How many millions of baht does one need to retire in Pattaya?

[PJ71]

40 minutes ago, Mike Lister said:

I don't agree, there must be a relationship. There must be an overlap between the wealth of some foreigners and locals, it's impossible to think that just being a foreigner means that you're in a wealth class that is far above and beyond that of the local population. That is exactly what locals think when they see a foreigner whereas we all understand the reality is very different. The question is, the extent of that overlap. Yes I agree that in general, foreigners have more liquid wealth than the average native Thai but there's much more to that picture than that alone.

But Thai's all pitch in, they live many to a house / room, retired farangs are alone or with Thai partners only.

 

Of course we have the Thai elite who we couldn't imagine ever having that sort of wealth but they are the 1% ers.

 

Farangs will never pay Thai prices ( don't care how long you've been here or how good your Thai is ), majority of farangs will not shop for food at the local thai markets etc, which are much much cheaper ( although mostly poor quality ).

 

My ball park would be 60-80k per month with everything paid for, house / condo and vehicles etc.

 

 

[Mike Lister]

2 minutes ago, PJ71 said:

But Thai's all pitch in, they live many to a house / room, retired farangs are alone or with Thai partners only.

 

Of course we have the Thai elite who we couldn't imagine ever having that sort of wealth but they are the 1% ers.

 

Farangs will never pay Thai prices ( don't care how long you've been here or how good your Thai is ), majority of farangs will not shop for food at the local thai markets etc, which are much much cheaper ( although mostly poor quality ).

 

My ball park would be 60-80k per month with everything paid for, house / condo and vehicles etc.

 

 

Again, I don't agree. We shop 90% of the time at local markets, the quality is always at least good, if it wasn't locals wouldn't shop there.

 

The biggest socioeconomic group in Thailand is the middle class/economically secure, it's that huge group that sits between most peoples idea of what comprises the majority of the population and the 1% you mention. That group was tiny in 1997, today it's substantial. "In 2019, the poor, the economically secure and the middle class made up 6.2, 56.3, and 37.5 percent" of the population respectively. Note, the 1% don't even feature in that statement!

 

The earnings/expenditure overlap between foreigners and locals takes place in that middle class group. We spend 50k a month and live very comfortably, we easily fall into the definition of middle class Thai earners, as do other foreigner's who live around us.

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/716001/share-of-household-income-levels-in-thailand-forecast/

 

https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/780771636649923876/pdf/Thailand-Poverty-Brief.pdf
 

[georgegeorgia]

17 minutes ago, PJ71 said:

 

My ball park would be 60-80k per month with everything paid for, house / condo and vehicles etc.

 

If I had everything paid for eg house/condo I couldn't think as a single older male non drinker going over 40k a month .

I would be horrified if I did.

Mind you gym membership is expensive in Pattaya 1500 baht a month at Jomtien gym

[Pattaya57]

30 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

If I had everything paid for eg house/condo I couldn't think as a single older male non drinker going over 40k a month .

I would be horrified if I did.

Mind you gym membership is expensive in Pattaya 1500 baht a month at Jomtien gym

You buy a condo that includes a gym. Problem solved

 

My condo includes Gym, Sauna, Pool, Wi-Fi and Cable TV so no extra outlay required. I'm also within walking distance (or baht bus) of anywhere I like to go so dont need a car. That's why my monthly spend is only 30-40k even though I don't even try to budget (spend whatever I want)

 

[advancebooking]

10 hours ago, SGD said:

 

So your car doesn't depreciate then ?

 

Please tell me of this magic car.

 

I know you don't put 10/20k of fuel in a car every month but go try service a BMW or buy a replacement part or buy new proper Continental or Michelin tyres and see how much they cost.

To replace my BMW X3 would be about 4.5m, maybe a bit more and I think that after 5 years, it would be worth perhaps 2.5m to 3m. So let's say the higher number, 3m, meaning I'd lost 1.5m over 5years, then that is 300k a year or actually 25k a month.

Sorry, you're right, a decent car doesn't cost 10/20k a month, it is more like 30/40k a month.

 

haha. Ridiculous argument. 

[georgegeorgia]

Then if you own your own condo 

 

You still have strata fees , electric , internet , Netflix , phone , water , and big one medical insurance

 

You don't need a motorcycle or car plenty of transport in Pattaya

 

 

 

 

[jacko45k]

2 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

Then if you own your own condo 

 

You still have strata fees , electric , internet , Netflix , phone , water , and big one medical insurance

 

You don't need a motorcycle or car plenty of transport in Pattaya

 

 

 

 

A couple of those could be dropped, Netflix, watch YouTube,  and if one has a chunk of savings, the more liberal idea of self insuring. I always believe people should consider renting, rather than buying a condo here... if of retirement age, say over 65 and living single. Seems odd to rent as rents are cheap, one might be lucky to last long enough to come out on top. So many condos have larger maintenance fees now. 

[SGD]

On 2/23/2024 at 10:20 PM, Mike Lister said:

Yes indeed, everyone is different, the only sad part about being different is not understanding your standing relative to the average and then bragging about it, that's tacky and classless, typically a sign of inherited wealth! You wrote that, "those who say you can live comfortably on Bt50k a month are almost exclusively people who don't have more than that to spend". In a country where the average wage is less than half that amount, your remarks are naïve and lacking in any good taste whatsoever and I presume you are merely trolling. A sign of wealth, class and good taste would be to say nothing. 

 

No, you are tacky and classless to assume that your inability to have more defends that position.

 

I had a cardboard box in London 35 years ago and I retired a multi millionaire by 29 as a banker.

 

I gave up on sights to be a billionaire to have a better life.

 

I inherited £0.00.

[Mike Lister]

9 minutes ago, SGD said:

 

No, you are tacky and classless to assume that your inability to have more defends that position.

 

I had a cardboard box in London 35 years ago and I retired a multi millionaire by 29 as a banker.

 

I gave up on sights to be a billionaire to have a better life.

 

I inherited £0.00.

There are 72 million people in Thailand, which puts you with your wealth in the top 0.01% of the population and you think your spending is normal....dear god!

[SGD]

1 minute ago, Mike Lister said:

There are 72 million people in Thailand, which puts you with your wealth in the top 0.01% of the population and you think your spending is normal....dear god!

 

Thailand could have 720 million people (look at the topic title) and it would not change the argument of how much it costs to live as an expat.

Your reference is absurd. This is not how near can you live as a local but how many millions, (not hundreds of thousands) dos it require to retire in Pattaya.

Over 30 years on boards, groups and forums, most history now, this subject always causes the most grief.

You have what you have. It is probably less than a sensible person should migrate with but it is still what you have. You cannot spend more than whatever you have.

95% of "expats in Thailand would fail if the 65k was upgraded by inflation for the last 20 years to say 300k a month and the immigration offices didn't fraudulently stamp forms.

 

Doesn't it tell you anything that perhaps 90% of "worthwhile" expats cannot afford the miniscule £20k to put into a bank and thus use a fraudulent way to live in Thailand.

[Olmate]

"worthwhile expats"? 

[Mike Lister]

2 minutes ago, SGD said:

 

Thailand could have 720 million people (look at the topic title) and it would not change the argument of how much it costs to live as an expat.

Your reference is absurd. This is not how near can you live as a local but how many millions, (not hundreds of thousands) dos it require to retire in Pattaya.

Over 30 years on boards, groups and forums, most history now, this subject always causes the most grief.

You have what you have. It is probably less than a sensible person should migrate with but it is still what you have. You cannot spend more than whatever you have.

95% of "expats in Thailand would fail if the 65k was upgraded by inflation for the last 20 years to say 300k a month and the immigration offices didn't fraudulently stamp forms.

 

Doesn't it tell you anything that perhaps 90% of "worthwhile" expats cannot afford the miniscule £20k to put into a bank and thus use a fraudulent way to live in Thailand.

The cost of retirement for a foreigner in Pattaya is a direct reflection of living costs there and how much it costs anyone else to retire there, be they foreigner or not, there is a relationship. If on average it costs foreigners between 50k and 75k per month to retire there and the local population does so on significantly less, that's a fairly reasonable indication, don't you think! But then you come along and tell us it takes over 330k a month to retire there, to a reasonable standard, which means somebody is wrong, either you or the population of Pattaya.

 

This is not about how much money a person has or doesn't have, that is wholly irrelevant. This is about how much it costs to retire in Pattaya and live there to a reasonable standard. If your definition of what is a reasonable standard is so vastly different from the norm, so be it, just don't try and tell everyone else however that your definition is correct.

[Hummin]

Simple 

 

Rent 15 000

Food 15 000

Insurance 15 000 ++++

Fun 15 000

Div 15 000

 

Each year add 4%

 

You welcome

[PJ71]

22 minutes ago, Hummin said:

Simple 

 

Rent 15 000

Food 15 000

Insurance 15 000 ++++

Fun 15 000

Div 15 000

 

Each year add 4%

 

You welcome

If your insurance is 15k pm you must be very old.

[Hummin]

8 minutes ago, PJ71 said:

If your insurance is 15k pm you must be very old.

Retirement age? For me it is now 64k a year, and not at retirement age yet

[Pattaya57]

2 hours ago, jacko45k said:

A couple of those could be dropped, Netflix, watch YouTube ....

I'd hate to be retired and have to drop Netflix to save money. It's only 149 baht per month so go two beers a month less instead 😀

[jacko45k]

Just now, Pattaya57 said:

I'd hate to be retired and have to drop Netflix to save money. It's only 149 baht per month so go two beers a month less instead 😀

Well I still carry Sophon myself, and used to carry a streaming service too, but I get news via Youtube, catch some old films and programs there too, and seem to watch little else lately. Some Pattaya retirees would struggle to reduce odd beers in lieu of TV!

[georgegeorgia]

3 hours ago, Olmate said:

"worthwhile expats"? 

Ones that will be in Thailand in 10 years 😉

Some won't be 😁

[Olmate]

4 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

Ones that will be in Thailand in 10 years 😉

Some won't be 😁

Been there.. done that! 

[brianthainess]

1000 million Baht. should cover you. 

[georgegeorgia]

3 hours ago, Pattaya57 said:

I'd hate to be retired and have to drop Netflix to save money. It's only 149 baht per month so go two beers a month less instead 😀

Doesn't seem your getting your money's worth being on here all the time.

 

[bbi1]

4 hours ago, Hummin said:

Retirement age? For me it is now 64k a year, and not at retirement age yet

Retirement age for me is in the late 30's. Retirement age is different for every single person.

[Hummin]

3 hours ago, bbi1 said:

Retirement age for me is in the late 30's. Retirement age is different for every single person.

The friend of op is in his mid 50'ies same as me. For him it will be 65 000 for a solid plan. The older you get, the more increasing your health plan. 

 

My estimate was roughly what an average person needs to live ok in Thailand. I would be bored with Pattaya and two st a week, but that's me, I need a bit more to feel stimulated and have a decent life. Activities and interests that inspires to live healthy and also meet interesting people at the age I'm now. 

 

Most who is under 60 who I know retired in Thailand retired on a disability plan. 

[Mike Lister]

All you type A people who are going to retire by the time you're 30 or 40, you better have a plan about what you're going to do. Retirement isn't a destination, it's a only a mile maker along the way.

[georgegeorgia]

13 hours ago, Olmate said:

Been there.. done that! 

And hopefully your very last trip won't be too far off !

 

[georgegeorgia]

7 hours ago, Mike Lister said:

All you type A people who are going to retire by the time you're 30 or 40, you better have a plan about what you're going to do. Retirement isn't a destination, it's a only a mile maker along the way.

Absolutely

I think it's not only financial reasons guys head back to their own countries  after retiring in Asia disillusioned, it's because they had no lifestyle plan.