees aren't honored. AFAIK, there's no evidence yet that they won't be, evidence being documented cases in which they weren't here in Pattaya, not some link to an irrelevant report about Miami or Singapore real estate. 'Course, evidence don't count for a lot around here.   

5 to 20 years? New Nordic claim they were the first to offer rental guarantees in Pattaya starting around 10 years ago

there is no evidence either that the owners  will live in the condo, rent it out himself, or ( TRY TO ) sell it.

who are  renters  going to be?

It would have been nice if they could concentrate on one job and finish it before moving onto the next

now we have:simultaneously-

1. hoarding obstructing the view of the sea at the northern end of Pattaya Beach Road near the Dusit hotel(with no end in sight)

2. hoarding obstructing the view of the sea around this development site at Bali Hai

3. very disruptive road and earthworks at Dongtan Beach in Jomtien

4. an unfinished Road Tunnel (but beautifully tiled with dolphins)

why do I feel Pattaya is one great construction zone

1 hour ago, Bastos60 said:

 

By that time, chinese will have bought out most of the property.

they can buy their own housing stock first (with 64 MILLION empty apartments available ) –

http://www.globalresearch.ca/china-ghost-cities/5421229     

plus with a debt to GDP ratio that now stands at 283%, the China Ponzi will also implode well before the end of 10 years

3 hours ago, LongTimeLurker said:

I am such an owner.

 

Owned 1 condo property which if I'd have rented I'd have spent more money than I paid for it. Sold it at a modest profit.

 

Current one much the same. Owning already saved me rent in the long term and I can get my money back when I sell in another 10 years time.

 

(yes I know about opportunity cost and what I could have done with the money other than buy)

 

I think the biggest obstacle to buyers is the lack of mortgage availability for Farangs here so purchases are effectively made in cash. So not many can afford to buy a decent place that's already completed, hence the glut of 1 million Baht small units sold off-plan.

" and I can get my money back when I sell in another 10 years time "

just looking at what is happening around the world now I wouldn't be betting on that. Just looking at employment patterns, totally stagnant wages etc I would be seriously worried who will be able to even afford a condominium in Pattaya in 10 years time or who will be remotely interested in renting one of these places?

Maybe you will have more grounds for optimism after the estimated 17,000 vacant condominiums being offered for salehave been mopped up.

17 hours ago, whatwasithinking said:

Just to add , if you like a fair degree of risk the last 18 months to even now could be a great short term investment . You buy a condo in a fire sale situation which is well below market & sell for a smallish profit of 100 to 150 000 baht . However i will never invest overseas again & certainly not Thailand

 

But you need to face the facts & simply looking on line at the condo resale market it is blatantly obvious there are far to many condos available for the interested buyers out there so please prove me wrong

it will be interesting to see what happens here once the overly generous and quite unrealistic rental guarantees that were offered by the developers as an inducement to buy start to expire

2 hours ago, Nong Khai Man said:

wHAT'S hAPPENED TO THE supposedly NEW Rules Regarding These " Death Traps " ??

I can tell you  NOTHING has changed and if anything it's got worse!

last Monday I wanted to return to Pattaya from Trat and you can only do so now using one of these ' DEATHTRAPS ".

there are no more big buses travelling this route.

but I would never take a minivan the whole distance from Trat to Pattaya because those images of the minivan bursting into flames and incinerating the passengers last year (on the same route )are still in my mind. So I took a big Bangkok bound bus intending to get off at Rayong and take my chance in a death trap for the last 70 km.

But the bus turned off early and doesn't actually go to Rayong so my next chance to get off was Chonburi.

I was prepared to take my chance in a death trap on that last relatively short leg of the journey.

let me tell you it was one of the worst most scary journeys I can ever remember. The driver was a sheer lunatic speeding, tailgating in very heavy traffic and I honestly thought that was when I was going to die!

these people will never change and it just confirmed my absolute phobia of riding with these maniacs

8 hours ago, teddog said:

The OP must be under some stress to post such a heart-rendering post.  I do not think condo prices, unlike house prices will come down, not crashing anyway, but mostly will never sell, just stuck there forever, not moving.   To take a hit , a large hit financially is hard, very hard, and I've found the majority of people affected just walk away, but problem then is blight, nobody pays maintenance, place turns into a slum over a couple of years , happened all throughout Spain

  Gets that bad that suicidal thought emerge, not to feel like that,thesePIG in a POKE places are not worth it, just walk away

 

I too own a place in foreign land, doubled my money by getting shut through POA, but buyer cannot sell it as I do not give permission, and its gone up 8 fold over 7 or eight years, again its hard to drop the price after its been that high

this is how I see it also thereby giving the real estate bulls the opportunity to come on this forum for a long time to come and claim what downturn in the market?

36 minutes ago, JSixpack said:

 

Staff are exceptionally nice there--so far. Got some nice smiles. Must come from outside Pattaya, not yet accustomed to dealing w/ the idiot farangs.

 

Would be nice to build a big salad in the salad bar then go eat it over at a table at the new Took Lae Dee. Guess that's understandably not permitted.

 

 

" dealing w/ the idiot farangs."

are you included in that description and if not why not?

9 minutes ago, oceanyachting said:

stayed may times in a small village in Isaan and never heard that

you were probably sleeping

Quote

it is hard to avoid hearing soothing Thai music blaring over someone’s music amplifiers by 7 to 8 AM in the morning. If you are in a small town or village you will hear local announcements over public loudspeakers

http://vicaworld.com/life-in-the-country/

28 minutes ago, Happyman58 said:

rest well Adolf Hitler and Fidel Castro Thailand has learnt off you how to control the media Control the media and you control the people  Next thing we will be listening to Martial Music everywhere

if you have  ever stayed in a small village in Issan you will notice in the morning when you wake up the broadcast from the network of loudspeakers everywhere announcing news and other information. I don't know about anyone else but I've always found that to be quite Orwellian and a bit spooky!

On ‎15‎/‎05‎/‎2017 at 7:09 AM, Naam said:

i did not move to Thailand in order to enjoy free speech and i did not realise in all these years that crime increased.

well let's put it this way. I will never agree to pay a premium to live in a country where I can potentially get into serious trouble merely for     ticking " like on a Facebook page.

And as to crime increasing if you didn't realise that it happened maybe you would better ask some of the scores of Chinese who have have their jewelry snatched.

http://www.inspirepattaya.com/lifestyle/crime-wave-thailand-fact-fiction/

45 minutes ago, anotheruser said:

 

Maybe the point is to weed out those that can't? 

the way freedom of speech is deteriorating, crime is increasing with other social ills I can't possibly see how one can attribute paying a premium to living here. In fact quite the opposite I would rather pay a premium to have the flexibility of being able to move at short notice without having to write off that money when moving to one of the other neighbouring countries.

When considering the possible remedies by other owners when one or more people fail to pay the condo maintenance fee or indeed fail to comply with any aspect of shared and communal ownership, in my opinion Thailand has extremely weak legal provisions when compared to other countries that do have a sound Strata Titles Act.

Countries like Malaysia Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia in their condominium Acts all have the equivalent of a Strata Titles Commissioner who is an individual rather like an umpire who has wide and sweeping powers to actually legally enforce remedial action swiftly on his or her own.

I see no provision in the Thailand condominium act which suggests here you have to go to court to resolve any disputes. A costly and time-consuming exercise.

1 hour ago, Chivas said:

Why the abuse sunshine ??   Who said anything about storing millions of baht and valuables in either a bank or a purpose built deposit facility because I didnt  ??

I am more than happy to keep around £5000 on average in siam secure plus few documents. Frankly I'd personally trust these guys then a bank thats a franchise for christ sake in many cases.

Go siam secure have a look then update your thoughts here. Keep your stupid emoticons to youself in the interim

it doesn't take the storage of many gold bars to add up to millions of baht.obviously you have different criteria.

Could you please explain why you would trust " these guys " more than a bank?

I don't need to go to visit a private company to update my thoughts.

what protection does a customer at a private safety deposit company have against inadequate insurance of the facility or even the sudden closure of the facility and the proprietor absconding with the proceeds?

1 hour ago, gintis0604 said:

Try to go by wheelchair in Pattaya! How will they ever come TO a lift? 

In the middle of the streets?

that is impossible to even visualise

but then try to even imagine someone on a mobility scooter on the lame excuse for a road surface on Sukhumvit Road itself (because there is no  sidewalk ) with big buses on your tail

10 hours ago, JimCrane said:

condos here are a joke.

 

im in a new condo now, new building in pattaya, and already stuff is coming apart, pool furniture broken, grout on counters peeling off like tape etc

 

they just build this stuff like they want to make noise or employ cheap labor as much as possible

 

seems like things are built for appearances and short term gratification and whats underneath and long term quality and upkeep does not matter. 

" short term gratification and whats underneath and long term quality and upkeep does not matter.  "

Quote

 

The problems are primarily about the upkeep and the quality of the property and the unnecessarily high maintenance fees we are being charged," retired British expat Mark Robert Stephen said.

 

 

12 hours ago, swissie said:

"Safety-Box" in a Bank is a good idea. Especially to store precious metals.

Just to remember: In case of major financial disturbances (BANK HOLIDAY), ATM's will not work anymore and Banks themselfes will be colosed. ERGO: No access to your Safety-Box, in a time when you need access to your "Safety-Box" the most.

To bury precious metals in your front yard, can not be advised anymore. Rumor has it, that pigs can not only sniff out truffels, but also buried precious metals. So, observing Farangs, instead of sleeping in their House, sleeping in their front yard in a 1 man-tent: I know what the deal is !
Cheers.

 

 I'd rather take that risk with a bank than risking my Gold bullion with  anyone who is running a Private safety deposit company that I know nothing about 

14 hours ago, Chivas said:

If you're down pattaya way or dont mind where the box resides I rent a very secure box at siam secure off pattaya klang very professional run by a farang and around £100 a year. Google for more detail. I have no affiliation with them personally and no agenda

if you think there is any comparison whatsoeverbetween storing millions of baht worth of valuables in a bank deposit box versus one in a private company (where they have no legal standards or regulations to comply with ) then you must be delusional.

yes keep your furniture and low value personal possessions in these kinds of storage facilities  but not YOUR MONEY !!!

17 hours ago, yankee99 said:

The East lane of sukhumvit south bound is tore up half the length of the tunnel

exactly!  I see little advantage in the provision of a bridge for the handicapped at the entrance to the tunnel when to actually reach it the handicapped are forced to share the road (and even that isn't in a great state of repair) with trucks, buses cars and motorbikes because the sidewalk doesn't even exist

15 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

I have a number of colleagues and friends in their 70s who are earning six figure (USD) salaries in Thailand, they are certainly not mopping out the lavs.

 

Cleaning up other people's messes, yes, cleaning the lavs, no.

 

It's what we do, and why the monthly invoice is what it is.

 

And it's all legal and above board.

 

but in the OP's case it's not only the age thing - it's also hard to imagine how they could suspect  he was carrying out any kind of work because he claims was nowhere near exceeding 180 days in the country in 2017. 

22 minutes ago, Eff1n2ret said:

Well, he recounted some problem  that's arisen because of his preference for spending periods in Thailand of a duration and frequency that have caused Immigration Officers to doubt his claimed status as a tourist. Then he says it's "Food for thought for you other old fellas! "

Quite a few of us other old fellas have pointed out that unlike under-50s he has a fairly painless and easy remedy, so I can't say that he is high on the list for sympathy. I can understand if, as he says in #35, he doesn't want to commit 800k to a Thai bank account, but if he can't or won't use the alternative method, there's not much more to be said.

But us other old fellas are doing just fine.

I agree with everything you say about getting a retirement Visa.

But it still seems strange to me they suspect a 67-year-old is working here. I mean what kind of menial work would a person  be carrying out at that age?

About 10 years ago I remember a Singaporean guy in Bangkok who was in his 60s and lecturing at ABAC University telling me about his decision to retire in New Zealand (which he did) because he said after you  reach 60 even the students in Thailand consider you to be obsolete.

I know it’s not only Indian travellers that eat at these restaurants but they would certainly make up a large portion of the clientele. The ongoing cash shortage in India is definitely having some impact on Indian travellers in that some people simply can’t get hold of their money in cash . About a week ago I asked an older Indian guy here in Pattaya what the situation was really like back in his home as an alternative to me just reading newspaper reports and his reply was “ it’s very tight at the moment and a huge number of ATMs throughout the country are still empty “

http://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/demonetisation-effect-rural-india-still-faces-cash-shortage-117042900725_1.html

11 hours ago, JimmyJ said:

The reason I asked if I was wondering if the bank retains a copy of your key to the box.

They shouldn't but so many times I read something unusual on TVF with the response of "TIT".

 

It's normal, as in ThaiDown's case, for the bank to give 2 keys and have a fine if a key is lost as they have to replace the lock in that case.

 

 

yes but you put your valuables in a box which slides into the opening after the two outer locks have been opened.

I have two padlocks on the box itself and no one has a key to those except me.

4 minutes ago, ThaidDown said:

Bangkok Bank 900 THB ? year + 7% vat for small size. No deposit, if I remember correctly 1000 THB if either of the 2 keys provided were lost.

 

I have no idea about what other banks charge and I don't really care

I'm very happy with what I've got

3 hours ago, TonyClifton said:

What is the cost for a small one?  I don't need a big one.  

my box is small but it's certainly big enough for my small gold bars and the annual rent is 3000 baht which they automatically deduct every year from my SCB account