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JB300

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Posts posted by JB300

  1.  

    as you seem to be in the know, could you please elaborate further WHAT things are changing?

    I wouldn't say I was "In the know" but it does seem like there are more & more reports of people being fined when it comes to dealing with immigration if they haven't done a TM28/TM30 when returning to Thailand.

    Reports are coming in from all over (with the noticeable exception of CW in Bangkok) so it feels like a crackdown, possibly a result of the terrorist attack last year or a result of the "Good Guys In / Bad Guys Out " drive but they do seem to be enforcing the rules that have been around for a longtime.

  2. No its cool I will give you a general range as the owner gave me a great deal since I know her.
    Sansiri started out renting even the low floor places for 25,000 per month.  Now, they have lowered those quite a bit to $18,000 for the least expensive low floor.  But I think you can negotiate with private owners better a guy told me he is paying $16,000 a month.
    I have a one bedroom high floor.  There are no studios.  It is small 30 sq meters but it is only me.  The living area is large enough I have a 50 inch TV in there and it is really nice.  The kitchen is small but again, just me and I don't cook so...
    The higher floors mostly go from 20,000 to 25,000 per month.  Maybe even lower.


    Thanks, that's really useful [emoji1303]
  3. I live at The Base.  Looking out at the ocean as I type this from my high floor apartment. I rent here.

    Yes this place does have 1000 rooms.  There are still many unsold and many that fell out of escrow(or whatever they call it here).

    Also, as others reported this is a big AIrbnb, broker site place.  Last week it was a zoo.  Many Chinese tourists even some Russians which I never saw before.  It has quieted down now. 

    I have reported before this place is a good many maker if you rent several places long term, then sub let on AIrbnb or another site. 

    The location is fantastic, everything is new, and the pool in building A maybe the best view in the city.

    Anyway, I love it here just signed on for a year extension.

     

    PS:  They do have some flyers around and in the elevators regarding short term rents as against the rules.  But they do not enforce it.  I think they will allow this for some time as it does bring in potential customers who may decide to buy here in the future. 

     

    To add:  I never believe what sales office tell you.  But I just walked my floor and the floor below.  40 units total.  17 still had the plastic on the door which means noone is occupying the place.

    Looks a really nice place but Hipflat has it as being > 60% more expensive per sqm for buy/rent than the surrounding area.

    If you don't mind me asking, how big is your unit & how much rent is it per month for a 1 year contract? (Obviously feel free to tell me to mind my own bl##dy business if I'm being too intrusive :))

    Cheers

    JB

  4. Had this with a Dell before & it was the graphics card, try rolling back the Drivers if you've updated recently or updating them if they're out of date.

    As a matter of interest, does it happen when the machine has been off for sometime (try unplugging it & removing the battery for a while). If it doesn't happen when it's "cold" it's probably a hardware fault.

    Obviously if you have access to an external monitor try it with that to rule out a problem with the screen

  5. As another poster pointed out, diet soda is full of sodium and other harmful stuff.  I was addicted to diet colas: "Coke Zero", "Diet Coke", "Pepsi Max", ect. but after heart bypass surgery several months ago, I did some research and dropped diet soda completely.  

    Fruit juice and plain soda is OK but the juice can often contain a lot of sugar.  I've been really enjoying ice tea.and find it fills my need for a beverage with flavor.  Thai "Number 1 Tea", in the square red can sold in most markets makes great tea. I usually make it in 2 or 3 liter batches and put it in old soda bottles and refrigerate it.  It will stay fresh for about a week.  

    Because standard tea does contain some caffeine, I also buy a variety of herb and fruit teas like apple and strawberry; often mixing them for new and interesting flavors. This really gives a nice variety of beverage choices.

    Hey something wrong with the quoting here!!! I certainly drink alcohol but never diet soda (on the rare occasion I have a soda I'll have the full fat variant) :)

    Not a fan of iced teas (unless it's part of a large pitcher of Long Island iced tea) but quiet enjoy (hot) green tea, will have to try mixing a few flavours up, Apple & strawberry sounds great [emoji106]

  6. From 2008 to 2012 most of my funds were tied up in a legal dispute back in the US and I lived in Bangkok on just about the amount ($850/mo.) that the OP specified.
    I was fortunate to already have a very large and comfortable studio apartment that only cost B5500/mo.  I did cut my cable TV back to the most basic plan but maintained internet service.  The only real sacrifice was using the AC, which was very old and inefficient, only on the hottest nights. Between rent, cable TV, internet, water and electricity, my monthly costs were about B8000. 
    I never really felt deprived.  I'd meet friends during happy hours and enjoy a brew or two, eat at good but inexpensive restaurants and cook my own food between times. I was still able to travel around the country by bus when I felt like it.  I also learned to use local city buses to get around Bangkok when I wasn't in a hurry. Often not that much slower than a taxi.
    Funny thing was, when I finally won my legal action and the my money was free'd up, my life here really didn't change that much.  I kept the same apartment because I like it. Got my True Gold TV package back and found myself so bored with it's insipid offerings that I went back to basic. Happy hour is still the best time to meet friends and my favorite restaurants haven't changed.  About the only big change is I bought a new AC unit and it runs just about 24/7 whenever I'm home.
    Obviously, everybody has different standards of comfort but to say that one can not live with reasonable ease on $850 a month is just not true.
    Of course, as somebody pointed out, if you factor in health care and providing for whatever the future holds, then $850 doesn't cut it.  I was fortunate that I stayed healthy during that period.  If I had had some serious health issue or an accident, I would have been in trouble. 
     


    What did you do for a Visa?

  7. My apologies. You are correct but nobody in their right mind would pay 3,000 odd pesos when  2 month extension costs only 4000 odd pesos. The prices do vary up and down depending on how many extensions you got previously and I do believe it possible to get a 6 months extension. I also arrived here without an outbound air ticket which is never supposed to happen.



    No problem, I could have worded it better :)

    I honestly thought you had to do the 1 month to get to 59 days before you could start the 2/6 month cycles but the rules do change (though not as often as Thailand), heard the other day that you're only allowed 2 x 6 month extensions in any 36 month unbroken period.

    You are right about the PR/SRRV though, since they seem to have dropped the $350 or so annual fee, it's a much more compelling offer.




  8. That's very Pedantic of you. 

    Nothing to do with pedantry, there was a price for a 1 month extension which somebody (you) said doesn't exist I pointed out that the first extension is 1 month (ok technically 29 days so 1 month if it's a February in a leap year ) so what's the problem?

  9. On 28/12/2016 at 5:45 PM, lungnorm said:

     

    These prices are totally incorrect and the last parts are non existent. Once you obtain your Permanant Residents visa there is only an annual reporting fee of only $8 and a 5 yearly fee for a new ID card of $50. Nothing else to pay. No such thing as a 1 month extension its 2 months this can be done until you have been there 36 months then you need to leave the country for a visa run. So its more convenient to get P.R. which costs no more than 2yrs of 2 monthly extensions.

    Technically the 1st extension is for 29 days to take you up to 59, then you can extend in 2 or (in larger towns) 6 month blocks up to a Max 36months

     

    Re PI vs Th, I love the Philippines, have a Filippina gf (7 years) & we own a very nice house in Kapalong (2 hrs. North of Davao City) but when I leave Singapore next year, plan A is Thailand (That's if I can convince her to leave PI, she's happy enough in Singapore but doesn't want to live anywhere but here or Philippines).

     

     

  10. @Tech Doctor Captures of tracerts attached - (Eclipse is my UK ISP)

    586b6ce08bbd6_tracerttechthaivisacom.JPG.87e009530c1dc62820b0baefbfe918dd.JPG

    586b6ce428588_tracertthaivisacom.JPG.2d7d4dd0f1c736a570d338fecec04b71.JPG

    Strange you're routing through PCCW which is a Hong Kong telco (from Singapore it doesn't).

    Nb. Just because a Tracert/PathPing etc... Requests time out doesn't necessarily mean that "Normal" traffic isn't flowing freely as it's quite common to block certain ports/protocols whilst allowing to stuff you want to flow through (also did 30 years in Software development from Developer to Enterprise Architect but always hated troubleshooting network problems)

  11. Sorry you had such a bad experience & I have had similar in AC, Manila & a little bit in parts of Cebu so do know what you mean.

    In my gf's defense, she wants us to stay in Singapore so by saying no to Thailand thinks we'll do that but when she understands that's not an option she'll come around, can't blame her really, we're not married so she wouldn't have any security if I was to pick up with somebody else.

    Asianscouser eh? I'm a Warrington lad myself :)

  12. By Philippines do you mean Manila/AC or the "Real" Philippines (Davao, Bohol, Boracay, Palawan, even parts of Cebu are completely different).

    Nb I'm not disagreeing with you, I've always preferred the Filipinas but my gf of 7 years has no desire to move to Thailand so we already have a house in Kapalong (2 hrs north of Davao) & I'm looking for something in Thailand so we can split our time (or split up, love the Philippines but not living there full time) when I leave Singapore in March 2018.

  13. They never asked me for a visa, even when arriving on a one way ticket. I've been coming back to Thailand on a regular basis since 2010, mostly from Bali and the EU. In Singapore they once asked me for an onward ticket when flying to Jakarta but that's because Jakarta immigration tends to ask for it but I can't really imagine the same happening when flying to Bangkok. Next month will be my first SIN-BKK flight so I guess I'll find out.


    Normally they can see you have a return ticket so no need for them to ask, however when I've flown open jaw or using 2 x 1 way tickets with different airlines I'm always asked in Singapore when flying to the Philippines but have never been asked when doing the same to Thailand.

    Have been asked once when flying Sin-KUL & once when flying KUL - DMK (was a new airline & clear the counter staff weren't sure about the rules for onward tickets).

  14. As lots of people have commented, it depends on where & what kind of lifestyle you live...

    My planned Budget (which I make sure is less than my available spends) is roughly:-
    - Rent/utilities/mobile/internet etc... 25,000
    - Groceries 15,000
    - Misc Expenses (local travel, laundry, haircut, stuff) 1,000
    - Health Insurance 5,000
    - Entertainment/Eating out etc... 20,000
    - Hobbies (mine is Travelling) 30,000
    Add in 4,000 for Visa expenses (cheaper if using retirement extension of stay but not far off a 1million TE over 20 years) & you get to 100,000.

    My Budget was based around £2,000 pm but this only buys 88,000THB at the moment, fortunately I have assets in Singapore so switched to a Budget of s$4,000 per month, but this does highlight how FX changes can hurt you (original £2k was giving me 110k THB at 55:1 so a 22k pm drop).

    Other thing to watch out for is inflation, you're 52 at 3% inflation you'll need approx £1,850 to maintain £1,500 purchasing power when you're 59, approx £2,300 when you're 66





  15. I am confused about when needed/how to file TM28 & TM30.
    Background: Non-imm O-A issued 8 Feb, 2016
    Entered: 17 Mar 2016
    Did 90-day report on 10 Jun 2016 in Samui with only TM47
    Left: 14 Jul 2016
    Will re-enter: 21 Jan 2017
    We will be staying in Bkk condo for 2 weeks rented through HomeAway before driving to North & staying in hotels.
     
    Can I claim to be House-master to fill out TM30 in Bkk?
    Will I need a TM28 also? Have never filed one. Only TM47 for 90 day report.
    If I stay at hotel, do I need to file TM28/30?
     
    Thank you for setting me straight. Happy New Year to all.


    Nothing to do... The Condo owner you're renting from should do the 1st TM30 (we won't get into the legalities of renting a Condo for less than 30 days) & the hotels you stay in will/should register you each time you check in.



  16. Ok. That's was my question. I am on Non O 1 year multi entry (based on Thai child). I am working in neighbor country and then in / out of Thailand very of often ( mostly every weekend and few weeks during vacations).
    About 2 years ago, while I needed a certificate of residence (for banking purpose), the immigration office asked to get my address register first: owner to fill a form, copy tabien baan, ID... it was easy as my son is the owner of my house. They stappled a paper "notification of alien..." in my passport and asked me to keep it always. That's it. Since, i have been in and out of the country multiple times, got new passport and new non O multi entry but never been to report my address again to immigration office again. My address in Thailand has always been the same for the last 15 years and I might stay in hotel only when I am in Bangkok some weekend or travelling within Thailand while on vacation.
    Am I missing something or should I have something else to do?


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


    #Logically/Thechnically#...

    1) You arrive in Thailand & return to your last registered address so house master should complete a TM30.

    2) You arrive in Thailand & stay in a hotel (who will register the TM30 for you) & then go home, House Master should register a TM30 for you.

    But they've been a bit lapse around enforcing the rules & now things are changing in some places (Phuket, CM, HH, Patts/Jomtien amongst others)
  17. You have to show proof of new address when changing, so TM28's cannot be mailed.
     
    TM30's can be mailed if your office will accept them.
    The notification of residence of foreign nationals is made by the manager of licensed hotels according to the hotel act, owners of guesthouses, mansions, apartments and rented houses using the form TM. 30.
    The notification of residence of foreign nationals within 24 hours can be made in a number of ways to make the notification as convenient as possible:
     
    • In person at the respective office, or
    • Through an authorised person at the respective office, or
    • By registered mail, or
    • Via internet.
    http://immigration.go.th/nov2004/en/base.php?page=alienstay


    Can't find a link to the url so I'm assuming the Internet option is for hotels etc...
  18. Hi
     
    its a new year  and I would like to work on lowering my blood pressure
     
    My blood pressure was around 130 and the last check was 155/80 , ( not sure if thats a rogue number)
     
    so i would like to lower it back to around 130 or less , but would rather not take drugs ,
     
    I am about 10  pounds overweight ( all in the gut) , walk a few KM 3-4 times a week  , longer walks when I am in BKK, ( like an hour or 2 exploring the city)
     
    I do not drink alcohol  , but do drink a lot of Diet soda , 
    do not add salt or sugar to anything
    and do not smoke
     
    Looking at http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/in-depth/high-blood-pressure/art-20046974
    Consider boosting potassium. Potassium can lessen the effects of sodium on blood pressure. The best source of potassium is food, such as fruits and vegetables, rather than supplements
     
    So are there any foods I need to stay away from ?
    foods I need to eat more of ?
    Or things like fish oil that would help
     
    Thanks for your ideas ,  there are so many "studies" which conflict with each other that it gets confusing  :)
     


    Stop drinking the Diet Sodas as the stuff they put in them makes them worse for you than the full fat versions... https://www.yahoo.com/beauty/5-ways-diet-soda-makes-you-gain-weight-143733066.html

    If you like carbonated drinks, get sparkling mineral water & add fresh juice to it (I usually go with 60% water, 40% juice but you'll soon find the mix that works for you).

  19. JB300:

     

    one thing... a Thai retirement visa doesn't mean no Thai wife(s). most of us do have wives... ooops. at least one.

    but just like with many things, but especially immigration stuff.... there's no one simple thing to it at all....

    Singapore sounds right for you.... but it has nothing to do work permits or Thai retail bank accounts...... or money itself.  

    I think I know what you're getting at ;) you probably think I'm making a mountain out of a molehill and I can see how if you're settled in Thailand & rarely leave it's not even that.

    Bit different when you travel a lot & after getting back from a 10+ hour slog to visit the gf in Kapalong (2 hrs north of Davao) having to traipse to immigration to tell them you're back at the place you told them you would be on the TM6, that's going to get old really fast.

    As ive said, I love Singapore but wouldn't live here unless I was working (honestly don't think I could trust myself not to work if I was living here).

  20. You have made some crazy assumptions on your own regarding report to the immigration, re entry etc. If you are more happy elsewhere then you better do that and come to Thailand with large money and spend it here.

    Care to share which assumptions I've made that are "Crazy"?

    AFAIK, (technically) a TM30 needs to be filed each time you re-enter the Kingdom... Not an assumption, it's a fact.

    Whether it's filed by you, your wife, the landlord or not at all doesn't detract from the fact that (technically) it needs to be filed.

    Thanks to some great advise on here, I'm feeling much more comfortable with that requirement than when I 1st (in a somewhat drunken state) started this thread.

    Happy 2017 guys, may your beer be cold & your partner hot :)

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