Advice on good location to live for commute to Bangkok

[Jeffstbees]

Hi All,

 

I'm potentially looking at a move to a new role based in Bangkok.

 

The office is on the East of the city just off the Bang Na- Chon Buri express way about 24km south East of the airport.

 

I want a commute, that on average takes no longer than 1.5 hours, so had identified Chon Buri; (city area) as a potential location, that or further south, if the location fits within the commute timings.

I'd rather have a bigger house 1.5 hours out, than have a shorter commute and be in a smaller property.

 

I have a family, so would like a residential area that is quiet, maybe has nice parks, or places to walk the dog and is close to the beaches, although if being close to a beach drives the prices up, then we can always drive to one at the weekend. I'm not bothered about living in a fashionable area, I'm more bothered about getting bang for my buck and being able to mix with normal working families, I do like golf, so being close to a course would be nice, but again not essential.

 

I'd probably look to rent for the first 6 months to a year, but then, would be looking to purchase. Rental budget of circa $1,500 per month. 

 

Purchase budget is open at the moment until I understand the market and how long term this move would be, but in short I'm looking for the areas that represent the best value for money.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Jeff

 

 

 

 

[DrJack54]

There are local forums. Bkk etc. You will get answers there.

[NanLaew]

About 24 km southeast of the airport would suggest Ban Pakong (?) which by virtue of Highway 7 is easily less than an hour, maybe 40 minutes (?) from the outer limits of Pattaya, or the 'dark side' as it's known. Plenty decent rental options in villages around there. I would reckon capping the age of the village at around 8 years. The older ones may either be lacking facilities of completely run down depending if they ever formed a working homeowners association or if the developer even let it go. Newer villages tend to have benefited from better construction, more modern designs and newer materials. For example aerated concrete block construction versus traditional red-brick and render. The latter is older/cheaper but the former, albeit more expensive has the benefit of the interior staying cooler longer and reducing energy bills on air conditioning.

 

Is the OP's family school age? That's another factor beyond parks, beaches and dog-walking places. There are international schools on the eastern periphery of Bangkok, around Highway 9 ring road beyond the airport but there are also choices to be made down Pattaya way as well.

[myjawe]

Why even thinking to commute when it's possible to have a house ANYWHERE, and especially close to where ANYBODY works.

Ridiculous in my opinion. People living in Thailand a so bad life as they were living in the west.

 

[emptypockets]

Unless you have a Thai wife the potential property you talk of purchasing may be limited to condos realistically. Sure people will tell you the ways to get around Thais only owning land but to be honest I would avoid those methods for peace of mind.

Spend time understanding land ownership in Thailand while you are renting.

[madmen]

2 hours ago, myjawe said:

Why even thinking to commute when it's possible to have a house ANYWHERE, and especially close to where ANYBODY works.

Ridiculous in my opinion. People living in Thailand a so bad life as they were living in the west.

 

The guy doesn't want to live in the middle of nowhere surrounded by industrial estates and has mentioned beaches

[Bangkokhatter]

I work just off Km19 along Bangna Trad and at one point me and the wife thought the same.
We looked at places from Siracha down to the Darkside, plenty of nice places but in the end I realised the commute would end up driving me nuts.
Average working day 9 hours plus say 2 hour round trip, leaves only the weekend for fun.
Settled on a place near the airport 20 mins drive from work and not far for a weekend visit to the seaside.
Regarding Golf, plenty of options all the way from Bangna-Trad down to Pattaya

Sent from my SM-A520F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Dogmatix]

People are forced to spend hours commuting because they work in the innner city and can’t afford housing near their work. If you work in suburbs, you have luxury of avoiding a lengthy commute on expressways where people drive like lunatics but traffic grinds to a halt when it rains heavily or when there are accidents or roadworks.

Edited May 25, 2019 by Dogmatix

[RAZZELL]

Get somewhere 15-30 minutes away from where you work.

 

Your life will be a LOT easier.

 

RAZZ

[Scutty]

Do not even consider Pattaya - the dark side - as they call it . Absolute cesspit . 1.5 hours commute is far too much for daily travel . Just get a place near your work . The places far from Bangkok are pretty much the same as the places in Bangkok anyway ....cesspits imo .

[lamyai3]

On 5/23/2019 at 9:40 PM, Jeffstbees said:

I'd rather have a bigger house 1.5 hours out, than have a shorter commute and be in a smaller property.

By any definition, your workplace is far out of the city, should be little difficulty finding an affordable house in fairly close range. You say you have a family - if you have children of school age a major consideration would be organising your accommodation in relation to easy access to the right school, and minimising journey times in that regard. 

[mrwebb8825]

If your wife is Thai then I'd look around the Dok Mai area. Mega Bang Na is south for shopping. King Rama IX park is west for doggies. Thana City and Lakewood country clubs are SE for golf and there's a major golf center at Fashion Island west of the airport on outer ring road for golfing needs. Still puts you within a couple of hours of the nasty tourist beaches.

Rent and research from there. 

[yokat]

$1500 is quite the budget, for this price you can get hundreds of sqm almost anywhere. How much is too small for you ?