kamalabob2

It will not be horrible to go and pay land taxes at the office that collect land taxes in Thailand. Do not give any government official ANY reason to "complicate" things for your in-laws, when you can keep things "straight" for a mere pittance. The analogy is a Thai person who does not get a Thai drivers license, does not get the mandatory liability insurance on a motorbike and keeps paying "fines" several times a month from Police just checking for proof of insurance and to see if the person has a valid Thai drivers license. Both items are dirt cheap, even for a village Thai person to do correct in the beginning, instead of being forced to pay "fines" at every police stop.

If you do not wish to stay a long time in Thailand, do not wish to ever have a building permit to construct a home, do not wish to ever have a utility in YOUR name, then you might have zero need for a free Yellow Tabian Baan. If you decide there is a benefit to you and your husband for you to be listed in a yellow Tabian Baan, then his Mother's home address is the address you would list. If you ever move to a different address in Thailand it is simple and free to get a new yellow house book if the new address is in a different Amphur. I moved from a village address to a town address at no cost and nominal time at the government offices. Far shorter time to obtain a yellow house book than the once a year visit to Thai Immigration in Bangkok. The type of visa you use to enter Thailand MIGHT help determine if you are qualified to be listed in a yellow Tabian Baan. Many Expats who live in Thailand all or most of each year obtain the Yellow Tabian Baan to save the expense and hassle of obtaining a proof of residence from Immigration or respective Embassy/consulate to conduct "everyday business" in Thailand such as signing up for utilities, building permits, renewing a drivers license, etc..

Perhaps you can contact the lawyers in Korat or get a price quote for your situation via e-mail from a respected American attorney at

http://www.usfamilyvisa.com/

A valid will for you in Thai and English along with a valid will in Thai and English for your husband is surprising affordable in Thailand from a trustworthy, experienced American attorney.

Do you have both an American Passport AND a passport from Israel? If you need the letter of residence, I suspect it will need to be from the embassy or consulate of the Nation which passport you use to enter and depart Thailand. Really paying land taxes for several years on farm land near Korat will cost less than a meal at one of the better restaurants in Korat.

Those all are valid questions and concerns. It would be well worth your money to meet in person with an attorney who is a native English speaker (assuming you are native English speaking). One of the sponsors of Thai Visa has a law office in Korat. The one question I am certain of is that ANNUAL land taxes are paid, they are nominal and you do get a written receipt. Land actually seems to have zones in Thailand, with the annual tax on farm land very cheap and even in a small town for residential land it is less than 26 baht a rai. Farm land annual property tax is perhaps ten baht or less per year. There is a much different tax on land sales, depending on how long the person owned the land, if they have more than seven plots for sales, etc... These are better questions for a qualified attorney. The "land office" can be an interesting experience for foreigners and SOME Thai people are fearful of some staff at this office. The staff where you pay your annual land tax are thrilled to see you as they do not have to mail out a notice if you go see them first and pay a few years land tax. It is NOT the same office as the land office.

Getting the land title changed to a "better grade' can be done very cheap if you have the time to wait in a rotation for land office staff to show up and perform accurate measurements. But this being Thailand, there is a "opportunity" to pay for "quick service". In my opinion it is worth the time (or speed up money) to have the land papers upgraded and cleared of any liens. The time and money spent this year with an excellent attorney will save you and the Thai family significant money and potential problems in the years to come.

The simple process to obtain a free "yellow house book" has been pinned on the Thai Visa Forum. Different Government offices have different interpretations of the rules, but it is NOT difficult. Look under the Housing, real estate pinned topics.

Bring ORIGINAL and good copies of all your "papers", including marriage, and the "proof of residence" which for US citizens you pay to get an embassy or consulate in Thailand. That "proof of residence" paper will list ANY address you want to put on the piece of paper, but that stamped piece of paper is crucial. I seem to recall four photographs, but look at the pinned topic for all the details. Your Thai citizen husband would be listed in a "Blue House Book", but you are in the "Yellow House Book". It does not matter who owns the house, it is a book with your legal address.

In my opinion, nothing is too "complicated" in Thailand, it justs takes a "step by step" approach to reach a goal. Money for an excellent attorney rather than a corrupt official (or less for a corrupt official) can speed any issue that to many Thai people "appear complicated". Good luck and have fun paying for five years land tax for a very small amount.

Our architect specified two types of "septic tanks" for our home in rural Thailand. We have a DOS brand Compact DCM GD "Domestic onsite Water Treatment" Polyethylene dimpled tank with airvents. There are several other brands commonly available in all parts of Thailand including "Safe" and "Diamond Brand". Two toilets and one urinal send waste to each DOS tank buried in our yard with air vents going up the side of a structure and then "cleaner" water overflowing to a series of cement rings. It was crucial that the tanks not be close to any wells. They are also the recommended distance from the house itself. Every large building supply sore has similar septic tanks in the display yard near the water tanks. Prices vary from store to store, from brand to brand. Like most everything on sale in Thailand, there are different "grades" with different lengths of the manufactures written guarantee. DOS puts a grade with a number on each septic tank.

When you buy the DOS or similar Polyethylene tank which range in size from 600 liters to 6000 liters it can come with a "set up" which included a "Multi surface cover" Flex hose, Plastic Media and "seed". I think I might have harmed our "seed by placing the "blue cakes" in our toilets. I was thinking I was in "Farang land" with toilets that flush to a municipal sewage treatment plant. So even though we did not have a smell issue I placed a one liter bottle of "JC Bio Clean" into each DOS tank and made a mental note to not buy any "blue cakes" or have anyone use any harsh chemicals when cleaning the toilets.

JC Bio Clean claims to be a "Microorganism consisting of Oxigenic Photosynthetic Organics, Bacillius, Lactic Acid Bacteria and Yeasts". The list price is 195 baht per liter, but a generous discount was offered by Surin Home Mart. They have a web site with some English at

http://www.janchawan.com/dealer(eng).html

From looking today at this web site it would appear that this company also manufactures septic tanks in various grades and water tanks.

They list a phone number and so does DOS on the brochures. If you have specific questions you might be able to get accurate information from the company technical representatives.

The DOS brand "seed" comes in a plastic bag and lists for 250 baht. DOS offers a "Bio Tab" with a list price of 165 baht. I suspect that every Home Mart and DOS retailer sells this and similar materials to keep your septic tank in working order.

In our home the sinks, showers, pool, bathtub, dishwasher, clothes washer, each bathroom has two "dry room" floor drains including a drain under a counter which has the water drain from an air conditioner condensor, and some rain gutters all drain into a series of cement rings in various locations in the yard. The 2nd floor balconies have proper floor drains and each drain pipe goes to ground level and eventually the concrete rings while hidden in the sandstone faced columns. Each four ring deep "tank" feeds to at least one more identical four ring deep tank. We live on a private road with no Grey Water pipe access. Many homes in our community close to main roads can run Grey water into municipal sewer pipes. The point is that not just water from a toilet has to flow away, there are quite a few "feeds" from a bathroom, kitchen, even exterior terraces to the concrete rings or municipal sewer system.

The SLOPE of your waste water PVC line from each toilet has to be correct, I recall this being one of the few times I saw a "spirit level" used in construction here. Not a simple feat when you have a bathroom on the 2nd floor and the toilet is not with it's rear end next to an exterior wall.

A plumber from Vancouver encouraged me to have a "crawl space" under the downstairs bathrooms to see the pipe slopes and to have easy access for any repairs to water and waste lines. It looked like a small wine cellar, but for modest money the builder added a suitable room under two bathrooms with brick walls and a concrete floor to allow for that purpose. We also could easy check the slope of the pipes to the respective DOS septic tank and Grey water cement ring tanks.

We have only used the interior bathrooms of our home for thirteen months. We have not had the need to phone for a "honey wagon", which in our community it seems have designated firms for each part of town.

I've been to the bus terminal that is ONLY for Nakhonchai Air in Bangkok several times. It is EASY if you are taking a taxi as any hotel front desk staff can write down in Thai the name in Thai language of that bus station. You must be clear to them that you are NOT going to Mo Chit. On the back of a brochure of NCA is a map in Thai showing that station. If you are with someone who can read Thai, perhaps a similar map is on the www.nca.co.th web site. Another option might be to have your girlfriend jump into a metered taxi (never a wait at this bus station) on her arrival at this station, and have her go to meet you if you are in Bangkok. That particular bus station is not far from toll roads so it is a quick trip to most anywhere in Bangkok. That bus station is not a confusing place as Mo Chit can be for foreigners.

One more thought on this subject. Be sure your wife goes to the proper Government office and pays the annual "land tax" which in our area I have been told by family is FIVE baht per Rai per year. No sense in any "complications" over her ownership of the land, even if a "share cropper" is working the land, the tax receipts will be in her name. The "property tax" inside an amphur where we built a home is 25 baht a year, but the tax on land zoned for farming is 5 baht in how I received the translation. That office will give a written receipt for the property or land tax.

Your wife is thinking in a proper direction and has suggested perhaps the most sensible option. You will read far more experienced posts in the FARMING section of Thai Visa.

You can see a very wide variety in both quality and prices of Security systems and all sorts of lighting at the "E5 ENGINEERING" show held this year at BITEC in Bangkok June 18,19 and 20. I attended this show three years ago at a different convention center and it helped me greatly in selecting lighting and security for my up country home. You can speak with technical and sales staff who UNDERSTAND and SPEAK English. The web site is www.e5thailand.com Interior and Exterior lighting, for normal residential applications and industrial applications. Security Lighting was on display when I attended.

I found that purchasing good quality lighting for our home in Buriram Province I got much lower price bids from an Independent Electrical fixture/bulb shop for both fixtures and quality light bulbs. They even gave a lower price than the manufactures representative would at the Home Pro Expo, let alone much lower than walking in the door of a Home Pro. Who ever does your lighting fixture installation just be sure to see the use of wire nuts and not black tape or "twist and pray".

I chose to have a CCTV system installed by the same firm that has experience in municipal transportation projects in Bangkok after getting detailed written price bids from six reputable security firms. This contract was signed well in advance due to rg6 cables, VFF wires and cat 5e cable being installed in conduit in our walls way before the plastering and painting process. I might have spent less money on CCTV had I realized the "value" and ease of the installation of the electric fence. The electric fence decision was made about the same time I had firm written price quotes of window security bars and three additional sides of metal fence toppings. The electric fence, intruder alarm and CCTV all have signs in Thai, with a Thai sign warning of cutting any power lines. The local Police have a fine arrangement for alarm monitoring in our community but T.I.T. and different towns have different policies.

You can see working samples of CCTV, security devices and lighting at the E5 Engineering show in Bangkok in both the lower price ranges as well as more expensive elaborate systems.

The one thing I have not yet sourced in Thailand is good quality SOLAR GARDEN lighting at a price that is not stupid. Being a Costco and Sam's Club member in California I was just spoiled with the selection of energy efficient, stainless steel l.e.d. solar lights that actually work and do not cost an arm and leg. But I never had elephants come by my home in California for 100 baht each so I'll not complain.

Here is a link to that computer on the Hong Kong site of HP.

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/hk/en/sm/WF...15-3375952.html

Perhaps the Thailand headquarters of HP can answer your questions about that model and if the MANUFACTURER will cover the warranty.

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/th/en/sm/WF...=reg_R1002_THEN

above is the link on the Thailand web site for Hewlett Packard listing this as a discontinued product.

"No guarantee at all" because of why? Not that computer repair has to be expensive in Thailand, but why not just a manufacturers warranty? You might consider taking a friend who is experienced with computers to see if this particular unit functions at the store PRIOR to giving Tesco money. I would not buy a 799 baht dvd player at Tesco (or most mass market retailers) without them plugging it in and testing the unit, even brand new current model from an unopened box.

I own an HP desktop and the service for the one minor repair it needed while the unit was UNDER the warranty went smooth at no cost and the one repair it needed AFTER the warranty expired costs the princely sum of 200 baht in Buriram at "IT RELAX" computer repair / sales shop by the night bazaar.

Quite a few posts on this exact subject on the SUVARNABHUMI AIRPORT forum in the Thai Visa Forum. I've accepted many things and government procedures here in Thailand, but this is one move that does have me thinking "W.T.F.!!" I feel so fortunate to have applied and received a multiple entry permit in early January 2009 and I noticed the sign at this booth area of Suvarnabhumi giving notice of the discontinuance of what has to be a real service to travelers. But "T.I.T." It is not like they did not collect real significant baht every hour at that airport office, they collect the same amount of funds just at different offices, but with no small inconvenience to most expats.

The 90 baht Thai language Magazines such as "Room" have advertisements for several Window and Door companies. You can get some ideas from www.glasslinethai.com and www.aluzat.com In my case I was given a list of recommendations from the native English speaking customer service representative of Guardian Glass in Thailand. Your architect and/or builder might have the names of window companies who they have a good working relationship with.

I went to the main offices of both Glass Line Thai and Aluzat to see actual types of windows, (casement, awning, single hung) glass doors, insect screens, shower doors, window locks, glass tints, and various grade levels of the aluminum plus different thickness of the glass. I went to two homes each in Bangkok by each of three window companies to see actual installations. I received a competitive price bid for UPVC windows from www.duro-products.com but did not meet with this company. The owners of Glass Line Thai, Aluzat, Dr. Temper and Duro Products all speak and understand English.

But selecting a window company does NOT have to be early in your building process, as the window company has to come out to your building site to do a 100% accurate measurement of EACH door opening, EACH window opening once the walls are done, roof completed and walls chapped inside and out of each opening. They could not measure the shower door openings until the tile was 100% completed in the bathroom. In our case, but I suspect it is standard, they numbered each opening on a copy of the house plans and made each window to exact size at a fabricating plant in Chonburi. So to install 73 windows took less than two days by four men. AFTER the walls were painted or walls had tile attached they came back for more hardware on single hung windows. A mistake we made was not having the kitchen tile man communicate with the window man as insect screens became a hassle to install on the casement windows.

In our case window openings CHANGED SIZE, even the number of windows, once construction started, by my choice, so if we had ordered windows early we would not have that flexibility.

If you are considering metal window bars and/or insect screens you have to really think about what type of window will be able to open, and how you will clean the windows and insect screens.

SEEING full size window models in the office of the window company and seeing windows at a home in Bangkok was a huge help. If you can attend the Architect Expo in Bangkok in late April or Early May you can see displays with a variety of products from Window Companies.

www.guardianthailand.com and www.agc-flatglass.co.th are two widely distributed glass companies in Thailand that most reputable window fabricators sell. When you are to the point of making a "request for bid" for your windows it would help if you specify exactly which glass you desire.

If you need Windows you might consider buying a 90 baht Thai Magazine such as "Room" and take note of the Window Company advertisements. Most have web sites and owners who speak and understand English. Last April and May at Impact Convention Center I visited the booths of major window glass manufacturers such as Guardian Glass, and many glass window, glass door fabricators such as Glass Line Thai, Aluzat and others. You can contact those companies who all have web sites, meet at their headquarters in and near Bangkok and be taken to installation sites. You can also see samples at the Architect Expo from many glass window companies later this month and early next month at Architect Expo in Bangkok. You can speak to the technical staff of firms such as Schimmer metal about Glass window and glass door frames.

I received written price bids from five companies prior to selecting the firm for our "Up Country" home. You can also contact the GLASS MANUFACTURING COMPANIES and get unbiased information about windows and window glass in Thailand.

In the Satuk Post office is a "cage" of sorts which holds the "village mail". I was told once a week the village mail is sent, NOT on a daily basis. It has been my experience in Buriram Province that to pay the minor money for a Post Office Box in our small town greatly shortened the time it took for us to receive mail from the USA. Now our mail is not waiting in the "cage" for a once a week delivery to the village. The postal box rental rate is less than $17 a year. There is a refundable key deposit, paperwork is given and a very good system for registered and EMS mail with proper paperwork implemented with the postal box.

It was the CPAC roof tile calendar, NOT cpa, which is available for free at CPAC roof tile dealers such as Home Mart which has 12 different house plans.

In 2004 I compared the rates and conditions of several TERM life insurance companies in California. Two firms had very similar low rates, one being AAA (as in auto club) LIFE INSURANCE. Well both companies sent out Eastern European nurses to do an in home MORNING health examination including a blood test. I was able to be cleared for the lowest rate category for health with both firms, BUT AAA Insurance wanted a MUCH HIGHER, more than double, annual premium since I had honestly indicated holidays in Thailand. The other company had no such qualms about holidays in Thailand. I compared the coverage benefits to the cost of an annual premium in 2004 and it was a much better value for my situation to enroll in a policy with a company in the USA rather than Thailand. Absolutely no problem to change the beneficiary name of the policy by mail. I was able to see "Insurance company ratings" and compare prices at www.insure.com in 2004. Being PHYSICALLY PRESENT in the USA is probably necessary to obtain a term life insurance policy with a USA insurance firm as the LOWER PREMIUM RATES are only given to the policies where you qualify via a MEDICAL EXAM. That 30 baht note form a Thai Doctor at the clinic might be sufficient for a Thai Drivers License, but not USA Life Insurance. There was no hassle or raised eyebrows to have the beneficiary to have a Thai name, Thai postal address.

In my opinion the Health Insurance provided from a firm such as BUPA is a great value for people who live at least six months a year in Thailand. Bought through an independent Insurance Broker, not directly through the Thai health insurance company in my experience is the better way to proceed.

The "life and health" policies bundled together and sold in Thailand seem a very poor value for BOTH the health insurance aspect AND a poor value for the Life Insurance coverage considering the premium you would pay.

In many Home Marts and in many of the "building permit office" at a local Government office complex you might find paper back copies of the "free Government House Plans" which as I recall is actually three different books. One of the books I viewed had plans for smaller sensible homes for Thai people and in those books it sort of had an estimate of building costs. As I understand these costs might not be quite up to date, but certainly you and your wife looking at the book (loaned free as I recall) you can get a real idea of house and room sizes. I recall seeing homes listing a building cost in that price range, especially if family do the vast majority of the work. These books of plans have been written mentioned in MANY posts on Thai Visa and are approved plans done by Thai Architects. These are not house plan books like you would BUY at a book store, rather sensible house plan books for helping Thai people self build a safe home in a Thai community.

Another house plan book at the Government office was for "shop houses" and another for larger and two story homes. They had some nice looking basic homes with plans suitable for family house builders.

Even the CPA roof tile calendar has basic house plans with a drawing of what the house could look like. Some very small homes, some a bit larger on this free calendar from Home Mart.

Wild cards would be what level of electrical and water hookup you all feel is safe and appropriate, and how close to municipal water supply and/or provincial electricity supply wires the family home would be. What grade paint, what brand of paint and how long you want it to stay painted could change your budget. Roof tile could be sheets of tin, or any of the types made by CPA and it's many competitors. The type of roof "tiles" could change that suggested price greatly, but sheets of tin like MANY village homes have installed would keep your INITIAL building costs low.

You can get straight answers in English about ULTRA KOOL from a good Home Mart such as the "Khun Muk" the owners daughter of the Surin Home Mart who was educated in England or directly from the experts at www.scg.co.th They have many technical advisors at Siam Cement Group that will e-mail, postal mail or speak with you about any product they sell. Ultra Kool is an easy product for your building staff to work with IF you get them the Installation directions in Thai, regarding the proper "air gap", etc..

Not EVERY Home Mart charges the same price for the exact same product, it pays to shop around. Delivery options can vary between Home Marts.

You might call the official DISTRIBUTOR or Importer of the gate motor and explain your concerns about the dealers lack of service under the warranty. If your Bangkok dealer is the sole importer, then you could e-mail the manufacturer and explain your situation. It has been my experience that the manufacturers or distributors in Thailand would "step up" with service if the local dealer was not qualified for the service after the sale.

Eraymos: It really looks like a fine job on a sensible sized home. I especially like the fact that you or your builder has taken steps to deal with rain water, roof gutters and downspouts PRIOR to rendering or painting the exterior walls. You won't have to make gutters an "after the fact" project.

In my experience an item you might want to address when your electricians are wiring your home is to install in your ATTIC two Philips TCH065 1 X 21W or the slightly smaller sized Philips TCH065 1 X 14W Maintenance free VERY affordable T5 florescent light all in one fixture. No ballast or starter or bulb to buy it is a self contained unit that will last as long as your home. WHY would you want a couple of lights controlled by a ground floor single wall switch in your attic you might ask? Simple you will have cause or concern to go up into your attic space to look for possible leaks BEFORE the leaks show on your ceiling. You will save money and grief by checking for roof tile leaks on any big RAIN with WIND, instead of waiting for spots to show on the ceiling. These EASY to wire, very cost effective light fixtures are at most every Philips dealer including stores such as Big C. Two of these energy efficient light fixtures will illuminate your attic area FAR better than any normal flashlight. It will be a very minor cost to have two of these lights installed in your attic and forever you have the comfort to know you can just switch on a light switch to check for any problems (or creatures) in your attic.

I also think you have good sized windows and I wish you a smooth completion on your home building project.

T DOG: That beautiful Bali style home is NOT my home. I could only wish, but the architect for that attractive home in a Buriram Village was busy designing a home in the South of Thailand for the owner of California WOW at the time we wanted plans for our home. For our home we wanted in a more modern style but the wide verandas of the Bali style home were a major inspiration for the home we had an architect in Buriram design. So it would not be my place to get a copy of those plans.

The architect Expo has a web site just like the name and this link might open the web page. I've been to five different "expos" in Bangkok, and in my opinion for someone looking to plan, build or remodel a home the best use of your time would be to visit the

http://www.architectexpo.com/showprofile-arc.html

which starts in late April at Impact in Bangkok. Last year over 750 different exhibitors had booths so you really can see quite a few products and services in one place with zero pressure to purchase.

Just a wild guess, they might get a shock, the siren might activate and the signal might go to the local Police department. So much easier for a thief to throw a truck floor mat over a barbed wire fence which will make no noise, not shock him and not contact the police.

What appears from the street to be a building on the LEFT side of the front view photo posted above (with Fortuner in the photo) is actually a Sala type area that sometimes has unsavory expat guests. OUTDOOR Living I think is a key to enjoying a home in Thailand. With or without a pool, an outdoor COVERED Sala or Veranda is a feature you might consider in your custom designed home in Thailand. It will not break any building budget to have a simple Veranda or Sala but you will get hours of enjoyment living out of doors each week.

He certainly will have an interesting plan to show a Thai draftsperson or Thai architect that can be translated to Thai PRIOR to getting bids from Builders in two years. When you are much closer to being in a position to build a home, perhaps consider going to meet a few Thai Architects, obtain prices for complete plans with engineering plans which will pass at the local planning department without having to pay a bribe. You might be pleasantly surprised at the modest cost you can have a licensed Thai architect design your home in Thailand. When I got quotes in 2006 from four Thai architects it was always based on "per square meter" of living space. When my wife and I selected a local Thai architect who had the lowest bid we met with this architect over thirty times before the final plans were ready for bids from builders. We must have visited the interior of seven local homes with this architect to see first hand the ideas she or I suggested for our home.

A key factor will be for you to drive to and look INSIDE homes already built that are designed by potential Thai architects in your area.

If you are already in Thailand it is well worth your time to visit the Architect Expo at Impact in late April and Early May. Not only design ideas as the name of the expo implies, but the widest variety of building materials are showcased in booths both small and large, most with staff at the booths who speak some English and can answer your questions. I attended last year, there was no admission fee and I came away with many brochures on suitable home building products. I wish I had attended in 2007.

I do like the idea of a kitchen towards the front entrance to a home. That is the case in the photo of the attractive home in a village near our home in Buriram province. I am no expert, but perhaps the 2nd bathroom in your plans should have a shower. Like other Thai Visa Forum members who have commented on your drawings, perhaps you should consider only two bedrooms.

The home in these photos I am posting has only two bedrooms of comfortable size and a one bedroom guest house was added as a separate structure towards the rear of the property. The side covered Veranda of this beautiful home is used daily for entertaining, eating and when any monks perform a ceremony. The window above the kitchen sink looks out onto the front yard of this home. This home is NOT on Koh Samui or Phuket, it is located in a small village between Satuk and Khaen Dong in Buriram province and was designed by an architect.

The Oppo dvd players, same exact models as sold in the USA (they are all dual voltage) are also available in Thailand for a tad more than you can pay in America for the same Chinese made model. They play ALL the legal DVD's I have sent from America, and any legal Thai dvd's, not to mention the "early copy" dvd's from Vietnam, Indonesia, and Bangkok. There are quite a few articles you can google on Oppo and we have no problems. Soken might be the distributor in Thailand, but it you are in the USA you could try the machine there, pay less there and have return "rights". You could easily pack that DVD player in your luggage when you relocate to Thailand. Genuine Blue Ray discs and players are still very expensive in Thailand. The Pantip Blue Ray discs are perhaps only "packaged" as such, just like the blue ray discs from Vietnam. Costs for legal blue ray discs might come down in Thailand, but before you move here you might look at the back of the blue ray players to see if they are dual voltage. If you see the costs here on a blue ray player you would be shocked. The same legal Blue Ray discs sold in Thailand will play on a USA purchased machine and vice versa.

http://www.piyanas.com/product.php?cat=124...4e20d38c21515e1

Piyanas is an authorized and reputable dealer of many audio products in several locations of Thailand.

I'll make a very educated guess that ALL, but the most basic, Stainless steel fabricator shops (often they make windows, fences of various metals, rolling fences, security bars, roll up doors) have CATALOGS from the various European electric gate motor manufacturers. EVERYWHERE in Thailand. The trick is to see the INSTALLATION they have ALREADY done in your area and get in writing the "after the sales" service agreement. EVERY stainless fence company we priced in Buriram Province immediately pulled out catalogs for Italian gate motor companies. It seems to me that getting the wires installed UNDER the concrete, BEFORE the gate "metal track" was installed was an important issue. Not to mention having electricity AT the gate area. But really it seemed to me that this was readily available Up Country, no need for a trip to Bangkok on this item. I was surprised at how many gates in our community had locally installed gate motors. All of the models we were shown had remotes. INSTALLATION ability and follow up service ability with REFERENCES seemed crucial to me.

With or without a Thai Drivers License there are plenty of "universal entitlements" in Thailand. You can buy beer at most any Mom and Pop shop at any open hour of most any day. You can find a decent Thai food stand or restaurant in most any neighborhood, most any village.

All but ONE park and all the Zoos that I went with my Thai family the past three years gave me the Thai price on admission. Something about the one sign in Thai stating:"Thai CITIZENS" when most all other places say "Thai RESIDENTS". At least that is the "translation" I received from my wife. The Thai Drivers License also makes you qualified for the so called "resident rates" advertised by many hotels in the local publications. Those rates are not always the lowest.

The same deal applies in Las Vegas, where holders of a real Nevada Drivers License or Nevada State Identification card can buy tickets to Casino shows and SOME hotel "Locals deal" at "locals rates", but have to show the Nevada Drivers License ? I.D. to qualify for the lower rate.

But besides getting you more smiles from Thai Police at random stops (unlike the extortion stops) you really will save a great deal of time and frustration attempting to tell a delivery person where to send a washing machine since your address in Thai is on the bi-lingual Thai Driver's License. When you sign up for any "membership card" or first time admission to a hospital or dentist office you can just hand your Thai drivers license to the clerk who really might not UNDERSTAND English, but she can READ Thai.

It is well worth the effort to obtain a Thai Drivers license in my opinion. Getting the five year license was even easier and faster. It works out to less money than some legal or otherwise "International Driving permit" and it sure would seem a safer legal position for you, in the event of a traffic accident if you live here more than 6 months.