Where To Live In Chiang Mai

[Dietmar]

Hi all you residents or those who are knowledgeable about Chiang Mai.

We will be arriving in Chinag Mai on September 19, 2004 and want to "put down our tents there" for at least a year. Now here is the interesting part, we have never been to Chiang Mai. I have been in a number of places in Thailand and my fiance is Thai, so we are not totally without some background. Further I have some experience doing this - done it elsewhere before.

Here are some criteria which are important to /her/me/us:

a) Want to live in a detached home in a nice area

It should be a mixed area - I do not want to live in a "farang" only area.

c) I am an active jogger, so a park or at least quiet streets nearby are important, other sports facilities would be welcome

d) It should not be too far from the city or at least major shopping, so it can be easily reached by motor bike

e) It should not be farther than about 30 minutes (taxi) from the airport, due to some possible frequent travel requirements.

f) A fast internet connection should be available in the area

Any recommendations?

Looking forward to meeting some of you

Dietmar

[ThaiPauly]

There are some houses on the estate I am buying a house on available for rent or sale, nice area, 10 mins from airport, small mixed community, will only be 70 houses when complete, some great jogging routes. Hit me back if you want further information. I looked extensively and i like what I am getting I know I will be happy there

[Dietmar]

ThaiPauly,

thanks, we are certainly am interested in more info. Please feel free to post as much as you can. Especially, is there a high speed internet connection available?

We appreciate all the help we can get and want to prevent having to move again and again within short periods of time.

[ThaiPauly]

AT&T can provide this service, I spoke to my developer on Sunday morning as I will need it, he is at present arranging connection. My house will not be ready till end of September as I am having it custom built (with a pool etc) do you want to buy or rent? Sorry when did you say you would be coming?

[ThaiPauly]

sorry September 19th- the developer has houses available already built for either sale or rent, I would imagine that you want to rent if you are coming for a year, although they are unfurnished, let me know if you want mre info

[Dietmar]

ThaiPauly,

do you have an email address for the developer or a website, more details on the location?

BTW it may be of interest to note, that I am from Canada, it may provide a bit more background.

[ThaiPauly]

Unfortunatley they do not have a website yet, if you e-mail me your contact details I will get the developer to contact you and give you a bit more info, this may not happen until next week as he is arranging a very large funeral for his Grandfather at the moment. But I am sure I can get him to contact you if you send your address within a few days, I know you dont have much time.

TP

[ThaiPauly]

Your e-mail has been forwarded to me and I have now forwarded it to the builder so it is now in his hands so he can make contact with you. I dont know how much his rent would be, but it would seem you already have at least one good option on the table. Good luck and welcome to Chaing Mai

TP

[ThaiPauly]

I am sorry Deitmar, but it seems the developer is not intersested in renting as he said he would ring me back last night after I discussed it with him, he said he would look into it, but he never rang.

Best of luck with your search, perhaps we can hook up once you arrive, I have your e-mail address

regards

TP

[Dietmar]

Thanks ThaiPauly, if something should change just let know.

Please send me an email how to contact you, so we can hook up later, once I have arrived in Chiang Mai.

Have fun

Dietmar

[Darknight]

anywhere on between super highway and second ring road should be ok for you. Don't pay more then 12000 , all the rest is a scam.

contact linda realestate (nice lady , no golddigger) for excellent advice if you want an agent. you can find the address on some of the chiangmai websites : google chiangmai+rent or something.

[Dietmar]

Darknight, thanks for the pricing info, this is important. However there is one point I did forget to mention. Because it may only be for one year, I prefer to rent something fully furnished if possible. Does your price suggestion change considering the furniture?

[Darknight]

i rented a half furnished house (sofa, big and small bed table some closets ect) 3 bedrooms , big living room kitchen maids block small garden ect in a quit moo baan (tawwana village) for 15.000 a month. My neighbor next door only paid 9000 for the same house, if you go to real estate agents they will first push you to 30.000 bath houses that aren't worth it.

if possible look around yourself first. I used two real estate agents while the best one in service was linda realestate i didn't find a house with here cause i wanted to move quickly. Cost me a lot of money in the end to move out. if you are in a hurry look her up , if not better to look yourself , just rent a car or a bike and start cruising in the villa districts. be aware of chinese landlords . Normally you can find a reasonable house under 10.000 furnished for 1 year contract especially outside the super highway. but you need to look for a while

you can stay in a guesthouse for 500 a day as long as you're looking which is also 15.000 a month

Never rent over 10000 not furnished unless it has 15 bedrooms and a pool or something

They don't have pattaya or bangkok prices yet, no reason to educate them. my electricity with 2 aircons in hot season was 1700 a month, water about 300.

[Dietmar]

Darknight, I have one offer from a fellow Canadian, who wants to rent for 12,000 2 bedrooms 2 baths and truly fully furnished. Nothing extra to buy, even the towels are there. The house is in Tanaboon village. I have seen pictures and it looks good but first of course want to have a look around.

[Ajarn]

I have a 3 bedroom furnished home in a quiet muubaan for 5000 baht pm. More of these around, if you work at it a bit

I would suggest you check out http://www.chiangmainews.com/classifieds/ . They seem to advertise a number of places for rent....

Oh, you might want try 'Tong' at 09 7568137. I met him once and he seemed like a pretty decent guy...He acts as a broker for a number of places, and he has a website at http://www.chiangmaionestop.com/property/h...ting_browse.php

[chuchok]

I have found Thai agents to be too expensive, especially if you are a farung. When I first moved to Chiang Mai, I called an agent that was advertising in one of the local rags.The place for rent was THB8500. When the two legged Rottweiler (wife) called, the price dropped an amazing THB3000.

I believe that the best way is to drive around the sois looking for the For Rent signs. It might pay to have somebody who can read Thai go with you. The Rotty would look first and then bring me along only after a price was talked about. As Ajarn says, you have to work at it. Ended up moving into a reasonable semi-furnished 3BR place for THB5000.

We moved into a guest house first, to give us some time to look around. There are many nice clean guest houses that will do you a monthly rate of between THB5000 and THB7000. (You also have to pay power and water separately though)

Chok Dee

[Dietmar]

Thanks all,

this information really helps. Especially the idea about sending the Rottweiler - I think I'll do that too.

I am still looking for more suggestions though in regards to specific areas to move to. Are there any areas, which are particularly nice or recommended? Are there any areas, which I should definitely not move to.

Thanks

Dietmar

[Darknight]

Thanks all,

this information really helps. Especially the idea about sending the Rottweiler - I think I'll do that too.

I am still looking for more suggestions though in regards to specific areas to move to. Are there any areas, which are particularly nice or recommended? Are there any areas, which I should definitely not move to.

Thanks

Dietmar

always have the wife (rotweiler) go first with everything dietmar. Hotels guesthouses, market, houses .. you name it.. and she has to ask the price without saying "my farang boyfriend and i"...

[Claudio]

Hi Dietmar

We too were looking for a place to stay in Chiang Mai and found this subdivision called Tanaboon - they sell houses but some of the owners are renting out their houses - there is one in particular that we know of that is renting his house out "furnished" - if you looking under Citylife Chiang Mai, you'll find Tanaboon in the real estate section - if you look at that website you'll see they have some of the owners interviewed - one by the name of Michael is renting his house out.

There may be other's renting as well - if you contact the Tanaboon people directly, they can help you out there.

Claudio

[Dietmar]

Hi Claudio,

in fact I have been in contact with Mike. Next Sunday, after we arrive in Chiang Mai, we will have a look.

In the meantime do you have any further general information about Tanaboon? How far ist, how is the immediate neighbourhood? Do you have any longer term experience? What is the good and the bad?

Thanks

Dietmar

[Ice Treasure]

Try http://chiangmaionestop.com/

[Ice Treasure]

I have found Thai agents to be too expensive, especially if you are a farung. When I first moved to Chiang Mai, I called an agent that was advertising in one of the local rags.The place for rent was THB8500. When the two legged Rottweiler (wife) called, the price dropped an amazing THB3000.

I believe that the best way is to drive around the sois looking for the For Rent signs. It might pay to have somebody who can read Thai go with you. The Rotty would look first and then bring me along only after a price was talked about. As Ajarn says, you have to work at it. Ended up moving into a reasonable semi-furnished 3BR place for THB5000.

We moved into a guest house first, to give us some time to look around. There are many nice clean guest houses that will do you a monthly rate of between THB5000 and THB7000. (You also have to pay power and water separately though)

Chok Dee

I stayed at Pun Pun Guesthouse for a month while we were waiting for our rent to be done up and cleaned... very reasonable and very good food.

http://www.armms.com/

[cutethaigirl]

The house is in Tanaboon village.

Like airplanes?

can not write too much because my opinion is not the same as all others but the best advice is to go take a look.

12000 for a bungalow there is a lot but it depends how much you value the furniture.

Like Ajarn our house is 5K 3 bed 2 bath unfurnished.

Near enough to the city but far enough to and has a bus route to go anywhere for 10baht.

Nice and noisy from planes and buses

Best advice is to come here for 3-7 days and ride a motorbike around.

Asking advice here will get you some ideas but you can not beat doing it.

[Claudio]

I agree about staying for a couple of days and checking the place out first. We haven't seen Tanaboon yet but plan on going there when we get to CM in December. We too may be looking for a place to rent or buy - and Tanaboon is our first choice right now, until we have a good look around. The problem with renting without furniture is that you now have to get furniture and what do you do with it when you leave? This Tanaboon is a very clean and secure area - they have security 24 hours a day, each home is gated, and water service is prompt. It really all depends on what you're looking for and what kind of accommodation you're willing to put up with. I've been in some places for about 900 Bhat, furnised, but they are basically one room with a bathroom, in an apartment, and you still have to bus it to town. So, good luck Dietmar, if you get a chance, let me know what you found.

[Thailand]

New but growing

http://www.Chiangmai.cn

[Dietmar]

Now then, here is what has been happening since I last signed on some two weeks ago.

Arrived in Chiang Mai on September 19, exhausted after being on planes and in airports plus a very short night in Hong Kong because of late planes etc.

We started to look for rental places right away on Monday basically just driving around. We were also at Tanaboon and definitely were looked after very well. Tanaboon though is fairly far away and therefore not always convenient. It would be no problem with a car but a motorbike could be disastrous during the rainy season. Just imagine having to go anywhere for more than 10 or 15 minutes on a bike and then be hit by a rain storm. Definitely not my idea of fun. Tanaboon also seems to be too far away to get high speed internet service. The price for the house we looked at was 12,000 Baht fully furnished. It had two bedrooms, living/dining room, two bathrooms, a western kitchen, A/C in the bedrooms and a fireplace. It was small though at about 90 sqm. This was the only house we saw without an agent.

Late in the afternoon we went to see a traditional Thai house constructed in Teak. Very interesting and even had a pool. This was again a long way though and there was lots to be desired in the house. Even though it was furnished, there seemed to be a lot of repair work needed, so I wondered what I would see only after I move in. This house was an arts studio at one time and therefore had some flair. I think there were two bedrooms and two bathrooms, however the living room was small due to having a large bar. The price was 25,000 and the place was furnished but most of it was old and needed cleaning.

On Tuesday morning we went again and saw a number of different houses. Most of those were close to the University. Some of them very large and in the neighbourhood of 20 to 25,000 baht. One of the houses had a kitchen but no stove or fridge, it did have a bit of an outside kitchen though. Yes I know things are different here in Thailand but those kind of changes I am not prepared to make the first go around. The best deal we saw that morning was a house very close to the University inside a small compound. The house had two bedrooms, one bath a good kitchen, living room/dining room and a small office area near the entrance. Only one A/C unit in one bedroom. If I remember correctly the rpice was 12,000 Baht.

More houses in the afternoon. This time it was mostly in the north of the city. Price ranges from 12,000 at the low end to 25,000 (later discounted to 22,000) at the high end. When we looked at the 12,000 Baht house there were a bunch of young ladies in there smoking, which turned me off righ away. There was also some construction still (I guess repair work or renovation) One of the showers did only have rocks as a floor. The best house was the 22,000 Baht one. It was brand new with very classy furniture. It only had two bedrooms but they were a very good size. Between the two bedrooms there was a walk-in closet. The kitchen was very good with lots of cabinets. Definitely by this time I knew that there are lkarge price difference and you get what you pay for. There are some good deals but to find something really inexpensive will take a lot of time, effort and some luck.

So again we went to see pictures of further houses late on Tuesday afternoon. By this time we had just about enough and therefore choose only one house to look at for Wednesday morning. Well it turned out to be just the right one. Three bedrooms all with A/C. Three bathrooms inside the house plus one from the outside. Fully furnished except the third bedroom, which I am now using for an office, including washer and dryer, Teak Thai style living and dining room suite, well equipped kitchen including even some dishes. The house has two floors. I am not sure of the size but would guess, that it is about 150 sqm. The house is in the north of the city about 10 minutes to the moat by car, Ping river is on the other side of the road. A simple restaurant is less than 5 minutes to walk, where we can eat for less than 200 Baht for two people including ice, water, a coke or a beer. Many other restaurants close by and shopping is very convenient with Carrefour and tesco Lotus both within 10 minutes driving. But the best thing is, that it had a telephone from TT&T and I was able to have ADSL installed within 5 days and that includes the weekend. UBC we had installed even the same day we moved in, which was on Friday 5 days after arriving in Chiang Mai. The rent is 15,000 Baht. May be a lot of you find this overpriced but I find it the best deal we could find given the quality and cleanliness of the place and comparing it to the other houses we have seen.

If anybody wants to know more about our trials and tribulations drop me a line, I may be able to remember a few more of the details. We dealt with three different agents. All had their own style but all were professional. The help we got from the agent we rented the house with was invaluable, she organized both UBC and ADSL for us.

Thanks for all the previous information, it was very helpfull in dealing with the agents and looking at the various places with some extra insight. Maybe in the future I will meet some of you.

[scottie]

glad you're happy with what you got, & as long as it's affordable & you deem it to be good value then that's the main thing Dietmar.

I've got it all to do within the next year or so!

I did have a look last time I was in CM...Home in Park, QH ( think that was name opp international school ), Laguna, & a couple of developments on Canal Rd.

Many on developments have very small gardens & I would feel a bit claustrophobic.

But I'll take my time weed out the good from the bad, time consuming & tiring but necessary.

Looking on internet,like the look of Mae sa ban doi...expensive but I'll have a look.

Good luck & hope you continue to enjoy.

Scottie

[siamruby]

May be you can start up a new thread in the next few month what do you think about life in Chiang Mai,Dietmar? Me and my family are moving to Chiang Mai next year. Yes just like you Scottie we have it all to do next year! Don't know how we are going to cope,having 4 kids tag along to hunt for a house . And it took you 5 days to get a decent one!

I wonder if you mind telling us which agents you used? I have been looking around on line and seem to me that I have seen all the agents who got online websites.

Thanks.

[scottie]

Hi Siamruby,

certainly the ones I've looked at are www.homeinpark.com

www.cat-real-estate.com www.better-homes.com www.chiangmairealty.com

//sabaideal.com/estate/estate.html weird address that one, but plenty on there.

Have you actually looked whilst in CM yet?

& what sort of thing do you fancy, housing project? village life?

I still might build a house on the land I have, but not sure if too far out.

I'm building a small resort/ guesthouse Mae Taeng area & will think again when I'm next over end of Dec.

Hope some of those sites are of use.

Scottie

[cutethaigirl]

Not all agents projects have websites. those that do are aiming at overseas buyers especially if $ pricing.

you will pay more at those but will give you an idea.

There is no shortage of houses.

rule one is RENT RENT RENT first.

Once you buy, if you are able to you can not just sell again easily like in US or Europe

CT