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Floating homes and Houseboats.

Johnnybangkok71
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Johnnybangkok71 Apprentice Member

Johnnybangkok71

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Looking for information about foreigners being able to own and live in either a floating home or a houseboat since farangs can not own land and I hate to pay for someone else's mortgage. Plus I found out that owning a condo can have serious issues as there is no regulatory body that overseas the condomedium industry and in the Land of Smiles the foreigners are always on the loosing side when dealing with the legal system in Thailand.

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Gulfsailor Gold Member

Gulfsailor

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Yes you can. The problem though is that there is no infrastructure for houseboats. Your only options would be to either put a houseboat in a marina, where a berth alone for a decent size houseboat would cost the same as renting a much lmore spacious house. Or to buy a real boat large enough to live on, and put it for anchor somewhere, with all the associated risks of weather or theft, and the circa 10% in annual maintenance cost. 

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Airalee Gold Member

Airalee

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I’ve thought about this from time to time.  The only thing I’ve seen have been resorts along rivers etc.  I assume it would be pretty tough as a foreigner to do it as you would need some sort of land to anchor it to and what would be the terms for leasing such land.  I haven’t seen any moorage type communities such as those that you would see in Seattle or Portland where it would be a “condominium” type arrangement.

 

This place looks pretty cool however...

 

https://inhabitat.com/floating-prefab-homes-overlook-gorgeous-river-views-in-thailand/x-float-by-agaligo-studio-8/

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Johnnybangkok71 Apprentice Member

Johnnybangkok71

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1 hour ago, Gulfsailor said:

Yes you can. The problem though is that there is no infrastructure for houseboats. Your only options would be to either put a houseboat in a marina, where a berth alone for a decent size houseboat would cost the same as renting a much lmore spacious house. Or to buy a real boat large enough to live on, and put it for anchor somewhere, with all the associated risks of weather or theft, and the circa 10% in annual maintenance cost. 

Thank you,

 

I am in the sustainability business, I can build a houseboat to be totally of the grid. but yes I would have to have a place to dock it.  With a floating house it is much less complicated but there still are maintenance costs as if any house. I plan on getting a PR within 5 years with the help of the Thai Board of Investments.  

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Johnnybangkok71 Apprentice Member

Johnnybangkok71

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1 hour ago, Airalee said:

I’ve thought about this from time to time.  The only thing I’ve seen have been resorts along rivers etc.  I assume it would be pretty tough as a foreigner to do it as you would need some sort of land to anchor it to and what would be the terms for leasing such land.  I haven’t seen any moorage type communities such as those that you would see in Seattle or Portland where it would be a “condominium” type arrangement.

 

This place looks pretty cool however...

 

https://inhabitat.com/floating-prefab-homes-overlook-gorgeous-river-views-in-thailand/x-float-by-agaligo-studio-8/

Yes, exactly. But I will build in Thailand myself. I have patents for waste destruction and solar energies, I just need a place to dock it . I am working on my business working something out but I do plan on retiring and when I do that I will have to sell the land within 12 months if I close the business. 

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yellowboat Gold Member

yellowboat

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It is a nice idea, but renting in Thailand is the way to go.   When things go bad, just move.   Unless you really love life on the water, a boat does not make sense as it will not really save you any money.     Many in the US have convert buses into mobile homes.   Decommissioned buses are cheap, and getting them worked on in Thailand should not be expensive.  

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MAF666 Gold Member

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+1 Gulfsailor

A live aboard boat has the infrastructure baked in for off grid life.

We lived on a yacht in Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore  for a number of years.

There are unlimited anchorages in the most sublime locations that you can imagine.

You need to be able to move around for seasonal changes, too much attention, visa runs etc.

Go check out boats for sale in Langkawi.

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1FinickyOne Diamond Member

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On 11/9/2020 at 12:13 AM, Johnnybangkok71 said:

I am in the sustainability business, I can build a houseboat to be totally of the grid

Any computations as to approximate cost? I have a 1 rai pond and it might be a nice addition to the property... 

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Gulfsailor Gold Member

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27 minutes ago, CH1961 said:

A boat to live on is a vessel. 

A vessel can be owned only by Thai company or Thai national. 

 

https://www.samuiforsale.com/law-texts/thailand-vessel-act-translation-of-boating-and-ship-act-law.html

That’s only the case if the vessel is being used to trade in Thai waters; eg transport, ferrying, fishing, etc. A foreigner can own a Thai registered vessel for private purposes. 

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DaLa Gold Member

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I know some people are concerned about rising sea levels. Surely easier to rent a condo and make sure it's 2nd floor and above.

 

And for sustainability just don't turn your lights or air-con on. 

Edited by DaLa
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Gulfsailor Gold Member

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1 hour ago, maxcorrigan said:

On a similar vein can a farrang own a house built on stilts ie not on land but over water, what would be the restrictions laws etc. if any, just curious!

A foreigner can own a house, just not the land it sits on. So it doesn’t matter if you build a regular house on someone else’s land or build it on stilts in some water on someone’s land. You can do both if you have permission from the land owner. 

If you mean can you build a permanent structure on a public body of water or waterway, the same applies. If you receive permission from the crown or department controlling the water you can. Good luck with that :-).

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elgenon Platinum Member

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22 hours ago, ncc1701d said:

I have checked this out at the Pattaya Marina and was told that you aren't (technically) allowed to permanently live on board a boat. Whether they meant in their marina or in general in Thailand I don't know.

Usually you can't live aboard in a marina. Not what it is for. Exceptions though.

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ChipButty Star Member

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I saw an add on FB the other week, House boats on the river Kwai in Kanchanaburi, having lived in Thailand many years Im sure they could come up with some law to stop a Farang owning one.

 

 

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maxcorrigan Advanced Member

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4 minutes ago, ChipButty said:

I saw an add on FB the other week, House boats on the river Kwai in Kanchanaburi, having lived in Thailand many years Im sure they could come up with some law to stop a Farang owning one.

Yes i'm sure they'd fire a law in there double quick time, if there is'nt one already which i doubt, my original post was just a query, i had a mate a few years back who with his then Thai girlfriend bought such a house on stilts over water, before he got a chance to move in her family swift as lightning were in there firmly ensconced, he got a lot of ribbing over that one although it had only cost him £750 , thanks for reply!

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Johnnybangkok71 Apprentice Member

Johnnybangkok71

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On 11/9/2020 at 5:22 PM, yellowboat said:

It is a nice idea, but renting in Thailand is the way to go.   When things go bad, just move.   Unless you really love life on the water, a boat does not make sense as it will not really save you any money.     Many in the US have convert buses into mobile homes.   Decommissioned buses are cheap, and getting them worked on in Thailand should not be expensive.  

Thanks, The other option was to build a 5th wheel. I planned on renting for the first year or two while I build something mobile. I will be splitting my time between Thailand and Cambodia for work, but I need to base myself in Thailand for better medical.

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Johnnybangkok71 Apprentice Member

Johnnybangkok71

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On 11/10/2020 at 3:06 AM, DaLa said:

I know some people are concerned about rising sea levels. Surely easier to rent a condo and make sure it's 2nd floor and above.

 

And for sustainability just don't turn your lights or air-con on. 

???? sustainability is not an issue for myself, that is my business and I always live off the grid here in the US. I am bringing our technologies to Thailand hopefully next year, I am just sourcing out plastic trash in Thailand which is the last piece of the puzzle. 

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