Bangkok among the cheapest cities for expats to relocate to, new study claims

[webfact]

Bangkok among the cheapest cities for expats to relocate to, new study claims

 

FILE photo

 

Bangkok has been ranked among the cheapest cities in the world for expats to relocate to, according to a new study.

 

The study, conducted by furnished apartment search engine site Nestpick, analysed the initial costs involved in moving to 80 of the most in demand cities from around the world.

 

Costs included visa fees, food, transport, rent, phone and internet for the first month of relocation.

 

The study found that a move to Bangkok costs €949.44 (approx 35,800 baht) in the first month, ranking the Thai capital in 62nd spot out of the 80 cities included in study.

 

According to Nestpick, expats relocating to Bangkok can expect to pay €68.42 (2,580 THB) on visa fees, €376.00 (14,182 THB) on rent, €15.06 (568 THB) on internet, €17.84 (672 THB) on phone, €440.27 (16596 THB) on food and €31.85 (1201 THB) on transport.

 

“The world has never been more accessible than it is right now to those seeking out employment opportunities, cultural exchanges or remote working hubs. In the last few years especially, we’ve seen trends that more people than ever are relocating to far-flung destinations which have rapidly digitalized. It’s now equally as possible to find 4G on a beach as it is in a built-up city,” said Ömer Kücükdere, Managing Director of Nestpick.

 

“The cost of living is often a huge factor for those looking to move, with the initial month almost always incurring extra costs due to potential visa applications”.

 

Thailand was found to have the shortest visa processing time at just 2 days, with Auckland at 381 days having the longest.

 

Overall, Dubai was found to be the most expensive city to relocate, with expats spending on a total of €3,632.65 in the first month. Auckland (€3,420.14) and San Francisco (€3,216.00), were ranked second and third most expensive, respectively.

 

The cheapest city to relocate to was Cairo where the first month would cost you on average just €560.41. This was followed by Bangalore (€633.71) and Bucharest (€644.26).

 

Regionally, Kuala Lumpur (€865.79) and Jakarta (€897.53) were found to be cheaper than Bangkok for foreigners to relocate.

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2018-06-13

[shady86]

15k baht for rent. Must be staying far away from bts and tiny rooms. Even single bedrooms on popular projects cost at least 20k.

[ezzra]

True, BKK is cheaper place to live compare to other cities but you also have to take into account other factors such as safety, quality of living, ease of interaction with the population, environmental issues, traffic condition and so on... Thailand is great place to live in some respects but lacking in others..

Edited June 13, 2018 by ezzra

[observer90210]

Very doubtful that [fine] wine afficionados,  would agree with this lovely new survey....

[InMyShadow]

The beauty of bangkok is its cheap or as expensive as you want it to be except real estate which has exploded skyward in price. 

 

The Q condo Nana bts selling $1 to 5 million USA DOLLARS!! 

[Emster23]

1 hour ago, shady86 said:

15k baht for rent. Must be staying far away from bts and tiny rooms. Even single bedrooms on popular projects cost at least 20k.

I have a nice 43 sq m condo I'm renting in Ramkhamhaeng for 6k a month. Airport train is about 10 min away.

[HooHaa]

compared to metro manila, bangkok is significantly more expensive.

prices are numerically on par for many things, however the peso is worth 1.6 ++ to the baht.

bouncing between both on a regular basis makes it very clear which is the cheaper option.

Bangkok wins hands down for lifestyle and atmosphere however.

[trianglechoke]

surely this falls under fake news

[upena]

April 1st already?

[DoctorG]

I was waiting for a NZer to come on to refute the Auckland thing. 381 days for a visa application? Surely not?

[InMyShadow]

2 hours ago, ezzra said:

True, BKK is cheaper place to live compare to other cities but you also have to take into account other factors such as safety, quality of living, ease of interaction with the population, environmental issues, traffic condition and so on... Thailand is great place to live in some respects but lacking in others..

That's why it's cheap. Most expats don't want it to change but change is happening. Our soi near Nana bts got completely ripped up and brand new concrete Rd installed with massive drains every 15 meters on both sides of the street. 

There are other side sois getting the same treatment 

[mercman24]

post 2 ,, rubbish i lived in Phra Kanong for 3 years (until recently) a nice one bed condo 45 sq m  terrific pool and gym right by  the BTS, for 15,000  SUKHUMVIT PLUS CONDOS  sky bar opposite, great plaza for dining out at night. the list goes on.

[observer90210]

Exploding the real estate prices that encourage and lead to  overdevelopping housings in Thailand, will ultimately burst the bubble at one point.

[StayinThailand2much]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand was found to have the shortest visa processing time at just 2 days, with Auckland at 381 days having the longest.

 

Hahahaha... This is total b****cks! Even in neighbouring countries you can get a visa within 2 minutes (Laos, Cambodia...). Vietnam is, basically, visa-free, and you can obtain a visa same-day for most Asian countries at their embassies in Bangkok. Visas for Cambodia, Australia, etc., can actually be applied for online, with processing only taking minutes. Only Thai embassies need 2 days for a simple tourist visa. 

Edited June 13, 2018 by StayinThailand2much

[StayinThailand2much]

6 hours ago, DoctorG said:

I was waiting for a NZer to come on to refute the Auckland thing. 381 days for a visa application? Surely not?

I'm travelling there next year. Will I have to wait 381 days at the airport for my visa stamp? ?

[ebonykap]

10 hours ago, Emster23 said:

I have a nice 43 sq m condo I'm renting in Ramkhamhaeng for 6k a month. Airport train is about 10 min away.

Are there any rooms available there at the moment?

[Wake Up]

11 hours ago, trianglechoke said:

surely this falls under fake news

Nope 100 percent true. If the expats that have been living in BKk try to move elsewhere they will be in for a major shock at how cheap Bangkok is for lifestyle.  

[Wake Up]

17 K for one bedroom 45 square meters near On nut bts. Never find that condo for same price  in any other big city. Utilities very cheap comparing to other places. Lots of Thai bashing but the main reason the thai bashers don’t move is they cannot afford to go anywhere else. 

[InMyShadow]

37 minutes ago, ebonykap said:

Are there any rooms available there at the moment?

Wake up wake up. Even if it's true it would be moldy old dump. And that would be 10 mins on a Mototaxi. 

 

You can't even get that deal in Pattaya unless your on the wrong side of Sukhumvit..the far side of the dark side 

 

People are so gullible! 

[moontang]

KL cheaper than BKK?  Until you had your first beer....16,500 THB on food?  excessive.  As was the phone bill.  And a great place to come get a job?  Downright ignorant.  Next.

[ebonykap]

8 hours ago, InMyShadow said:

Wake up wake up. Even if it's true it would be moldy old dump. And that would be 10 mins on a Mototaxi. 

 

You can't even get that deal in Pattaya unless your on the wrong side of Sukhumvit..the far side of the dark side 

 

People are so gullible! 

Give me a break. No harm in asking, right? If I need your advice, I'll ask for it thanks.

[anon789561]

On 6/13/2018 at 6:31 AM, shady86 said:

15k baht for rent. Must be staying far away from bts and tiny rooms. Even single bedrooms on popular projects cost at least 20k.

really. my mate lives in a large condo a few minutes walk from his bts and is only paying 10k. maybe you should shop around

[Kaoboi Bebobp]

Many seemed to have overlooked Bangkok's ranking and only remembered the headline. BKK ranked a lowly 62nd out of 80 in-demand cities in  terms of initial costs. So there are 61 other cities cheaper to move to. At least that's the way I read this feature. But one can never be sure about anything in Bangkok  newspaper reports.

 

 

Edited June 14, 2018 by Kaoboi Bebobp

[InMyShadow]

really. my mate lives in a large condo a few minutes walk from his bts and is only paying 10k. maybe you should shop around

I used to own a second condo in soi 101 before flipping it but that was brand new top floor and the rent would have been 12k probably knocked down to 10k with shuttle bus to bts.

 

Wouldn't want to live their though at 33sqm

And bts shuts at midnight so taxis very fussy and fighting for no meter.. Not for me I will stick with Nana

[anon789561]

1 minute ago, InMyShadow said:

I used to own a second condo in soi 101 before flipping it but that was brand new top floor and the rent would have been 12k probably knocked down to 10k with shuttle bus to bts.

Wouldn't want to live their though at 33sqm

his place is over near sapan taksin. big room and nice views. nice enough for him, he's single

[Wake Up]

15 hours ago, InMyShadow said:

Wake up wake up. Even if it's true it would be moldy old dump. And that would be 10 mins on a Mototaxi. 

 

You can't even get that deal in Pattaya unless your on the wrong side of Sukhumvit..the far side of the dark side 

 

People are so gullible! 

I have visited a few paid ladies in BKk that have 5000 to 6000 baht rooms in BKK. They work at nana bar or Soi Cowboy at night and are fresher and cheaper at 1 or 2 pm before they head to work. They have air and nice sort of inside but small and usually only Thais live there. Furniture is simply and sturdy. No pool or gym or security guards except maybe one that only speaks thai. One girl had a nice room right across from BTS at Ratchatherwi. Most are at On Nut or Huay kwang. IMO you would need to speak thai well and maybe read thai to find these rooms and not worth it for an expat to live there as you may be a target since we really don’t belong there. But you could live in a room with bath for 5000 baht a month if you are fluent and willing and some are close to BTS. For the average expat no way you would even know these rooms exist as it is where most of the Thai workers live including but not limited to the working girls. 

[Rc2702]

Rooms with communal pool and 800m from bang chak BTS.  Start 5k a month.

 

[anon789561]

8 minutes ago, Wake Up said:

I have visited a few paid ladies in BKk that have 5000 to 6000 baht rooms in BKK. They work at nana bar or Soi Cowboy at night and are fresher and cheaper at 1 or 2 pm before they head to work. They have air and nice sort of inside but small and usually only Thais live there. Furniture is simply and sturdy. No pool or gym or security guards except maybe one that only speaks thai. One girl had a nice room right across from BTS at Ratchatherwi. Most are at On Nut or Huay kwang. IMO you would need to speak thai well and maybe read thai to find these rooms and not worth it for an expat to live there as you may be a target since we really don’t belong there. But you could live in a room with bath for 5000 baht a month if you are fluent and willing and some are close to BTS. For the average expat no way you would even know these rooms exist as it is where most of the Thai workers live including but not limited to the working girls. 

i know a girl (just someone i know and not a working girl) she pays 3,500 and the rooms a decent size. the buildings very clean and secure but shared bathrooms but everyones very clean there. no aircon though but actually it's a perfectly nice place really. just can't play music or anything really as they have those windows that are in the corridor. but if you need cheap, it's available

[Wake Up]

Just now, Happy enough said:

i know a girl (just someone i know and not a working girl) she pays 3,500 and the rooms a decent size. the buildings very clean and secure but shared bathrooms but everyones very clean there. no aircon though but actually it's a perfectly nice place really. just can't play music or anything really as they have those windows that are in the corridor. but if you need cheap, it's available

I agree. The working girls I know have their own bathroom and maybe that is why they pay more like 5000 to 6000 a month. Once I visited a room in Thailand near MRT where a working girls unemployed brother and his wife  and baby lived for 1000 baht a month. We stopped by so she could give them some food. Shared bathrooms by many people and no air and aluminum and a few cinder blocks for the walls. Could not live there but many Thais do live in the bare minimum. Would not have gone there without her and probably would not go back. 

[anon789561]

4 minutes ago, Wake Up said:

I agree. The working girls I know have their own bathroom and maybe that is why they pay more like 5000 to 6000 a month. Once I visited a room in Thailand near MRT where a working girls unemployed brother and his wife  and baby lived for 1000 baht a month. We stopped by so she could give them some food. Shared bathrooms by many people and no air and aluminum and a few cinder blocks for the walls. Could not live there but many Thais do live in the bare minimum. Would not have gone there without her and probably would not go back. 

1000 must be a bit of a slum 555. i've been to something similar. you're like what the hell is this place. the girl i mentioned is a nurse and most people there are workers you know so it's alright. my brother in law took me to a slummy place once to see one of his mates. didn't feel safe at all being a farang there. proper sketchy