Building A House In Issan

[greg48000]

Hi to all in the Issan district! we are located close to Roi-et ..... 30km from roi-et, on the way towards Suwanniphum.

I am hoping that someone here may know a good house builder, and/or an architect.

We have raised the ground level by 1.5 metres, and have completed the fence totally around the block.

Now we would like to speak with a good builder in the area who has some designs that we can look at, adapt to our needs, and then hopefully commence building in the 2nd half of this year.

If you have any contacts in this area I would appreciate your response!

Thanks all .......... then hopefully ............. all invited to the house warming in December!

thanks,

Greg

[binnsy]

Greg

How far are you from Huai Rat as i no of a decent builder located there.And if you are not to far i can give you his mobile number,

[Artisan]

Greg

How far are you from Huai Rat as i no of a decent builder located there.And if you are not to far i can give you his mobile number,

Hi Binnsy.

Greg's location must be about 150 - 160 km from Huai Rat. Maybe not that convenient for him but I've known similar projects where the building team has stayed locally in a cheap guest house and also sub-contracted some of the minor work to local people. Paying for the lodgings might add another 30,000 to 40,000 baht on to the cost of the project. But if the building team comes with a good recommendation then it's worth every baht.

Regards

[kalasin]

Hello greg48000

Since we are about to do the same as you only 80 km north of your place in Kuchinarai, we would be very interested in following your project.

We will loook for and maybe buy land in may/june.

So if you had the time, it would be nice if you made a blog about the progression of the project, how you have dealt with problems, mayby some pics and so on...

[Thaicoon]

When we built our place 8 years ago, i was lucky, wifes family built it so got everything at a good price and the build was done 100%, top quality, looked at a few ferrang houses around isarn, some built very very well, others need knocking down and starting again, when getting a builder ask him if you can look at something he has built before, another ferang house, and get feedback from the owner, that will put your mind at rest, or another thing,if you see a nice ferrang house in your district, knock the door and ask who built it.

Wifes family are building houses in Siracha at the moment,

[greg48000]

Binnsy, thanks for the message. Yes i appreciate what Artisan said and thanks mate i'd like the number. A phone call wouldn't hurt if he is a good builder.

Kalasin ... yes for sure i will set up a blog and keep you all informed of the progress. i hope to be completed by Christmas 2007 ......... so i know that could be pie in the sky but once organised .... we'll see what happens. I have looked around the area and have seen a couple of good houses but i am currently away in Africa working so i am trying to set up all this so i can walk it through during my break!

Thaicoon ........ thanks for the comments .......... much appreciated!

Greg

[Nomad97]

A common occurrence around Isaan is that the builder's men sleep on-site. All they need is some corrugate steel panels, some plastic sheets, and some wooden formers and the dormitory is up in a couple of hours. The ablutions facilities will also be on the site. Therefore, where the workers come from should not be too much of a problem.

[eddie11]

A common occurrence around Isaan is that the builder's men sleep on-site. All they need is some corrugate steel panels, some plastic sheets, and some wooden formers and the dormitory is up in a couple of hours. The ablutions facilities will also be on the site. Therefore, where the workers come from should not be too much of a problem.

We currently have builders living on site doing our restraunt.

They design and build.

They work out of Surin which is not that far from you.

Call 'A' on 085-7713242.

We have had no problems with them and are very pleased with

the job so far

[barryofthailand]

I would say it depends on the materials you would like to use. We are going to build in lower Esan, and construct with Q-con Block and UPVC Slising windows and sliding pattio doors, double glazed for onsulation and sound proofing. Their are many dealers on the web, and lots of contracters. You can also do on the web to pick out a plan.

Barry

[greg48000]

Nomad97 ............ yes i agree, this will not be a problem as there would be plenty of area for them to stay!

My main reason for this forum is to hopefully find someone who has used a builder and they are happy with the work. then i will contact him and hopefully go to stage 2 etc!

Eddie, thank you for the mobile number. I will make a note of it and give "A" a call when i'm back in Thailand. I appreciate your reply, and i'd like the chasnce to hopefully in the future kill 2 birds with one stone and come down and see their workmanship, and also have a meal at your restaurant!

Barry . thanks for the reply and info. Would appreciate any actual websites you know are good. I guess this is like trying to cut out the middleman and find that good builder. Yeah ok .... almost 90% good builder!

thank you again for the replys.

I hope to get about 3 or 4 builders to check out before deciding, so please feel free to reply with a name and number.

Greg

[lampard10]

you could of course check out 'Alan the Builder' on our web-site at the top of the page. Builds to Euro standards at Thai costs.

He is located in Surin, which is not a million miles from you. Click onto Businesses.

[mahdam]

Greg

How far are you from Huai Rat as i no of a decent builder located there.And if you are not to far i can give you his mobile number,

Binnsy

Am traveling to Issan next week, To start the ball rolling on a new house. Any information on good local builders would be appriciated.

GFs village is Ban pia noi ?? near Krasang. Close to you i belive.

[lampard10]

i've seen lots of houses "alan the builder" has done and his work is top of the range and would be quite willing to let you view any of the properties first hand. as lampard10 states he also lives in surin, and his building team is local also of which he has employed the same team for a number of years and many, many projects. i dont think you'l be dissapointed.

I did not write that................must have been logged on. I will agree with it though.

[greg48000]

WELL FINALLY THE DECISION HAS BEEN MADE AND THE CONTRACT HAS BEEN SIGNED!

So here we go. Selected a builder and spent a long time working on the design of a house he already had, but just changing it to suit our needs. Made the master bedroom take up the entire RHS of the house extending the initial plans tiny bathroom, and deleting a bedroom to make a walkin wardrobe and expansion of the bathroom. Even the builders wife is excited, as she believes it will look spectacular.

We added a rear terrace/balcony 9m x 4m to the house which will look out to the west over the expanse of the rice paddy fields. All this will be tiled with double sliding doors from the loungeroom.

The builder is from the Roi-et area, and we have been able to identify how we want it built and to our standards, not his! He is excited about building this home for us as he knows if he does a good job, then this house will bring him more work. The house is on the main road from Roi-et to Suwannipom, through the Maung Swaung village and approx 5 km on RHS.

We negotiated a price and finally came in with his price and us providing certain "westernised" items which he will install for us. ie: spa, shower unit, toilets, vanities, bathroom acccessories, laundry sinks, tubs, air cond, fans, kitchen complete, automatic garage door, etc!

So as of the 1st of June the land has been blessed etc, and they have started work. The time for completion is 24 December!

Now points to remember so far : DO NOT BACK DOWN. These guys will try to do it their way. Do not let the family convince you otherwise. And i have read many posts about Thai builders doing their own thing, 101% correct! Stay on top of it, and you'll be happy.

If you have the chance to do it purchase your own major items. An example was the price for a water pump ...... my price 6.500 baht. Same water pump from the builder 20,000 baht. He didn't expect me to be a non-lazy falang. Just quoted and crossed his fingers.

So i will try to work out how to do a blog and keep you all posted. Trouble is i am away working in Africa at the moment, visiting every two months, so i am sure i'll have some amazing stories to tell.

To all that gave me assistance and advice ......... thanks everyone. And dont forget the house warming will be December! The photos attached are from a house similar to ours, but i will continue to add as we progress.

Greg in Issan

[roietjimmy]

WELL FINALLY THE DECISION HAS BEEN MADE AND THE CONTRACT HAS BEEN SIGNED!

So here we go. Selected a builder and spent a long time working on the design of a house he already had, but just changing it to suit our needs. Made the master bedroom take up the entire RHS of the house extending the initial plans tiny bathroom, and deleting a bedroom to make a walkin wardrobe and expansion of the bathroom. Even the builders wife is excited, as she believes it will look spectacular.

We added a rear terrace/balcony 9m x 4m to the house which will look out to the west over the expanse of the rice paddy fields. All this will be tiled with double sliding doors from the loungeroom.

The builder is from the Roi-et area, and we have been able to identify how we want it built and to our standards, not his! He is excited about building this home for us as he knows if he does a good job, then this house will bring him more work. The house is on the main road from Roi-et to Suwannipom, through the Maung Swaung village and approx 5 km on RHS.

We negotiated a price and finally came in with his price and us providing certain "westernised" items which he will install for us. ie: spa, shower unit, toilets, vanities, bathroom acccessories, laundry sinks, tubs, air cond, fans, kitchen complete, automatic garage door, etc!

So as of the 1st of June the land has been blessed etc, and they have started work. The time for completion is 24 December!

Now points to remember so far : DO NOT BACK DOWN. These guys will try to do it their way. Do not let the family convince you otherwise. And i have read many posts about Thai builders doing their own thing, 101% correct! Stay on top of it, and you'll be happy.

If you have the chance to do it purchase your own major items. An example was the price for a water pump ...... my price 6.500 baht. Same water pump from the builder 20,000 baht. He didn't expect me to be a non-lazy falang. Just quoted and crossed his fingers.

So i will try to work out how to do a blog and keep you all posted. Trouble is i am away working in Africa at the moment, visiting every two months, so i am sure i'll have some amazing stories to tell.

To all that gave me assistance and advice ......... thanks everyone. And dont forget the house warming will be December! The photos attached are from a house similar to ours, but i will continue to add as we progress.

Greg in Issan

Greg,

Sorry I was unable to contribute earlier but just became a member yesterday. I just finished my place in Roiet about two weeks ago and I wish you the best on your place as well. It is unfortunate you will not be on site during most of the construction period. Being around to let the builder know what preferences you might have before they start a specific area sure cuts down on the amount of rework that inevitably occurs after you see it and say "O my god, that is not what I expected". It sounds like the house will be built using modified plans from a house the builder already has built and you have seen. This is good news and will be a major factor in getting what you want. However. as with all things the devil is in the detail. The ideal situation is to have plans that list every component in the house with manufacturer, part number and supplier. My guess this is not the case but if this is what you have then you will have no real problems. If your plans are not of this detail, then problems will arise. It looks like you have done your homework so you are aware of the vast differences in the price and quality of the materials. In particular, roofing, flooring, doors, windows, electrical and lighting, water system, kitchen cabinets, and sanitary fixture prices are all over the map. If you haven't already as part of the contract, make sure you tell the builder specifically what you want. For example, roof tiles vary in price from about 20 baht per tile to 60 baht per tile (40cm x 40cm tile). Your house will need about 2000 tiles so you can see we are looking at a real cost difference for the roof. If the contract you have is typical of the ones I've seen in Thailand, you are probably looking at estimates for materials in the above areas (as you point out in the 20,000 baht water pump estimate).

Oops, I am rambling on. If you want more specifics I would be happy speak with you. Send me a personal message and I will give you my phone number.