Purchasing Land And House In Chiang Mai

[Dixie]

Hi Chaps,

Has anyone on these forums used Jasmine Homes (Chiang Mai) to purchase a house. Also can anyone offer any other decent ways of purchasing land and building a house. Should I put the land in my wife’s name or should I do it through a mediator?

Thanks in advance

Dixie

[realthaideal]

Take your time, get the lay of the land, make sure you like the area and distance from town. Pay attention to what other building projects may pop up in the area you plan to buy or build that will impact your roads and or view. If you are good with the wife, why not put it in her name ? There is also a way by which you lend her the money and make her the purchaser of the house. Since she is the borrower from you, she can never pull a fast one on you and sell it or lock you out. It essentially gives you co-ownership.

[Dixie]

Take your time, get the lay of the land, make sure you like the area and distance from town. Pay attention to what other building projects may pop up in the area you plan to buy or build that will impact your roads and or view. If you are good with the wife, why not put it in her name ? There is also a way by which you lend her the money and make her the purchaser of the house. Since she is the borrower from you, she can never pull a fast one on you and sell it or lock you out. It essentially gives you co-ownership.

RTD,

Thanks for your reply,

Do I need to speak to a solicitor about making my wife the purchaser of the house? I was under the impression that I could own the house but not the land, and that it was the land that I would have to lease (or what ever).

I do get on with the wife as we have been together for 10 years. it’s not that I don’t trust her and I would want to make sure she didn’t walk away with nothing if anything happens between us. It’s just that I’ll have put everything into moving to Thailand and it will be my new home so, I just want to make sure I don’t lose everything myself.

Dixie

[Loaded]

I know the owners of Tanaboon property out towards Hang Dong. They're good people - wife educated in the USA Masters degree building management and husband PhD from US. They buy big plots of land (newest one in Sankampaeng), then lease lots. Their building company BuildSabai does the building work. They will lead you through the whole legal process. Don't think I can post links but do a google for Tanaboon and BuildSabai.

[john b good]

Take your time, get the lay of the land, make sure you like the area and distance from town. Pay attention to what other building projects may pop up in the area you plan to buy or build that will impact your roads and or view. If you are good with the wife, why not put it in her name ? There is also a way by which you lend her the money and make her the purchaser of the house. Since she is the borrower from you, she can never pull a fast one on you and sell it or lock you out. It essentially gives you co-ownership.

RTD,

Thanks for your reply,

Do I need to speak to a solicitor about making my wife the purchaser of the house? I was under the impression that I could own the house but not the land, and that it was the land that I would have to lease (or what ever).

I do get on with the wife as we have been together for 10 years. it’s not that I don’t trust her and I would want to make sure she didn’t walk away with nothing if anything happens between us. It’s just that I’ll have put everything into moving to Thailand and it will be my new home so, I just want to make sure I don’t lose everything myself.

Dixie

Do I need to speak to a solicitor ? ABSOLUTELY

There is an option known as a "ufastruct" which allows the property to be in your wifes name but you have total contol over the property. If you and your wife were to split you can have the property sold and then if you want to do the right thing by her give her 50% (or however much you feel is fair)

Alternatively if the marriage goes belly up she might move out and you can stay on in the house.

And yes you can own the house however the way that houses are constructed here (in Thailand) they don't lend themselves to being moved.

In most developed countries houses are often shifted. In Wellington NZ they moved an entire hotel (about five floors) from one location on the waterfront to another. They also moved a cathedral in Parnell, Auckland, NZ.

Indeed there are many houses built in a central location and transported to the site on transporters. They have this sort of work down to a fine art.

Do see a lawyer (solicitor) though.

[Priceless]

The option mentioned above is called a "usufruct" and definitely requires the assistance of a lawyer. However, there is a world of information on this and related subjects on the Real Estate forum. Do have a look and a search there.

/ Priceless

[john b good]

The option mentioned above is called a "usufruct" and definitely requires the assistance of a lawyer. However, there is a world of information on this and related subjects on the Real Estate forum. Do have a look and a search there.

/ Priceless

You are right. My spelling was way off. It sorted of sounded right though "didn't it"

I stand corrected.

Edited April 13, 2008 by john b good

[Priceless]

The option mentioned above is called a "usufruct" and definitely requires the assistance of a lawyer. However, there is a world of information on this and related subjects on the Real Estate forum. Do have a look and a search there.

/ Priceless

You are right. My spelling was way off. It sorted of sounded right though "didn't it"

I stand corrected.

I thought it sounded perfectly all right. Just thought that if the OP wanted to do a search, the correct spelling would be better

/ Priceless

[rgs2001uk]

Take your time, get the lay of the land, make sure you like the area and distance from town. Pay attention to what other building projects may pop up in the area you plan to buy or build that will impact your roads and or view. If you are good with the wife, why not put it in her name ? There is also a way by which you lend her the money and make her the purchaser of the house. Since she is the borrower from you, she can never pull a fast one on you and sell it or lock you out. It essentially gives you co-ownership.

RTD,

Thanks for your reply,

Do I need to speak to a solicitor about making my wife the purchaser of the house? I was under the impression that I could own the house but not the land, and that it was the land that I would have to lease (or what ever).

I do get on with the wife as we have been together for 10 years. it's not that I don't trust her and I would want to make sure she didn't walk away with nothing if anything happens between us. It's just that I'll have put everything into moving to Thailand and it will be my new home so, I just want to make sure I don't lose everything myself.

Dixie

dixie, sorry to be the one to ask, but maybe you dont have enough to come here.

the old adage never invest any more than you can afford to lose springs to mind.

what back up plans do you have in place, do you have a house to go back to, do you have a job to go back to, do you really want to start all over again to recoup potential losses.

if you have property overseas thats yours, i suggest you rent it out, and use the rent to rent a place here, at least you have covered your bases.

i dont know what your situation is, are you able to meet the financial requirements to be here, are you going to be applying for an extension on your visa based on married to a thai, do you have the 40,000 baht per month to satisfy thai immigration?

i dont know your home currency, many farang are now being caught out as the baht heads towards its 1997 level, eg 25 baht/us dollar, 40 baht/pound sterling.

to be honest with you thailand is no longer the cheap place it was once perceived to be, i would advise you not to put all your eggs in one basket, if you can carry on working for a few years before coming here then do so.

another question what do you think thailand offers that your home country doesnt, do you know how much it wil cost in insurance per month for you and your wife if you live here, do you have a pension, is it index linked, do you have enough to leave , lets say $10,000 in the bank for emergencies.

i am sorry but i dont have enough details to advise you, it all depends on what your budget is and what sort of life style you want.

thailand is a great place if you have money, if you dont well, look out.

[Dixie]

Hi rgs2001,

Thanks for your comments, and this is where I stand at the moment. I have enough money in the bank in Thialand £70,000 (won’t know how much it will be in Thai baht till I get over there) to purchase a house etc. I have another 1,200,000 baht for my retirement visa. I have approx another £30,000 pound in the bank in the UK. When I sell my house in the UK I’ll have another £183,000 in the bank in the UK as a fall back. My only pension will be the UK state pension.

I’m hoping to live off the interest from the £183,000 I know it’s a gamble because of the way the UK economy is going, but I’ve been planning this for years. If I find I’m struggling I’d have to come back over to the UK to work.

I’ve visited Thailand for many years now and it was always my ambition to retire over there. Also if anything happened to me while living here I was concerned for my wife being left alone in the UK (she wouldn’t know what to do)

I’m concerned about the way the UK is heading and worried that when I retire I won’t be able to afford the utility bills and other costs. I’d rather be hot in Thailand than freezing in the UK, as you know Thai people feel the cold and my gas fire is on none stop in the winter.

I have made enquires about health insurance but it does depend on what sort of cover you require, and to be honest the national health service in this country isn’t what people think it is any more.

Hope this answers some of your questions and if you have any other please feel free to ask.

Dixie

[Loaded]

It sounds as though you'll be fine financially. A couple of pieces of advice though: 1) keep only money you need in Thai banks. Interest rates are very low (if you can convince the bank to give you) and if the bank goes belly up, there won't be any government money to cover your money ie lost, 2) If you buy insurance, buy locally. There are representatives of AIA (US) and BUBA (UK) here and premiums are a lot cheaper than buying in the UK. Mind you, the bar-girl wife of a 'prominent' local Scotsman pocketed the premiums she was collecting on behalf of BUBA a few years back. Pay premiums direct to the office or just be very careful. You probably know though that medical treatment here is relatively cheap anyway.

Edited April 15, 2008 by Loaded

[Dixie]

It sounds as though you'll be fine financially. A couple of pieces of advice though: 1) keep only money you need in Thai banks. Interest rates are very low (if you can convince the bank to give you) and if the bank goes belly up, there won't be any government money to cover your money ie lost, 2) If you buy insurance, buy locally. There are representatives of AIA (US) and BUBA (UK) here and premiums are a lot cheaper than buying in the UK. Mind you, the bar-girl wife of a 'prominent' local Scotsman pocketed the premiums she was collecting on behalf of BUBA a few years back. Pay premiums direct to the office or just be very careful. You probably know though that medical treatment here is relatively cheap anyway.

Hi Loaded,

Thanks for the advice, I'll bear all comments in mind.

Dixie