I just found out from the real estate agent that a condo I was going to rent through them is owned by a Thai Police man. Has anyone rented out from a cop before?

 

I must admit my first thought was that it might not be good to rent a condo where the owner is a cop as if there are potential problems down the track, then you could be in a bit of hot water. On the other hand I was thinking if you get along well with the owner cop and befriend him and he's a high ranking officer (which seems to be useful but I know none personally), then if for whatever reason you end up having some police harrassing you on the street (eg. trying to get cash from you, plant some stuff on you, etc.) then you have a point of contact where you can say you know or are friends with this cop and he will be able to make the other cops leave you alone.

 

What are people's thoughts here? Beware of renting from a cop or there should be no issues really? Agent will continue managing the property anyway.

I rented a house from cop for a year. He was a narcotics officer, fairly senior from what I gathered. Nice bloke and a great landlord. Of the few issues we had he  always sorted it out. 

 

But I guess it all depends on the individual.

 

I only found out he was a cop when he turned up at the house in plain clothes but with a gun on his belt!

 

As for your situation, I wouldn't worry. Like you say, the agent will probably manage any issues you have anyway. I doubt you'll ever see this cop.

20 hours ago, Jonathan Fairfield said:

I rented a house from cop for a year. He was a narcotics officer, fairly senior from what I gathered. Nice bloke and a great landlord. Of the few issues we had he  always sorted it out. 

 

But I guess it all depends on the individual.

 

I only found out he was a cop when he turned up at the house in plain clothes but with a gun on his belt!

 

As for your situation, I wouldn't worry. Like you say, the agent will probably manage any issues you have anyway. I doubt you'll ever see this cop.

 

But I guess it all depends on the individual.

Any other answer would mean nothing 

What type of condo are you renting and what kind of person are you?   

If you are renting a decent place and you are a good tenant that pays on time, doesn't cause damage and doesn't demand he fix every little thing (I've heard of morons demanding their landlord replace light bulbs or fix dripping taps), then why would you have any problems with him?

If he is reasonably senior and there is an opportunity to become friends with him, I certainly would, especially if you plan to live there for a long time.  Having good Thai friends is always a good thing.

yea I would say it has more positives than negatives. a friend rented off a cop in pattaya. he had some problems with a competing local business trying to shut his business down. a call to his landlord and problem sorted. if you can meet your land lord and buy him a bottle of decent whiskey he might give you his phone number for any troubles down the road.

The guy's creating an income stream through a rental.  What difference does it make if he's a cop?  If that makes you uncomfortable, don't rent.  In my entire life, I was never 'buddies' with the people I rented from.  I sent them my rent check monthly and other than that the less I saw of them the better.  I seldom asked or cared what their day-job was.

Just report him to the Joker if he steps out of line. Then head for the airport.

Pay an extra couple of thousand baht rent per month to ensure he is your good buddy, as and when required.

You will be dealing with the agent I would imagine...will most lightly never even meet the owner...that's why he uses an agency. At least that's why I always did ..didn't want to have anything to do with the "customer,".

4 hours ago, seancbk said:

If he is reasonably senior and there is an opportunity to become friends with him, I certainly would, especially if you plan to live there for a long time.  Having good Thai friends is always a good thing.

In theory that is a good idea. But will it work? And will you be friends forever.

I know a farang who had a Thai boss who was best friends with a Thai SWAT team leader. His Thai boss told my farang friend: If you ever have a serious problem let me know and my SWAT team friend will sort it out.

My farang friend was really proud of that connection.

But then one day he said something to the boss which the boss didn't like. Maybe just a joke gone wrong in translation. That was the moment when the Thai boss remembered him about that SWAT team...

For me the moral of the story is: If you know someone, fine. But don't try to get too near to them. You might get burned in the wrong moment.

I rented a house from a Thai cop some years ago, while our own house was being built. I had no issues with him at all. I met him twice and he seemed to be OK. No problem when my wife asked if we could fit an electri shower. We were told it had to stay when we left so it was a cheap one. No problems. I guess it depends on the person you rent from I mean wew are not going to start a war.

If you nothing to hide from the Thai Police and if he has a good reputation as a landlord, I would go for it.

 

If he a good guy as well as you, who knows, you could have a good friend you could go to for any help if you needed it.

 

LeoTex

 

PS; I'm sure a little gift to him at the proper times of the year wouldn't hurt the relationship. ????

 

 

8 hours ago, seancbk said:

What type of condo are you renting and what kind of person are you?   

If you are renting a decent place and you are a good tenant that pays on time, doesn't cause damage and doesn't demand he fix every little thing (I've heard of morons demanding their landlord replace light bulbs or fix dripping taps), then why would you have any problems with him?

If he is reasonably senior and there is an opportunity to become friends with him, I certainly would, especially if you plan to live there for a long time.  Having good Thai friends is always a good thing.

I would suggest that becoming friends with your landlord is not a good idea. Keep your distance and privacy. I don't want social visits from landlords - been there, done that. For the first time, I'm renting through a real estate agent and never see the owner - and loving it. If anything needs to be done, the real estate agent sorts it out. Keep it professional, keep your distance.

 

 

My SAS friend who was a Major rented from a Narcotics cop and couldn't get his deposit  back.. 

.

4 minutes ago, baansgr said:

My SAS friend who was a Major rented from a Narcotics cop and couldn't get his deposit  back.. 

.

Which one was the higher of the the two I wonder?

On 11/17/2018 at 12:14 AM, Jonathan Fairfield said:

I rented a house from cop for a year. He was a narcotics officer, fairly senior from what I gathered. Nice bloke and a great landlord. Of the few issues we had he  always sorted it out. 

 

But I guess it all depends on the individual.

 

I only found out he was a cop when he turned up at the house in plain clothes but with a gun on his belt!

 

As for your situation, I wouldn't worry. Like you say, the agent will probably manage any issues you have anyway. I doubt you'll ever see this cop.

I would think he would have to be fairly senior to own the place. Or stop a lot of farangs on motorbikes.