Serviced apartment, hotel or both

[Felt 35]

Can some who know what the Thai law says regarding what is considered Serviced Apartment and what is considered hotel and if its legal to operate both under the same roof. The  situation is that the owner of the place we stay now have given they of us who rent corner apartments (higher standard and bigger and located on good spots in regard to outdoor surroundings)  the choice of staying in the  apartments we stay and accept noise from tour groups (guess where from) because they want to renovate/change the smaller apartments on the same floor and use them to pay pr. night customers, mainly tour groups, or we can move up one floor to apartments which is smaller and of much lower standard. People renting this units is mostly elderly retired foreigners but also some younger couples with family and some have stayed here as long as 12 years.

I meant to have seen some new regulations/ laws not long ago about similar subject but are not sure about the wording. Personally I thought a owner had to choose between operate on of the two and with that follow laws and regulations thereafter. Any info welcome.

 

Thanks

Felt

 

 

[KittenKong]

It will depend to an extent on the number of rooms involved. Places with more than a handful of rooms that operate as hotels (ie doing daily rentals) have to be registered under the Hotel Act and have to obey various safety instructions etc. Exceptions are small guest houses, which have less onerous registration requirements.

Apartments cannot be rented on a daily basis but dont have to obey quite the same rules either.

 

Of course, this being Thailand it is quite possible that no registration will be done and no rules will be obeyed at all.

 

Personally if tour groups moved into my building I would move out the same day. Life is too short to waste in proximity to people like that.

[Felt 35]

7 hours ago, KittenKong said:

It will depend to an extent on the number of rooms involved. Places with more than a handful of rooms that operate as hotels (ie doing daily rentals) have to be registered under the Hotel Act and have to obey various safety instructions etc. Exceptions are small guest houses, which have less onerous registration requirements.

Apartments cannot be rented on a daily basis but dont have to obey quite the same rules either.

 

Of course, this being Thailand it is quite possible that no registration will be done and no rules will be obeyed at all.

 

Personally if tour groups moved into my building I would move out the same day. Life is too short to waste in proximity to people like that.

Thanks for replying. The building have approximately 60 serviced apartments. Previously the place only accepted long time rental with minimum 3 months contracts. Few years ago this start to slide downwards and nowadays more apartments are sold for daily rentals than for long time rentals. I understand from the atmosphere that they (management) struggle to make profit even with added on daily rentals. But from that to make life uncomfortable for people  who have rented on the basis with long term contracts and that in principle the  place not are used as hotel (short-term rentals) are in my view unfair and I can not see that the building is standardized for that kind of business and I believe the Thai law says something about the legality of what is required for two different types of rental to two different customer types in the same building!

[KittenKong]

From what you say it sounds like they probably dont have a hotel licence but are clearly acting as a hotel. You could report them for that, but it wouldn't do much to generate good feeling. If they arent making money anyway it might just force them to close.

 

As far as I know there is nothing stopping them operating as a hotel in particular areas, as long as those areas suit the Hotel Act regulations (mostly to do with safety: fire exits etc) and as long as they are registered to do so.

 

Unlike in a condo, I dont think there are any requirements that serviced apartments should not conduct hotel or other businesses on the premises.

[Delight]

Wiki descibes a serviced appartment as follows:

A serviced apartment (also known as a service apartment or an extended stay apartment) is a fully furnished apartment^[1] available for short-term or long-term stay, providing hotel-like amenities such as room service, house keeping, a fitness center, a laundry room, and a rec room. Most of them are equipped with full kitchens, Wi-Fi and in-apartment washers and dryers.^{[citation needed]}

Companies frequently use serviced apartments to host professionals who may be on a local or international work assignment. It is common for executives to stay in serviced apartments temporarily while searching for a permanent residence or relocation. Although serviced apartments are primarily occupied by business executives, they are also available to the general public.^{[citation needed]}

Serviced apartments offer facilities much like an apartment hotel but provides more space, convenience and privacy. They have private cooking facilities, sometimes a kitchenette but sometimes a full-size kitchen with dishwasher and washing machine, living and sleeping areas that are larger than most standard rooms, and often having access to gyms, restaurants, meeting space, concierges and other hotel-like services.^{[citation needed]}

Their services usually include towel replacement, toiletteries change, making of bed, and cleaning.

 

 

For certain it is not an hotel-cooking is not avaiable in any hotel that I have stayed in.

 

I assume that there is only one title deed-therefore it is not a condo.

 

 

I did find this on the net.

 

http://thailandproperty.news/new-rental-law-start-may-1

 

It may help

 

 

[KittenKong]

13 hours ago, Delight said:

For certain it is not an hotel-cooking is not avaiable in any hotel that I have stayed in.

I've seen quite a few hotels in Thailand that offer rooms with cooking facilities. You can easily find them on online booking agency sites. The facilities can vary from a microwave and a plate (or even no plate) to a full kitchenette with hotplate and saucepans.

[Felt 35]

1 hour ago, KittenKong said:

I've seen quite a few hotels in Thailand that offer rooms with cooking facilities. You can easily find them on online booking agency sites. The facilities can vary from a microwave and a plate (or even no plate) to a full kitchenette with hotplate and saucepans.

www.krisdika.go.th/wps/wcm/connect/49529200422d695a91f09fd23e4afdc... · PDF-fil fil

[jackdd]

I think Thai law doesn't make a difference between the terms serviced apartment or hotel itself.

If rooms are rented out for periods less than 30 days it's considered a hotel and thus needs a hotel license, no matter how the owner calls it.

In my experience usually places that call themself "serviced apartment" also offer daily rentals and probably have a hotel license, some also offer cooking facilities.

There are a few places that call themself "serviced apartment", but the only serviced thing they offer is that you can book a room cleaning for an extortionate fee and i wouldn't call them a serviced apartment. These places usually rent out only for more than 30 days and thus don't need a hotel license.

 

You could try to figure out if the place where you stay has a hotel license and if it doesn't you could report it to the authorities, but who knows if this will help...

[Felt 35]

11 hours ago, jackdd said:

I think Thai law doesn't make a difference between the terms serviced apartment or hotel itself.

If rooms are rented out for periods less than 30 days it's considered a hotel and thus needs a hotel license, no matter how the owner calls it.

In my experience usually places that call themself "serviced apartment" also offer daily rentals and probably have a hotel license, some also offer cooking facilities.

There are a few places that call themself "serviced apartment", but the only serviced thing they offer is that you can book a room cleaning for an extortionate fee and i wouldn't call them a serviced apartment. These places usually rent out only for more than 30 days and thus don't need a hotel license.

 

You could try to figure out if the place where you stay has a hotel license and if it doesn't you could report it to the authorities, but who knows if this will help...

I found this.....

A hotel is defined under the Hotel Act 2004 as any business providing paid accommodation for less than a month, irrespectively of the number or capacity of the rooms. Even the smallest villa and a one-bedroom condominium unit can qualify as a hotel under the law. However, the Hotel Act legitimizes ministerial regulations to regulate this otherwise.......now I need to find the Serviced Apartment act which probably not are to be found and most likely the only difference is what they call the place.

 

 

[bobnuts]

Bullshit laws of no value, so easy to subvert.

 

Dude A rents apartment for 31 days, or more. In his name with contract. No sub-letting.

 

”Allows” dudes B C D E... Z to stay in the room at no charge. (That no charge bit is important).

 

On contract expiry Dude A collects “ consultancy fee” from overseas tour company comprising amounts paid by dudes B ... Z for accommodation. 

[wombat]

when?....when the official decides,,,TiT

[sam neuts]

The 2016 amendment to the Hotel Act requires all buildings offering less than 30 day leases to either have a Hotel Licence or Non-Hotel Licence. Both require being registered and following the required regulations. Many businesses will be closed, and there are not enough hotels with a licence to provide rooms for the 40 million tourists. IF your building is offering daily/weekly rentals they require a licence.

[allane]

I arrived in Bangkok in the mid 1990's. At that time there were several "serviced apartments", which rented apartments on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. Note that I am speaking of apartment buildings where one owner owned the whole building. While I can not vouch for the legality of any of these places, past or present, I would guess that they were legal. They were openly advertised in the media, and with on-site signs.

In Thailand or anywhere else, I have never heard of any guarantee that the "tenant mix" will not change. If it has changed to the point that you can't stand it, I think it is you who will have to leave.  Check your prospective new accomodation carefully before you do !

[Seeall]

1 hour ago, sam neuts said:

The 2016 amendment to the Hotel Act requires all buildings offering less than 30 day leases to either have a Hotel Licence or Non-Hotel Licence. Both require being registered and following the required regulations. Many businesses will be closed, and there are not enough hotels with a licence to provide rooms for the 40 million tourists. IF your building is offering daily/weekly rentals they require a licence.

IF > 4 ROOMS OR 20 GUESTS

[natway09]

If they have a Hotel Licence they can legally do both

[Felt 35]

7 hours ago, natway09 said:

If they have a Hotel Licence they can legally do both

Hmm...it seems they are in between or a staff say that they applied for that licence 6 month ago but have not get a answer from the government yet....?

Btw, a Thai/Foreign family had asked the management about the new law regarding electricity and water charges and had pronto get the reply that then they (management) would demand maintenance fees and regulate the monthly rent so the end price actually would be higher than the extra Thb paid for the units pr. today.

Well I will soon move, many years here and this have been the "home away from home" due to a natural but central location. However I have done my homework and enough is enough. Top that up with doubtful contracts, lately low maintenance moral, underpaid staff and well known owners, well known for being st...y in the local area ?