JamesPhuket10

A very good set of reasons why we should never swim in a pool except for the one we own.

No, I think @save the frogs has 'got' many of you on this forum. He is having a laugh and many people are falling for it. 🤣 Many years ago when internet cafes were around I was sending emails in one in Patong Phuket. On the computer next to me, two very good looking girls were sending emails to Tom, Dick and Harry, to one, "I love your Terry I can not wait see you soon", "Gunther we had good time, come back see me, I love you, I wait", I know the contents as they were speaking Thai to each other, then came the English which they said to each other when they had decided what to write. By coincidence one of the girl's phone rang, it was WhatsHisName from some country or other, he will be arriving next week, "Ok I see you next week, I love you, send me flight, I pick you up airport". I had to laugh out loud, the girls looked at me and I smiled at them, they smiled back knowing I knew what they were doing, no embarrassment whatsoever on their part. Now I am not one of those who think all Thai women are bad, in fact it is quite the opposite as far as I am concerned, but I have met many farangs who think negatively of Thai women as their experience of Thai women is due to the fact they have met them is some 'sexy massage place' (not to be confused with Traditional Thai Massage, use by couples etc), or met them in bars etc. But I suppose the guys get their money's worth, they think they have helped some 'girl' to stay away from other (bad) guys and are a sort of girlfriend, it gives them a feeling of pleasure and belonging as they work a year in order to save up enough for their next trips so I suppose everyone is a winner in this situation. 😄 And so while many such girls have all that in place they are still coming out with sob stories in order to grab yet other guys to put on the sponsors list, they are very hard working it seem though. 🤣

Not at all true with Phuket immigration. I have done three visa extension using exactly the methods I stated in my comment, I did add the fact it was Phuket immigration to my comment so in fact my comment is totally factual. The proof is/was in the pudding. The problem with such forums as this is people can pass on info to others with are not factual, there are no factual checks on what is written.

I suppose for the farangs who could subsequently get a 99% year lease, it may introduce a lot more danger to their lives. It seems there are a vast number of farangs whole marry Thai women a lot younger than themselves, in many cases for the women it seem the aim is to be married for a few years, let the old farang die off and then take all his assets. If a farang was able to extend his 30 year lease to a 99 year least there might be a lot more fatal "accidents' happening to the farangs who have such properties, now that would be funny. I am quite happy with a year by year 'old bloke' visa extension, put 800k baht in a Thai bank, if things look like they are turning sour in Thailand then spend the 800k and sod off somewhere else, after all we visa extenders are only here on temporary year by year extensions, there are no guarantees.

I am not sure what the OP will do but It is all very easy and straightforward to deal with one way or the other. Move money as described above. Print all of the bank statements for the year from your bank account to your printer at home for free. Scan and copy all of the bank book print outs for the year. (ATM printout). I nip around the corner to my local bank and get a letter from them which takes five minutes. 100 baht. Off to the immigration in Phuket and "Bobs Your Uncle" as we Brits say, all done in an hour, go back the next day to pickup the passport. If we also want a multiple re-entry permit at the same time then hand all the forms over as well at the same time as applying for the visa extension, (with a 'secret' little extra 700 baht service charge), pick up the passport the next day with the visa extension and the re entry visa.(Phuket immigration).

True, for the previous two years the month of May were horrible in Phuket, too hot and little rain. I have been in England for the last two months so the news that there is a lot more rain in Phuket this year is great, lets hope the reservoirs are full again in Phuket next month after I return from my holiday. 👍 But I will be looking forward to some heat again as it is only 21c in the South of the UK at the moment, I have to wear a jacket when out.

I use Bangkok bank but the question is about more than one bank transfer at a time. I do multiple transfers during the year depending on how much I am spending. I make sure there is 800k in the Thai bank two months before I go to the immigration office. It then has to be in the bank for three months I then make sure there is a minimum of 400k in the bank for all the other months. Two months before the next visa extension I top up to 800k again, plus my normal living expenses for my own use. So basically two months before 800k and keep it at or above that amount until three months after you applied for the visa and then keep it above 400k, then top it up as many times as you like during the year. I use WISE for all transfers.

All I can say is I met a young financially independent woman, she already had her own house(s), money, income, business, I was in the same situation and was young at the time too. She is now much older so am I, no drama involved or any of the stores as above or what I have been told by some farangs. We are the same as most farangs I know with Thai women, ordinary with normal day to day lives. News like that does not carry, it is not newsworthy so is never heard of in the press, only the doom and gloom stories where farangs are ripped off are reported. So when I am told "You know what Thai women are like, they cheat and steal etc, ", by a certain type of farang, I tell them no I don't, I tell them to try and meet a Thai woman who does not work in a bar or such type of job. They then tell me I know nothing of Thailand, I say I know nothing of your version of Thailand.

It is norm for a certain type of farang. They are not forced to roll a dice. Well I suppose they are now that I think about it, I mean cars are not free and have to be paid for, so I suppose that type of girl has to be paid for. In the case of a car it can break down in the first month or so with no refund and a woman can "run off" with the house. What I can't understand is if they want a young woman then why marry them and pay for them long term, they could get a young one every night and they never get old.

I would be interest to know what they are as I must have missed them. let me know what you know as it might be useful.

Because they can afford to. Plus they do not smoke and so do not need the free fags (cigarettes) which are handed out for six months each year for free.

About one hours drive south of Hua Hin I think, gained from previous messages.

I will be the first to admit I am far from perfect, but I do know I am not as dumb as the numerous old farangs i have come across over he last 30 years, who seem to think it is the norm to 'purchase' a young Thai woman by buying a house in the woman's name, then finding out they also have to pay for her family and the sick buffalo and think it is the norm. This belief is further reenforced by the fact they only hang out with like minded farangs, they never meet the normal sort of farang as they avoid them like the plague. At least I do not have a gold star in stupidity, I have bought properties I rent out as part of my pension but they are safe in the UK well away from sticky fingers.

With a farang bloke's money, clever Thais, stupid farangs is seems. I don't think I want to know about such things. My Thai partner of fifteen years built nine houses, she rents out eight of them, she built none of them on government land, and not a penny of it came from me, I must be doing something wrong by the stories I hear from the many farangs I come across. Can anyone give me lessons on how to throw my money away and lose my independence?

So some good news just to balance things out for us guys, I bought my house in 1994 for 175k GBP and sold it in in 2021 for 750k and I got 100% of that so that is a few point for the blokes. 👍

Tourism jobs tend to be low-paid and seasonal, so they don’t contribute as much tax revenue as other sectors. That’s why even in the West countries like Spain, with a heavy reliance on tourism, often struggle economically compared to more diversified economies like Germany, which has a strong industrial base and high-tech sectors. It is the same in Thailand when comparing its economy to say Taiwan for instance, they need to move on from tourism. While tourism can employ a lot of people, it’s not necessarily the best path to long-term economic stability. Manufacturing, technology, and financial services generate more high-paying jobs and tax revenue, creating a more resilient economy in the long run. So for now the best thing for Thailand to do is concentrate on the other 87% of the economy which is not connected to tourism. This low cost tourism is good for us farangs from wealthy countries with our very high incomes, in the long term Thailand has to move on. Now who is financially ignorant?

Say whatever you want, tourism if still only 12%, the expat input is miniscule. I have no personal reasons, the government should concentrate on the other 88% of the economy which is not based on tourism as that is more stable, tourism is a fickle business and can change at any moment, an earthquake, a tsunami, politics et.

Total nonsense, I was divorced in England many years ago, I got 100% of the house we lived in seeing as I paid for it.

As far as I can tell from all of the stories I have heard over the last 30 years is it is about stupid farangs with their ex-bar-girls who find old stupid farang guys and steal everything they have, it has nothing to do with the majority of Thai women where 99% of them are married to Thai men.

You are telling me you built a house on government land, how silly is that?

Most Thais are too busy with day to day life, looking after family, work etc to even think about tourists, most do not see tourists on a day to day basis. Probably 99% of Thais are married to Thais, I think it might be much lower in Issan for example which seem to attract the lower income farangs like flies. Most tourists are in just a few tourist area and not evenly distributed across the nation. Tourism is 12% of that economy not 80% as many expat farangs imagine.

Then wait for the police to turn up and cart you away.

You are talking semantics, if she owns the land which the house you paid for is sitting on she can kick you off her land any time she wishes. You could of course move the house down the road and live in it there if she allows you back onto the land to move it. 😃

That sounds like a good move, thanks for the lesson. So from now on I will build houses for people if I am allowed to stay there as long as the owner allows me to stay. When I call a taxi I will also pay for the cost of the whole car as after all I was allowed to sit in it during the journey. When I go shopping at a 7/11 I will pay for the building too as I was allowed to shop there, it all makes good business and common sense. We should all do that. I have never been in the situation before where I can be kicked out of a property I bought, I wonder what it is like? I always wonder how logic goes out of the window as soon as farangs put one foot into the country, is there a secret brain extractor floating in the air I can not see, these farangs would not buy things in their own country which they are not allowed to own so why do they do it here I always wonder.

I suppose the tattoo shops and the bar girls want more farangs on holiday, I don't see any Chinese tourists with their bodies covered in tattoos or with a bar girl on their arm. I don't think the restaurants etc are too keen on Germans, Danish etc, having worked in those countries I saw they are meanest tippers in the world and very careful with what they spend.