Planning To Buy A House.......

[pdrhan]

Hi

We are planning to buy a house in Pattaya - we have looked on the internet - there is a place called :Chokchai Garden Home 1

anybody knows if this place is ok or what...?

Right now we are in Denmark - but will be in Pattaya in July this summer to have a closer look - but the house we have seen out there just suits our needs....we will maximum pay 2 mill THB - preferably lesser....;-) for our house.....

please advise if you have some great things i need to know....

Rgds Peder

[Rdrokit]

Hi

We are planning to buy a house in Pattaya - we have looked on the internet - there is a place called :Chokchai Garden Home 1

anybody knows if this place is ok or what...?

Right now we are in Denmark - but will be in Pattaya in July this summer to have a closer look - but the house we have seen out there just suits our needs....we will maximum pay 2 mill THB - preferably lesser....;-) for our house.....

please advise if you have some great things i need to know....

Rgds Peder

First, if you do not know the areas in Pattaya and surrounding areas I would suggest renting for 6 months until you know your way around (this is what I am doing) as you do not want to buy and then find out there is a better neighborhood you want to live in. Also, I would advise holding off buying a house until after the elections in December as you never know what the new governmemt will do about foreigners owning land under a Thai company name. Look us up when you get into town and we can help you out. Just look for the Pattaya pissup thread and see where we are meeting on Friday nights.

[Naam]

Also, I would advise holding off buying a house until after the elections in December as you never know what the new governmemt will do about foreigners owning land under a Thai company name.

which year please?

[barryofthailand]

You have to be very careful where you buy, as in many areas their has been a water problem especially where their are community wells. Soi Kownoi and Soi Katalo are two examples.

Barry

[pdrhan]

You have to be very careful where you buy, as in many areas their has been a water problem especially where their are community wells. Soi Kownoi and Soi Katalo are two examples.

Barry

Hi -That´s also why i try to ask - the place is called Chokchai Garden Home 1

are there anyone from down there knowing this place?? Sitting back here in Denmark is quite difficult to choose a holiday village to live in if we do not know so much about it as our time , when we are in Thailand are limited to 3-4 weeks only.....but this july 2007 we will be in Pattaya to have a closer look - we cannot just rent it for lets say 6month to see if it is ok for us as written in the second post - as we only have 3-4 weeks every year..to spend in Pattaya , thats why i ask you guys if you know this place , elections and what so ever , then we can wait for years , same as buying a bigscreen tv - wait untill they are cheaper.....but if we want it now!What to do - look the place up , looks nice and ok - cant see the problem....then we will buy it , For the rest of the year , the house will be occupied by my wifes cousin to look after it

regards

Peder

[johnh101]

I totally agree with Rdrokit.

Rent first !

You can get a decent condo / bungalow for around 10,000 baht a month. Take the time to look around and talk to people.

[pdrhan]

I totally agree with Rdrokit.

Rent first !

You can get a decent condo / bungalow for around 10,000 baht a month. Take the time to look around and talk to people.

Thanks guys! I DO NOT HAVE THE POSSIBILITY TO RENT FIRST - as i mentioned , we are only able to be in pattaya 3-4 weeks at a time....therefore renting is out of the question...most of those renting out will only rent it out if i sign up for 3-6month....anyways , we will have a look ourselves when we arrive , the thread was, if anyone knew this place , but it seems not to be the case....

[Mobi]

I'm sorry pdrhan, but there are literally hundreds, if not thousands of houses for sale in Pattaya and the surrounding area. It is most unlikely that anyone would have heard of this place you have mentioned, and in any case it would be extremely unwise of you to buy anything here based on what you read, either in this forum or elsewhere.

Like everywhere, there are good and bad properties, a few are well built up to western standards, but a majority are very badly built, and as there is no proper building controls enforced, you may buy a house that will deteriorate rapidly - especially in the price range you are talking about.

Then, location is very important for things such as local services, water, serviceable roads, local transport, telephone lines, rubbish collection, noise..... I could go on, but I hope you get the point.

You can't believe anyone on these matters - particularly the people selling the house. The only way you will know for sure is to spend some time there, and check around, and talk to people who live there.

I can guarantee you that whatever you have read about, you will find many more places - probably better, if you have the time to look around.

I can only suggest that you spend you 3 weeks in Pattaya doing just that - looking around, and possibly at the end of the 3 weeks you may find something you like.

Then we haven't even discussed the whole vexed question of foreigners legally buying house in Thailand. At present, it's just not advisable - and I wouldn't look to any law changes in the foreseeable future - elections (or otherwise) not withstanding. The only homes that can be legally purchased are condos - and even there you have to be very careful.

Good luck, but IMHO, you should seriously reconsider your plans to buy a house in Pattaya.

(I've hot my hard had ready to ward off all the blows from the irate estate agents and property developers )

Edited May 23, 2007 by Mobi D'Ark

[Humphrey Bear]

Sound advice from Mobi - the property market here is very hot at the moment - prices are being driven up, but a flood of new development is coming on the market.

I know ChokChai 3 and 4. I assume Chokchai 1 is their first attempt - maybe more spacious, but older and with less 'European' features if it follows other multiple developments. ChokChai is not one of the fancy communities, crowded houses on small plots. Security is minimal.

See it before you put down any sort of deposit.

The ChoChai's that I know are right on Sukhumvit, not very pleasant compared to dozens of other compounds.

[pdrhan]

Hi Guys!

Thanks for the response!

Ofcourse i know that we shall check it all out and see for ourselves , i will use most of the holiday , checking some villages and houses as well - the house will be bought legally in my thaiwife´s name as she still only have her Thaipassport and citizenship.

We do not want to put 10mill THB into a house we only can live in for 3-4 weeks a year - thats why we have put the 2mill THB limit and it seems that there a lot of houses in this limit - however we will also check with Bangkok Bank if they have any properties for sale...

[pdrhan]

Hi again

I managed actually to be able to rent the house we have looked at in ChockChai Garden when we are in Pattaya this summer for 18000THB for the month we are there - will then use the time to look around and see if community and the house or other communities are better than this......still i have not found out right where it is located in Pattaya....but later i definately will.....

[Humphrey Bear]

Go to this link

http://www.fairproperties.com/web%20maps/C...arden-Home.html

They have a map of ChokChai Garden - offering properties from 1,350,000 Baht.

[pdrhan]

Go to this link

http://www.fairproperties.com/web%20maps/C...arden-Home.html

They have a map of ChokChai Garden - offering properties from 1,350,000 Baht.

Thanks -

[stevemiddie]

the property market here is very hot at the moment - prices are being driven up

You have got to be kidding !! Driven UP ??????

New B Visa regs for small foreign companies effective May 2007 ( now provide SS payments and certify as true, show salary payments to all your THAI employees and verify is true )

30 day visa runners now curtailed.

More police checks for teachers etc.

I,m looking at a brand new 3 storey house across the road from me for sale at 5 million baht and its been empty for 7 months. The Thai owner just dropped it by 1 million.

Thousands of homes for sale in Pattaya now...........mmmmmmmmm very hot? I think not.

[Phil Conners]

Forget about ChokChai. It's predominantly a Thai village with "everything goes". Soi dogs, crime, garbage on the street, small cheaply build houses.

With the current glut of houses available I think it should not be too difficult to find someone renting you a house for a month, but in the worst case you can always rent a condo or stay in a hotel room while you look around.

As many others have already said, Pattaya is all about location. Forget about asking real estate agents, they will tell you anything to make a sale. Trust only yourself - and you don't have a chance of knowing which location is good for you until you've stayed in it for a couple of months.

This is not Denmark Peter, listen to those who live here.

[expatgaz]

Wouldn't touch Chockchai 1 with a shitty stick. Old,very Thai,low priced homes,crime rate high.

EPG.

[pdrhan]

Phil - you are absolutely right...ít´s not Denmark down there , quite difficult to sit up here and decide...we now managed to rent the house we looked at in Chokchai Garden , we will then see if the area and surroundings etc is what we expected , and will ofcourse drive around and look at other places , the most important thing was to get a place to stay for the whole period , my friend has just arrived in pattaya this thursday and will drive out to Chokchai garden on monday to have a closer look before he pays my deposit for the house..if it sucks he will call me and i´ll have to arrange another place....

do you know any places to rent a house for 3weeks - we were offered 18000THB for renting this house ....

regards Peder

[Binkie]

Avoid Chokchai Garden, it is as Phil Conners stated a predominantly Thai Village. It will be a rabbit warren of a place. know some really nice houses there however. If you do not intend to live here full time please, please, please do not buy a house you are asking to be broken into. Buy a condo (you will not get a lot for 2,000,000 Baht but what you will get will be secure. There are still places that you can get a 2 bed condominium for less than 2,000,000Baht.

[pdrhan]

Hi

When we are not there - my wifes cousin will stay in the house - condominum´s are not in, as we would like to have a small garden....i have now asked my friend to look closer at chokchai garden b4 he pays my rental deposit....

anyone of you guys know a place to rent a house for 3 weeks though , if chockchai fails....?

budget - max 20000THB for the 3 weeks....

[Phil Conners]

Well in any case you won't get a lot of house with garden for under 2M. Maybe @ 3M or so you could be lucky and find a bargain, someone who wants to sell under the current slowdown. Just keeping it real. If you're stuck under 2M you'd be better off looking for a condo or townhouse.

[puuchai299]

I agree fully,look around/rent and take your time,even if you rent for a year,it would not be money lost in rent because you would probably save that money and more by taking your time,there are hundreds of properties for sale now,and a bargain can be had.The fact that you can put it in your wifes name is good,you can make a transfer of ownership within a day or 2,no worrying about company ownership,also a rapid completion will apeal to some sellers who are stuck to sell quickly,Chok chai villages are not some of the best.good luck whichever way you go with it...

[pdrhan]

Hi Guys

Well - today my friends in Pattaya made a trip on their scooters to Chokchai Garden , they told me it was some 3-400 houses all looked the same - build quality so and so , minimum sequrity and far away from almost anything...

i have just today cancelled the renting agreement and i now have to look for something else....thanks to you guys for all your advice , without it - i probably would have stayed somewhere and regretted it !

My friends would lookup something in another Village closer to Pattaya city

Maybe we meet somewhere between the 4th july and 23rd july in Pattaya.....where do you hang out?

regards Peder

[wcr]

Have a look at this website to see if you can find something to buy or rent. It is very comprehensive,

Thailand Real Estate And Property Guide