How to Sell my Car and Condo whilst away from Thailand

[paulgosal]

Hi

I have a 4 year old Fortuner TRD 4 wheel drive in Pattaya and want to sell it. It is currently being taken care of by a Thai friend and is regularly serviced taxed and Insured. The Finance is all paid up but the book is with Tisco (finance company). Due to travel restrictions I cannot be there in person. I read somewhere that I can only sell it if I have a valid Visa and a residency permit in Thailand and need to be there in person to sell. Someone else suggested giving a power of attorney to someone there who could sell it on my behalf or transfer it to their name (trust issue). Also what happens if a Foreigner dies whilst abroad without a Thai will and with assets in Thailand. (Condo, car etc.) Thank you  

 

[sungod]

Are you in any rush to sale? Are you not coming back?

[paulgosal]

Hi Sungod,  Thank you for your reply. No I am not in a rush to sell the car as its all paid up but worry about annual depreciation. The condo is let but not sure if tenant will renew in 3 months. Property and rental prices have dropped due to current Covid-19 situation and how long it will take to recover is anyone's guess. But if I had to what would be best option. As I have just got divorced in the UK and the legal bills are eye watering and these outstanding Legal bills are now debts on which I am being charged Interest.  I am looking at opinions and options. Thank you.

[newnative]

     I don't know about autos but you do not need to be in Thailand to sell your condo.  It can be done through power of attorney.

[paulgosal]

Hi Newnative, So a POA will do the job for a condo. Thanks for that information.  

[izod10]

sympathy,exactly the same boat two damned years of strife ,but house went and all expenses went to her,did not get much out of it. just read a pension,one of those old fashioned do 30 years and retire are now worth more than a house,so she lost loads

      I would not let the lawyers fleece you,just let it go to court,the judge will decide

[wobblyjohn]

It happened before in the building where I lived that a few owners had died and the condos remained empty until a family member claimed ownership 

We had one rich Arab who couldn't be bothered to claim the condo and probably remains empty still

The management isn't allowed to rent the room out to pay the common area fees that accumulate so in time the common area bill exceeds the value of the room

At which point I expect the building managed can approach a court to claim ownership 

[HauptmannUK]

Right now would be a terrible time to try to sell a condo and a relatively expensive car. Unless you are desperate for money surely it would be better to wait until much later in the year when (hopefully) Pattaya edges back toward normality.

 

As to what happens when a foreigner dies overseas. Well I guess nothing happens until someone turns up with a legal claim.  4~5 years ago I know of an elderly Swedish guy who had a few health problems.  He went back to Sweden for a holiday but never returned. I never saw his condo occupied after that. He owned a car which I walked past from time to time. The dust got thicker and thicker and the tyres slowly went flat..... Very sad really.

 

I suspect given the age profile of Covid victims there are some condo owners back in Western countries who will not be seen in Pattaya again.....

[Langsuan Man]

I have been advised by my lawyer that I could sell my farang quota condo in Pattaya via a Power of Attorney to my girl friend,  if I wanted to sell it, and she found a buyer and I was not here  

 

The car on the other hand is an unknown as far as I am concerned.   When we sold my car as a down payment on her new car, I had to go to Immigration and obtain a residency permit or could have gotten one at the US Embassy in Bangkok for $50,  before the dealer could effect the sale

 

So you will have to find someone here who has gotten around the residency permit required for car sales or transfers 

[roath]

I have a friend with a work permit who has just lost his job and wants to sell his car before he returns home. As technically his visa has expired, he is no-mans land as he isn't on any visa category or extension as he is covered by automatic extension to 31st July but the visa agent he went to for advice told him to leave Thailand and come back on a tourist visa (yes, seriously!) to get a RC.

 

The requirements only used to be for the purchaser to require a RC, so did the rules change? And has anyone had experience of selling a vehicle without a RC just on a power of attorney (as per the OPs enquiry)

[Postmaster]

Residency Permits are needed by both seller and buyer of a vehicle if the transaction is between farangs.

If selling to a Thai then only the farang seller needs the Residency Permit as far as I am aware.  Not sure if a POA can act in the absence of the farang.  Others might know.

[KhaoYai]

1 hour ago, Postmaster said:

Residency Permits are needed by both seller and buyer of a vehicle if the transaction is between farangs.

Bought my bike (big bike) in Chiang Mai, changed ownership and registration in Korat to myself and on to Korat plates. I'm pretty sure I wasn't asked for a residence certificate for myself and I know for sure that I didn't have one for the previous owner (German). I had a copy of his passport, there's a kind of power of attorney that the previous owner gets from the land office if he's not going to be present when the ownership changes take place + the usual transfer document. If I'd needed a residence certificate for the pervious owner I'd have been stumped as he'd left the country.

 

The biggest problem that I can see is the OP not having the blue book yet. However, I'm pretty sure a lawyer with power of attorney could sort that with the finance company.

[OnTheGround]

Selling a car or condo while Corona virus, is next to impossible now.

Unless one is willing to take a huge loss (25%+) and have an very attractive condo in a "much sought area", priced to (fire) sell.

 

Personally I would continue list my condo for lease with many real estate companies, and also Airbnb. Pattaya area are full of vacant units and many owners has now reduced sales price or rent by 25-40%.

Its the worst time ever, to try to sell, or rent out.

If possible, ride it out 1-2 years, and try then.

 

Edited May 5, 2020 by OnTheGround
Sp

[Kenchamp]

I'm quite sure you don't need a RC to sell a vehicle, you just need to sign the registration book and some transfer papers which will include a copy of your passport.

 

You will always be able to sell a car. It just depends on the price you want. Dealers will give you a low ball bid, but they will buy it.

[richard_smith237]

2 hours ago, Postmaster said:

Residency Permits are needed by both seller and buyer of a vehicle if the transaction is between farangs.

If selling to a Thai then only the farang seller needs the Residency Permit as far as I am aware.  Not sure if a POA can act in the absence of the farang.  Others might know.

 

The statement above incorrect: Note regulations may vary from province to province.

 

In my experience of dealing with DLT Area 3 (just after Sukhumvit 99) No Proof of Address document has been required while present for the transfer or having signed an a Power of Attorney document for the vehicle transfer.

 

I have sold both cars and motorcycles to Westerners without the need for an *Affirmation of Address (from the Embassy) or Proof of Address (from Immigration).

 

 

 

*I assume you mean Affirmation / Proof of Address when you refer to Residency Permit.

 

[HashBrownHarry]

13 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

The statement above incorrect: Note regulations may vary from province to province.

 

In my experience of dealing with DLT Area 3 (just after Sukhumvit 99) No Proof of Address document has been required while present for the transfer or having signed an a Power of Attorney document for the vehicle transfer.

 

I have sold both cars and motorcycles to Westerners without the need for an *Affirmation of Address (from the Embassy) or Proof of Address (from Immigration).

 

 

 

*I assume you mean Affirmation / Proof of Address when you refer to Residency Permit.

 

It's called 'certificate of residence'.

[richard_smith237]

5 hours ago, HashBrownHarry said:

It's called 'certificate of residence'.

By whom?

 

British Embassy: Affirmation of Residency

Thai Immigration: Residence Certificate

 

 

 

[Caine]

I'll take a chance and offer you 500 baht for the two, that's about all there worth especially in Pattaya. ????????????

[KhaoYai]

On 5/5/2020 at 1:33 PM, HashBrownHarry said:

It's called 'certificate of residence'.

To the best of my knowledge there is no 'certification' I've had 5 or 6 and they've just been a letter confirming my address - and hence is known as a Confirmation of Address at Korat Immigration. The only way you could actually call yourself resident is if you're granted Permanent Residence.

 

Whatever they are called - they are complete rubbish. Print yourself a lease from the internet, get a copy of your 'landlord's' ID & Tabien Baan and hey presto, they give you Confirmation of Address. The fact that there are no checks makes the document laughable but you have to have one of course. In fact, 'one' is not enough - can't speak for other offices but Korat issue them for a specific purpose. I remember not knowing that and after using my first one to open a bank account, I thought I could use it for a driving licence - no chance, back to Korat, another 500 baht!!

[HashBrownHarry]

4 hours ago, KhaoYai said:

To the best of my knowledge there is no 'certification' I've had 5 or 6 and they've just been a letter confirming my address - and hence is known as a Confirmation of Address at Korat Immigration. The only way you could actually call yourself resident is if you're granted Permanent Residence.

 

Whatever they are called - they are complete rubbish. Print yourself a lease from the internet, get a copy of your 'landlord's' ID & Tabien Baan and hey presto, they give you Confirmation of Address. The fact that there are no checks makes the document laughable but you have to have one of course. In fact, 'one' is not enough - can't speak for other offices but Korat issue them for a specific purpose. I remember not knowing that and after using my first one to open a bank account, I thought I could use it for a driving licence - no chance, back to Korat, another 500 baht!!

They require to see your passport to give you a certificate of residence and a utility bill or lease contract or the likes.

 

It's called a certificate of residence, yes it's confirmation of where you stay.

 

Yes you need one for each task you're doing, if you're renewing bike and car license for example you'll need one for each.

[paulgosal]

Thank you everyone for your guidance and advise I think its better to wait out the Covid-19 and then approach this matter once I am in Thailand. 

[Leaver]

On 5/20/2020 at 9:40 AM, paulgosal said:

Thank you everyone for your guidance and advise I think its better to wait out the Covid-19 and then approach this matter once I am in Thailand. 

You can expect there to be a lot of competition in the market.