Real Estate Lawyer near Yasothon

[FLhawk]

Hello,

Looking for recommendations for an ethical, English-speaking real estate lawyer in or near Yasothon.  I may be starting construction for a small house for my fiancé' soon and though she is not a bar girl, I am concerned about about protecting both her and myself as I would with an American woman.  She has land she says her father gave her for us to build on.  So she provides the land and I pay to build the house.  It would be a place to house her mother for now and place to stay when we visit.  

 

Anyway, as she wants to start construction in a few weeks, I asked if she had a deed or title to the land.  She does not and I don't know if she even knows if her father legally owns the land.  She says everyone in the village and family knows he gave the land to her and that things are different in Issan so not to worry.  Well, I worry!  And before I start shelling out the cash I want some assurance the house will be hers and that someone else can't come along and kick her out and keep the house I paid to give to her.  

 

That said, I would like to have some protection just in case she decides to leave me.  (We are going on 3 years, but with Covid, our time together has been limited.) I have heard it wise to obtain a lease to the land and home for 30 years so that she can't kick us farang men out.  Does this seem to work in real life or would it be a waste?  Are there other things we guys can do for protection from wives or girlfriends who turn nasty?  

 

Thanks for any suggestions and recommendations.  Not sure any advisements of "Don't do this!!" will be considered at this point.  I know the risks but she has done enough for me at this point that if we split up I will not regret this.  The house is cheap and will have little impact on me if I lose it, but I mainly don't want her to lose the house because I didn't take precautions now.

[Andycoops]

No title deed is a red flag and could open a can of worms later.

You need to obtain such, or she does from the local land registry office in Yaso town.

 

I live about 40kms from Yaso town and built a house on my wife's land in her village, where I now live.

 

I have seen the land documents and the land has been surveyed by the land office and the official markers are on the land borders.

Small concrete posts.

 

I have no qualms leaving the house, 3 bed 3 bath, 2 floors, as a legacy for her and the children.

 

I have seen land disputes erupt with farangs but also between Thais over who owns what.

[Andycoops]

37 minutes ago, Andycoops said:

No title deed is a red flag and could open a can of worms later.

You need to obtain such, or she does from the local land registry office in Yaso town.

 

I live about 40kms from Yaso town and built a house on my wife's land in her village, where I now live.

 

I have seen the land documents and the land has been surveyed by the land office and the official markers are on the land borders.

Small concrete posts.

 

I have no qualms leaving the house, 3 bed 3 bath, 2 floors, as a legacy for her and the children.

 

I have seen land disputes erupt with farangs but also between Thais over who owns what.

I should have added that I have never seen an estate agent in these small Isaan towns in my 10+ years here.

Only in the bigger cities like Ubon, KK etc

[Andyfez]

I'd speak to Issan lawyers in korat.

[youreavinalaff]

No need for lawyers.

 

You and your partner need to go through what documents you have.

 

If none are available go to the land registry and ask them. That is what they are there for.

 

My wife gas a 10 rai plot that is currently undocumented, as is much of the surrounding area. Land office come by every now and then and register a few plots. So long as land tax hs been paid and receipts are on hand there are no issues.

[Andycoops]

7 hours ago, Andyfez said:

I'd speak to Issan lawyers in korat.

Lawyers in Korat won't hold sway in Yaso and are a waste of money.

 

It's the land office that call the shots.

 

[Martyjustice]

Read up in different kinds on deeds. The info section of Ubon homes website is a good place to start. 
For me, if there is not a Chanote, it’s not a real deed. 2/3rds of the country lives on land pasted down by family but is owned by the state. 
Educate yourself and make your own decisions. Be forewarned they might write a lease contract on land without a chanote. That is no good. 

[youreavinalaff]

6 hours ago, Martyjustice said:

Read up in different kinds on deeds. The info section of Ubon homes website is a good place to start. 
For me, if there is not a Chanote, it’s not a real deed. 2/3rds of the country lives on land pasted down by family but is owned by the state. 
Educate yourself and make your own decisions. Be forewarned they might write a lease contract on land without a chanote. That is no good. 

I think you should include yourself in the group that needs to educate themselves.

[ChrisP24]

Once you sort out the title and lease issues, one additional way to limit your potential losses might be to build the house with a long-term loan (which would be in her name/her responsibility), that way you are only out the down payment plus however many ongoing payments you make  as the future course of your relationship unfolds. A family member may have to co-sign.

[recom273]

You dont need a lawyer, as mentioned above the land office will assist, but we hired a lawyer to handle a land purchase (not in Yasothorn) as we were living a long way away - he was a criminal lawyer, he spoke good English. We chose to use a lawyer because the woman we bought the land was a certified nutter and we dealt with her through him because I didnt have the patience.

 

He only charged 5K, he handled the negotiations, researched the land online and over the phone, went out to the land prior to the sale to inspect the chanote, then he sat with us during the transaction at the land office in the morning. When the woman switched at the time we handed her the money, claiming that we had agreed to 5K more, he jumped in and saved the day. He was well worth the money. Not saying you need all this, but for a few thousand, any lawyer will assist you, no need for a specialist or expensive 'English' speaking lawyer.

 

Do you have a Yasothorn Facebook group? or have a drive around town, any lawyer will help you.

[FLhawk]

Thanks for the responses.  I am doing some more research.  She wants to get started building in a few weeks, and you guys seem to verify what she told me.  I may ask her about the land office.  Her mother is getting kicked of family land so she may be more understanding about ensuring that her father's side won't come after her house in the future.