shiroboi

I'd echo the sentiment that Zeer Rangsit is one of the best IT malls.  It's just a hike if you're living downtown.  Not too bad if you have a car.  The new Dark Red BTS line is being constructed and should stop in front of it but that won't be finished until 2018 I believe.

There's a new website where we can submit ideas on how to "Make America Great Again".  Regardless of your political affiliation, this is a good opportunity for all us US citizens living overseas to tell how we feel about belonging to the only country in the world that taxes it's citizens overseas.

Here's the site.  You can submit any suggestion you want. 

https://apply.ptt.gov/yourstory/

I'm an American and needed a visa as well. Went to Hanoi last year. We did visa on arrival but had all the forms filled out ahead of time.

I feel like the real expense in Thailand comes from family. We're barely scraping by on 120K+ a month but I know for a fact that I could live in Bangkok very comfortably for 60K/Month or less if I was single. Chiang Mai is even cheaper. Small apartments are cheap. Motorbikes are cheap and the associated fuel is cheap. Street food is cheap.

The following items will dramatically increase your price of living:

-Women in general

-Partying

-A nice house

-Children in general

-School for said children

-Toys for Children

-Cars

-Fuel for said cars.

-Using western goods/food

I don't party but I think we're spending just as much as we did back in the US per month, possibly more in some areas.

If you're single, don't require much for life and are flexible, Thai life is super affordable.

I've had nothing but a fantastic experience with very few negatives since coming here 3 years ago to live. I met my Thai Wife in the US and she's been pretty Americanized so I suppose I don't have the cultural issues like many expats do. Learning Thai shatters a whole lot of difficulties and issues with everyday life. It gets easier every day.

I dressed up as Santa yesterday at Central and I was shocked at how well Santa was received by all the Thais. Hell, I had a Muslim family trying to get their kid to sit on my lap. Pretty cool.

"My country's government has really got their act together" said no one ever. Okay, maybe a few Scandinavians but almost all countries in the world, have negative parts. As citizens of our respective countries, it's our job to vote when possible and other than that, keep our heads down and manage our lives. Following Thai news constantly is a sure recipe for frustration. Ignorance is bliss. I do check the news every few days or so but tend not to get wrapped up in it. And I'm happy!

Are you going for entertainment value? Then it basically comes down to your personas and the underlying theme is almost irrelevant.

If you are going for informative then finding “hot condo deals” in Bangkok/Pattaya might limit your audience a bit.

I would broaden it to anything related to buying, building, renovating, and owning a condo in Thailand.

Part of this could of course be hunting for “discount property” but for entertainment value, it’s probably more interesting to look at the high end market, i.e. what does luxury living cost in Thailand and what does it look like? Here it would also be interesting to visit some of the businesses that cater to luxury living.

I'm still exploring the format and business model. I'd hope to build a business around potential lead generation but still try to keep it as independent as possible. A good example of commercial content with entertainment value is the "Make it Blend" show, where the host (if you haven't seen it). Blends up various things in a blender. It's obvious he works for the blender company but it's still very entertaining. I've been consulting with veteran real estate professionals. Just trying to get the right formula and idea. I think there's definitely a curiosity factor with foreign buyers, what's it like, what features does it have, what's the neighborhood like? Those are questions I'd like to answer.

hhgz - You're absolutely right. "Great deals" is a subjective term but it will be up to me the host/producer to try to make that decision and back it up with reasons.

I would be more interested in a real video recording of the upkeep state of condo units rented out to 30+ yo farangs...

I think that would vary from farang to farang. Know of any 30+ year old condos?

Premier Condominium in Soi Sukhumvit 24.

Thanks for the tip, could be a really interesting episode.

I would be more interested in a real video recording of the upkeep state of condo units rented out to 30+ yo farangs...

I think that would vary from farang to farang. Know of any 30+ year old condos?

You can get a new car for cheaper than 400K

http://www.suzuki.co.th/webpage/celerio/price.html

But for the money, I would much rather get a secondhand Mazda 2 for the same price. The Celario is a super crappy econobox. The swift isn't bad for the >450-500K range. Other alternatives would be outgoing mitsubishi Mirage, Honda Brio and Nissan March. All float around the 400K mark at their lowest options.

I see your point but wouldn't a 30 second video simply be a commercial or a product video. You don't really have a show without presentors or presentation.

But I get your gist, keep it focused on relevant content, show more condo and associated facts. I did want to maybe hit a few cool spots, "convenience store right around the corner, BTS is only a 400 meter walk, etc." That's typically what they don't cover in real estate videos. It's all model shots with very little else about the actual place and surrounding area. Trying to bring value and something different. Thanks for the feedback!

My point was that you should make a 30-minute video that contains 30 minutes of real content that tells people something. Not 1 minute of content and 29 minutes of pointless dross and waffle.

Some of the most informative TV programmes I have ever seen have only voice-overs and no presenters on-screen at all.

The magical word there is "informative". Informative content gets straight to the point. In essence, it's a straight commercial with just the facts. Informative content rarely goes viral. I need this to go viral or at least hit a certain threshold for sharing. I'm trying to do something different. If the hosts are good, most people don't mind a little banter between shots. Obviously, there's a balance between doing a show with guys just wasting time and a straight commercial. Maybe a 2:1 content to waffle ratio.

So basically copying this Thai website? Could work

http://thinkofliving.com/

https://www.youtube.com/user/thinkofliving/videos

RAZZ

Similar business plan I guess but with 100% less thai and 100% more beer. My goal is for this to be entertaining enough for people to watch who aren't just in the market for a new condo. I really want it to feel less like a corporate infomercial and more like two independent guys going around and discovering deals.

Thai people are already familiar with thailand and many areas but many farang aren't. Thus, showing the surrounding area has value. At least in my opinion.

Good luck finding genuine bargains. If you manage it, the really interesting video would be the, "How to" guide.

I'm not so interested in creating how to videos, however, I did think of putting a Q&A section of the video where we answer house questions so there should be useful takaway information in every episode.

We'll do our best to find good deals. The bottom line is, if we don't provide real value, the show will fail.

Sounds like an idea. The problem with most such things is that they tend to end up containing what seems like hours of talking heads and brainless prattle and very little of what the video is supposed to be about.

An example:

In 12 minutes of video I think you only see the actual breakfasts for about 10 seconds. All the rest is pointless dross that could have easily been covered in a 30-second voice-over. I really dont want to see the presenters at all in videos like this.

I see your point but wouldn't a 30 second video simply be a commercial or a product video. You don't really have a show without presentors or presentation.

But I get your gist, keep it focused on relevant content, show more condo and associated facts. I did want to maybe hit a few cool spots, "convenience store right around the corner, BTS is only a 400 meter walk, etc." That's typically what they don't cover in real estate videos. It's all model shots with very little else about the actual place and surrounding area. Trying to bring value and something different. Thanks for the feedback!

Hey guys,

Recently, I got the idea to do a web based show, sort of like a house-hunters in Bangkok and Pattaya but focus on hot condo deals and discount property. It would feature me, a US national and an Aussie who have both been living here for a few years. We would go around trying to find great condos in the Bangkok and Pattaya areas.

Rather than hunt for a condo for a customer though, we'd just be exploring on our own. Not only would we check out the condos but we'd survey the area and see what's fun, useful or interesting nearby. I plan to make it not as serious as a real estate video but a lot more funny and entertaining. Just two dudes in their 30's, having fun and finding cool places.

Really though, we're in the brainstorming phase and coming up with the format for the show.

I'd really love to hear from you guys. Would a show like that be interesting to you? If so, what would you like to see in the show? Thanks in advance for the feedback!

I just want to point out, I've noticed in both my Freed and Jazz that if you're absolutely empty and only put in 200 baht, it wont' register even though you have gas in the tank. Just food for thought.

Cool video, but commas or seperators desperately needed in title, like so.

VIDEO - Paul Oakenfold, Russians arrested, Jetstar diverted

I have a Honda Freed and I know you can get them used for less than 600k. It's nicer than the mobilio with power sliding doors. The rear seats completely fold up into the windows, and with the rear lift gate and low access, it would be super easy for dogs to hop up into with enough space for two medium/large dogs. It's compact and easy to drive in the city and gets great gas milage. Excellent all around car with great build quality and features. I'd highly recommend it.

had the same thing happen to me, I went in after about 5 months expired and had no problems getting my new 5 year driver's license. They said as long as you're not over a year, it's okay.

I do like the Focus, 170HP definitely puts it in the fun category.

It's funny, I just saw a Sirocco on my daily walk over to 7-11. I normally dislike VW's for making ugly, boring cars. So why is that car so damned sexy? I'm not supposed to like VW's!

Previous owner of a 2.4L Lancer Ralliart. No 2.0L GT is going to make that much power without a serious turbo upgrade. I'm sure the poster must be thinking about an EVO.

I have always liked the Honda Integra DC5 type R if you can bring yourself to part with nearly a million baht for something that old

http://www.one2car.com/for-sale/honda-integra-bangkok-metropolitan-rama-3-sathorn-rama-4/2179651/

http://www.pistonheads.com/features/ph-features-heroes/honda-integra-type-r-dc5--ph-heroes/30260

That's a lot of money for an early RSX. I considered buying one when I was in the states. A 2.0 L Civic would be a much cheaper alternative I think.

I test drove and wrote a review on the Mazda 2 diesel. I liked it but found it a bit pricey for a car in it's price range. Hadn't thought about tuning one. 145hp in a car that size would be a hoot.

As for the Citroen, I'm American so I'm not too familiar with French cars as they're not sold in the states. I'll have to look it up.

Wow, some great responses for sure. I hadn't even thought about the RX-8. That's tempting. Unfortunately a friend of mine committed suicide in his so it has ruined the car for me mentally.

Couldn't find any WRX's in the general price range. Maybe I'm not looking in the right places.

I thought the Fiesta EcoBoost could be a fairly fun car. For 700K+ you'd have some money left over for extras. Mazda 3 is a strong contender providing decent horsepower, handling plus good styling and interior. Defintiely a contender for new car. For used, I had looked at a Mini Cooper S. Never been wild on Mini Coopers but it's hard to deny the overal fun Go-Kart handling and manual transmission.

A used 3-Series is also a good suggestion. It's a pity they don't come in manual here.

And who said HRV? Cmon man, if that's your definition of fun, you need to get your pulse checked.

New or used, you want to have a bit of fun and you have 1Million Baht to spend on a car that gives you the most fun for your money in Thailand.

Please note in this highly hypothetical situation, your hypothetical wife will hypothetically kill you if you buy a hypothetical motorcycle. Hypothetically speaking.