Selling land to foreigners is not treasonous - it's economic sense: Prayuth

[webfact]

Picture: Daily News

 

Thailand's prime minister and defence minister Prayuth Chan-ocha burst into life near the end of a full cabinet meeting that he chaired yesterday, reported Daily News.

 

The PM had just listened to his energy minister  Supatanapong Phanmeechao who commented on social media babble that said government plans afoot to allow foreigners to buy land and own a home in Thailand were tantamount to treason.

 

Prayuth was not having that, especially as his government is promoting plans to try and attract a million foreigners to spent a trillion baht in the next five years.

 

"It's not treason!" he spouted. "It's stimulating the economy. Don't say that!"

 

Daily News called him Big Too in their headline - 'too' is a word in Thai that can mean making false claims, notes ASEAN NOW.

 

The PM is well known for his off the cuff rants and the outburst can be seen in the light of his tetchiness on the subject. 

 

The subject of foreigners owning land in Thailand is a classic hot chestnut that has been debated off and on for years.

 

Whether there are changes to the law remains to be seen and any decision is likely to be debated at length and evoke passionate feelings. 

 

Yesterday's mini outburst is a taste of things to come. 

 

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[wprime]

Well if Prayut supports it it might actually go through.

[seajae]

but is it only going to be sold to the rich or can those of us with thai wives/partners own the land we live on as well, just allowing "rich" non thias to own land is absolute BS as it will be bought purely to make a profit on, those of us living on the land we already own with our partners are committed to the long term and to Thailand, profits dont come into it, it is owning our own homes/land for our future and that of our thai families

 

Edited September 22, 2021 by seajae

[ThailandRyan]

4 minutes ago, webfact said:

The subject of foreigners owning land in Thailand is a classic hot chestnut that has been debated off and on for years.

 

Whether there are changes to the law remains to be seen and any decision is likely to be debated at length and evoke passionate feelings. 

 

Yesterday's mini outburst is a taste of things to come

The plan that keeps on giving and giving, and then not giving, and is as said a hot potato.  They want the country to prosper but at the same time do not want to be seen as causing an economic disservice to the people who then get priced out.  Before anything like this occurs there needs to be a true real-estate board and appraisers who are certified.  Thailands current prices for property is for what the market will bear and what folks think personally that their properties are worth. No wonder so uch sits on the market unsold and vacant for years, and on the banks books and not as underperforming loans. 

[ezzra]

7 minutes ago, webfact said:

"It's not treason!" he spouted. "It's stimulating the economy. Don't say that!"

Yeah and it's not like they can take it away with them when they leave right? and beside, Thailand is notorious in reneging on promises and arrangement and they can always, true to form, change their minds and the laws to suits them at anytime...

[HeijoshinCool]

.

 

In other news, sources say a well-known Chinese billionaire was seen entering the prime minister's residence this morning, leaving only 5 minutes later, but without the apparently quite heavy briefcase he had on arrival.

[TooMuchTime]

Everything will be owned by China.

[spidermike007]

There are alot of strange people in this world who have a very bizarre notion of the definition of the word treason. I think alot of Thai people would agree that these guys are the last people in the world, who could be considered reasonable judges of what is good for the nation, and the Thai people. 

[ThailandRyan]

18 minutes ago, TooMuchTime said:

Everything will be owned by China.

Folks have been saying g that since Nixon first opened up the US to them.  Must be a long con.....

[Pravda]

7 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

Folks have been saying g that since Nixon first opened up the US to them.  Must be a long con.....

Like a bargirl

[bkk6060]

2 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

Folks have been saying g that since Nixon first opened up the US to them.  Must be a long con.....

They actually own a lot in the U.S.  California for example has millions of Chinese mostly who have come over the past 30 years buying homes, land and businesses.

 

I do not think it will ever happen in Thailand but I believe Prayuth is correct.  It will probably help stimulate the economy and create some appreciation in real estate which has been lacking for years.

[kcpattaya]

If approved: It would be one of the first decisions of this administration that actually makes sense.
Moving forward.

[steven100]

He is correct,  it is economically sensible but it would need to have some sort of mechanism that ensures ongoing money continues to be invested or spent.  In other words a minimum amount of Capital.

[The Cipher]

7 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

They actually own a lot in the U.S.  California for example has millions of Chinese mostly who have come over the past 30 years buying homes, land and businesses.

 

I do not think it will ever happen in Thailand but I believe Prayuth is correct.  It will probably help stimulate the economy and create some appreciation in real estate which has been lacking for years.

It's an interesting dilemma. Chinese capital - and foreign capital in general - has distorted residential real estate markets in various cities.

 

Speaking from the experience of my hometown in Vancouver, Canada - the influx of Asian money from the mid 1990s onwards has had mixed effects. On one hand, it did bring a ton of talent and capital to what had been a pretty sleepy city. It also created a class of new millionaires out of locals who benefited from capital appreciation through no skill or effort of their own - they just happened to own a hot asset before it got hot. Asian capital built Vancouver, best believe. (Don't @ me. It's true.) And in that way it's been a positive for the city.

 

However, a couple of decades on and prices have been bid up to the point where they are very detached from local incomes - particularly for properties with land. Housing is extremely expensive and is a struggle to afford, or completely out of reach, of a ton of the population. Particularly the younger generations. The result? Higher inequality, a feeling of disenfranchisement, and simmering social unrest. Big negative for the city and a very difficult problem to solve now that it's been created.

 

Wealth levels in Thailand are already low and inequality is high, so if prices do trend upwards with deregulation, major landholders are gonna do great but a lot of people will suffer from the resulting lack of affordability. Generally a bad idea.

[scubascuba3]

It certainly will stimulate the economy and enable Thais to make money from selling land. An easy win to further stimulate is to increase the condo foreign quota from 49%. Thais will be able to sell their empty thai quota condos

[VocalNeal]

4 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

It certainly will stimulate the economy and enable Thais to make money from selling land.

But only once?

[scubascuba3]

Just now, VocalNeal said:

But only once?

You mean selling their land? yes it's a windfall, but maybe their money gets passed on to family

[DirtyHarry55]

They sould just limit the amount of land a foreigner can buy to like 200-400 Sqw per person
if it's unlimited of course the Chinese and Rich foreigners will cone and buy it all up.
They already are by using Nominees.

[ThailandRyan]

2 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

You mean selling their land? yes it's a windfall, but maybe their money gets passed on to family

Or gets spent on something frivolous like many do and then they end up with nothing.  Sort of like the family my now ex-wife bought land from.  They received 5 million baht and within a year it was gone and they had nothing but the shack they lived in and the car they bought.

[Orinoco]

1 hour ago, HeijoshinCool said:

.

 

In other news, sources say a well-known Chinese billionaire was seen entering the prime minister's residence this morning, leaving only 5 minutes later, but without the apparently quite heavy briefcase he had on arrival.

Maybe his going to get ones of these delivered next week

 

 

Edited September 22, 2021 by Orinoco

[Saratoga Slim Anon]

My guess is that credit is maxed out and king Xi suggested this change. Cheap property on the downlow for our northern friends will keep the grift flowing. 

[HaoleBoy]

They haven't said anything about "property tax" for foreigners buying Thai land.
Will it be a 2 priced system as with medical and other things?

This is a yearly fee so it helps the economy (depending on how it is cut up - local/province/national).

 

Some countries put limits on how/where foreigners can buy land such as no land sold within 100 mi from the coast - Mexico.  Yet, in US awhile back the Japanese came to Hawaii and bought a LOT of land raising prices there to unaffordable highs.

 

Foreign owned golf courses would be good revenue.

[Kinnock]

By 'foreigners' I think they mean 'Chinese'.

 

And 'buying land' means buying up all the unsold condo's.

Edited September 22, 2021 by Kinnock

[DaveSamutP]

I have mixed feelings on this topic. I've seen what swarms of Chinese can do to my country's real estate market.

 

I think countries should govern closely how many foreigners can own land. 

 

For Thailand, though, it's my expectation they will lure foreigners in, have them buy land and property and then systematically steal it back from foreigners. I genuinely believe this. They know foreigners have no legal recourse in Thailand, and only the Chinese have any ability to apply pressure. China will impose heavy penalties on Thailand if the Thais are found to be taking advantage of the Chinese. 

 

Western governments will do nothing for their citizens.

[cclub75]

For once, I totally agree with the "thainess"... Such law WOULD BE OBVIOUSLY high treason !

 

As soon it would be implemented, it would be twisted and perverted, and basically China would buy out thai land. All of it.

 

That is a sure 150 %.

 

So no. Never.

 

How crazy it sounds, from a westerner, land ownership should be only allowed to thai nationals. Period.

 

The chinese pressure is already so high, so strong on all South East-Asia... To just open the door to land ownership and it will be the end.

Edited September 22, 2021 by cclub75

[VocalNeal]

48 minutes ago, DirtyHarry55 said:

They shoud just limit the amount of land a foreigner can buy to like 200-400 Sqw per person

Easier? Foreigner can only buy land for primary family residence in Thailand.

 

1 That limits land to one plot.

2 Infers foreigner must have long stay visa.

 

Edited September 22, 2021 by VocalNeal

[law ling]

1. Why not limit land sales to non-Thais to natural persons only, and then require that it can only be sold to a Thai on the death or sale by the owner.

 

2. I though the use of companys and nominees, etc, could now be used anyway to effectively own land.

 

3. I learned early on (when I was working) that if an underling told me something was wrong, you don't immediately dismiss them (as did the PM in the OP) ... wiser to say: "Ok, convince me why." 

Edited September 22, 2021 by law ling

[sapson]

China already totally owns Prayut and his henchmen along with co-ownership of a massive percentage of all high end commerce, so letting them have the land their hotels shopping malls and factories stand on will make little difference.

 

Although Pattaya and Phuket may become casino resort cities........place your bets.

[John Drake]

12 minutes ago, sapson said:

Although Pattaya and Phuket may become casino resort cities.

Prayutville

[jacko45k]

13 minutes ago, sapson said:

 

Although Pattaya and Phuket may become casino resort cities........place your bets.

People have been saying this for so many years now, and it still has not happened.... the events around May 2019 were said to be likely triggers. But still not yet, and no progress really..... GOOD.... I don't want it.