ripley

Been away for a while, but thanks for your comments. Our problem doesn't seem to have anything to do with our bank. It is just about our marriage certificate - the one which has been submitted and accepted for many years. For us it's back to India and the Thai Consulate there to try to sort it all out. The way things have been going tho, no telling if we'll get correct information there. Jomtien Immigration was shocked at the BKK response. Nobody here seems to know or understand what the rules and procedures are and that's what makes me nervous. I will keep you posted on what happens and what I learn.

Regarding the word "bond" - I was using that term to describe the 800,000 baht we're required to keep in the bank according to the terms of the Retirement Visa. Ours has always been in a savings acct, per instruction when we applied. All has been done for many years and according to instructions received which is what makes it all so mind boggling.

On 6/24/2019 at 11:17 PM, ubonjoe said:

Immigration has required that a marriage or birth certificates used to prove their relationship to you be legalized for a few years now. It is certainly nothing new.

You have just been lucky it was not asked for before.

Of course immigration wants to see your certified marriage certificate. We HAD a certified Marriage certificate, one which had been accepted for years. It was even accepted for me this time. Just not for my partner. Suddenly new certifications were required, causing us a trip to BKK and overstay charges with the result that we were told to go back to India to sort it. Again I say Thank You to the Jomtien Immigration dept. for seeing the problem for us thru no fault of our own and did the needful.

As most of you know, the immigration visa laws have changed and are very confusing to officials as well as users. Here's a problem to be aware of. Having visited Thailand on a retirement visa for at least 15 yrs w/ no problems, my partner encountered a biggie. At the Jomtien Immigration office, I was given my renewal immediately. My partner was refused. On what grounds? Our 30 yr old marriage certificate. It apparently required certain stamps and certifications. This document was not targetted in any way as a problem for me. We were sent to BKK to get stamps, certifications - no joy. Then told we had to go back to India where we live and do paperwork there. Meanwhile, charged 500Baht per day overstay charges. Not sure - it wasn't stated - but seemed to have something to do with our Bond money being in an acct. in my name - which we were instructed to do some years ago. Not even clear whether a joint acct. - if allowed - would have made a difference. 

We had the good luck to be handled the second time by the Jomtien Immigration people who went out of their way to provide us with permission for another year's stay. When in India we will have to go thru channels again.

Can't give you any advice about this as am in the dark myself for the most part. But be as prepared as possible.

A farang friend died in LOS and I was a joint Executor of his Thai Will (written in English). The heir was his daughter in the UK. Although I suggested a Thai lawyer to obtain probate, the daughter preferred to engage her own Thai lawyer which she found through her UK lawyer. I signed over my responsibility as Executor to the Thai lawyer. The matter was completely resolved after a few months to everyone's satisfaction, even though my friend held substantial funds in several Thai banks and investment companies. The daughter did not come to Thailand.

This is most interesting and something I've been wondering about. Thanks!

ahh ...! Here lies the rub: As you get older there are fewer and fewer people you can trust. You've seen too much for that.

You get 30 days at airport immigration, right?

So can you extend this to 60-90 days in a similar fashion from Thai Immigration for a modest fee?

If I had the dosh to afford "maids and other household staff" - or even a helpful girlfriend - I'd buy new clothes as soon as the others got dirty! Problem solved. But then, of course, there is the care and feeding of beloved old pants and shirts which have nicely conformed to my shape and can't be replaced...

One reason I avoided buying a front-loader is my notion that our tropical weather plays hell with the rubber gaskets. True?

Any brainy ideas out there regarding softness - especially towels - for those with no access to a dryer?

I save a lot of water when the rinse water is reasonably clean. I add my detergent to that and use it for the wash cycle.

Forgot to mention what originally sold me on ghetto washing machines: After 5 minutes in the tub, take a look at the water. You'll see how much dirt these machines extract from sheets, etc. which you thought were basically clean.

"Next Ripley Topic - Which scented bubble bath tablets are the best?"

"Gees how long do you want them to last...go shopping with you honey."

"Honey"?? Perhaps the subject of laundry offends some people's sense of masculinity? Suggest they try living alone on a budget & then get back to me.

Meanwhile, sashaying back to the subject of laundry - some scorn the good old top loading manual machines ( "Ghetto" machines), but I find them invaluable for saving on water and detergent. Only drawback is that they tend to stress the clothes by twisting them up but a laundry bag takes care of that problem.

Someone mentioned, tho, that using a dryer gets rid of lint that clings to dark colours and also softens towels, etc. Tried it & they're right. Have to watch out for shrinkage, tho, (which you usually don't get if you dry on a clothes hanger indoors) and this is for top end clothing as well as market buys.

Hi - Recently the subject of washing machines, dryers, warm water/ cold water, soap powders, and other laundry related subjects kept popping up on a Topic about condos. Interesting as these posts were, they were very much off topic. But the posts were informative. So, I thought it would be interesting to start a new topic about LAUNDRY.

I'll kick it off by asking for advice on extending the life of my black shirts and T-shirts. Any takers???

I'd never looked at the TVF miscellaneous classifieds before. Not bad!

I'm not on FB (on general principles!) but sounds like a great idea in theory.

I wonder whether a used furniture/decor shop would be viable as a business as there don't seem to be any apart from the Auction House mentioned?? Maybe take things on commission basis?

I'll check out the TVF site.

I know there must be hundreds of people with items they'd like to dispose of and lots of folk looking for less expensive furniture to decorate a new condo/house. Those who move into a pre-decorated home and want a different "look" must need to dispose of the original stuff. When I think about it, where does all of this go? Is there some huge rubbish dump somewhere in Pattaya???

Not sure whether this is the right forum....

Apart from putting an ad in one of the local Pattaya Newspapers, does anyone know of other ways to dispose of and sell furniture, etc. due to moving or renovation? Obviously, I'd like to sell the good items.

Got any experience good or bad?

I have heard that a report to the Land Office - in fact all other communications - must be written in Thai. Does anybody know of any other conditions or procedure?

I wonder whether the police would get involved? I did talk to the Chairman of a committee of another bldg. long ago who complained that the police took him away in handcuffs for infractions reported by the Owners. Unfortunately I can't remember details about this.

Hello -

Does anyone have information or advice on the methods for getting Land Office attention when Thai Condo Law is breached by the Condo Administration? What is the protocol & procedure?

In your experience, will the Land Office work promptly and firmly to correct a financial or other wrong-doing?

Listen to Kitten Kong and don't despair! If you can get your JPM and Building Management on the ball, money is recoverable. Just one warning: Make certain that the Owners are promptly advised when the overdue CAM fees are finally paid off and that this income is included in your annual audit.

One more note: Sometimes these overdue fees build up to an amount that the rogue owner cannot pay off right away and so s/he keeps defaulting. Deals can be made for scheduled payments on a large sum. I've heard that some condos have excused or "forgiven" interest payments just to get the initial CAM fees paid and in the bank - not fair, but something is better than nothing.

I agree about the luxury of carpets and would love to find a steam cleaner. I get mine (Pattaya) cleaned by people using a shampooer but so often they leave a sticky residue and have to make repeat visits.

Have you asked the company that steam-cleans your carpets for a contact #?

Also, does anyone know of a company that uses steam cleaners in Pattaya??

I really don't like condotels as an investment at all, and this is a pretty good example why.

Here's the problem: Regular condominiums are ultimately corporations held by shareholders, and those shareholders are the owners of the units. That joint ownership provides a level of business security because what is in the interest of the group, is typically in the interest of each individual owner. (Although this is not always the case, as differences among owners certainly do arise). For the most part though, owners interests are aligned. This alignment of ownership interests insures at some level, that the maintenance and policies of the building will reflect the wishes of the group.

The same cannot be said for many condotels.

As the units are owned by shareholders whose interests are very much focussed on the well-being of the bldg., its services and the corporation as a whole, I've never perceived this as a problem. An owner is entitled to rent out his unit but is as responsible for the behaviour of his tenant as he is for his own. I suggest that, if an owner is receiving income from rentals, that owner is perhaps even more invested in the upkeep and well-being of the condotel. Also, a tenant is not allowed to attend AGMs, vote, etc.

Perhaps the confusion is - again - in the definition and actual usage of a Condotel. I'm speaking of a Condotel which doesn't deal in overnights and weekends but rather monthly or more long-term rentals. It appears that owners could legally rent out by the day but they don't because this is labour intensive and impractical.

My experience is that although any condominium building is enhanced by a lobby reception desk, a Condotel requires one. I wanted to discover whether this is codified in Law. What's your "take" on the Lawyer's reply? I think it would be difficult to pursue in court, but if the laws - such as they are - are contained in hotel as well as condo law it's a case that could be won. At the same time who knows what a can of worms this issue could open??

Request for details from "Ask the Lawyer" were answered thus:

Legal requirements include having all of the proper licenses such as a hotel license etc. there are no specific laws or rules and regulations for condotels, you must use both condominium laws and hotel laws together.

I want to take this opportunity to thank TVF and Siam Legal for this most useful service. Really helpful!

Sorry, I picked up the reply from the TVF lawyer site & posted it before seeing Delight's comment. A business man? But it's "Ask the Lawyer".

Reply to the question from TVF "Ask the Lawyer" service:

Posted 2014-09-15 15:52:21

A condotel is a lodging that is a hybrid of a condominium and hotel, by being operated as a commercial hotel even though the units are individually owned. A condotel has rental and reservation desks, short-term occupancy, food and telephone services, and daily cleaning services. Rooms in hotels are sold individually to buyers who typically continue renting them to vacationers. In-house management companies rent out the units on behalf of their owners in exchange for a percentage of the rental income. Condotels differ from timeshares, where buyers pay for limited use of a resort, because buyers of a condotel own their residence outright and can stay in it, rent it out, or sell it according to their own wishes.

Still no response from 'Ask the Lawyer'.

I'm beginning to think there isn't a legal definition for condotels in Thai Law, nor any law governing them.