moontang

10 minutes ago, ThePioneer said:

That will disappoint some on this forum.

 

Going from the recent threads regarding health care insurance for foreigners, it should cost next to nothing for a whole year in Thailand, as according to them tourists are covered for free in their respective countries

This is for coverage in the US for expats.  Totally different animal than what Immigration may start requiring.

Considering an Obamacare Bronze policy with 7500 us deductible is 680 per month off the healthcare marketplace; it is a bargain.

2 minutes ago, timendres said:

This is useful information. When I was looking at general health plans, one option included US coverage, but it added a lot to the cost, and I would only need it if I took a trip home. Having the option to use this travel insurance for trips home, and purchasing the cheaper general coverage saves considerable money.

yep, you get it.  I use the Tokio Marine plan while I am here, and their policies only go for up to 364 days, so I create a gap, on a trip home, and start a new 364 days with tokio marine when i leave for my departing flight from the US.  Tokio cost me about 3.50 per day, and they do give you approx 2 weeks every three months of coverage in the us on your policy, but..it is only 50% coverage, which could ruin you in the US.  Tokio is 105 per month with 250 deductible and a million in coverage in Thailand.

I am mid 50s..so allow for that.

2 minutes ago, ricklev said:

Thanks.  I was just starting to look into insurance for a trip to the USA.  Do you have a link by chance?

 

 

www.insubuy.com is the Texas based agent...It almost appears as if it is for foreigners visiting the US, but I have an email from a licensed agent stating that it is perfectly legit for a US citizen living abroad and visiting the us to use this plan.  You need a residential address in Thailand, but you can use a us address as a billing Address, if you need to..I paid with a Visa card linked to a us address.

1 minute ago, fhickson said:

cant see why two would be a problem. point of tm-30 is to know where you are each time and never heard about anyone being asked to cancel one if they are staying somewhere else temporarily, chowder head.

Clown, notice he was looking for short term near Cowboy, that is different than looking for short term near Asok..he didn't want to make a wave in Jomtien, perhaps, showing he left the province.  It varies a lot by IO, and even varies by IO at the same IO.  It was kind of obvious he had one, and didn't want to break the continuity.  I have kept mine up to date for three years at three IOs.  I can also see why quick trippers or short timers would prefer not to have a report filed..telling him to get an expensive room that will do it was not really helpful.

22 days, 149 USD, 250 DEDUCTIBLE, AND 500,000 USD in coverage...IMG, underwritten by Sirius, and in the United Health Network.  They have direct billing with a few top notch hospitals in my parents area.  I am a US Citizen, living in Bangkok.  1000 deductible and a million in coverage was 125 usd..i adjusted a little.  I know this applies to quite a few....fire away with questions..I will do my best to accurately answer them.  Who knows, I might need treatment after all the wine, cheese, and steak I will eat, before I bit the craft beer and Jameson.

Best bet would be O-A, that way you could likely ease the pain if a poor exchange rate, and if it doesn't ease, then enjoy your two years and move on.  LA might be the best to deal with in the US..but all it takes is a change of one or two people and all bets are off..

29 minutes ago, fhickson said:

a short time is unlikely to register

 

what he needs is an expensive place that will file the tm-30 so he does not get fined when going to immigration

 

if your using a short time and have another place it does not matter if they register or not, noodle brain.

 

all that matters is that your always registered somewhere with no gaps.

 

you are wrong, ###-####, if they file one for him, then he would have to return to immigration upon returning to his old place...the whole point was to NOT get reported, because he already has one.  People do not sweat reporting by hotels if they don't have one on file.  Maybe you should remind your partner, next time you and him get a room.

I stand by my usual recs of Siam Privi and Sea of Love Mansion...if you absolutely have to be on Sukhumvit, Nantra 39 is about the cheapest that doesn't have half the guest in bunk beds, sharing a pigstye toilet.  Smallish rooms, but above average breakfast..not Vegas style, but way better than white toast, instant coffee and margerine.

You know that BBC reporter who always breaks down in tears, in front of orphanages, and immigrant worker housing?  Yesterday, she broke down in tears again...in front of the Super Rich money exchange on Sukhumvit.

I pay MEA with their APP, using a US CC...but the card wont work, unless you wait until a day after the billing. also FYI.  PEA autodebit was the way to go.  There must be a reason why you cant go in there and hand them 5K and call it advance credit....but that is often how it is here...

Pre-paying is trickier than it should be.  MSS is small, office in the boonies, but I didnt have to pay the 2400 to the building for a new line, like i would have with true, and AIS said cannot, full.  I get a pretty decent cable tv included in the 599 per month with 100/50 internet.

I just heard from MSS via LINE.  They told me to use an old bill...I have to line them a copy of proof of payment anyways..(yeah, that is BS, but they wrongly cut me off a few months ago)..In some muddy water, for sure.  Used to be similar issues with PEA....had to plan vacation around pea bill.

So leaving town for three weeks before I get my internet bill for October.  I return on 10-10, and it will be turned off, which is a pain in the <deleted>..got better things to do after 30 hours on the road..like go to immigration for TM30. So what will happen if I bring an old bill with me, that has already been paid, and rescan and make payment with the old QR code?  Any clues?  My company MSS is ok, but there are no online accounts..just bills and payments.  Thanks in advance.

Notice how the TEFL schools have evolved into employment agencies for NNES and non-degree holders.  If you have a degree and are NES, preferably white, a TEFL course is throwing money in a fire.  Time is much more of the essence, now, too. The time involved may put you at the end of your tourist visa rope.  I like it here, have bought three homes here, but it is a terrible place to do business as a foreigner.  The schools are the worst of the worst.  Even in the West, schools rarely act as sustainable businesses.  They do, however, eventually get a grasp of what it takes to retain employees and avoid litigation. Here, it is simply a revolving door of people getting screwed (without any hugging or kissing).  Saw a Thai person looking for an illegal worker for private tutoring, on Facebook.  One hour per time...150 THB per hour..the sad thing is, he was likely contacted by a dozen each of Africans, Filipinos, and Eastern Europeans, living the dream in filthy Chiang Mai.

The river can be the only breeze in BKK, and you lose the heat island effect somewhat. Never seen a politician, who wasn't a publicity hound.

1 minute ago, sanemax said:

I think that it works by , they add the rental money to the price that you pay for the Condo and then give it back to you every month as rental income

More or less, yep..pay 2.5 for a 1.5 condo, and they make it work on paper..it is BS.  Buy REITs, of which there are some great ones listed on the SET, and elsewhere.  I am in my 10th home I purchased, the last six for cash..it pays a very solid return, tax free, in savings on rent...I would never be a landlord here, though, and I don't think expats, Thais, or Chinese would be a pleasure to deal with.  Private prison REIT: CXW, yielding about 9%...  business is good.

5 minutes ago, gk10002000 said:

On my recent trip to Thailand last month I saw endless advertisements for condo purchases that "guaranteed" 5 or 8 % investment return every year from renting it out.  Highly skeptical be me on this one.    I can envision a group of chinese investors for example, building the building, then arranging constant and massive chinese tour groups to stay there.  So you pay for the unit which covers the building construction cost.  They rent out your unit.  Seems possible but I think the Russians in Pattaya tried that about 10 years ago.  Huge numbers of Russian tour groups and expats steered to stay in Russian owned or controlled buildings.  Not so sure it worked out. Many things can change.  While I can envision a company renting out your unit, I doubt you could collect on their guarantee if they did not rent the unit out.  Then you would be stuck with a unit you had no intention of living in, possibly could not easily sell, building income falls off and the place goes to <deleted>

The president of the CM expat club was guaranteeing 9% on the Australian property fund he was pushing, and collecting a 20% commission off the front...it was a sheep slaughter..never invest with pretentious a-holes..the expat community has plenty, so does every church and country club, and apparently quite a few school administrations.  Saving and investing is how you build wealth, real estate works for many.  Calculating returns based on nightly rates is beyond stupid, as is doing business with known criminals.  The Chinese are awful, and the Russians are nearly as bad...you could still have worse neighbors than that, and the tourist areas are going to be loaded with them.  You need to take 40% of annual rent for expenses, before calculating yield.

Maybe it is the immobile, who should stay with their nanny state.  I love the rain.. cars do not do well on flooded roads, though.  A missed flight would cost me 500-1000 usd.  The back seat of a corolla isn't good for anything except holding an esky of beer.  The front seat of a corolla driven buy a Thai felon is the death seat.  Tired of arguing about meter usage with those picks, too.  Really nasty around Phaya Thai. A cab from phetchaburi mrt won't be able to turn right on sukhumvit.. maybe there is a workaround, not sure, but you could spend 30-40 MInutes going 5 km around there. 

7 minutes ago, AlexRRR said:

Absolute rubbish.....obviously you are fully capable....me I had the miss fortune to be ummmm having issues with a hip...and ankle at the god dam same time...call it a hard working guy...taxi...taxi.....if you're to cheap too spend $AU10 to get a cab stay home....

If there is any kind of rain storm, it can easily take longer in a cab.  Been there, and made that mistake.. It wasn't the 350 it cost from Rama 5 to Swamppy.. It was getting stuck in gridlock at 10 pm on a weeknight because there was 30 cm of water on the Expressway.  The take a cab touts are almost as useless as the I once flew business class, can you loan me 60 THB for a Leo? 

17 minutes ago, AlexRRR said:

 

Cab often takes longer.. Standing in that line with a throbbing ankle would be worse than elevator to ARL.  

Iii