usasia8888

thank you for many of the replies

thank you. understand but doesnt seem fair. maybe other countries could stop thais from owning land in their countries.

as the lack of owning land in Thailand is a major issue for foreigners can't it change. Indonesia is! seems everywhere but Thailand !

that is such a loser point of who will never makes things better for the silent majority. obviously u r a passive person

With a friend like you......who needs enemies ?

A guy might be living and working in Thailand illegally, but chances are he's supporting (or supporting in part) a Thai family. Some criminals (eg, boiler room bosses) support a vast network of parasites and hangers on.

Depriving Thais of this support is a recipe for trouble.

It's best to turn a blind eye and keep your mouth shut.

If you can't accept the presence of foreign criminals in Thailand, go somewhere else.

kata rocks mite be considered illegal better stay away or just rent there for the moment.. but doubt they would pull it down....

there is a lovely condo development called Mandala condos at bangtao beach excellent quality or a new develop in surin beach

called The Sixth Avenue...

these 2 developments are top end Sixth avenue though still being built.... Mandala already complete...

good luck if you need additional comments don't hesitate to contact me i am not an agent but i have been looking

recently for a friend of mine also looking to buy a high end condo but not as south as kata or the southern part of the

island just too much travelling to from airport or golf clubs as traffic here not heavy...

there are also other condo developments in and around surin that are lovely, sabai sabai, surin park, come to mind..

that you AinP! very helpful and will also check them out although already looked into Mandala already. btw, why is Kata Rocks "might be considered illegal"? Seems strange for multi-award winning, high profile project.

I saw kata rocks sell penthouses for 90+ million for a leasehold. Ridiculous pricing for something you can't own.

Nothing is freehold. It's all BVI company stuff.

Very hard for resale.

Why is BVI hard for resale?

You can also check The Ark Karon. They have quite nice Penthouses with sea view. Not sure if still available.

Thank you & will check it out. My wife & I continue to do more homework and asking questions to developers of projects along with some other interesting opportunities all within Phuket Island. We probably will visit during November or early December this year.

i believe its the hokey pokey... and we can invite the girl who made the star and 6andles too.

What if the hokey cokey really is what it's all about ...

 
Which brand of hokey cokey?  I'm holding out for the one that provides credible evidence it's the right one.
 

Right or left. As long as you shake it all about!

Lets see. You are mid 50s, have a kid and they finish High School you will be mid 70s (almost 80). What about your financial responsibilities to yourself and family (including new TBD child)? what about the ability to do things with the new child (like playing with a grandfather)? what about future health issues (yours? new wife? new child)? Look can you have a new child, technically yes. but why? I just don't get it. I am 53.

and do they actually pay taxes while living in thailand? hmmm...

You DO NOT need to work in a country to make money while you stay there
 
MANY PEOPLE make money from the internet
 
But 90% of this forum is old people that have just learned the term "troll" so they think they are internet wise and can make comments based on a small minority of tourists that abuse the system
 
here is a new term for you OLD FARTS - its called a DIGITAL NOMAD - it is people that make money from the internet and enjoy traveling around the world. There is no available VISA for someone that makes money on the internet and enjoys Thailand - so either get married (NO THANKS), teach english for 600 dollars a month (NO THANKS) or leave the country
 
Great thinking 

and does he pay taxes in thailand?

A friend of mine is a writer type, contracts to all different companies, magazines etc. ALL of his work is done via the internet and as such can work anywhere with a fast connection - theoretically, He came to Thailand and decided on Cambodia because of the visa laws here. This is a guy who makes a lot of money and doesn't mind spending it. Thailand could have been in receipt of the money he fritters away on rent, cars, holidays and restaurants etc. No harm, no foul. Ridiculous.

Bangkok was ranked the world's most visited city with nearly 16 million people travelling to the Thai capital, ahead of London and Paris
 
 
sorry but London had 28 millions visitors and Paris 26 millions ..... I wonder where they got their information .

Never understood the draw to Bangkok anyway (well, for certain people, kitty and beer is all they think about) Personally I would MUCH rather spend my time visiting London or Paris than Bangkok anyday of the week, regardless of how much more expensive those cities are....I don't really find Bangkok has a whole lot of history either, the city is younger than New York, Philadelphia and even Boston....1782...I hate the smog, I hate the rush, I hate mostly everything about the godforsaken city, yet so many people love it....

i agree. i have never had a problem coming or going and 100% of my friends, colleagues and acquaintances never had problems staying as they followed the visa rules always. my wife and i are planning on retirement in phuket most likely. with all that i know first hand and read, the tightening or maybe better said enforcement of rules, the military ensuring better conditions like beaches taxis, clamping down on illegal land ownership, buildings, etc. makes it more attractive. im honestly shocked at how much many non thai just didnt follow the rules and yet while many of them complain, their home countries wouldnt allow overstaying, not paying taxes, etc.

i agree. i have never had a problem coming or going and 100% of my friends, colleagues and acquaintances never had problems staying as they followed the visa rules always. my wife and i are planning on retirement in phuket most likely. with all that i know first hand and read, the tightening or maybe better said enforcement of rules, the military ensuring better conditions like beaches taxis, clamping down on illegal land ownership, buildings, etc. makes it more attractive. im honestly shocked at how much many non thai just didnt follow the rules and yet while many of them complain, their home countries wouldnt allow overstaying, not paying taxes, etc.

The title of the article should read "Holiday in Thailand could end for expats who VIOLATE Visa laws"    I say more power to the government in enforcing its visa laws, those expats who do not abide by them should be kicked out of the country   I just wish that the U.S. had leadership that would enforce our visa/immigration laws

read all the posts, some common sense, some pretty funny. while FBs not the real issue. apply.some common sense with your intuition and upper brain and while don't be paranoid, watch for more signs. i think the making of excuses for FB is a sign of either hiding something on purpose which will have a bad ending for you or its a real issue of honest transparency between you and her. that is not a good foundation for your longer term relationship. good luck. my personal hunch is your being played.

I forgot to add that i called our us state department and no one could tell me the form number.

You may have already considered but make sure that IRS, FACTA, income, other income and SS benefits are coordinated. You don't want to find that proving your "income sources" don't tie together with the forms you must fill out for IRS, FACTA and so on as a US Citizen.

I was going to say Kata Rocks, but you've seen them, Supposedly Serenity Terraces are building more condos next to where they are now, and down the beach a couple of kms is Eva Beach, but supposedly they have a judgement against them pending, so might want to hold off on that development. Most "higher end" condos here are 2 or 3 bedrooms, so the 4 bedroom scenario makes things more difficult, probably why Kata Rocks is sold out of those units.

thank you for the idea on Serenity Terraces. Didn't know that. On Kata Rocks, maybe resale comes up. Markets are always fluid if you can wait. Have a nice day.

there's few high end condos with great location here but building material they are using is terrible i understand its a challenge to build in this climate with saltwater tearing

high end and quality look in bkk..

sukhothai residence

ritz carlton residence etc etc..

thank you. we have same view on materials so will look very carefully on this issue. Appreciate.

My wife and I (both expats) with intention to retire (we qualify as I am over 50) to Phuket within next year or two. Due to the challenges around land, entering into 30 year lease or thai company, etc, is challenging in our mind as we are quite young for retirement and may think of it as 50 years. Condo ownership seems to be the consensus however, since we are not familiar with all the developments of condos, thought to ask the Phuket Forum. Our strong preference is higher end luxury with 3 or 4 bedrooms (preferably 4) and the development should be very high quality. With so many real estate websites and other, can anyone point me to:

1. Phuket Condo Events (ie Convention, etc.) that happen during the year.

2. Name some developments either completed, in construction or planned which are high end.

We saw Kata Rocks and liked it however missed the opportunity for 4 bedrooms as they are all taken.

Ideas? Thank you.

my point was that so many Western men on this post go on bangin about how great Thai women are (are they all 100% amazing and perfect) and how terrible Western women are (some unkind comments). I am Western man (expat from US) and while happily married for 10+ years, I would say that there are wonderful women as well as not so wonderful women from all cultures. It seem too many men on the post were slamming western women but I wonder if they, the men, could compete in a market where there is more balance of education, rights, money and ability to be equals. I have traveled the world and seen good, bad, etc. In lots of Asia there is a real inequality of income between men and women, which makes men in other developed markets with smart, well educated and equal rights for woman more of a match. I am very certain there are some great western men who have found wonderful partners in Thailand and I am happy for them. But I have also seen way to many men in developing markets like Thailand not ideal candidates themselves and take advantage of the situation. Women in thailand don't have as many options and are poor, uneducated and have other family issues.

So I am not a troll commenting on another troll. if you think that, you are misguided, uneducated or just misread my comment too fast.

Troll posts removed.

This is the ladies section & as such we have much stricter rules to the general mysogyny many of you suffer from, I suggest you post elsewhere otherwise next nasty comment I see gets a thaivisa holiday.

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100% agree. it would be very interesting to see what some of these studs look like and if they could compete in other markets.

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I live in HK. Phuket, UK, Sydney and US all look cheap for what we get here in HK on per sq ft basis. However, we have very very cheap money rates (oversupply of cash in HK banks), low taxes and tightly controlled property to build on.

from California Fitness (Wikipedia)

California WOW Xperience (SET: CAWOW), a totally separate company, with the California Fitness founder Eric Levine as the CEO, was established when Thailand and Korea locations were spun off from California Fitness in early 2000s.

In August 2008, cross-membership agreements between California WOW Xperience and California Fitness and 24 Hour Fitness were terminated.

Despite company changes, California WOW Xperience is still frequently confused with California Fitness.

In 2012, California WOW Xperience found itself entangled in a financial dispute and was sued in Thailand's Bankruptcy Court by Bangkok Bank Plc. which sought the repayment of a 72 million baht loan including 4 million baht in interest.^[5] As a result, California WOW Xperience shut down seven of its eight Thailand branches. The company faced much criticism for continuing to sign up customers at the various branches until their date of closing. In August 2012, more than 200 members, many of whom found themselves unable to travel to California WOW Xperience's single remaining Thailand branch to make use of longterm or lifetime memberships, filed complaints against the company in hopes of being refunded. The Foundation for Consumers along with 100 former customers have filed a lawsuit against California WOW Xperience which is now awaiting a court order.^[6]

I just wonder with all the comments previously especially around the land issue, lease renewal (@ 30 years), etc and combining with what I see on several of the property "for sale" websites, who are the buyers and sellers at the 100mn to 300mn Baht Villas is see? Why would someone buy and/or sale at that level assuming the worst would happen? This doesnt make sense and wealthy people/investors are not dumb. Is it only Thai's who buy? are there structures which are use at the higher level assets are also relatively high but when spread out on expensive asset, the % is reasonable or low.

All of these properties are bought through the Thai company route, and the gov't knows full well about these. There was one in particular in Phang nga that the owner of California Fitness sold for either 12 million USD or 20 million USD and it was to a Russian guy. This was headline news in all the local rags and property mags/websites. A purchase doesn't get any more high profile than this.

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thank you very much for the information. Appreciate real transaction situations.