American man and Thai wife lose 15.2 million baht in Hua Hin property fraud

[HuaHinNew]

On 2/7/2025 at 9:37 AM, crazykopite said:

You pay lawyers to carry out due diligence having lived here for 20 years and made use of Lawyers I have yet to come across one who is capable of carrying out such a task !

If in Hua Hin I can highly recommend Legal Services Hua Hin at Macro site.

 

Totally professionally, English and Thai legal representatives, 

 

I have used for years for house and land construction and purchase and all associated legals and documentation.

 

Have litigation services and reasonably priced services.

 

https://www.legalserviceshuahin.com/

[RocketDog]

5 hours ago, vukovar77 said:

As a foreigner, you can not buy land (house) in Thailand in your name.

Ahh, well, I think everybody knows that by now. My wife is Thai.

She can purchase the property any time I want if I give her the money.

 

Thanks, but I've been here for 8 years and had a Thai lawyer handle the property transaction.

[wavodavo]

On 2/6/2025 at 10:13 PM, dddave said:

The most important phrase in Real Estate is "Due Diligence". 

Any honest Real Estate Attorney will stress, never sign or pay for anything without making sure every word of every sentence is understood and every property ownership claim is verified and documented.  

This case is far from the first time people have purchased or developed property from a distance and arrived to find out what they thought they owned, doesn't exist or that somebody else owned it.

My guess is that the realestate agent has conned the wife and told her that they had their own lawyers and conveyencers in house to take care of eveything so don't worry .The husband is in America and could't help so thought it was all good.

[KhunHeineken]

23 hours ago, newnative said:

Why wouldn't you spend a tiny percentage of that amount to hire a reputable lawyer

The lawyers can be bought.

 

"Vard claimed his lawyer in Phuket was bought by the gang and when he hired a lawyer from Bangkok, the lawyer was also hired to lose the cases again, he alleged."

 

Here's a bigger case, 65 million baht. 

 

Rent, don't buy, and enjoy your retirement. 

 

 

[KhunHeineken]

4 hours ago, RocketDog said:

She can purchase the property any time I want if I give her the money.

Great plan.  What could possibly go wrong? 

[newnative]

2 hours ago, KhunHeineken said:

The lawyers can be bought.

 

"Vard claimed his lawyer in Phuket was bought by the gang and when he hired a lawyer from Bangkok, the lawyer was also hired to lose the cases again, he alleged."

 

Here's a bigger case, 65 million baht. 

 

Rent, don't buy, and enjoy your retirement. 

 

 

You keep renting, I'll keep owning, and we'll both live happily ever after.

[dukebowling]

As much as many like to assume and project their own lives on to this story, I can shed some light on the darkness.

 

Pat and Mui are one of my favorite couples that we are close friends with and live in the same US town. They have no drama, are down to earth and both have well to do families. 

 

I hope they come out of this case with justice, because they are unified and motivated. Wish them luck.

[save the frogs]

9 hours ago, KhunHeineken said:

 

Rent, don't buy, and enjoy your retirement. 

How much of the decision is actually your own?

Or how much of it is decided by the wife?

Fact is, marriage and home ownership generally go together.

Homes represent stability to women. 

You deciding to rent perpetually only works if your stay single, mostly. With few exceptions. 

 

 

[vukovar77]

16 hours ago, RocketDog said:

Ahh, well, I think everybody knows that by now. My wife is Thai.

She can purchase the property any time I want if I give her the money.

 

Thanks, but I've been here for 8 years and had a Thai lawyer handle the property transaction.

Yeah, your wife can buy it in her name. I have been here for 13 years and I can speak Thai fluently. My wife is Thai, but I want to be the owner, so I bought a condominium.

[vukovar77]

5 hours ago, save the frogs said:

How much of the decision is actually your own?

Or how much of it is decided by the wife?

Fact is, marriage and home ownership generally go together.

Homes represent stability to women. 

You deciding to rent perpetually only works if your stay single, mostly. With few exceptions. 

 

 

Yeah, marriage and ownership can go together if you can own property in LOS.

Homes represent stability for a Thai wife or GF but not for you. You can easily lose all here.

If she is with you cos. the property she can be easily "gold digger".So many foreigners here lose all.

[paahlman]

On 2/6/2025 at 6:46 PM, bdenner said:

Going back to 2001:- This is why Steven Heather's novel "A Private Dancer" Should have been compulsory reading in ALL flights to Thailand.

At the time when it was released it was suggested it was handed out for free in immigration at airport as compulsary reading!

[KhunHeineken]

18 hours ago, newnative said:

You keep renting, I'll keep owning, and we'll both live happily ever after.

Yes, each to their own, but I know which does not expose an expat to the mine field of "owning" in Thailand. 

[KhunHeineken]

10 hours ago, save the frogs said:

How much of the decision is actually your own?

All of it.

 

10 hours ago, save the frogs said:

Or how much of it is decided by the wife?

I'm happily single, living in Pattaya. 

 

If you are so easily influenced by your Thai wife, I can't things ending well for you.

 

10 hours ago, save the frogs said:

Fact is, marriage and home ownership generally go together.

Fact is, all around the world there's usual a contribution towards purchase, either outright, or paying off a mortgage, by the wife.  No so for expats in Thailand who chose a rural girl from Issan as a wife.

 

Fact is, foreigners can't own land in Thailand.  

 

10 hours ago, save the frogs said:

Homes represent stability to women. 

So does monthly cash payments, and leaving cash in a bank account upon your demise.  

 

10 hours ago, save the frogs said:

You deciding to rent perpetually only works if your stay single, mostly. With few exceptions. 

No, it works if you are strong in mind and up front with a Thai women.  The moment she starts to try to twist you, simply say to her, if you are not happy with our "arrange, I will find someone else who is.  

 

The problem is, guys think they can't start again, or don't want to start again, and so they end up on the hook.   

[KhunHeineken]

5 hours ago, vukovar77 said:

Homes represent stability for a Thai wife or GF but not for you. You can easily lose all here.

Not like "losing all" is rare here, is it?

[KhunHeineken]

4 hours ago, paahlman said:

At the time when it was released it was suggested it was handed out for free in immigration at airport as compulsary reading!

A guy could read the book, but will still argue "my girl is different."  

 

It's a complex mix of psychological, sexual, financial issues, and criminality, that all combine to make a perfect storm where the expat is easily conned.

 

Rent here, don't buy, including your Thai women.    

[BritManToo]

10 hours ago, save the frogs said:

How much of the decision is actually your own?

Or how much of it is decided by the wife?

Fact is, marriage and home ownership generally go together.

Homes represent stability to women. 

You deciding to rent perpetually only works if your stay single, mostly. With few exceptions. 

 

 

Buy her a house with a mortgage from a Thai bank, they won't cheat a Thai bank, and even if they did, you'd only be out the 10% deposit.

 

What, a Thai bank won't lend your woman the money? Maybe you shouldn't trust her either!

[BritManToo]

18 minutes ago, KhunHeineken said:

The problem is, guys think they can't start again, or don't want to start again, and so they end up on the hook.   

Easier to start again if you still have all your assets in your own bank in your home country.

 

Available women are everywhere in Thailand, not so much millions of baht.

[KhunHeineken]

28 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Easier to start again if you still have all your assets in your own bank in your home country.

 

Available women are everywhere in Thailand, not so much millions of baht.

I agree, 100%.

 

Start handing over significant amounts of money for land and houses and pig farms in Issan, or putting the property in a southern tourist area in her name, thinking "my girl is different"  and the chances of you going back to your home country, broke, and onto benefits, and having a lousy retirement, significantly increases. 

 

One works for decades to save for a decent retirement.  There's no second chances. 

[connda]

On 2/6/2025 at 5:59 PM, ukrules said:

 

So easy to avoid as well, I would never have a house built without first purchasing the land on which it is being built.

The giant red flag was when the 'developer' refused to transfer the chanote until after the building was completed. I mean that would be acceptable if there were no payments made - but only a moron would pay in advance with zero ownership.

I don't know how this is normally done when you pay a developer who currently owns the land in stages for the build and it's their land but if they wouldn't allow me (or the Mrs) to purchase the land and obtain the Chanote prior to starting the build then that's it - I'm walking out and would cancel it.

In other words - don't allow yourself to be ripped off - also any lawyer who isn't dim witted would tell you you're being scammed.

 

I wonder if they even used a lawyer and surveyor prior to the agreement

 

Due diligence and don't trust anyone.  That sucks.

[KhunHeineken]

2 minutes ago, connda said:

Due diligence and don't trust anyone.  That sucks.

Being a victim sucks more. 

[KhunHeineken]

39 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Buy her a house with a mortgage from a Thai bank, they won't cheat a Thai bank, and even if they did, you'd only be out the 10% deposit.

 

What, a Thai bank won't lend your woman the money? Maybe you shouldn't trust her either!

Some of the girls actually have a good credit rating, from ripping off previous foreigners. 

 

Motorbike, then car, then bar, slowly climbing the ladder looking for the next one to buy the land and house. 

[ukrules]

55 minutes ago, connda said:

Due diligence and don't trust anyone.  That sucks.

 

It's the only way to conduct any business, whether personal or professional.

Also this is standard operating procedure everywhere in the world.

There really are a huge number of people out there who would take any action required to empty your bank account into theirs.
 

[Stargeezr]

What is the saying, a fool and their money are separated quite easily.

[JoseThailand]

On 2/6/2025 at 6:46 PM, bdenner said:

Going back to 2001:- This is why Steven Heather's novel "A Private Dancer" Should have been compulsory reading in ALL flights to Thailand.

 

You made all the mistakes you could make. It's not 2001 but 2005. It's not Steven but Stephen. It's not Heather but Leather. 

[SanSaiExPat]

On 2/6/2025 at 6:58 AM, Peterphuket said:

That was indeed a long time ago, I still have it on a computer somewhere.

Just finished rereading it.  "Joy,  I love you too much."  

[paahlman]

20 hours ago, KhunHeineken said:

A guy could read the book, but will still argue "my girl is different."  

 

It's a complex mix of psychological, sexual, financial issues, and criminality, that all combine to make a perfect storm where the expat is easily conned.

 

Rent here, don't buy, including your Thai women.    

For some that is best. But every life is different. 

[KhunHeineken]

5 hours ago, paahlman said:

For some that is best. But every life is different. 

The old saying, you wouldn't fall in love with a prostitute and hand over your life savings to her in your own country, so why do it in Thailand? 

[SanSaiExPat]

10 hours ago, KhunHeineken said:

The old saying, you wouldn't fall in love with a prostitute and hand over your life savings to her in your own country, so why do it in Thailand? 

But it is difficult when you're thinking with dick and your western concept of love.  I've seen guys who've been here 20 years and know better fall into vagina's they couldn't get out of.

[ukrules]

On 2/9/2025 at 2:50 PM, KhunHeineken said:

Not like "losing all" is rare here, is it?

 

Lets be honest, most of the people who 'lost it all' didn't really have much to begin with, did they?

[advancebooking]

On 2/7/2025 at 9:24 AM, NorthernRyland said:

Hua Hin has a whole industry of selling overpriced real estate to Farang. 5m baht for some concrete cube on a tiny piece of land squashed together next to a bunch of other chumps. I'd stay far away from the tourist ghettos and over touristed places where the developers have their fangs in deep.

I have to agree with you. Last time I was there I couldnt believe the prices. I dont live in tourist ville thankfully. But that has its downsides as well.