Steiner

5 hours ago, kannot said:

Do you work in the  business?.

Wife often gets power of attorney form some buyers to deal with "everything"

This  happens quite  a  lot, with  less desirable agents, the owners  know this (Thai)  but dont care as  long as they get what they asked for ie 2  million often they even say "put  on what you  like"

One customer of my Wife's buys for his  Brother in Taiwan and he even screws his own Brother saying its 2.5  million when really its  2  million then tells  my Wife not to say anything to him if she sees  him.Brotherly love eh, some pretty bizzarre  things go on usually thru greed

But the price is on the channote,  how can anyone 'hide'  the price of the condo?  Once the owner looks at the paperwork either on buying or selling,  it will be obvious what happened. 

And who brings cash! Every single transaction we've ever handled has been with cashiers cheques,  only cash around is for the transfer fees. 

19 hours ago, JB300 said:

These guys occasionally offer "Firewall" condos http://www.rightmovepattaya.com/

Though I think hipflat.co.th is better for seeing what's available

Hipflat  is the worst property website to look at. 

I recently saw their page for a small boutique condo in Sukhumvit with a total of 68 rooms,  hipflat said they had 145 rooms available for rent. 

When I asked the guy in the office of the same condo how many condos were currently available or didn't have a tenant,  it was 6.

I also saw an agent on hip flat advertising 38 rooms in one condo,  I asked to see all 38,  she had one single room available. 

Hipflat doesn't have an expiration time for any postings,  so prices and availability are waaaaaay off. 

What a pussy,  I have a bad neck that can almost lock in place with pain.  Tramadol  is the only thing that touches the pain when it happens,  although 1 pill wouldn't do it. 

I have 2 with a glass of wine or 2, it's awesome,  puts a nice glow on the evening of pain! 

I do that as needed,  usually one or 2 days every 6 weeks if I've been unlucky.  Never had any issues nor fell over.its a pain killer not crack or smack! 

Obviously a lightweight who was on more than he told his gf,  now she is doing what Thai girls do best and begging feelings. 

Non story! 

3 minutes ago, raro said:

The regulations are very clear. There is a list of documents you need to present to customs. One of them is the import license from the ministry of transportation.

No grey area here.

OK, there's no grey area in Thailand, you win.

1 minute ago, raro said:

We're discussing here only the legal possibilities. Tea money is not one of them.

Fair enough, although you have to acknowledge that the legalities here are grey at best and even with clearly documented regulations, decisions are often made at the discretion of officials or your wallet...

On 12/18/2016 at 11:13 AM, raro said:

This was the only correct answer in this thread.

You need an import license from the Minister of transportation. They haven't issued any for the past 10 or so years.

Case closed.

Can still be done, customs guy recently told me for a considerable tea money fee I could bring in whatever I wanted, car or bike.

On 12/12/2016 at 7:13 PM, impulse said:

 

On the other hand, in a couple of weeks, the majority of the UK will spend $$$ billions to celebrate the birthday of a guy born of a virgin who went around performing miracles, then rose from the dead after the Romans killed him.  And a few months later, they'll celebrate his return from the dead.

 

But that's nothing like superstition, is it?

Your comparison is nonsense,  you're comparing apples and bananas. 

I'm secular so I think anyone who believes in omnipotent beings is touched. 

However,  let's make it the same and see how that pans out. 

Go to the same number of villages in the UK and ask every single resident to fork out some money so that some fools with sticks and an urn can chase ogres out of their villages. 

Let me know how that works out for you. 

I'll wait... 

Madness! 

Unless the bike is packed full of 100% pure Columbian yahoo the cost will be ridiculous,  in fact even then you probably wouldn't break even! 

As a rule of thumb look for the bike for sale in Thailand,  brand new price,  I don't care how old it is,  they will look at the new price.  

Add the cost of shipping,  insurance and emissions tests,  to that figure add 284% that's about where it will be. 

Those are the minimum figures,  if it's a nice bike,  chances of seeing it again are minimal. 

If one of the customs or mafia guys likes it,  there will be 'issues' it will get lost,  the import will be 3,000, not 284%, paperwork will be missing. 

While you chase your tail trying to sort it out,  some toothless idiot will be c-r-u-s-i-n on your bike. 

You're getting good advice here,  take it and buy a bike here. 

5 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

Yet, Wikipedia's list of known haunted places has 9 in Thailand, and I lost count of how many in the UK and Ireland.  Looks like 53 notorious ones, but it's hard to say.  They had to list them on several different articles.

 

You're right.  53 isn't even close to 9.  The aroma of the Bwana is strong in this group. 

Well let's put that in perspective, 53 purported haunted places in the UK, wanna guess how many that would be in Thailand? 9 is complete nonsense as every single Thai person I have met will tell you they've seen dozens of ghosts.
To make a list in Thailand would be endless, so how or why would one even go there...

Oh yes and what about spirit houses, sold at roadsides and markets, and in practically every house in the land, wanna start counting those?

1 minute ago, ratcatcher said:

Lots of people laughing at the Thais for their superstitions. Go just about anywhere in Europe , Africa, the American First Nations and you've got just the same nonsense. African Witch doctors, Caribbean Voodoo, the Catholics, Wat Dhammakaya, the list goes on.

It's just so much more convenient to look down on the locals I guess..............

Nah, coming from the UK people throwing salt over their shoulder and saying 'bless you' when you sneeze, is about as bad as it gets.
When there are a lot of road accidents in one place in the UK it is deemed an accident black spot, signs are erected to encourage people to slow down or take heed of whatever the danger may be, then a plan is made to make the area safer.
In the same situation here, Thai's actually hold ceremonies called for by government officials to banish bad spirits and that's it.  No education, no measures to improve safety: ceremony, spirits, fixed...

You're way off in thinking the two worlds are even close, typical Thai apologist stretch post.

On a serious note for Thailand: If this is some sort of 'hammock Phee Pop ogre' there could be a national panic, given as the population's end goal is to spend as much time as possible in a hammock!

This behaviour has of course given rise to the popular parting shot/quip from a farang on receiving none to bad service when in Thailand "back in the hammock then mate!"

22 minutes ago, Emster23 said:

".. they have been known to enter people's bodies and eat them from the inside out."Oh really? Care to present some of this evidence behind this "know to enter" assertion.

I think they have been caught on camera!

The BRT, what a pile of steaming poop that was.

>Let's put the buses in the middle of an 8 lane highway!
-But how will people reach the buses?
>No problem my brother owns a bridge building company, we'll build bridges from the footpath across 4 lanes to the center of the road!

-Awesome idea! Old ladies with shopping bags, mothers with young children and disabled people will love it, you so smart boss!

You couldn't make up what their minds think is rational.

16 hours ago, tutsiwarrior said:

would there be any advantage to transferring a large amount of euro to a local thai baht account? baht looks to be a lot more stable with the continuing central bank intervention and support...

 

what exchange rate could we expect in the eur50k -100k range?

 

 

I believe you would need to show a reason to bring that much money in i.e. when bringing money in for property you have to show where it came from and have the paperwork before the banks will clear it.
No chance of getting it out otherwise.

On 11/25/2016 at 9:51 AM, Deepinthailand said:

Agents in my experiance are obviously just out to make money

Awesome insight, where you come from agents must work for free.
Maybe you'll follow your example here and give all the TV members some of your services for free?
 

The 1st one is already underway...

21 hours ago, blackcab said:

A good agent will hold tenant's deposits themselves and keep them in a separate, dedicated bank account.

 

If the owner isn't happy with that, there are plenty of other agents they can call. 

You do realise this is Thailand right? 

Try getting the deposits to hold in an escrow account. 

We actually do that for owners who don't live in Thailand or have Internet access to their accounts,  Thai owner would need a heart ambulance of you suggested that to them,  it's difficult enough to get a set of keys out of them to hold on the office key safe,  deposits? No chance. 

47 minutes ago, blackcab said:

 

If you are managing rental properties have you considered a monthly charge based on rent received? It helps to smooth out cash flow.

Yes that  was standard when I ran the same business in the UK,  we would handle all issues and repairs up to an agreed level and field all out of hours calls for issues such as burst pipes and broken heating.

However here it's impossible to get from Thai owners who simply pass 99.9% of repairs and issues to the juristic office. 

We still stay involved throughout the year,  you have to do something to try to stay apart from sea of freelancers,  it's the nature if the business here. 

Unfortunately a large percentage of people still rent from anonymous people without any thought for potential problems,  and of course there is the booming business for farang who rent based on decisions made with their small head ;-) 

I can't tell you him many guys have given me a list of 'essentials'  they need: large pool,  high floor,  good view,  certain size room size,  and make an appointment for the next day. 

When  I call to confirm the viewing next day,  they met some girl on the town the night before and rented some hovel with a tiny pool,  low floor and no pool. 

I have to wonder just how frustrated some of these guys are! 

16 hours ago, Kenny202 said:

We did go through an agent which I wouldn't do again. I mean she's ok but at the end of the day she's working for the owner...and in any case I think they get their months rent commission up front and thats it. She pays us lip service etc but I don't really think its her problem. I wouldn't use an agent again. By the way, not like we've been nuisances. In a year called twice. Once for a major flooding pipe leaking into the yard and under the foundations, which was here from the start and got worse (pump running all the time) and this instance 

There are agents and agents,  does this 'agent'  have an office,  a website,  a landline number,  is she a registered company? 

If she was a freelancer,  then without meaning to  sound terse,  what did you think would happen? 

Would you rent property from an untraceable person in your own country? Of course not,  so why do it here,  it common sense. 

TBH I have heard Thai agents,  who asked me if I spoke Thai and to which I replied no,  plotting with the owner to keep deposits at the end of the tenancy by ignoring the tenant's calls until they had left the country. 

A real company with an office and a website would live or die  by their reviews,  freelancers can't even be tracked to a physical address,  and if it gets too hot,  they get a new mobile number.

Owners don't have to worry about bad reviews,  so if they want to mug you over,  what's to stop them. 

There are some good agents in this country,  but there are thousands of freelancers,  the choice is simple really. 

On 11/23/2016 at 8:44 AM, madmax2 said:

Whats wrong with renting from the property owner, i prefer to and have never had a problem with maintenance and repairs, and you usually get a better price because the owner does not have to pay the real estate agents sometimes exorbitant fees and charges

There are rip of agents and owners in my experience, you just need to ask the rite questions before you commit yourself to anything 

"Exorbitant fees and charges " how do you arrive at that? 

Commission for agents is generally 1 month for 1yr, you feel that is exorbitant? 

Try running an office,  paying staff and marketing the properties and showing them to endless lines of dithering people,  then dealing with maintenance and rent issues throughout the year for that,  and you think it's exorbitant? What do you get paid for your skills: bananas and peanuts? 

Anyway your experience is confined to your personal miniscule number of rentals,  I have dealt with thousands and get somewhere between 10 and 20 emails a  week asking for help. 

Seriously,  who has a better picture of the industry here? 

Also if the owner does turn out to be a bad one;  I've seen rentals where the owner and tenant hug it out their so happy at the signing of the contract,  2 months later they are at each other's throats.  A good agent can mitigate any damage and get most people back on track. 

Also of it does go wrong it's  your word against the owner,  that generally won't go so well for the farang direct renter,  with a real registered company acting as agent,  there is that 3rd impartial voice to resolve issues and it won't go any further. 

It's also a common myth that owners add a premium to rental prices if there is an agent,  just think about that;  the owner will have advertised the property at a certain price,  how could an agent then advertise the same property at a higher price?  That would be plain stupid. 

Anyone finding the property online will then Google that property name,  it makes no sense to list that property at a higher price. 

What about your agent?  (please tell me you didn't rent directly from the owner!) 

Your best way forward is to get a price for the work to stop the leak. 

Then inform the landlord that this is the cost to repair it,  and to help him out ;-)  you will have it repaired at this price and deduct it from the rent. 

Can't see him objecting to that. 

If he does you've got a bad un. 

9 hours ago, Oxx said:

With Thai rental contracts it's the tenant's responsibility to maintain the property - not the landlord's, so yes, you're liable for the repairs.  Expect the landlord, quite legally, to deduct the cost of getting the leak fixed from your deposit.

This is one of the dumbest things I've ever read.  I've never seen a contract here that makes the tenant responsible for building maintenance,  and what sort of idiot would sign such a contract! 

Complete nonsense,  I've rented thousands of properties in this city and no one has even attempted to have this in the contract. 

1 hour ago, Confuscious said:

In many places, some people who are assigned as car parking attendants or whatever tries to make an income by asking parking money.

I know a guy where I live who is regularly at the market asking money for parking space whilst parking is free.
Not giving the guy money can or will result in a scratched car when you come back.
This guy has been reported several times to the Police, but as the parking is private owned space, they can do nothing about it.

How can this be true, so if someone kills you on private land the police can't prosecute?
Nonsense, if the parking is free and he damages cars how can they not arrest him, matter of don't want to, not cant!

Was once parking the bike in Pattaya when a motorcycle taxi guy demanded 200 baht, must have thought we were tourists.
I said [in English] what why? 
Have to pay to park here 200 BAHT! (standing with hand out in an aggressive stance).
What he didn't notice was that his buddies all just got fares behind him and he had zero back up, I walked another 20 meters into the alley way where he followed, then I spun around, took a stance and said [in Thai]: 'your friends are gone, you feeling lucky?'
One look over his shoulder and he crapped himself, off up the alley way cursing in Thai and on his bike and away at full speed.

Of course I moved the bike, but it was worth re-parking it just to mess with him.

16 hours ago, thai3 said:

Dogs again, nothing but trouble !

It isn't the dogs, it's about Thais having no social conscience about letting dogs run around shitting all over other people's property, or biting people, then when confronted they usually become invisible, or you do, either way they ignore you.