Inquisitorial

Great video, great memories for you both, thanks for sharing.

How long did it take you to edit the video?

OP is only trying to provoke which appears to be working......

Take a step back, evaluate what is important to you and enjoy life wherever you may be.......

Off to get a foot massage cant get that in US for $5

If it is rule in your Apartment block that there is a Non Smoking Policy in all common areas including the swimming pool deck ask the Juristic staff to contact the owners as it is likely that in the lease agreement that they have to abide by the rules e.g.

The tenant SHALL FOLLOW General Rules and Regulations of the Building

Managed Juristic Person.

Is there signs stating "no Smoking"in these areas? If not ask them to be installed so everyone knows the rules

Is there an area outside designated for smokers, if not they should provide a smoking area.

Not sure if this would work or is doable....

How about introducing those cards like they have the food halls where you put 100 baht or so on them then you can purchase food and if not used money is refunded at checkout. All purchases for food and drink are made with the cards.

Guests select amount at check-in and top up when necessary.

Certainly a lot of hidden costs that one need to add to the budget when applying for the Visas

Thanks for all the info. Most appreciated.

Thanks guys, looks like it is the OA Visa with extension is the one for us.

Thanks so much for the above, Sorry, some more questions.

If we were to apply for the Investment Visa our Condo is in joint names - would that mean we could only get 50% of purchase price to count towards the $10m its the same with our bank accounts are in joint names?

With the retirement Visa do they take into account if you own a Condo - I have not seen this mentioned anywhere so assume not?

As mentioned above and as we are over 50 we are thinking that we will try to get a non 'O' or non 'O-A' visa and 1 year extensions of stay based on retirement.

Finally as we will be applying in Australia does anyone know how long the process takes to get visa and extension approval?

Thanks again

Thanks for the clarification.

Does it matter which one of us applies for the retirement visa?

Does anyone know with Western Couples - do we have to have 800,000 baht in the bank for each of us to get retirement visa i..e. 1.6m in the bank?

Likewise with the investment visa would we need to invest 20,000,000?

If not how does it work?

Also are there any members who have or know anyone who has the Investment Visa - is it worth doing - appreciate any feed back on the Investment visa experience ?

Thanks

Just another perspective for you: Buying a condo is not a bad thing providing you are aware that you are tying up your money long term and as you have probably read that resale of condos takes time so you will not be able to get your money in a hurry and you will probably not get the appreciation in value like you do in UK/Australia.

If that is not a concern then consider:

• Do your homework.
• Location, location, location!!! (near beach, with views or near BTS if in Bangkok but not too noisy )
• check that the foreign ownership is less than 49% in the complex you look at before making offer. (agent will let you know but get your lawyer to double check this).
• Purchase in good quality complex that is well managed - you will see the difference when you are viewing them.
• Consider locations where expats live i.e. Sukhumvit Bangkok or suitable for tourist - you will get better rental return/occupancy rate.
• Don't pay the asking price I am sure there are some good bargains to be had out there especially with foreigners selling up
• engage reliable Lawyer to assist you with the purchase process.
• Check that they condo you are looking at allows short term rentals if that what you are looking at.
• Engage a reliable real estate company to arrange your tenant - they take one month rent to do this of a 12 month lease.
• Take a look at Tripadvisor site for holiday rentals - will give you an idea of whats out there.
• Furnish with good quality furnishing so yours stands out from others.
• Make Thai Will

We found a book called "How to Safely buy Real Estate in Thailand" by Rene Philippe R Dubout very useful well worth the $20 investment.

Invest in Condo in Thailand either to live in or rent out and a property you can rent out in the UK that way you wont have all your eggs in one basket.

From what I am reading there are some good buys to be had in the Condo market if you are prepared to barter.

Depends where you are coming from. We find it is cheaper purchasing our wine in Australia on special from liquor shop and bring our allowance in that way.

We find the liquor shops in Australia are cheaper than Duty free for wine.

Not one reply?

Do I take it that we do not have any western female retirees living in Thailand?

You could get a personal trainer I doubt they would cost much that way you are forced to exercise.

Cut down on the beer maybe just have one or two at the weekend - none during the week.

Eat plenty of fruit and veg. Drink lots of water.

Set a realistic goal for weight loss.

Joint sports club

If you can afford it play golf - normally good social life

During my research on Retirement in Thailand I recently watched SBS documentary which aired in Australia in Sept 2014 called "Champagne lifestyle on a lemonade budget" see link below which they interview a number of Australians retiring in Thailand

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/09/09/champagne-lifestyle-lemonade-budget-why-so-many-aussies-are-moving-thailand

Towards the end of the show they interviewed a number of female Australians who were living in Thailand.

I would be interested to hear feedback from any western ladies who have retired in Thailand in particular did you come to Thailand as a single or with a partner/husband.

How have you found retirement life in Thailand?

The ladies in the video appear to have very social life so I assume there are opportunities to meet for a coffee or glass of wine etc.

Look forward to receiving feedback - how many of us are living as happy retirees in this beautiful country?

Thank you for posting this video,

Not sure about the quality control on the medicine bottling process.

Very interesting.

I hear Ecuador is The World’s Number 1 Retirement Haven though this would mean you have to leave Thailand

From the quaint town of Cotacachi to the vibrant capital, Quito, from Salinas by the sea to the peaks of the Andes, Ecuador’s diversity is a key part of the massive appeal that sees it regain the coveted top spot on this year’s retirement index whereas Thailand is number 10 on the list.

The cost of living is low. “A doctor’s visit will set you back around US$10, while a main course in a restaurant can be had for as little as US$2.50. The bus trip from Cotacachi to Otavalo will cost you 25 cents. For big-ticket items like real estate, you can get a lot more for your dollar here a new 2 bed condo 160sm with ocean views for US$75,000. A couple can live well here on US$1,400 a month, including rent.” Not sure how that rates with Bangkok.

You’ll find world-class medical facilities in big cities throughout the country, and you can catch direct flights to and from the States . Good Internet is more readily available than ever. Public transportation is so efficient that many expats report not having to even buy a car.

Not sure if Ecuador has the "sleezy" part you are looking for.

You could try getting your mattress steam cleaned - many companies offer this service they have special cleaning formula for bed bugs.

We thought gift would be better but as some of you have suggested money would be more appreciated how much is acceptable obviously we don't want to set expectations too high for future visits.

How much would be acceptable for The Agent

&

Staff at the condominium - how would you split this out - would you give those in the office more than say the security staff and the cleaners?

thanks

We would like to give a gift in show of our appreciation for the team that manage our Apartment block also our Agent who lets our apartment for us when we come back to Thailand.

What would be appreciated by Thais?

The gift for the management team which includes the office workers, maintenance men, security guards, tut tut driver and the cleaner has to be something that they can share.

The gift for our female agent can be more individual.

We would like to bring something from Australia - last time we brought a large box of chocolates to share but we are not sure that Thai's actually like or appreciate chocolates, we are happy to keep giving chocolates but don't want to wast our money if they don't like them and another gift would be more appreciated.

We prefer not to give money.

Any suggestions?

Any must not gives?

Thanks.....

Thank you for all your comments

Are you able to take your own food and beer on the train?

Also, keen to know what the ticket inspector scam was all about I find that if you know about the scams you are less likely to get caught?

For around A$200 you can get a Lawyer to assist you with opening a bank account, it certainly saved us all the hassles of running around and was done in a few hours, they also assisted us in preparing our Thai Will and when we purchased our condo. Just make sure you use reparable firm - happy to share who we used if you send me a message. We did this in Bangkok.

Depending upon which country you are from, it may pay to check the travel insurance coverage offered by your local bank - for example in Australia most banks for the gold and platinum credit cards offer you free travel insurance - some require you to pay for your trip on the credit cards to activate coverage others just require you to activate coverage when you are travelling. 12 months maybe a stretch though.

Hi

We are wondering what the train trip is like from Bangkok to Chang Mai.

Interested to hear if any forum members use the train to travel to and from Bangkok from Chang Mai.

Should we experience at least one way or should we give the train experience a miss and just fly?

Thanks

Thanks Sheryl, health insurance is certainly on our to do list.