Buying house in gated community vs. private House

[moogradod]

We have started the process of planning/selecting a future home (Stand-olone house) to buy for our family (4 persons, evtl. plus one child).

 

To do that a number of basic decisions need to be made. For example it is practically set to have it in the greater Pattaya area. But there is one thing we are not sure of:

 

Is it worth to consider a house in a non-gated community ? The advantage would be reduced cost, we might have a dog and electronic means to ward of burglers and on the positive side plus we might be less dependent on the behaviour of any neighbors which we do not know yet. Then we are independent of community rules - giving my wife more possibilities to arrange a garden, which she would love. The dog comes on top as a usefull wish as well.

 

Does anybody have experience with both ways of living or can give useful hints in terms of advantages/disadvantages ? We are not in a hurry

[JustThisOnePostOnly]

My concern with non-gated would be that there appears to be great tumult over the horizon, and Pattaya being such a visible destination may experience more than its fair share.

 

Safety in numbers.

[Dan747]

Watch out for added fee's (HOA, etc.) if in a Gate Community. Much better off in a private house-My opinion.

[Tarteso]

I have lived in big cities all my life.  Actually (63), I live with wife in a house built by us in the countryside (north of Chiang Mai).  We have animals, cats, dogs, chickens, a garden, plants, an orchard and fruit trees. I would be unable to live in a building again... How boring to say hello every day in the elevator , argue with the neighbor for making noise... or watering the “two” pots on the balcony.

 

[henry2109]

I live in a house in a gated village now, for over 10 years, and I liked it, and I would recommend it to most people as a general rule. However, I am in the process of building a bigger house outside of a village.

 

The reasons (and pre-condition for me) for staying out of a gated community:

 

1. I think I can handle the important security aspect: I will have perimeter walls of 2.5 m around the compound. I will have a decent CCTV for the whole compound. I have 3 dogs. And - very important - I will live there permanently, so no empty periods.

 

2. I want to have much more space, within and outside the house. The compound will be 2.5 rai, the house double the size I presently have. This I cannot find in a gated community (and it would not make sense to pay maintenance fee to the community for 2.5 rai of land). I dislike noise, and even though I have been lucky with my neighbours in the past, sometimes it feels and sounds just too close, when they gather outside at their pools. And you cannot say anything to stop the noise.

[riclag]

We live in a moo bann ma ( dog village). It is a residential complex with similar housing. 
 

I thought by choosing a plot and building a house next to someone I know was a step in the right direction unfortunately that only took care of 1 side of my property.

After living there 1 peaceful year the developer finished building on the lot next to the other side of my property and subsequently sold it to a older Thai family and their seven small dogs!

My suggestion know your surroundings especially the noise and inconvenience of others living near you!

 

 

[steven100]

I think a gated community is good for security and peace of mind knowing you can go away on holidays or whatever and come back hopefully as you left it.    Whereas you could not do that in a stand alone house,  especially out in the stcks somewhere,   if you leave it unattended for more than two days you run the risk of returning to nothing,  that's the truth here.  But a house outside the village has it's positives,  as you can have a lawn, garden, fruit trees etc ....   which is not possible in a gated-community.

[henry2109]

44 minutes ago, Dan747 said:

Watch out for added fee's (HOA, etc.) if in a Gate Community. Much better off in a private house-My opinion.

Usually, the common fees are quiet reasonable for a house, and certainly much lower than for a condo. And you get something for your money, like 24/7 security services, cleaning services for common area, gardening services for the common areas, maybe a communal swimming pool or a park, maybe a communal water supply. I presently pay a little over 2000 baht a month, and I know other people in other villages paying around the same. So actually, a very good deal in my view.

[VinnieK]

1 hour ago, JustThisOnePostOnly said:

My concern with non-gated would be that there appears to be great tumult over the horizon, and Pattaya being such a visible destination may experience more than its fair share.

 

Safety in numbers.

Economic tumult?

 

[Elkski]

Security seems to be a concern for even my Thai in laws in a village that has many relatives. I see the glass on top of walls all over Thailand and the bars on windows.   This will only get worse.  I would need a larger property and shed/shop, garden if I ever moved to Thailand.   I have seen even Thai people have their parents go live in their country property if they take an extended leave.   

[sometime]

We have lived in a non gated (jail) for the past 15 years outside Pattaya NaJomtien area, no problem.

[Peterw42]

I would go for the gated community every time, dedicated security at the front gate, usually some shared infrastructure (and cost of), pool, gym, park etc.

You can still have gardens, pets, music etc, the same as any stand alone house.

Most of the rules in a gated community work in your favor, no soi dogs (clean up after walking your own dog), noisy neighbors get shut down by security, kids can walk the streets and play safely outside. 

In Thailand the fees are usually very low, security, gardeners, pool cleaners, maintenance man. all for 500 baht a month.

 

 

 

 

[steven100]

13 minutes ago, Peterw42 said:

I would go for the gated community every time, dedicated security at the front gate, usually some shared infrastructure (and cost of), pool, gym, park etc.

You can still have gardens, pets, music etc, the same as any stand alone house.

Most of the rules in a gated community work in your favor, no soi dogs (clean up after walking your own dog), noisy neighbors get shut down by security, kids can walk the streets and play safely outside. 

In Thailand the fees are usually very low, security, gardeners, pool cleaners, maintenance man. all for 500 baht a month.

 

 

 

 

I think your post makes alot of sense.  If I was looking to buy / build here again I would surely look at a gated place ....  security is one of the most important things imo,  and plus you get no soi dogs,  noise can be controlled some .......   the only issue with a gated is they all seem pretty close together, not much space as they are wall to wall or fence to fence,  so really you sacrifce a yard, lawn, trees, garden for security and services and no soi dogs.  Also, I said earier, you can pack up and go away for a week, a month, and still come back to your place in tacked ... you can't do that with a built outside house.

[BE88]

I'm always surprised why people choose to enter a prison voluntarily instead of choosing freedom with all the risks that it entails but being free is my first request in life.

[BE88]

8 minutes ago, steven100 said:

you can't do that with a built outside house.

Why not, it's just a matter of how much you're willing to pay someone you trust for the time you're away.

[JimHuaHin]

I suppose it depends on where you are.

 

I moved into a gated community just after COVID hit.

 

It had been about 2.5 years of peace, quiet and security.

 

But over the last 6 months, I come to realise that many, if not most, of the properties in the estate are for rent, short-term or long-term, and thus now there is a steady stream of noisy tourists, mostly farangs, some here for a few weeks, others a few months.  Peace and tranquility has gone.

 

Plan ahead, carefully.

[steven100]

4 minutes ago, BE88 said:

I'm always surprised why people choose to enter a prison voluntarily instead of choosing freedom with all the risks that it entails but being free is my first request in life.

why do you infer it's a prison ?   it's not ....   you can do as you please, go in and out whenever  !   it's safe and you have services such as parks and sometimes a pool,  shops near,  no dogs crap_ing everywhere,   how do you call that a prison ?     your thinking is strange ...   imo

[Peterw42]

5 minutes ago, BE88 said:

Why not, it's just a matter of how much you're willing to pay someone you trust for the time you're away.

Why not just live somewhere where, for a very small fee, there is already a guy to keep an eye on your house, and surrounding area.

[BE88]

9 minutes ago, steven100 said:

why do you infer it's a prison ?   it's not ....   you can do as you please, go in and out whenever  !   it's safe and you have services such as parks and sometimes a pool,  shops near,  no dogs crap_ing everywhere,   how do you call that a prison ?     your thinking is strange ...   imo

I remember a case in Udon Thani where the gardenian showed the thieves which house to burgle.

Prisons indicate small spaces to live with rules you have to respect, I don't see much difference with the happy villages you describe.

If you are willing to sacrifice this for your false security, and your choice.

[Peterw42]

7 minutes ago, JimHuaHin said:

I suppose it depends on where you are.

 

I moved into a gated community just after COVID hit.

 

It had been about 2.5 years of peace, quiet and security.

 

But over the last 6 months, I come to realise that many, if not most, of the properties in the estate are for rent, short-term or long-term, and thus now there is a steady stream of noisy tourists, mostly farangs, some here for a few weeks, others a few months.  Peace and tranquility has gone.

 

Plan ahead, carefully.

A stand alone house can just as easily be rented to a noisy tourist. In the gated community there is someone to deal with noise problems immediately, and levee fines etc.

Try and get police to respond to a noise complaint for a stand alone house.

[marin]

11 hours ago, sometime said:

We have lived in a non gated (jail)

My "jail" has only houses over 150 wah, exercise park,, fitness center, two pools, basketball, badminton, and volley ball courts along with extremely wide roads. If thats jail I am a happy camper. ????

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

I've found living in a gated community to be quite pleasant. Security is very good. The common area includes a pool, gym, meeting rooms, basketball court, playground equipment and some green space. This was important when raising our children.  We can walk our dog around the community without worrying about soi dogs. If we have a delivery and we're not home, it can be left with the security office at the entrance to the compound. The community employs a handyman who can fix minor household issues on short notice.

 

We don't have a huge lot, but Mrs. Shrdlu keeps backyard chickens for eggs. We also have several banana trees, a jackfruit tree, four papaya trees, and a mango tree on the property. It isn't a substitute for Mrs. Shrdlu's farm upcountry, but it is sufficient.

 

The community rules aren't oppressive and the only issue we've run up against is the prohibition on having workmen undertake renovations/construction on Sunday.

[billyo]

Thai niece in Phuket lived in a cheap new condo (1.5ml category) full of Thais came back after a fortnight away with her husband to find every last thing in the condo gone. Air con , light switches, shower, every single possession, soaps,shampoo the whole damn lot. They had come disguised as workers told neighbours they didn't know that they were doing renovations and left to get on with it. Probably tipped off by someone there that knew their movements.

[MJCM]

I don't have a problem with gated communities, but the main issue with them is that everything is fine until many of the houses don't want to pay any more for the "common Fees".  That money pays so that the garbage truck comes along 1-2 times a week and pays for security etc etc

 

So there goes your security etc etc

 

This more and more happens

[clokwise]

There's more than one kind of gated community in Thailand. There's the sprawling corporate-built cookie-cutter-house moobaans, and then there's the open-ended, buy the land then design and build it yourself "DIY" moobaans. There's pluses and minuses, but I prefer a moobaan that has personality and plenty of variations in the properties, which generally also have more, and more varieties of, trees.

 

My DIY moobaan in Chiang Mai attracts artists, musicians, architects, TV personalities and other people in the arts, plus a surprising number of high-ranked police. My land is over 1 Rai, and we have a stream running past the land which keeps the neighbors and animals a good distance away. WIDE streets, and because it's effectively a dead-end, the only traffic is from people who live there or deliveries. Families are able to let their kids play in the street, and we often leave the house with the windows open or doors unlocked. It's safe, clean, and quiet. When religious missionaries or other strangers show up in the moobaan, we have a LINE group to warn other residents. We have open areas of unused land which are maintained as small parks. We do not have a clubhouse, fitness center or a pool, however most residents have their own private pool anyway.

 

On the negative side, there are a handful of dogs whose owners consider as security which live on the street and they can be aggressive, also, no one cleans dog poop off the street. Dead leaves tend of sit on the street for a while before they get cleaned up. The security guard is useless, and often gets hired out by other residents to water their lawns or other tasks instead of doing his job. Many residents, including me, don't agree with paying the common fees as a result of these and other issues, however we still do pay for garbage collection.

 

So in my opinion, DIY moobaans are a far better option, should you have the choice.

 

[NanLaew]

13 hours ago, sometime said:

We have lived in a non gated (jail) for the past 15 years outside Pattaya NaJomtien area, no problem.

That's all a bit imprecise, no? I live in a private house in a moobahn on the outskirts of Udon Thani which precisely matches your location of being "outside Pattaya NaJomtien area" same as Bangkok, no?

 

I did rent in a village on the "dark side", up Nongplalai way for about five years. The first couple of years was well after the developer had completed all the construction and the homeowners were still struggling to form an association to take over garbage management, pool maintenance and security. The foreigner owners were more proactive and the holdouts tended to be the Thai owners. The waste management company was given a list of these homes where they were NOT to collect garbage from. It was nice to see tehm taking responsibility and loading bags of rotting garbage in the the back of BMW's and Fortuners rather than pay 20 baht a month for someone else to do it. About six months later when a proper key-card system was implemented, the non-payers found they couldn't get back in no matter how much they shouted at the rent-a-cop in the guard box.

 

1 hour ago, BE88 said:

Why not, it's just a matter of how much you're willing to pay someone you trust for the time you're away.

I heard the brother-in-law is good bet for a pair of safe hands.

[billyo]

39 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

That's all a bit imprecise, no? I live in a private house in a moobahn on the outskirts of Udon Thani which precisely matches your location of being "outside Pattaya NaJomtien area" same as Bangkok, no?

 

I did rent in a village on the "dark side", up Nongplalai way for about five years. The first couple of years was well after the developer had completed all the construction and the homeowners were still struggling to form an association to take over garbage management, pool maintenance and security. The foreigner owners were more proactive and the holdouts tended to be the Thai owners. The waste management company was given a list of these homes where they were NOT to collect garbage from. It was nice to see tehm taking responsibility and loading bags of rotting garbage in the the back of BMW's and Fortuners rather than pay 20 baht a month for someone else to do it. About six months later when a proper key-card system was implemented, the non-payers found they couldn't get back in no matter how much they shouted at the rent-a-cop in the guard box.

 

I heard the brother-in-law is good bet for a pair of safe hands.

In our condo mostly farang owned the Thai owners always like to kick off at the AGM's shouting and cursing at the farangs who they think are trying to cheat them (aka running a good pro-active committee honestly and diligently) . They resent every last baht and in their world we would have no gardeners , the pool would turn to green slime and ancient lifts would have been run into the ground and water pouring in through the rood. At the last but one AGM police had to be called as they lathered themselves into an indignant , shouty mob of malcontents. I think since they were all female they had probably inherited the condos from their deceased farang husbands. Our Chariman riposted that if they couldn't afford to live here anymore then they should consider selling up and moving to somewhere cheaper - to great applause from the farang contingent - which was probably around 85% of the attendees.

[moogradod]

I thank every contributor so far for the different aspects to consider.

 

I now think it is a matter of own personal priority. I would not care if I had a basket ball playing field or a gym. A swimming pool, however, would be a must. One without shrieking kids in the vicinity or karaoke lovers. Noise pollution would be of utmost concern.

 

Some say that the common fees could be quite low. This has to be proven. Currently our common fees for the condo (paid by the Landlord and included in the rental fee) are something near 100KTHB per year. I think that is quite a lot but the facilities and services are as well top notch.

 

 

[ThailandRyan]

On 2/2/2023 at 7:28 PM, steven100 said:

I think a gated community is good for security and peace of mind knowing you can go away on holidays or whatever and come back hopefully as you left it.    Whereas you could not do that in a stand alone house,  especially out in the stcks somewhere,   if you leave it unattended for more than two days you run the risk of returning to nothing,  that's the truth here.  But a house outside the village has it's positives,  as you can have a lawn, garden, fruit trees etc ....   which is not possible in a gated-community.

Who says you can not have a lawn, a garden, fruit trees etc...in a gated community.  We have all of that plus our own pool and each house in the gated community does as well  All also have walls and gates for the driveway.  We have a community pool which only those without the pools use, and sure we pay a CAM fee which includes the security, gardeners, and pool cleaners, but there are no animals allowed in the community so its pretty quiet.  Most of us also have CCTV systems so if we are gone we can monitor who may enter the property.  To me I find the gated community we live in very nice.  It is like a senior gated retirement community back in the west, most folks here are westerners, Europeans, and a few from Japan and Malaysia. It is run by a property management company which has been in business for 25 years, and is also a property developer and real-estate company. Yet it is not in Pattaya like the OP wants but in PKK.