I think it is way way too early to tell the outcome of all this speculation.
For all the people saying their buildings are 100% safe, I would argue they probably don't know.
Even if the building engineers have given it a brief visual inspection, that might not be enough or tell the real damage.
How many of those "building engineers" are actually trained structural or civil engineers?
Did they have original vertical surveys and did they take new measurements to see if the building has shifted or is tilting?
If the doors aren't locking-closing-latching or the elevators are making noises is that a sign of damage or danger?
People often mistake veneer damage to structural damage and while it could be a sign, it's not the only sign. Very possible to have veneer damage, and structure is PASD.
Many materials don't flex with movement and therefore crack and pop.
I would fully expect in 2-3-5 years we'll see a building fall and it will be attributed to earthquake damage.
How many people expect building insurance to fully cover any damage to the building. I expect most of these will not be covered or get a payout.
Easy to buy insurance anywhere, not as easy to collect. If there actually is coverage I would expect some insurance companies to go out of business as they don't have money to pay such heavy losses.
If losses aren't covered, I would not expect there be enough funds in the sinking funds to cover the costs of repairs. So there will be the "new" and "unheard" of concept of special assessments. Most people probably have never expected these significant charges and won't have the money to pay them.
I wonder how building that have 80% non-Thai owners will fare with collections on those. Many of these were built and bought when money was easily transferred from China. That's more difficult for many people now and economies have changed.
So will juristic organizations foreclose on these owners because they can't/won't pay the sinking fund special assessment? or will they just not do the repairs because many/most owners don't pay?
If they don't do the cosmetic or even amenity or functional repairs, then the condos fall in value or become ghost towns?
Let's all hope there was minimal to no damage, insurance pays for minor repairs, there are no special assessments, and everybody lives happily everafter, but somehow somewhere I don't expect that to be the case.
Remember that Surfside condo collapse in Miami/Surfside? How many years did they know of structural issues, that the residents put off and put off and put off because they didn't want to pay for special assessments. They act like the juristic person should pay, but the juristic person is YOU. It's not some magically 3rd party with deep pockets full of money. They're just a manager hired to run your affairs and investment (money pit).