A nightmare is unfolding.....

[tonray]

Never move into this property. As expats, it is highly unlikely we will ever change rural Thai behaviors and in no time at all something else will crop up. Move to a place where at least some semblance of civilization exists. I went thru this with my first GFin Thailand, her family lived on a farm in Chachoengsao, went to visit and the sales pitch came about the need to build and live out here...and it was beautiful....but I knew what a disaster it would be.

[MJCM]

11 hours ago, Will B Good said:

Or as someone wrote on the 'What song makes you cry' thread........anything by Justine Bieber

I never knew that there is now also a Female version of Justin Bieber? OMG The Horror!!! ????

[MJCM]

11 hours ago, Will B Good said:

Our problem is the karaoke doesn't have to be constant or ridiculous loud........it only has to be intermittent and audible to make our lives a living hell.

Exactly. Our "Demon Shop" could start at all hours off the day, sometimes as early as 3am, and sometimes he was even turning up the Music when the Temple was turning on that Temple music to get people goto the Temple.

 

And if he had customers singing Karaoke it could last almost all through the night!

 

But it was also ridiculous loud! I have a dB app on my Phone and it listed peaks of 100+dB and that was from a shop approx 200 meters away!

 

Edit: For the OP, here is the APP I am using

 

https://apps.apple.com/th/app/decibel-x-db-sound-level-meter/id448155923

[KannikaP]

13 hours ago, thaitom said:

I havent seen a farang in over 2 years now and i prefer it.

No, but you still talk to us all, thanks.   LOL

[recom273]

11 hours ago, Will B Good said:

I am beginning to think the same.......this could be deliberate. There are a few ramshackle cafe/restaurants about but why they build them out here.........God alone knows.

 

I am going back to the UK to get away from Thailand for a bit, had enough, and the wife can sort this out.

 

I have told her I will not live there under these circumstances .......life is too short to put up with this ****. 

 

It really is criminal and as much as I am annoyed with her for buying, it is heartbreaking.

We have bought land, ready to build out here in rural Khon Kaen.

 

When we bought the land, 3/4 rai, there was a little slither of land next door, 5m wide that ran the whole length of our land. It's a strange piece, it has been raised 3m above the rest of the land, earth had been piled up against the other neighbours wall. I had an idea that we would have to build a high and strong retaining wall, as the moment they started to drive machinery on site the wall might collapse. If they did build something, what would they build on a 5 x 50m strip of land on a quiet village lane in Issan ? worker cottages? the occupants would have a great vantage point of our house, potential burglars would just be able to drop down onto our land with ease.

 

About 4 months after our purchase, the seller came from the woodwork, who was desperate to pay some bills and we negotiated a decent and fair price.

 

Now having lived in the village for 4 months and gaining confidence from locals we are hearing stories, that after we bought the first piece of land, a few villagers were scrambling to buy the slither of land next door. Both pieces of land had been unoccupied for many years, ours was taken as a debt, no one was ever interested in the slice next to us, it was always rice land waiting to be developed.

 

We were told the plan in buying the slice was so that someone could resell it back to us at a highly inflated price or guessing, some trick like your neighbor maybe pulling.

 

Im not saying there is a conspiracy with everything land purchase by westerners in Thailand, but village people do notice when westerners buy land, and there were clear motives in this case to buy the neighbouring land. When we bought the original land, of course, we did want to buy the slither, but it wasn't high on my priorities, I was thinking I could rent it to grow something on, but my hand was forced, luckily someone unconnected contacted us, or else we would have been out of the game, open to a stitch-up.

 

Hoping some can learn from that story .. I wish to give my support to OP, its alright for others to say "rent, not buy in Thailand" but having spent great lengths of time "homeless", living out of a bag for the duration of jobs around the world, I just want a nice place to run out the rest of my days. It seems an important thing for the Thai wife too, they want a place that they can settle in, never pay rent, where they are speak the local dialect, etc .. Hope it all works out.

 

 

 

 

[Khabib]

Perhaps there is a loud sound system set up with a microphone, that repeats what it hears with a 2 second delay creating an awful echo effect. Not pleasant to hear, for anyone, including the neighbour I'm sure.

[JWRC]

Plan 1   Try speaking to them.

If Plan 1 didn't work go on to plan 2

Plan 2 You need some heavy metal music and a good sound system, get the speakers as close to the adjoining boundary as you can when his sound system starts up turn on your music to full blast, keep this up until he gets the message.

[Henryford]

Sorry no suggestions but if it is in the middle of nowhere why would he open a shop there. One can only hope his business fails.

[WhiteBuffaloATM]

after careful consideration and speaking to my educated thai lady, believe CharlieH has nailed it.

Nothing can be done without inviting Retaliation & Escalation, No Legal Recourse. Anything Else and you are Prime Suspect / Soft Target. Check out Thai Jail Foreigner Experiences to ram this home….

 

So the Ignore/ Wait It Out option seems best. this guy clearly has little business or common sense so assume this karaoke venture is done in three months and he’s just living there or hopefully gone with land for sale.dont buy it as the same could be repeated…..with car breaking or ice crushing …. just saying it could be worse mate.

 

and regarding your resort incident, (and your subject case) even my lady says “avoid living near thais”. thats the key here really. also, sorry to say, but moving to your wifes village then compounding that by buying near unsaleable land/ house there, are common but massive strategic farang errors.

[BritManToo]

8 minutes ago, WhiteBuffaloATM said:

but moving to your wifes village then compounding that by buying near unsaleable land/ house there, are common but massive strategic farang errors.

There is nothing in a Thai village for a white guy except madness, excess alcohol and despair..

But for a Thai wife, there is gambling, former lovers/husbands, relatives and all sorts of potential naughtiness.

 

Best for a foreigner to live somewhere far away (with or without the Thai wife).

[thaitom]

4 hours ago, KannikaP said:

No, but you still talk to us all, thanks.   LOL

it's getting as bad as facebook here lately. how many of you actually open your door and go outside ? I guess you can't if you live in a condo box

[WhiteBuffaloATM]

yeah BritMan, well put….didnt want to specify myself the waiting imagined disaster there…. but far worse are the thai jails waiting to accomodate any rash emotional farang actions in this case or other situations……

 

 

[thaitom]

17 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

There is nothing in a Thai village for a white guy except madness, excess alcohol and despair..

But for a Thai wife, there is gambling, former lovers/husbands, relatives and all sorts of potential naughtiness.

 

Best for a foreigner to live somewhere far away (with or without the Thai wife).

Thats a good reason not to marry a Thai

[youreavinalaff]

44 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

There is nothing in a Thai village for a white guy except madness, excess alcohol and despair..

But for a Thai wife, there is gambling, former lovers/husbands, relatives and all sorts of potential naughtiness.

 

Best for a foreigner to live somewhere far away (with or without the Thai wife).

You like to generalise, don't you?

 

I have lived in an Isaan village for many years. With the exception of the, now gone, issue with music it is generally a lovely, peaceful place. 

 

Lots of great walks and bike rides on my doorstep. A town with all the usual shopping facilities not that far away. Lots of room for the kids to play so they are not all stuck to a phone or tablet all day.

 

My wife does not drink or gamble or get involved in any other "naughtiness" Her family are great and have fully accepted me as part of the family. It's a great place to live. I am also aware of many other expats who feel exactly the same way. I guess we make the effort. It is a two way thing, you know. Most expats that I have seen fail in a village have done so because the did not meet half way on anything.

 

Maybe you should start your posts with " what happened to me in a village was...............".

[Will B Good]

8 hours ago, HighPriority said:

Just change the design of your house to make it a better, louder venue with better looking girls and cheaper drinks and buy him out when he goes broke…

Narrowing things down to that......beer and food at cost, free karaoke.........do that for two or three months.

[Will B Good]

15 hours ago, youreavinalaff said:

You obviously don't understand what I was saying.

 

My advice on this thread, along with many others, is based on the idea that the music is so loud it is deafening. Advice that becomes inane if the music is only " audiable".

 

Not sure how you get to me making problems in others lives.

 

3am you say? Did you not comment that your wife is there during the day. That is how you know the music is on? Not sure your wife will be managing the build at 3am. 

 

It appears you need to clarify the situation. Some of your posts contradict others.

Don't be a knob all your life.

[Will B Good]

7 hours ago, bojo said:

Without a shadow of doubt, it's a typical cunning Thai move (they're kinda good at this)..................You have a couple of options.....................and the outcome will depend alot on whether your wife has already made a complaint or talked to absolutely anyone about this issue........................if she has, your chances of quick success are lessened. You gotta remain nonchalent........................

Option 1. Carry on with the build as if nothing is bothering you

Option 2. Stop building for now (you're obviously living elsewhere at the mo anyway)

You could also consider; once built, giving to a family for free until the problem goes away......................Eventually, the problem will go away anyway

You could try to buy/lease the problem land as a buffer at a later date, through a proxy  perhaps the best approach.

The helpful sound proofing options suggested by many will help, but won't solve the problem. Depending on the size of the land my soundproofing would be an earth mover making a mound along the border and reaarranging the build so that any outdoor terrace areas are facing away from sound source..............

I wish you all the best, not an easy time for you, but patience will prevail I'm sure.

Thanks for taking the time to make those suggestions.

[Will B Good]

6 hours ago, LarrySR said:

Neighbor Wars can be fun to watch. Check YouTube.
 

But seriously, you don’t need the stress. 
The answer? Open a competing pub and charge less, even selling drinks below cost would be a good investment until you drive him out of business. 
 

 

Definitely thinking along those lines now....keep it all low key, sell at cost and just drive him out of business.

[Will B Good]

4 hours ago, recom273 said:

We have bought land, ready to build out here in rural Khon Kaen.

 

When we bought the land, 3/4 rai, there was a little slither of land next door, 5m wide that ran the whole length of our land. It's a strange piece, it has been raised 3m above the rest of the land, earth had been piled up against the other neighbours wall. I had an idea that we would have to build a high and strong retaining wall, as the moment they started to drive machinery on site the wall might collapse. If they did build something, what would they build on a 5 x 50m strip of land on a quiet village lane in Issan ? worker cottages? the occupants would have a great vantage point of our house, potential burglars would just be able to drop down onto our land with ease.

 

About 4 months after our purchase, the seller came from the woodwork, who was desperate to pay some bills and we negotiated a decent and fair price.

 

Now having lived in the village for 4 months and gaining confidence from locals we are hearing stories, that after we bought the first piece of land, a few villagers were scrambling to buy the slither of land next door. Both pieces of land had been unoccupied for many years, ours was taken as a debt, no one was ever interested in the slice next to us, it was always rice land waiting to be developed.

 

We were told the plan in buying the slice was so that someone could resell it back to us at a highly inflated price or guessing, some trick like your neighbor maybe pulling.

 

Im not saying there is a conspiracy with everything land purchase by westerners in Thailand, but village people do notice when westerners buy land, and there were clear motives in this case to buy the neighbouring land. When we bought the original land, of course, we did want to buy the slither, but it wasn't high on my priorities, I was thinking I could rent it to grow something on, but my hand was forced, luckily someone unconnected contacted us, or else we would have been out of the game, open to a stitch-up.

 

Hoping some can learn from that story .. I wish to give my support to OP, its alright for others to say "rent, not buy in Thailand" but having spent great lengths of time "homeless", living out of a bag for the duration of jobs around the world, I just want a nice place to run out the rest of my days. It seems an important thing for the Thai wife too, they want a place that they can settle in, never pay rent, where they are speak the local dialect, etc .. Hope it all works out.

 

 

 

 

Thanks for that background.....it is beginning to look like we have the situation you've described. 

 

It is absolutely soul destroying.

[youreavinalaff]

18 minutes ago, Will B Good said:

Don't be a knob all your life.

555555

 

You just don't understand, do you?

 

I've lived in my wife's village for 21 years. Just trying to pass on some experience.

 

If you don't like advice then just scroll on by. No need for insults.

 

[BritManToo]

49 minutes ago, youreavinalaff said:

Most expats that I have seen fail in a village have done so because the did not meet half way on anything.

.....

 A town with all the usual shopping facilities not that far away.

My woman's village is 15Km down a dirt road to the nearest 7-11.

A short drive from a major town isn't what most of us experience in our woman's village.

[Will B Good]

.

[bojo]

22 minutes ago, youreavinalaff said:

You like to generalise, don't you?

Yes he does................... which keeps his replies simple, leaving others to read between the lines.............................he's also usually on point, humorous at times, refreshingly non pc and importantly, frank with his opinions............................

[Will B Good]

16 hours ago, youreavinalaff said:

3am you say? Did you not comment that your wife is there during the day. That is how you know the music is on? Not sure your wife will be managing the build at 3am. 

Yep.....that bit really helped.

[Misab]

A few years back my neighbor played some music for me. Was it loud? a little perhaps. A Thai lady to houses further up called the police and complained over he played loud music. The Police came but he only had plaed that one song so there was no loud music anymore. Hoever they told him about the complaint and he should not do it again.

 

 

[RafPinto]

22 hours ago, lodstewart said:

yup , curve the wall so that the cafe is inside the curve, that will reflect his own end noise back

 

[Will B Good]

1 minute ago, RafPinto said:

 

Maybe scale it up a bit, but otherwise looking good.

[RafPinto]

And take a sunbath naked everyday when the bar is busy.

He will quickly run away, when he sees how strong your are build. Losing face thing...

[youreavinalaff]

24 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

My woman's village is 15Km down a dirt road to the nearest 7-11.

A short drive from a major town isn't want most of us experience in our woman's village.

Not far away meaning about 13kms. 

 

Besides, how does location affect how much one's wife would gamble, drink and <deleted> other men?

 

 

[youreavinalaff]

12 minutes ago, bojo said:

.............................he's also usually on point

To some. Not in general though. How could he be? Does he know every expat in every village?