Building costs in Thailand - Rural area

[lanng khao]

Noticed one small thing, because they have tied the dividing wall of the bedroom into the back wall rather than using a piece of metal brick tor, it's almost put a straight joint right up the elevation wall, no big problem, just make sure the don't slam the front door...

[4MyEgo]

On 2/22/2020 at 10:18 PM, Ian3005 said:

but I don't know if they can build to western standards

If you have any knowledge of building standards and what your thinking of building, you shouldn't have a problem. I have knowledge of building standards and what materials are best to use which does help. It also helps to have a wife who knows things and is a good negotiator, no nose in the air because she is married to a farang also helps a lot $'s wise.

 

As you would be aware in Thailand, especially rural Thailand, you can just about do anything you want, especially if you live in a village, that said, I didn't use a "qualified builder" or a building company, I used a guy who was taught by his father who was a builder and showed him the ropes. We inspected a few of the houses he built over the years in the village, and my wife spoke with the owners and asked questions, like if they were happy with the timeframe, workmanship and price, etc, etc.

 

We waited for a year for him to start as he finished another build, we paid around 6,000 per square metre all up with materials, i.e. 1.5 mil baht for an extension to an existing property which also shares a common wall with the new property (256m2). The builder got paid 1 mil baht which is around 4,000 baht per square metre and the materials cost us about 500,000 baht or 2,000 baht per square metre, hardwares want your business and will drop their prices if you tell them you are building and will be buying a lot, if they don't want to listen, shop around, we saved a lot.

 

Naturally there are things that are not included in the above price like A/C's, (sisalation included in the builders price to instal) insulation and other things you have to pay for as you go, miniscule to be honest, like laying 300 square metres of insulation batts for 3,000 baht total, (two guys) builder and his friend, 4 days work.

 

If you would like some photos send me a message and you can see the finishes, in and out.

 

It's really important to make sure you insulate from the heat and use good materials, and provide lots of shade to walls, wider eaves, high ceilings, 3 metres plus, large rooms.

 

Good luck either way.

 

 

[morphem]

Location : Central rural thailand, near Nakhon Sawan

When : 2009

Surface : 260 m2 ( 2 levels including rooftop )

Price/m2 : 4800 bahts

Rooms : 3 AC bedrooms , 2 bathroom, large semi - exterior kitchen, living room, large front shop, All furnished

Total cost : 1,2 million bahts all amenities included & more

The team : Experienced local builders

Today 2020: The house is still as new, just been refreshed a bit with painting

 

As far as i know, the costs haven't change much here for the past 10 years.

 

 

While i designed the house, it was important that my wife & thai family negociated alone a normal "thai price" with the builder boss.

Obviously according to this thread, experiences may vary in the family trust department ????

 

Note:

- check the quality, price & bills of each material

- Be on site during the construction 

- Do not hesitate to double the steel frames, get waterproof foundation, roof heat insulation if necessary

 

 

 

 

[khunPer]

On 2/22/2020 at 12:18 PM, Ian3005 said:

The land will be in my wife's name but I want the house registered in my name and my sons name as you never know what lies ahead in the future.

I have looked at a builder BanRak and the cost per m2 is between 14-17,000/m2.

If you wish the house in your name, you need a superficies agreement, but be aware of that any contract between husband and wife could be declared void in case of divorce. It might be best to have any contracts/servitudes for land made before the land is transferred to a wife's name. Please consult an experienced lawyer before you buy and transfer any land.

 

Concerning ownership for a new build house, you will need architect drawings to be in your name (only), building permission in your name (only), any agreement with building contractor in your name, and all money transfers coming from your bank account or cash receipts with your name. These are you only proof of ownership for a new build house; together with an eventually superfices agreement, or other written permission, to build a construction on the land.

 

House prices per square meter are depending of the chosen materials, i.e. for basic construction as cement grade (choose waterproof for less cracks), steel grade, block/brick material, roof construction and roof tiles including heat insulation, water piping and electrical wires.

 

Often 50 percent, or more, of the to total amount is for decoration as floor tiles, ceilings, choice of outer doors and windows, choice of inner doors, wall tiles in wet rooms, bathroom equipment and kitchen, aircons and lighting, decoration bricks/tiles, paint. So a square meter price is extremely dependent of your choice of materials.

 

You can find good looking decoration for a reasonable price – I managed to do that when I build my house – or you can choose teak wood and/or sandstone floors, and marble bathrooms etc., etc., which – together with gilded water taps – all will add tremendous to the total budget.

 

In general you could count:

10,000 baht/sq.m. for basic Thai-style construction

15,000-20,000 baht/sq.m. for more Western-like acceptable construction

25,000-30,000 baht/sq.m. for reasonable Western-style construction

35,000 and way up to headache baht/sq.m. for more luxurious construction

Add little more in certain areas.

 

Always get more than one quote.

 

Up Isaan you are sometimes quoted only for work, and then you buy/pay all materials. Actually a good solution, as you are in full control of what grade house, you are having.

 

There are some good threads in Thaivisa forum about building a house, with lots of advises and photo documentation, really worth searching for before you begin. Also the book "How to Buy Land and Build a House in Thailand" by Philip Bryce – Paiboon Publishing, available in English language book stores or online – is worth reading.

 

Wish you good luck with your project...????

[brianthainess]

I paid 1,600 baht per square mt, plus materials, delivered to which i paid COD. i went with Thai style concrete build, to my design.

[finnishmen]

my experience have my own house, i build first my wife wather house downfloor 3 room,big shower/toilet,good insulance,europe certificed guality elektronik ,have safety lot better than thai elektronic style. all rooms painted different colour in and out, handmade aluminium windows,best what can buy, 5000B 4 windows, whit mosguitonet slider. air-con only bedroom ,no need but good have. water tank,pump shower good water pressure, need in thailand not europe need. all cost we build me and wife sister men together 9 month 2000€ and then 4 year later i has update thats, 40x30 meter livingarea outside whit roof and all tiled and painted, and big kitchen 9mx4m and all ovent gas grill,coal grill, douple sink, etc. elektric soccets have on worktable top ewer 2 meter whit switch,need because have many machine help wife. cost about 4000$ ALL. and sister men other, made city new house, same house falang buy 4 million sister men buy 600 000 B all true same all house, both have same street and same corporatino build. falang pay this 4 million and thai buy this 600 000B all same, same my friend build house in isan. 300 m2 2 floor big house falang thats cost grynder say 3,5 million ready to use, and thai make same cost 500 000B ready to use. thats is true why idiot falang destroy all houses price and building prices if pay too lot.

[saengd]

This is like asking how long is a piece of string! It depends on the size of the house, the bigger the house the higher the finished price per square metre, bigger house means more bathrooms, more tile work, nore windows, more doors, more fittings.

 

More expensive variables include Western kitchen or not and what standard, that can easily range from 100k to 400k based on preferences. Air con alone can run to 25k per unit, make that 30k or more for larger rooms and including heat also, a four bed house could easily see 150k or more spent on air con alone.

 

So a small house unfinished, 10k sounds dooable, a large four bedder finished o a higher western standard, 40k and up is easily possible.

 

[stouricks]

Like a carpet fitter in UK, they quote per sq metre or yard, but only actually fit the outside metres, the middle is just there!

The walls of a 4 x 4 (16 sq mtrs) room add up to 4+4+4+4 = 16 metres of walls

The walls of a 8 x 8 (64 sq mtrs) room add up to 8+8+8+8 = 32 metres of walls.

[saengd]

16 minutes ago, stouricks said:

Like a carpet fitter in UK, they quote per sq metre or yard, but only actually fit the outside metres, the middle is just there!

The walls of a 4 x 4 (16 sq mtrs) room add up to 4+4+4+4 = 16 metres of walls

The walls of a 8 x 8 (64 sq mtrs) room add up to 8+8+8+8 = 32 metres of walls.

Except the bit in the middle contains room walls that need building, doors that need fitting, pipe that needs laying and electrics that need installing.....and so on.

[gunderhill]

3 hours ago, lanng khao said:

Noticed one small thing, because they have tied the dividing wall of the bedroom into the back wall rather than using a piece of metal brick tor, it's almost put a straight joint right up the elevation wall, no big problem, just make sure the don't slam the front door...

I'm  guessing this is  about my staff  house? However that wall is  supporting nothing the 6x2  box section 2.5mm steel  above supports the roof and even that is  only steel anyway and the concrete floor has "<deleted>loads" of steel in it and is 240ksc.......its  going nowhere.

The "front door"  is on the left hand side not the front or  rear elevation and they can slam it as hard as they  like, nothing  will go anywhere

[LukKrueng]

150 sm, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, CPAC roof tiles, 1 layer 7cm Qcon blocks, polished concrete floor, good ceramics in bathrooms, insulation foil under roof tiles and  gypsum boards with insulation foil, all electricity embedded in walls, 2 x 6k watt water heaters, 7 remote controlled ceiling fans, 2 cars covered car park, no kitchen - just under 1m all materials and labour, approximately 14 weeks from breaking ground to moving in.

2018

[LukKrueng]

5 hours ago, khunPer said:

Concerning ownership for a new build house, you will need architect drawings to be in your name (only), building permission in your name (only), any agreement with building contractor in your name, and all money transfers coming from your bank account or cash receipts with your name. These are you only proof of ownership for a new build house; together with an eventually superfices agreement, or other written permission, to build a construction on the land.

The only real proof of ownership is a title deed (chanot) and you can't get that for a house.

All the paperwork and steps you mentioned mean nothing as the house can't be detached from the land and it is not possible to sell one without the other. 

 

The only house the op can really own is a knockdown house that can be loaded on a truck and be moved to another location. 

[khunPer]

14 hours ago, LukKrueng said:

The only real proof of ownership is a title deed (chanot) and you can't get that for a house.

All the paperwork and steps you mentioned mean nothing as the house can't be detached from the land and it is not possible to sell one without the other. 

 

The only house the op can really own is a knockdown house that can be loaded on a truck and be moved to another location. 

Thanks for your comment, but that is not in line with, what others are saying – including that I'm an acknowledged house owner – the rules is actually so, that when you sell a property with separate house ownership, you can have the house registered separately at the land office. It's only the builder, and first owner, that only has the building permission, and the other mentioned documents, as proof of ownership.

 

But because you own a house, you don't own the land under the house; but you can however have one of several possible arrangements for permission to use the land under the house, and still being valid even if the land under the house is transferred to another owner. The period of rights to use the land will either be limited to no longer than 30 years, or your lifetime, depending of which agreement has been made.

 

You can, depending of land use agreement, sell the house together with any remaining period of permission for use of the land under the house; for example when the remaining period of a lease agreement is sold.

 

In older time, many Thai wooden houses were made so they could be folded and moved to another plot of rented land – so you are absolutely right, about that part...????

[LukKrueng]

7 hours ago, khunPer said:

Thanks for your comment, but that is not in line with, what others are saying – including that I'm an acknowledged house owner – the rules is actually so, that when you sell a property with separate house ownership, you can have the house registered separately at the land office. It's only the builder, and first owner, that only has the building permission, and the other mentioned documents, as proof of ownership.

 

But because you own a house, you don't own the land under the house; but you can however have one of several possible arrangements for permission to use the land under the house, and still being valid even if the land under the house is transferred to another owner. The period of rights to use the land will either be limited to no longer than 30 years, or your lifetime, depending of which agreement has been made.

 

You can, depending of land use agreement, sell the house together with any remaining period of permission for use of the land under the house; for example when the remaining period of a lease agreement is sold.

 

In older time, many Thai wooden houses were made so they could be folded and moved to another plot of rented land – so you are absolutely right, about that part...????

Did you ever actually get a separate chanot for a house with no land?

Can you sell the house without permission of the owner of the land the house is built on?

Can you sell any remaining lease period of the land without the agreement of the owner of the land?

When your lease for the land ends, can you remove the house from the land without the permission of the owner of the land?

[khunPer]

16 minutes ago, LukKrueng said:

Did you ever actually get a separate chanot for a house with no land?

Can you sell the house without permission of the owner of the land the house is built on?

Can you sell any remaining lease period of the land without the agreement of the owner of the land?

When your lease for the land ends, can you remove the house from the land without the permission of the owner of the land?

Yes, second owner

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement

Depending of the words in your agreement

[LukKrueng]

1 hour ago, khunPer said:

Yes, second owner

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement

Depending of the words in your agreement

 

Yes, second owner >> I guess that was for a house built by a developer in a village complex, and not self built house that you built on someone else's land

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement << As you say - if you have that right in your agreement - so you need land owner's permission. Not really the same as owner's rights

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement << Same as above

Depending of the words in your agreement << << Same as above

 

[lanng khao]

On 2/24/2020 at 8:49 PM, gunderhill said:

I'm  guessing this is  about my staff  house? However that wall is  supporting nothing the 6x2  box section 2.5mm steel  above supports the roof and even that is  only steel anyway and the concrete floor has "<deleted>loads" of steel in it and is 240ksc.......its  going nowhere.

The "front door"  is on the left hand side not the front or  rear elevation and they can slam it as hard as they  like, nothing  will go anywhere

I was only joking fella about slamming the door, they've done such a good job, especially for Thai standards that it was a shame they hadn't bonded the dividing wall in properly that's all. 

[gunderhill]

3 hours ago, lanng khao said:

I was only joking fella about slamming the door, they've done such a good job, especially for Thai standards that it was a shame they hadn't bonded the dividing wall in properly that's all. 

There is  no "they" I  built  it  all myself, no Thais  involved.

[ThomasThBKK]

On 2/25/2020 at 9:33 PM, khunPer said:

Yes, second owner

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement

Depending of the words in your agreement

 

All correct, also i've done this multiple times in different parts of thailand. The only thing causing issues with this stuff is the sheer incompetence of some land offices.

 

Totally normal process to sell land when there's a usufruct/superficies/lease registered on it.

[khunPer]

On 2/25/2020 at 4:54 PM, LukKrueng said:

 

Yes, second owner >> I guess that was for a house built by a developer in a village complex, and not self built house that you built on someone else's land

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement << As you say - if you have that right in your agreement - so you need land owner's permission. Not really the same as owner's rights

Yes, if you have that right in your agreement << Same as above

Depending of the words in your agreement << << Same as above

If you begin to build anything before you have done the "right" paperwork, it's you own fault that that you don't have "owner's rights", and might need some permissions.

If you make the right paperwork first, you have your rights safe, all in accordance with whatever has been agreed...????

[unheard]

On 2/24/2020 at 2:40 AM, morphem said:

While i designed the house, it was important that my wife & thai family negociated alone a normal "thai price" with the builder boss.

Obviously according to this thread, experiences may vary in the family trust department ????

You're absolutely correct, as a farang you'll almost always get charged inflated farang prices.

Even if it wasn't known to the builder at the time of signing an agreement that he (they) is dealing with a farang, when it's discovered lately on to be the case, the builder will find ways for unexpected cost over-runs, much more so than if dealing with a local.

To get the thai prices you have to let the thais (but if only qualified and trusted) to be involved in the project and remove yourself completely out of the visible to the outsiders picture.

I think what others here were referring to by saying not to ever trust the family is when the random family members get involved in the project at various stages without any knowledge or understanding of what they are doing and screwing things up in the crazy ways that are incomprehensible for a western mind.

 

[Nakmuay887]

I don't know the dimensions because I didn't care enough to ask but my girlfriends parents are building this second home for 850k in Mae Kasa (Tak province)

 

Definitely a good sized house. 

[ThomasThBKK]

36 minutes ago, unheard said:

You're absolutely correct, as a farang you'll almost always get charged inflated farang prices.

Even if it wasn't known to the builder at the time of signing an agreement that he (they) is dealing with a farang, when it's discovered lately on to be the case, the builder will find ways for unexpected cost over-runs, much more so than if dealing with a local.

To get the thai prices you have to let the thais (but if only qualified and trusted) to be involved in the project and remove yourself completely out of the visible to the outsiders picture.

I think what others here were referring to by saying not to ever trust the family is when the random family members get involved in the project at various stages without any knowledge or understanding of what they are doing and screwing things up in the crazy ways that are incomprehensible for a western mind.

 

 

 

If you do unprofessional stuff then yes, maybe.

 

Every good architect knows the correct prices for material and will send a blank BOQ over there and check that no ripoff occurs, they also know the labor prices for your area.

It's their job to make sure the construction get's done correctly, if you deal with professional no such issues will occur. 

[unheard]

9 minutes ago, ThomasThBKK said:

 

 

If you do unprofessional stuff then yes, maybe.

Well, yeah, in the deeply rural areas (as in the OP case) the vast majority of "professionals" are unprofessional by the western standards.

[ThomasThBKK]

On 3/2/2020 at 11:04 PM, unheard said:

Well, yeah, in the deeply rural areas (as in the OP case) the vast majority of "professionals" are unprofessional by the western standards.

 

Nothing stops one from hiring a company from Bangkok and co to do the work there. Everyone whos building on a small island is doing that too. 

 

Stop hiring locals, you aren't the local job center. it's not your responsibility to feed the local village. 

[unheard]

11 hours ago, ThomasThBKK said:

 

Nothing stops one from hiring a company from Bangkok and co to do the work there. Everyone whos building on a small island is doing that too. 

 

Stop hiring locals, you aren't the local job center. it's not your responsibility to feed the local village. 

Bangkok company means Bangkok prices.

Why would anyone do such a thing in a rural setting?

Unless you're real wealthy..  But then how many wealthy expats reside in the sticks?

[lkn]

On 3/4/2020 at 11:10 PM, unheard said:

Bangkok company means Bangkok prices.

Why would anyone do such a thing in a rural setting?

Unless you're real wealthy..  But then how many wealthy expats reside in the sticks?

I was of the impression that skilled labour was just hard to find in Thailand, and when you found it, it would be Western prices, so for a long time, I used “locals” for my various needs.

 

True that for high-end kitchens, double-glazed windows, etc., it is Western prices, but for electricians, painters, masons, plumbers, carpenters, etc. it can actually be cheaper than going with your local handyman.

 

The problem with the “locals” can be that they have subpar tools and less experience (probably a combination of doing many different things and/or not working full time), this means it takes them longer and they do a worse job.

 

I have seen this many times, work that should take a day instead takes a week because they lack the proper tool, so they have to do it by hand, borrow a tool from their friend who is out of town, they make a mistake and now have to redo work, the latter I have seen several times done with concrete work where they then had to break down cast concrete, or they put up a wall that is not smooth, so they spend 5 days plastering and sanding it to make it smooth, etc.

 

Furthermore, the good companies will have a person responsible for quality control, and they won’t invite you to a handover before their own guy can actually vouch for the quality of the job done.

 

Of course there is also crappy companies, but so far, my experience with established companies has been miles above my experience with the local handymen, yet it doesn’t actually seem to cost more.

 

But yeah, if you have to fly in the people from Bangkok and put them up in a hotel, that will of course add to the price…

[khunPer]

On 3/2/2020 at 4:12 PM, unheard said:

You're absolutely correct, as a farang you'll almost always get charged inflated farang prices.

Even if it wasn't known to the builder at the time of signing an agreement that he (they) is dealing with a farang, when it's discovered lately on to be the case, the builder will find ways for unexpected cost over-runs, much more so than if dealing with a local.

To get the thai prices you have to let the thais (but if only qualified and trusted) to be involved in the project and remove yourself completely out of the visible to the outsiders picture.

I think what others here were referring to by saying not to ever trust the family is when the random family members get involved in the project at various stages without any knowledge or understanding of what they are doing and screwing things up in the crazy ways that are incomprehensible for a western mind.

Choosing a farang building constructor might overprice you, as the job might be sub-contracted to Thai building constructors, and the farang adding his margin on top.

 

I kindly disagree about "farang price". You can as a farang build for the same price as a Thai, if it's similar size of construction, and similar quality of materials and labor specified in the contract; and no changes made during the construction.

 

You are free to get more than one quote – can sometimes be interesting to see some differences for exactly same job – the overall, or total, cost is the interesting number, as different building constructors might calculate slightly different in where they place their markups, and might use different sub contractor for specified tasks; like steel construction, electric, plumbing, etc...????