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

[jacko45k]

9 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

3 million baht a year ?

Your joking 

I'm planning on living on around 800k to 1 million baht a year 

I think that is a more realistic figure, providing you re not a wasteful bell ringer. 

[PingRoundTheWorld]

11 hours ago, retarius said:

Well I think you need about 3 million a year for comfortable life so multiply that by 35 years and then factor in inflation at 5 % average

Personally I would need more than 3 million a year to live the same lifestyle I do now - but the grand majority of my budget goes towards alcohol and women - assuming I dial that back (which will happen for sure as I age) my core expenses are probably less than 1 mil a year. I don't understand why you're assuming 5% yearly inflation - that's more than double the average inflation in Thailand. I'd factor in 1-2% inflation, 3% if you're paranoid. But ideally you'll be investing in things that make you at least 7-8% or more a year and will still be able to draw 6% a year without depleting your nest egg and staying on top of inflation.

 

If you wanted 3mil a year, at 6% draw you'd need 50 mil baht. Add a bit more to account for tax depending on the countries you're investing in and whether they have a DTA with Thailand. And that's assuming paying out of pocket - if you have any pension accounts and social security benefits they will reduce these requirements depending how close you are to retirement age.

 

Bottom line: with anything above $1mil invested wisely you can retire AND have your nest egg grow beyond inflation assuming a moderate-to-nice lifestyle here.

[Mike Lister]

I have to comment again on this.

 

I spend 600k a year in Thailand but bank more, my wife spends another 360K but also banks much more. We own our own house and have no debt. That amount gives us a good standard of living year round, two vehicles, trips every two months and holidays twice a year. There's nothing we want that we don't already have or can't easily buy out of cashflow. Medical comes out of cash and we have 4 mill set aside for that. We eat out probably 65% of lunches, don't drink or do the night scene.

[Espanol]

17 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

3 million baht a year ?

Your joking 

I'm planning on living on around 800k to 1 million baht a year 

 

With 100,000 baht a month you can live well in Pattaya, including the rent for the condo.
That would be 1,200,000 baht a year.

 

 

[Pattaya57]

The numbers quoted in this thread are ridiculous. I own my own condo so no rent but I eat out for 90% of meals and drink way too much and still only spend 35,000 baht a month.

 

If you don't do ladies drinks and bar fines Pattaya is an extremely cheap place to retire as a single. If you do ladies drinks and barfine costs could easily be 5-10 times as much

 

[georgegeorgia]

7 hours ago, Mike Lister said:

I have to comment again on this.

 

I spend 600k a year in Thailand but bank more, my wife spends another 360K but also banks much more. We own our own house and have no debt. That amount gives us a good standard of living year round, two vehicles, trips every two months and holidays twice a year. There's nothing we want that we don't already have or can't easily buy out of cashflow. Medical comes out of cash and we have 4 mill set aside for that. We eat out probably 65% of lunches, don't drink or do the night scene.

Can I ask what area you live?

 

I guess it could still be done in Bangkok if you are a home owner 

[georgegeorgia]

42 minutes ago, Pattaya57 said:

The numbers quoted in this thread are ridiculous. I own my own condo so no rent but I eat out for 90% of meals and drink way too much and still only spend 35,000 baht a month.

 

If you don't do ladies drinks and bar fines Pattaya is an extremely cheap place to retire as a single. If you do ladies drinks and barfine costs could easily be 5-10 times as much

 

Well how would a single man get his fun if he doesn't , unless he picks up from the street? 

[Mike Lister]

31 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

Can I ask what area you live?

 

I guess it could still be done in Bangkok if you are a home owner 

Chiang Mai

[Pattaya57]

38 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

Well how would a single man get his fun if he doesn't , unless he picks up from the street? 

Same as any country, you meet girls normally and date.

 

You sound like yet another guy that thinks every guy in Pattaya is after paid sex and every girl in Pattaya is a hooker

 

[Espanol]

 

38 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

Can I ask what area you live?

...

 

6 minutes ago, Mike Lister said:

Chiang Mai

 

 

This post is about how much money does it take to live IN PATTAYA.

 

 

[Mike Lister]

1 minute ago, Espanol said:

 

 

 

 

This post is about how much money does it take to live IN PATTAYA.

 

 

Well, there you are then! I'll issue myself a warning and suspend my posting rights immediately. 🙂

[Mike Lister]

18 minutes ago, Espanol said:

 

 

 

 

This post is about how much money does it take to live IN PATTAYA.

 

 

Less humorously.....whilst the thread is about Pattaya and not about other parts of the country, there is very little difference in the living costs in Chiang Mai compared to Pattaya, if anything, Chiang Mai is more expensive because delivery costs are higher, because it's further away from Bangkok. I accept however I was off of topic, for which I apologise to the op.

[The Old Bull]

If those bar girls find out you have a big stash you are done for. They are very good at what they do, they make old guys feel young, they make bald guys feel hairy, they make fat guys feel thin and they make every guy believe he is a stud. It might take a few years but sooner or later you will fall for one. " Only been here a week ,you are the first guy I have gone with". " I don't want to do this but need to help my ailing mother". Of course she will be different from all the other bar girls as she will be interested in you not your money may not even charge for the first romp. Called playing the long game. Lookout you have been warned.

[redwood1]

4 hours ago, Pattaya57 said:

Same as any country, you meet girls normally and date.

 

You sound like yet another guy that thinks every guy in Pattaya is after paid sex and every girl in Pattaya is a hooker

 

No only every other girl...

[MangoKorat]

On 2/15/2024 at 4:31 PM, uttradit said:

If they had money why arent they staying in nice hotels every week? Why would you go live in some average condo in Pattaya? People with money stay on Ko Kood and pay 20,000 a night.

Tosh, I've stayed there for 1500, my next booking is 2000. Koh Kood was once almost exclusive to the rich but times have changed.

[uttradit]

On 2/16/2024 at 7:15 PM, Pattaya57 said:

Same as any country, you meet girls normally and date.

 

You sound like yet another guy that thinks every guy in Pattaya is after paid sex and every girl in Pattaya is a hooker

 

Lots are though.

[uttradit]

On 2/16/2024 at 5:58 PM, Pattaya57 said:

The numbers quoted in this thread are ridiculous. I own my own condo so no rent but I eat out for 90% of meals and drink way too much and still only spend 35,000 baht a month.

 

If you don't do ladies drinks and bar fines Pattaya is an extremely cheap place to retire as a single. If you do ladies drinks and barfine costs could easily be 5-10 times as much

 

What's the reason for living there?

[JimTripper]

1 hour ago, uttradit said:

What's the reason for living there?

For many it's an easy, cheap and catered location where you can get settled in quickly. A lot of people just don't leave once they are settled in.

 

Much easier then taking the ferry to some weird local beach town somewhere. Less hectic then looking for a place in bangkok. Less trouble then trying to start new in a province somewhere where you stand out and people are not used to foreigners.

[georgegeorgia]

On 2/16/2024 at 6:32 PM, Espanol said:

 

With 100,000 baht a month you can live well in Pattaya, including the rent for the condo.
That would be 1,200,000 baht a year.

 

 

Too much !

60k a month should be enough 

Even lower if I bought a small condo 

[Mike Lister]

9 hours ago, JimTripper said:

For many it's an easy, cheap and catered location where you can get settled in quickly. A lot of people just don't leave once they are settled in.

 

Much easier then taking the ferry to some weird local beach town somewhere. Less hectic then looking for a place in bangkok. Less trouble then trying to start new in a province somewhere where you stand out and people are not used to foreigners.

Spot on, best post in the thread!

 

It's an easy transition from farangland to Thailand, move to Pattaya or Phuket. Food that you're used to, plenty of English speakers, beach, plenty of bars and modern shopping malls etc. It's not the real Thailand but it's good entry point that lets people transition later, when they feel comfortable. I mean, nobody moves from Luton to Korat in one step, unless they have a, ahem, friend to guide them.

 

 

[JimTripper]

3 hours ago, Mike Lister said:

Spot on, best post in the thread!

 

It's an easy transition from farangland to Thailand, move to Pattaya or Phuket. Food that you're used to, plenty of English speakers, beach, plenty of bars and modern shopping malls etc. It's not the real Thailand but it's good entry point that lets people transition later, when they feel comfortable. I mean, nobody moves from Luton to Korat in one step, unless they have a, ahem, friend to guide them.

Easy & cheap does not mean you will like it though...

 

The free drinking water at the food court is cheap, it's easy to sit in a bar all day with losers and do nothing, you become kind of weak when you are not challenged just sitting in a nice condo.

[BritManToo]

On 2/16/2024 at 4:15 PM, Pattaya57 said:

Same as any country, you meet girls normally and date.

 

You sound like yet another guy that thinks every guy in Pattaya is after paid sex and every girl in Pattaya is a hooker

 

I think that any attractive young woman who would talk with me is a hooker.

Applies to women worldwide, not just Thailand or Pattaya.

[JimTripper]

6 hours ago, BritManToo said:

I think that any attractive young woman who would talk with me is a hooker.

Applies to women worldwide, not just Thailand or Pattaya.

Try to work on your confidence as a man.

 

Age does not matter, ultimately. Guys of all ages can attract quality women without financial and other crutches. It does happen. Figure out why it happens and do that.

[SGD]

There is nobody on here who makes Bt1m plus a month advocating to live on Bt100k a month and those who say you can live comfortably on Bt50k a month are almost exclusively people who don't have more than that to spend.

So you drove a car for 30+ years in the west and now you suggest a little moped is ok ? No, it means you cannot afford a car.

After owning a house in the west for 30+ years, you suggest a shoebox condo rental is ok ? No, it means you had to sell your overseas house to fund your retirement because you never had any real investments and now cannot afford to buy a decent condo or house.

Despite travelling extensively in 30+ years back in the west, you won't be staying in luxury in retirement ? No, your budget does not allow for that.

Eaten well all your life but why are you on Cheap Charlie's specials all week ?

 

Lastly (or the list could go on forever), despite having full medical insurance all your life back home, you now decide it is ok to get a Bt1m baht policy that might keep you alive in ICU for 30 minutes because a full medical package is $5000 a year and your budget doesn't allow for that.

The reality, the true reality, is that 90% plus of retirees simply shouldn't be in Thailand as they don't have the funds to replicate a decent lifestyle. Of those, a huge majority compromise to a large or lesser degree but my experience is that fewer than 5% have enough medical insurance.

As for not having a car, then any argument against that is madness. But it costs Bt1m plus for a Thai made car and Bt3/4m for a decent western standard car (pick up derived cars are tin cans, not real cars). Then you have another Bt10/20k a month running costs.

Rent when you arrive for sure and maybe rent a few places but then why not buy a decent place ? If you have enough, then you buy eventually and if you don't you argue that rental is the only way forward.

So what is the number you need ?

Comfortably, Bt4m plus a year. You don't need to spend all that of course but it is only Bt300k+ a month and that is not huge. Save half of it unless you have specific expenses and you are down to Bt160k a month which is Bt40k a week which isn't a massive amount of money.

But as I said, 90% plus are underfunded so 90% plus of views will think this hugely excessive, simply because they have much less.

[Mike Lister]

1 minute ago, SGD said:

There is nobody on here who makes Bt1m plus a month advocating to live on Bt100k a month and those who say you can live comfortably on Bt50k a month are almost exclusively people who don't have more than that to spend.
 

A myopic view! It doesn't cost more than around 50K a month for a property owning foreigner to live comfortably in Thailand, outside of central Bangkok, that's more than twice the average national wage. Almost every Westerner I know here spends around that level and prefers to bank the rest and invest it or secure it as inheritance for spouse or family. THB 4mill. per year is not comfortable, THB 4 mill. is excessive by Thai standards and by resident expat standards.

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1030220/thailand-average-monthly-income-per-household-by-region/

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40012593

[ozimoron]

36 minutes ago, Mike Lister said:

A myopic view! It doesn't cost more than around 50K a month for a property owning foreigner to live comfortably in Thailand, outside of central Bangkok, that's more than twice the average national wage. Almost every Westerner I know here spends around that level and prefers to bank the rest and invest it or secure it as inheritance for spouse or family. THB 4mill. per year is not comfortable, THB 4 mill. is excessive by Thai standards and by resident expat standards.

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1030220/thailand-average-monthly-income-per-household-by-region/

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40012593

 

I think 50K per month is on the money as well, at least for Pattaya. Much less than that would be a life of relative misery. Right now, expect to pay 15,000 a month rent for decent long term digs in Pattaya so that brings it to 65K per month. Right on the minimum non O visa requirement.

 

Last night I watched part of a video by a well known YT'er who claimed he could live in Bangkok (with a partner) for $970 a month. I got a bit suspicious when he mentioned carrying around a portable water filter and sharing his internet by personal hotspot with his partner. I killed it right there.

[Espanol]

On 2/18/2024 at 1:15 AM, georgegeorgia said:

Too much !

60k a month should be enough 

Even lower if I bought a small condo 

 

60k a month should be enough.

 

With 100,000 baht a month you can live well:

 

20.000 baht for a good condo.

20.000 baht for visa, medical insurance, short trips, and incidental expenses.

 

2000 baht/day for food, restaurants, shopping, massage, go out for a drink, transport, medicines,...

 

But of course you can do it with less.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[georgegeorgia]

On 2/18/2024 at 11:53 PM, SGD said:

There is nobody on here who makes Bt1m plus a month advocating to live on Bt100k a month and those who say you can live comfortably on Bt50k a month are almost exclusively people who don't have more than that to spend.

So you drove a car for 30+ years in the west and now you suggest a little moped is ok ? No, it means you cannot afford a car.

After owning a house in the west for 30+ years, you suggest a shoebox condo rental is ok ? No, it means you had to sell your overseas house to fund your retirement because you never had any real investments and now cannot afford to buy a decent condo or house.

Despite travelling extensively in 30+ years back in the west, you won't be staying in luxury in retirement ? No, your budget does not allow for that.

Eaten well all your life but why are you on Cheap Charlie's specials all week ?

 

Lastly (or the list could go on forever), despite having full medical insurance all your life back home, you now decide it is ok to get a Bt1m baht policy that might keep you alive in ICU for 30 minutes because a full medical package is $5000 a year and your budget doesn't allow for that.

The reality, the true reality, is that 90% plus of retirees simply shouldn't be in Thailand as they don't have the funds to replicate a decent lifestyle. Of those, a huge majority compromise to a large or lesser degree but my experience is that fewer than 5% have enough medical insurance.

As for not having a car, then any argument against that is madness. But it costs Bt1m plus for a Thai made car and Bt3/4m for a decent western standard car (pick up derived cars are tin cans, not real cars). Then you have another Bt10/20k a month running costs.

Rent when you arrive for sure and maybe rent a few places but then why not buy a decent place ? If you have enough, then you buy eventually and if you don't you argue that rental is the only way forward.

So what is the number you need ?

Comfortably, Bt4m plus a year. You don't need to spend all that of course but it is only Bt300k+ a month and that is not huge. Save half of it unless you have specific expenses and you are down to Bt160k a month which is Bt40k a week which isn't a massive amount of money.

But as I said, 90% plus are underfunded so 90% plus of views will think this hugely excessive, simply because they have much less.

I don't want a car ,I don't have one in the West either , I don't like driving 

[nauseus]

On 1/11/2024 at 6:43 PM, petermik said:

100 million was enough 4 me......

 

Was?

[mran66]

On 2/18/2024 at 7:53 PM, SGD said:

There is nobody on here who makes Bt1m plus a month advocating to live on Bt100k a month 

 

With 100% certainty I can say there is at least one such person.

 

Sure there is no upper limit how much one can use for various things dependent on personal tastes and lifestyle habits. If you want Hollywood megastar lifestyle, sure 100k is not enough, nor is 1M. But for a normal comfortable life 100k/mo for one person well enough in Pattaya.