With the never-ending (5 month) saga of trying to find land to purchase in Thailand, we finally found one that probably checks enough boxes and wanted to see what the extremely knowledgeable and sophisticated patrons of thaivisa aseannow think. The boots-on-the-ground opinion, as it were. As most are probably aware, land prices are going through the roof and there seem to be a lot of speculative sale offers testing the market with stupidly high prices (rice land outside of a major city ring road going for 800k-1mil baht a rai...).

 

The things we want are:

• 4-7 rai of farmland that will be suitable to build a house, not be in a moo/subdivision so we have some space (This land is actually just under 9 rai so more than we want, but not unreasonable)
• within 30 min of a major town (This land is 20 minutes to Kalasin, 25 minutes to Mueang Maha Sarakham, 45 min to Roi Et, 50 min to Khon Kaen)
• within 10 minutes to a small town for errands (only a few minutes outside of the "downtown" Yang Talat)
• Within an hour of an airport (55min to Roi Et airport, 1hr5min to Khon Kaen airport - people keep telling us that they're planning on building an airport somewhere around Yang Talat to service Kalasin/Mueang Maha Sarakham; that seems like a bad idea, but this is LOS, so who knows)
• Not too far (or close) to her family - Her brother's family lives in Chiang Yuen (closer to Khon Kaen) which is about 25min away. Her aunt and mom live about 1hr25 min south of here.
• Preferably on a paved highway or with really easy access if just off a highway.
• Has chanote, electricity, water (check)
• Under 350,000 baht per rai. Any more than that and the land better be AMAZING. (This land is 340,000 per rai, so right at 3.0 million baht with the seller paying all taxes)

 

Location is here in Yang Talat on the main highway 12 that goes E/W between Khon Kaen and Kalasin or N/S to Mueang Maha Sarakham: 

 

City-view of Yang Talat here:

 

Close-up:

 

Currently is rice land where they get 2 crops a year. We won't grow rice, but it's nice that the land/water is good so when we do plant vegetables/fruit trees for ourselves, we should be set. Since we're currently in the US, we're having her brother check it out for us this week for actual pictures of the land - The real estate pictures don't have many good shots of the actual land but they promise it's very nice...

 

It is off the highway and currently does have some dirt roads, but I think in the future these will be paved as the town continues to grow. Currently, there is just a small piece of dirt road that goes over the canal before it connects to a paved road in front of the land. And then going the other ways, they're already slowly paving some sections so would have to expect in the near future they finish the other stretches, and possibly even pave the 2 roads on each side of the canal back to the main roads north and south of my current position:

 

Any thoughts? Everyone tells us that 340,000 is still pretty high, but everything else we're seeing in the past month or two between Chiang Yuen and Yang Talat is 800k-1m per rai so I'm not how much of this is just conventional wisdom from land going for 100k or less X years ago. I don't think any of us believe that prices for land will ever go down, so this seems palatable enough given most "reasonable" land we see around 250-350k per rai.

1 hour ago, H508 said:

Since we're currently in the US, we're having her brother check it out for us

As you are the one paying for it , you really need to be here to actually

see the land before committing to it, checking you really have access

to the land is really important.

regards worgeordie

Thanks! I appreciate any and all thoughts as this is the first piece of land I'm buying in Thailand. We went to Thailand for the month of January, so probably not in the cards to visit again until next year. However, when my wife's brother (and his wife) will visit this week; we'll be on a video call and talk to both the owner and the real estate person at that time (we already talked for ~30 minutes with the real estate viper).

 

From the pictures we do have, it does look like pretty land, but it seems to be about 1-1.5m below the road, so it's going to take some dirt to raise it up for a dwelling. With 9 rai, I'm sure we'll have a company dig out an area for a pond and grade to help with some of that (family friend should be able to do this so we won't get completely hosed as they gave us a good rate for building up her parents land last year). We'll also ask about the small piece of dirt road over the channel that connects to each side of the paved road. Not sure how trustful someone's word can be about the situation, but I'd imagine huge tire ruts would be telling of the history.

 

By "checking you really have access to the land" - you mean roadway or a clear chanote (Nor Sor 4) without any loans against it? We've asked that the owner bring the chanote in hand when the brother visits and we'll also call up the land office prior to proceeding further with the sale if the visual inspection checks out. The front page of the chanote we've seen the copy of does denote the correct dimensions/title and it is Nor Sor 4 (red garuda stamp).

The price sounds a little high.. the road being dirt coming in can be a real problem... might depend on how far to a paved road... and if you are going to build, the height and access to the land can become important as you may need considerable fill to make the land buildable... 

 

We have bought a considerable amt of farmland but not having direct paved road access was always a deal breaker. 

Agreed, Finicky. It was a requirement of mine as well to be on a highway, or right off one. This seem pretty close to that to lesson my concerns but agree they're still there:

1) In the last picture, you can see where it is concrete for the entire span in front of the land, and then to the left over the canal, it's also already concrete; it's just the 50m before, over the canal, and after that are dirt (so not ideal - will have to understand better how this works from the owner). Also, the dirt road following the canal (on the other side, unfortunately) has also already been earmarked to be paved.

2) Going northeast, they've started to pave sections beginning this year. So, the 3 parts in green are all newly paved, so I believe they'll continue paving the whole stretch. Apparently from the real estate person, there was a 'collection' from the town poobah to help prioritize (lol/sigh), but the plan is already settled to do it all (of course, always take with a grain of salt).

 

Also, we'll get more detail on the land height, but I think it's probably 1-1.5m below the road. So, lower than I would like and might ultimately make me drop the deal once I understand that a little better. Happy to pay for some dirt to build up the land for a dwelling, but I also don't want to be a castle with a moat. I don't plan to build on this for many years, so giving dirt time to settle won't be a problem.

So far for questions, I have:

1) Dirt road situation over canal for those 50meters and what's going on with the road going northeast to highway having 3 paved sections, but not everything yet

2) Verified electricity poles are already there, but ask about cable/internet

3) Obviously more pictures of the land with particular attention to how much lower the land is from street and general grading of the entire plot.

4) Checking on clear chanote.

5) Also very important for the thai wife to understand a lack of people dying on land (????????????). No doubt I will have to pay the local astrologer or monk off.

 

I wish the neighbors were a little closer, but ideally would like to talk to them about any possible issues they know about, as well.

Do many red flags for me

 

First I think you rush your decision and should at least see the area with your own eyes, and also try to live in the area and get the feel of it before making a decision is second. 3. It is always good to have your family close by to help out, organizing workers, who also know people you can trust and depend on. I understand many forum members do not share my opinion on family, but I have only positive experience. 

 

4. It is a rice field you are going to top up with new soil, extra time and money.

 

My question is why are you in so rush? Prices always goes up in some areas, but there is always some who need money and want to sell quick.

 

Just as I have been gone now, I had two new requests to buy land in the village we live. 

 

I believe land prices still will be affordable in two years. Go slow do not rush anything is my best advise

Thanks, Hummin, I appreciate your post. What red flags - possible paved road access, lower ground, lack of seeing in person, lack of direct family in the same moo baan? Others?

 

All fair and I'm interested in this exact feedback. I will say, we've been looking daily for over 3 months for land to purchase. Part of that is due to finding it difficult to find land in her parents home town earlier this year (and it's not exactly a hot market), and when we did, the price was insane (500k/rai for land that wasn't special in any way). So, we've been accelerating our purchase plans and have really spent a lot of time looking multiple times per day. So, it's not a rush exactly, but prices are definitely on the rise and the treasury dept have already put in place that land appraisal prices everywhere are going up 1/1/2023 which will only make the sales market go up that much more. Sure, it's possible to find someone that has to sell, but having it meet our req's AND us getting to that seller first can be challenging.

 

We don't want to buy land just for the sake of buying, but if we come across an attractive plot, it seems to make economic sense to buy now. It can be sold years later if something changes in the future. But, I'd rather find a plot I'm happy with now for $340k than wait till something even better comes along at 350k/400k/500k in the future or really hoping for luck to find something even cheaper and better.

 

My wife's family isn't big so we'll never have a super close connection to a particular area and the town her dad's extended family lives in isn't somewhere either my wife nor I want to retire to - it's not close enough to any major city and it's not great farmland either due to lack of a good water supply. This land in Yang Talat being 25 minutes away from her brother (and the connection it brings to his wife's family) does help in this regard so that he can keep tabs on it as I continue to live in the US for a number of years.

 

Regarding living in the area first - that is great advice and noted. Before I plop a 3-5mil house on it, we'll certainly figure that out, but feel we have enough experience with the general area to understand it should work out for us.

 

I'll have more pictures/info later this week to make a more informed decision that I'll share with the group as well!

 

6 minutes ago, H508 said:

Thanks, Hummin, I appreciate your post. What red flags - possible paved road access, lower ground, lack of seeing in person, lack of direct family in the same moo baan? Others?

 

All fair and I'm interested in this exact feedback. I will say, we've been looking daily for over 3 months for land to purchase. Part of that is due to finding it difficult to find land in her parents home town earlier this year (and it's not exactly a hot market), and when we did, the price was insane (500k/rai for land that wasn't special in any way). So, we've been accelerating our purchase plans and have really spent a lot of time looking multiple times per day. So, it's not a rush exactly, but prices are definitely on the rise and the treasury dept have already put in place that land appraisal prices everywhere are going up 1/1/2023 which will only make the sales market go up that much more. Sure, it's possible to find someone that has to sell, but having it meet our req's AND us getting to that seller first can be challenging.

 

We don't want to buy land just for the sake of buying, but if we come across an attractive plot, it seems to make economic sense to buy now. It can be sold years later if something changes in the future. But, I'd rather find a plot I'm happy with now for $340k than wait till something even better comes along at 350k/400k/500k in the future or really hoping for luck to find something even cheaper and better.

 

My wife's family isn't big so we'll never have a super close connection to a particular area and the town her dad's extended family lives in isn't somewhere either my wife nor I want to retire to - it's not close enough to any major city and it's not great farmland either due to lack of a good water supply. This land in Yang Talat being 25 minutes away from her brother (and the connection it brings to his wife's family) does help in this regard so that he can keep tabs on it as I continue to live in the US for a number of years.

 

Regarding living in the area first - that is great advice and noted. Before I plop a 3-5mil house on it, we'll certainly figure that out, but feel we have enough experience with the general area to understand it should work out for us.

 

I'll have more pictures/info later this week to make a more informed decision that I'll share with the group as well!

 

I read many have problems to find workers these days, and especially in season when needed. And you and your wife I assume going to settle for years to come, and need to know you can thrive there? 

 

It is not easy for Thais to just fit in in any village with a foreigner, but if you both are social beings and there is other foreigners around you can team up with, that would be nice if you have social needs. 

 

We are a few around in my area, but no one I actually click with, but I'm fine since I have many I can just send a message and hit the road on two wheels to get away a bit, and if we both leaving, we have family to live on our farm and take care when we are not there. 

 

As long you have things to build, things to plan and do, it is great with a new place, but there is a time when things are ounder control hopefully, and you have needs to get away and do something else, and be social. Life in Isan is great as long you know you can escape for some time anytime you want, especially times of the hot season. Rain season doesn't botter us that much, but the hot season is a killer. The first years I did work myself during the hot season, but not anymore. It is just not worth it, when I can have someone else do it for me.

 

Just thoughts and experiences. If you both buys agree and feel ready, then just do it.

 

 

I lived in Khon Kaen for 20 years and worked in Mahasarkham and know the area quite well, have relatives in Roi Et. 

I would not advise any foreigner to buy land in rural Isarn, unless you've lived there already for a few years(past the initial pink cloud) based on what I have seen in the past.

Many problems being accepted by the local community, loneliness, etc.  Much better to buy some land near a large town, no more than 10k from Khon Kaen, or if you can afford it in the city. 

My golden rule - 

Never get married here until you have lived here for 5 years and never buy a house/land until you've been married 10 years.

 

 

5 hours ago, Hummin said:

It is not easy for Thais to just fit in in any village with a foreigner, but if you both are social beings and there is other foreigners around you can team up with, that would be nice if you have social needs. 

The foreigners that have issues are the ones that don't learn the language, for whatever reason. 

18 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

The foreigners that have issues are the ones that don't learn the language, for whatever reason. 

The foreigners that have issues are those expecting a return on their 'investment'. 

 

No need for any foreigner to learn Thai, once you speak English, Spanish, Urdu and Mandarin would be the next languages to learn. 

6 hours ago, H508 said:

Checking on clear chanote.

There are three types of Chanote???? The wife will know if it is the correct one. 

16 minutes ago, VocalNeal said:

There are three types of Chanote???? The wife will know if it is the correct one. 

I think he mentioned it is nor sor 4, the only one I would buy. 

34 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

No need for any foreigner to learn Thai, once you speak English, Spanish, Urdu and Mandarin would be the next languages to learn. 

Not many people in an Isarn village will understand Spanish and Urdu. 

9 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

Not many people in an Isarn village will understand Spanish and Urdu. 

I don't think many of them will speak Thai either (although they may understand it). 

7 hours ago, H508 said:

the land height, but I think it's probably 1-1.5m below the road

You might want to price out the cost of clean fill.. as well as get comparisons of land that sold recently...

 

my advice to my wife has often been wait - for better land and better price and it always worked out... 

27 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

Not many people in an Isarn village will understand Spanish and Urdu. 

less than 50% surely.

Ultimately, I didn't buy it. The "road" was just a 4m wide concrete slab where two cars couldn't even pass each other and I don't see them ever widening it or paving the roads by the water channel the opposite direction.

 

Unfortunate, so back to prowling facebook land sales groups. I do still like the area of Yang Talat, though; that highway stretch between Khon Kaen and Kalasin seems ideal. Too bad any other post in the last 6 months has the land between 700k-1m baht, lol.

On 7/20/2022 at 1:17 AM, H508 said:

Ultimately, I didn't buy it. The "road" was just a 4m wide concrete slab where two cars couldn't even pass each other and I don't see them ever widening it or paving the roads by the water channel the opposite direction.

 

Unfortunate, so back to prowling facebook land sales groups. I do still like the area of Yang Talat, though; that highway stretch between Khon Kaen and Kalasin seems ideal. Too bad any other post in the last 6 months has the land between 700k-1m baht, lol.

Just my thrupence. Going to be ridiculously hard to do from overseas you need to be in country, boots on the ground and actually go and see these places for yourself. Rent a joint close to where you think you want to be an ACTUALLY live there for a while. In that part of the country rents are stupid cheap and you aren't locked into anything. There is no way I would try and attempt anything you are considering online or with help from her brother.