Condo Buying Info

[cryo]

Hi all, I have been browsing this forum for a few months and are now considering buying a condo in Viewtalay 2B on the ground floor and hope you guys/gals can give me some info to the questions below.

My wife and I are hoping to retire to Pattaya in the near future , can anybody see any problems with a ground floor condo (I have no interest in sea views etc) and I am hoping that it will make access easier in old age.

What is the security like on the Viewtalay2B condo.

What would be the average monthly expenditure required to live comfortably in Pattaya.

I have holidayed in Pattaya a number of times and have visited the general area on numerous occasions previously.

Cheers

Cryo.

[Darknight]

i stayed in view talay 2a for 8 months. Place is ok, building B was still under construction but is an exact copy of a , only the pool is more big.

Disadvantage of a ground floor condo is that every body that walks by tries to have a look in. they have glass doors.

Advantage , no balcony to be trown off.

Security is ok although not special, they let most people through anyway so sometimes you can have some problems by the pool ect.

After two at night they are pissed drunk.

But they "khrab" at you all the time

For living i would say without car at least 40.000 a month. If you need to rent a car 60.000.

[TizMe]

What would be the average monthly expenditure required to live comfortably in Pattaya.

This question always amuses me. Without knowing anything about you, your lifestyle or your current expenses, it is impossible to tell you.

I know some people that seem to live comfortably on the smell of last nights Tom Yung Kung, others that need to spend 200,000 Baht each month.

Give us a breakdown of your current monthly expenditure and maybe we can guestimate how much you will need to live comfortably in Pattaya.

[sometime]

Hi all, I have been browsing this forum for a few months and are now considering buying a condo in Viewtalay 2B on the ground floor and hope you guys/gals can give me some info to the questions below.

My wife and I are hoping to retire to Pattaya in the near future , can anybody see any problems with a ground floor condo (I have no interest in sea views etc) and I am hoping that it will make access easier in old age.

What is the security like on the Viewtalay2B condo.

What would be the average monthly expenditure required to live comfortably in Pattaya.

I have holidayed in Pattaya a number of times and have visited the general area on numerous occasions previously. 

Cheers

Cryo.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My wife and I stay in Viewtalay 2 B,had the condo about two years and no security problems as yet, we are on the second floor so we can leave the balcony door open to create a through draught so we don’t use the aircon.(this saves lots of baht )

In your reference “ access easier in old age” we selected the second floor so we don’t have to use the lift we use the service stairs, you would have to be quite infirm not to manage the steps.

We are on the Jomtien side and hear a little noise from the cars parking and the regular motorcycle taxis I think you will hear a lot more on the ground floor unless it’s an apartment at the far end of the building.

Don’t forget if you have an apartment on the ground floor on the Pattaya side all the motorcycles park there under cover and can be a little annoying.

We Retire there full time around July .

[Nuff Said]

If you want a ground floor condo in View Talay 2B without the problem of passers by looking in try for one on Jomtien side of the building beyond the main entrance, at the end of the building furthest away from the pool. This avoids most of the passers by looking in from the car park as these rooms are beyond the main entrance. The only people who will come close to your balcony will be the condo's gardeners who keep the grounds looking immaculate. Not all the rooms have glass doors to the corridors, some were fitted with them when built, presumably because they were suitable for commercial use. But glass doors can easily be replaced with wooden ones. Or get some nice curtains.

View Talay 2A's pool is longer but narrower than that of 2B, overall that are about the same size. Both are very well kept and often have their own security guard.

The security is adequate and the staff make regular patrols of the floors. But there is quite a high turnover of security staff.

If buying a condo in your own name is important, it is to me, do ask the seller if transfer to a foreigners name is OK, as the 49% foreign ownership quota in both View Talay 2B, and 2A for that matter, has long since been taken up. You can buy from a foreign owner no problem, but if you are offered a condo that's registered in a Thai's name you cannot have it in your name and will need to set up a company. 

As for you Darknight, you don't know your A's from your B's. View Talay 2B, the building furthest from the Thappraya Road, was the first to be completed; that was in October 2001. View Talay 2A was completed on November 15 2003. Just for your benefit each building is now identified with by a large A or B above it's main entrance.

[astral]

I don't know the particular apartment block, but the general problems with ground floor is security.

You will need bars on the windows.

Opening windows to allow the breeze to blow though is a good point.

I would recommend the climb up the stairs to the 1st floor at least, as a part of your regime to keep fit, as time goes on.

We live in a bungalow, and the lack of stairs does allow the legs to stiffen up more rapidly.

[cryo]

Thanks all for taking the time to reply.

Cheers

Cryo

[Darknight]

As for you Darknight, you don't know your A's from your B's. View Talay 2B, the building furthest from the Thappraya Road, was the first to be completed; that was in October 2001. View Talay 2A was completed on November 15 2003. Just for your benefit each building is now identified with by a large A or B above it's main entrance.

Well i sure will admit to that. Never figured the a and the b thing out

It's sure logical to call your first building B ain't it

[susah_sih]

Why buy at lower floor?

People wants to buy condo because they want a nice view

Even if you dont want the view, by the time you want to sell your condo

you may have difficulty in selling your condo. Because most

people want condos with a view.

Higher floor condos means:

1. Better View

2. Better air quality (pollution from motorcycle, tuk-tuk, etc) is less at high

floor, low floor guarantees you to gasoline smell or other smell, kerosene

from food street vendors, etc)

3. Quieter (you wont be woken up by the sound of loud motorcycle/tuk-tuk

4. Higher social status (to some people, they will only move

from smaller to bigger condo, from lower to higher floor condo,

from C-class Mercedes to S-Class Mercedes) very few goes the other

way around

5. Much more liquid investment (easier to sell than lower floor condos)

6. for your condo case, why add the worry that people may get into your

condo because it is located close to the ground

The point of view from someone who has been living in a condo all his life.

Hi all, I have been browsing this forum for a few months and are now considering buying a condo in Viewtalay 2B on the ground floor and hope you guys/gals can give me some info to the questions below.

My wife and I are hoping to retire to Pattaya in the near future , can anybody see any problems with a ground floor condo (I have no interest in sea views etc) and I am hoping that it will make access easier in old age.

What is the security like on the Viewtalay2B condo.

What would be the average monthly expenditure required to live comfortably in Pattaya.

I have holidayed in Pattaya a number of times and have visited the general area on numerous occasions previously. 

Cheers

Cryo.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[Kathe]

Why buy at lower floor?

People wants to buy condo because they want a nice view

Even if you dont want the view, by the time you want to sell your condo

you may have difficulty in selling your condo. Because most

people want condos with a view.

Higher floor condos means:

1. Better View

2. Better air quality (pollution from motorcycle, tuk-tuk, etc) is less at high

    floor, low floor guarantees you to gasoline smell or other smell, kerosene

    from food street vendors, etc)

3. Quieter (you wont be woken up by the sound of loud motorcycle/tuk-tuk

4. Higher social status (to some people, they will only move

    from smaller to bigger condo, from lower to higher floor condo,

    from C-class Mercedes to S-Class Mercedes) very few goes the other

    way around

5. Much more liquid investment (easier to sell than lower floor condos)

6. for your condo case, why add the worry that people may get into your

    condo because it is located close to the ground

The point of view from someone who has been living in a condo all his life.

Hi all, I have been browsing this forum for a few months and are now considering buying a condo in Viewtalay 2B on the ground floor and hope you guys/gals can give me some info to the questions below.

My wife and I are hoping to retire to Pattaya in the near future , can anybody see any problems with a ground floor condo (I have no interest in sea views etc) and I am hoping that it will make access easier in old age.

What is the security like on the Viewtalay2B condo.

What would be the average monthly expenditure required to live comfortably in Pattaya.

I have holidayed in Pattaya a number of times and have visited the general area on numerous occasions previously. 

Cheers

Cryo.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Very informative Khun Suh sah. As I am thinking of buying one in the near future, have no idea about living in Condo. Wish a higher floor with good view and good pollution..oppss...good air, but only one thing still in my mind, what happen if it fires ? Do I have to collect some sefl-parachute in the room ..in case of emergency ;-)

Do you think View Talay Condo is good to live or if one day dont like to stay anymore....still good to sell with little plus ? And if I dont stay for many months in a year..how can I manage to hire...for some months during my absent ? ( I am living in Europe ). The anual paying for electric and water are the same price as other thai ppl or higher ? I have no idea.

[expatgaz]

Iam selling my condo shortly, own name, view talay 2 block b , ground floor, jomtien side. Are you interested ?

[susah_sih]

If I were to buy a condo, I will not buy it in Pattaya.

There are very few companies operate in Pattaya.

So I dont think I want to rent out short term for

people on vacation. So much hassle.

I will buy condo in Bangkok instead, close to CBD area

and close to SkyTrain. This is very important.

In the future, even more Thais who bought

houses far away from the city will start realizing that

it is a big mistake to buy houses far away from the city.

People in cities like Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Jakarta are

coming back to live close to the centre of the city,

as they get tired of travelling far away. Besides the price

of gasoline and traffic jam are significant factors for them

to live close to where their business/work are.

Therefore buying condo close to CBD ensures the preservation of

the value of the condo. Since there will always be

Thai & foreigners who will be interested in renting these condos.

Whereas if you buy in Pattaya, your market is confined to

the foreign retirees, off-the-beat foreigners, and seasonal tourists.

A much smaller market indeed.

Very few Thais will be interested in renting

property in Pattaya. If they want to retire in Pattaya, they

are rich enough and will buy a house of their own so that

they can give their houses for inheritance to their loved ones.

With regards to your concern on fire safety measures.

High floor does seem intimidating.

But even for now, firemen's ladder can only go up

to 5th or 6th floor, making fire fighting for higher floors

above 6th floor daunting tasks. I had lived

on 7th floor before in Hong Kong and our family

never opened the window since we could still smell car

exhaust and still hear the vroom of motorcycles.

You should buy high floors and find condos where the buildings

have good fire safety measures:

1. Automatic water sprinkler with water reservoir located

inside the building is a good chance for survival.

In fact many studies shows that most big fire occur

in buildings without automatic water sprinkler.

2. Heat & Smoke detectors that are maintained well

3. Good alarm that can wake people up in their deep sleep

in the event of danger. This alarm should have sound threshold

of at least 75dbA in the bedroom yet less than 100dbA at

the source to prevent damage to hearing.

4. Use of non flameable electric cooker instead of conventional fire cooker.

This is a major source of fire. So condos with

electric cooker is safer than ones that allow conventional fire cooker.

5. Fire extinguisher in every unit is a must

6. Equipped yourself with gas & headcover mask.

Statistics show that it is the smoke and not the fire that kills

people most in a fire accident.

7. Use of furnishing & building materials that have adequate Flame Spread

and Smoke Developed Ratings

If all fails then, you should use the parachute as a last resort.

But many people doubt whether this is effective, since it is difficult

to stir parachute for untrained people away from danger (electric poles,

pointy/sharp structures). In fire situation, you might be better

off staying inside your apartment. And if you stay high enough,

you could hope dearly that the fire will be put off soon before it

spread to your floor.

You should buy condo with good management

in place, perhaps managed by international property firm,

that enforce good practice for safety in the building.

Many Thai like to buy new property and you may wonder

why. Because many developers are not interested in

maintaining condos; they are only interested in building new ones

and sell them. Hence many condos after only a few

years dont look too good since they dont maintain it well enough.

It is therefore that Thais buy new condos because

old condos usually look bad. Had the developers maintain

the condos well, I am sure they will retain the value relatively well.

Hence, how to mitigate all of these problems?

I would say you need to buy a condo that is managed

by international hotel is a better bet that your condo will

be managed as a good as the hotel where their main

business are.

The case of The Regent Residences which is located

in the same compound as The Regent Hotel would be

such example:

http://www.grandeasset.com/regent/index.htm

The property developer Grande Asset has signed a contract

with The Regent to manage its property for 20 years

and another 10 year of option to manage it further.

Grande Asset is also the company that will undertake

the project, and not Grande Asset’s subsidiary that are usually

the case of other developers. In fact most other developers

set up new subsidiary for each condo they develop so that

they can insulate themselves against claims if things go

bad for their condo developing subsidiary.

Grande Asset currently owns The Grande Westin

and some other hotels in the development. Grande Asset

has also secured financing for the development of all of their properties.

Moreover, you may ask the Regent to market your

condo for tenants for a fee, since you live in Europe

and you dont have to worry that the Regent will

run away with your rent money.

I bought one unit at this Regent since it has all the qualities

I am looking for in a condo. It is only 1 minute walking

to BTS Nana. It does not have balcony. Balcony more

often than not is usually misused by tenants like

to dry clothing or puting some plants, putting some left

over furniture (as there is not enough space inside)

and many other things (such as killing yourself), making

the whole appearance on the building ugly.

Having lived in Hong Kong most of my life, I know what happen to

many apartments with open air balconies in Hong Kong. Some

crazy people just rent apartment to kill himself/herself

or even rent a room in a hotel with balcony only to kill

himself (just like what happened to the singer Leslie Cheung).

Once there is a suicide case in the condo, the owner will have

difficulties in selling/renting out his condos again. Asians

are superstitious and will not want to have the same badluck

to happen to them.

Balcony also makes cleaning difficult; window cleaners do not

usually clean balcony part. Balcony cleaning is usually left to

the owners. Because Bangkok is a dusty city, it does not make

sense to sit in balcony. Now in Hong Kong, most developers opt to

build apartments with balconies that are fully covered with glass

and that are protruding outward from the apartment to enhance

the view. Developers here in Bangkok are still yet learning such

things that are preferred by condo occupants.

Worse since most of BKK developers never live their lifes in an apartment.

Most of these developers live their life inside big mansions and imagining

life in a condo. And therefore they are all building luxury lowrise condos, which are

contradicting in every sense of its development. Why low rise? People

choose to live in condo because they hope to live in cleaner air and quieter.

If it is low rise and luxury, then you might as well buy a house. why buy

expensive condo?

Because I am from Hong Kong and I have lived all my life in high rise

apartments, I know very well people preference. In Hong Kong,

if you are moving from 5th floor apartment to say 30th floor, people

will say wow, prosperity has come to you therefore you can afford

higher floor. But people will pitty you if you move the other way around.

After all, you have to understand the mindset of the majority buyers

who are Thai and who are more or less share the same kinds of thinking as

other Asians. By following the mindset of the majority people, you

make sure that you can sell your condo in the future.

In early days, some westerners living in Hong Kong thought Chinese Feng

Shui was very stupid and they dont believe in it at all. And they went

ahead with buying apartments that are next to hospital, or close to cemetry,

in the end they lost money on these condos since no one else want to buy

these condos. So even if they don’t believe, by acting against the majority

belief was even more stupid than believing in it.

Why buy at lower floor?

People wants to buy condo because they want a nice view

Even if you dont want the view, by the time you want to sell your condo

you may have difficulty in selling your condo. Because most

people want condos with a view.

Higher floor condos means:

1. Better View

2. Better air quality (pollution from motorcycle, tuk-tuk, etc) is less at high

    floor, low floor guarantees you to gasoline smell or other smell, kerosene

    from food street vendors, etc)

3. Quieter (you wont be woken up by the sound of loud motorcycle/tuk-tuk

4. Higher social status (to some people, they will only move

    from smaller to bigger condo, from lower to higher floor condo,

    from C-class Mercedes to S-Class Mercedes) very few goes the other

    way around

5. Much more liquid investment (easier to sell than lower floor condos)

6. for your condo case, why add the worry that people may get into your

    condo because it is located close to the ground

The point of view from someone who has been living in a condo all his life.

Hi all, I have been browsing this forum for a few months and are now considering buying a condo in Viewtalay 2B on the ground floor and hope you guys/gals can give me some info to the questions below.

My wife and I are hoping to retire to Pattaya in the near future , can anybody see any problems with a ground floor condo (I have no interest in sea views etc) and I am hoping that it will make access easier in old age.

What is the security like on the Viewtalay2B condo.

What would be the average monthly expenditure required to live comfortably in Pattaya.

I have holidayed in Pattaya a number of times and have visited the general area on numerous occasions previously. 

Cheers

Cryo.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Very informative Khun Suh sah. As I am thinking of buying one in the near future, have no idea about living in Condo. Wish a higher floor with good view and good pollution..oppss...good air, but only one thing still in my mind, what happen if it fires ? Do I have to collect some sefl-parachute in the room ..in case of emergency ;-)

Do you think View Talay Condo is good to live or if one day dont like to stay anymore....still good to sell with little plus ? And if I dont stay for many months in a year..how can I manage to hire...for some months during my absent ? ( I am living in Europe ). The anual paying for electric and water are the same price as other thai ppl or higher ? I have no idea.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[Kathe]

If I were to buy a condo, I will not buy it in Pattaya.

There are very few companies operate in Pattaya.

So I dont think I want to rent out short term for

people on vacation. So much hassle.

I will buy condo in Bangkok instead, close to CBD area

and close to SkyTrain. This is very important.

In the future, even more Thais who bought

houses far away from the city will start realizing that

it is a big mistake to buy houses far away from the city.

People in cities like Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Jakarta are

coming back to live close to the centre of the city,

as they get tired of travelling far away. Besides the price

of gasoline and traffic jam are significant factors for them

to live close to where their business/work are.

Therefore buying condo close to CBD ensures the preservation of

the value of the condo. Since there will always be

Thai & foreigners who will be interested in renting these condos.

Whereas if you buy in Pattaya, your market is confined to

the foreign retirees, off-the-beat foreigners, and seasonal tourists.

A much smaller market indeed.

Very few Thais will be interested in renting

property in Pattaya. If they want to retire in Pattaya, they

are rich enough and will buy a house of their own so that

they can give their houses for inheritance to their loved ones.

With regards to your concern on fire safety measures.

High floor does seem intimidating.

But even for now, firemen's ladder can only go up

to 5th or 6th floor, making fire fighting for higher floors

above 6th floor daunting tasks. I had lived

on 7th floor before in Hong Kong and our family

never opened the window since we could still smell car

exhaust and still hear the vroom of motorcycles.

You should buy high floors and find condos where the buildings

have good fire safety measures:

1. Automatic water sprinkler with water reservoir located

    inside the building is a good chance for survival.

    In fact many studies shows that most big fire occur

    in buildings without automatic water sprinkler.

2. Heat & Smoke detectors that are maintained well

3. Good alarm that can wake people up in their deep sleep

    in the event of danger. This alarm should have sound threshold

    of at least 75dbA in the bedroom yet less than 100dbA at

    the source to prevent damage to hearing.

4. Use of non flameable electric cooker instead of conventional fire cooker.

    This is a major source of fire. So condos with

    electric cooker is safer than ones that allow conventional fire cooker.

5. Fire extinguisher in every unit is a must

6. Equipped yourself with gas & headcover mask.

    Statistics show that it is the smoke and not the fire that kills

    people most in a fire accident.

7. Use of furnishing & building materials that have adequate Flame Spread

    and Smoke Developed Ratings

If all fails then, you should use the parachute as a last resort.

But many people doubt whether this is effective, since it is difficult

to stir parachute for untrained people away from danger (electric poles,

pointy/sharp structures). In fire situation, you might be better

off staying inside your apartment. And if you stay high enough,

you could hope dearly that the fire will be put off soon before it

spread to your floor.

You should buy condo with good management

in place, perhaps managed by international property firm,

that enforce good practice for safety in the building.

Many Thai like to buy new property and you may wonder

why. Because many developers are not interested in

maintaining condos; they are only interested in building new ones

and sell them. Hence many condos after only a few

years dont look too good since they dont maintain it well enough.

It is therefore that Thais buy new condos because

old condos usually look bad. Had the developers maintain

the condos well, I am sure they will retain the value relatively well.

Hence, how to mitigate all of these problems?

I would say you need to buy a condo that is managed

by international hotel is a better bet that your condo will

be managed as a good as the hotel where their main

business are.

The case of The Regent Residences which is located

in the same compound as The Regent Hotel would be

such example:

http://www.grandeasset.com/regent/index.htm

The property developer Grande Asset has signed a contract

with The Regent to manage its property for 20 years

and another 10 year of option to manage it further.

Grande Asset is also the company that will undertake

the project, and not Grande Asset’s subsidiary that are usually

the case of other developers. In fact most other developers

set up new subsidiary for each condo they develop so that

they can insulate themselves against claims if things go

bad for their condo developing subsidiary.

Grande Asset currently owns The Grande Westin

and some other hotels in the development. Grande Asset

has also secured financing for the development of all of their properties.

Moreover, you may ask the Regent to market your

condo for tenants for a fee, since you live in Europe

and you dont have to worry that the Regent will

run away with your rent money.

I bought one unit at this Regent since it has all the qualities

I am looking for in a condo. It is only 1 minute walking

to BTS Nana. It does not have balcony. Balcony more

often than not is usually misused by tenants like

to dry clothing or puting some plants, putting some left

over furniture (as there is not enough space inside)

and many other things (such as killing yourself), making

the whole appearance on the building ugly.

Having lived in Hong Kong most of my life, I know what happen to

many apartments with open air balconies in Hong Kong. Some

crazy people just rent apartment to kill himself/herself

or even rent a room in a hotel with balcony only to kill

himself (just like what happened to the singer Leslie Cheung).

Once there is a suicide case in the condo, the owner will have

difficulties in selling/renting out his condos again. Asians

are superstitious and will not want to have the same badluck

to happen to them.

Balcony also makes cleaning difficult; window cleaners do not

usually clean balcony part. Balcony cleaning is usually left to

the owners. Because Bangkok is a dusty city, it does not make

sense to sit in balcony. Now in Hong Kong, most developers opt to

build apartments with balconies that are fully covered with glass

and that are protruding outward from the apartment to enhance

the view. Developers here in Bangkok are still yet learning such

things that are preferred by condo occupants.

Worse since most of BKK developers never live their lifes in an apartment.

Most of these developers live their life inside big mansions and imagining

life in a condo. And therefore they are all building luxury lowrise condos, which are

contradicting in every sense of its development. Why low rise? People

choose to live in condo because they hope to live in cleaner air and quieter.

If it is low rise and luxury, then you might as well buy a house. why buy

expensive condo?

Because I am from Hong Kong and I have lived all my life in high rise

apartments, I know very well people preference. In Hong Kong,

if you are moving from 5th floor apartment to say 30th floor, people

will say wow, prosperity has come to you therefore you can afford

higher floor. But people will pitty you if you move the other way around.

After all, you have to understand the mindset of the majority buyers

who are Thai and who are more or less share the same kinds of thinking as

other Asians. By following the mindset of the majority people, you

make sure that you can sell your condo in the future.

In early days, some westerners living in Hong Kong thought Chinese Feng

Shui was very stupid and they dont believe in it at all. And they went

ahead with buying apartments that are next to hospital, or close to cemetry,

in the end they lost money on these condos since no one else want to buy

these condos. So even if they don’t believe, by acting against the majority

belief was even more stupid than believing in it.

Why buy at lower floor?

People wants to buy condo because they want a nice view

Even if you dont want the view, by the time you want to sell your condo

you may have difficulty in selling your condo. Because most

people want condos with a view.

Higher floor condos means:

1. Better View

2. Better air quality (pollution from motorcycle, tuk-tuk, etc) is less at high

    floor, low floor guarantees you to gasoline smell or other smell, kerosene

    from food street vendors, etc)

3. Quieter (you wont be woken up by the sound of loud motorcycle/tuk-tuk

4. Higher social status (to some people, they will only move

    from smaller to bigger condo, from lower to higher floor condo,

    from C-class Mercedes to S-Class Mercedes) very few goes the other

    way around

5. Much more liquid investment (easier to sell than lower floor condos)

6. for your condo case, why add the worry that people may get into your

    condo because it is located close to the ground

The point of view from someone who has been living in a condo all his life.

Hi all, I have been browsing this forum for a few months and are now considering buying a condo in Viewtalay 2B on the ground floor and hope you guys/gals can give me some info to the questions below.

My wife and I are hoping to retire to Pattaya in the near future , can anybody see any problems with a ground floor condo (I have no interest in sea views etc) and I am hoping that it will make access easier in old age.

What is the security like on the Viewtalay2B condo.

What would be the average monthly expenditure required to live comfortably in Pattaya.

I have holidayed in Pattaya a number of times and have visited the general area on numerous occasions previously. 

Cheers

Cryo.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Very informative Khun Suh sah. As I am thinking of buying one in the near future, have no idea about living in Condo. Wish a higher floor with good view and good pollution..oppss...good air, but only one thing still in my mind, what happen if it fires ? Do I have to collect some sefl-parachute in the room ..in case of emergency ;-)

Do you think View Talay Condo is good to live or if one day dont like to stay anymore....still good to sell with little plus ? And if I dont stay for many months in a year..how can I manage to hire...for some months during my absent ? ( I am living in Europe ). The anual paying for electric and water are the same price as other thai ppl or higher ? I have no idea.

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Thanks for your reply Khuh Suh Sah Sih, I'm really very appreciated your informations about living in a Condo. Wh

[Kathe]

If I were to buy a condo, I will not buy it in Pattaya.

There are very few companies operate in Pattaya.

So I dont think I want to rent out short term for

people on vacation. So much hassle.

I will buy condo in Bangkok instead, close to CBD area

and close to SkyTrain. This is very important.

In the future, even more Thais who bought

houses far away from the city will start realizing that

it is a big mistake to buy houses far away from the city.

People in cities like Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Jakarta are

coming back to live close to the centre of the city,

as they get tired of travelling far away. Besides the price

of gasoline and traffic jam are significant factors for them

to live close to where their business/work are.

Therefore buying condo close to CBD ensures the preservation of

the value of the condo. Since there will always be

Thai & foreigners who will be interested in renting these condos.

Whereas if you buy in Pattaya, your market is confined to

the foreign retirees, off-the-beat foreigners, and seasonal tourists.

A much smaller market indeed.

Very few Thais will be interested in renting

property in Pattaya. If they want to retire in Pattaya, they

are rich enough and will buy a house of their own so that

they can give their houses for inheritance to their loved ones.

With regards to your concern on fire safety measures.

High floor does seem intimidating.

But even for now, firemen's ladder can only go up

to 5th or 6th floor, making fire fighting for higher floors

above 6th floor daunting tasks. I had lived

on 7th floor before in Hong Kong and our family

never opened the window since we could still smell car

exhaust and still hear the vroom of motorcycles.

You should buy high floors and find condos where the buildings

have good fire safety measures:

1. Automatic water sprinkler with water reservoir located

    inside the building is a good chance for survival.

    In fact many studies shows that most big fire occur

    in buildings without automatic water sprinkler.

2. Heat & Smoke detectors that are maintained well

3. Good alarm that can wake people up in their deep sleep

    in the event of danger. This alarm should have sound threshold

    of at least 75dbA in the bedroom yet less than 100dbA at

    the source to prevent damage to hearing.

4. Use of non flameable electric cooker instead of conventional fire cooker.

    This is a major source of fire. So condos with

    electric cooker is safer than ones that allow conventional fire cooker.

5. Fire extinguisher in every unit is a must

6. Equipped yourself with gas & headcover mask.

    Statistics show that it is the smoke and not the fire that kills

    people most in a fire accident.

7. Use of furnishing & building materials that have adequate Flame Spread

    and Smoke Developed Ratings

If all fails then, you should use the parachute as a last resort.

But many people doubt whether this is effective, since it is difficult

to stir parachute for untrained people away from danger (electric poles,

pointy/sharp structures). In fire situation, you might be better

off staying inside your apartment. And if you stay high enough,

you could hope dearly that the fire will be put off soon before it

spread to your floor.

You should buy condo with good management

in place, perhaps managed by international property firm,

that enforce good practice for safety in the building.

Many Thai like to buy new property and you may wonder

why. Because many developers are not interested in

maintaining condos; they are only interested in building new ones

and sell them. Hence many condos after only a few

years dont look too good since they dont maintain it well enough.

It is therefore that Thais buy new condos because

old condos usually look bad. Had the developers maintain

the condos well, I am sure they will retain the value relatively well.

Hence, how to mitigate all of these problems?

I would say you need to buy a condo that is managed

by international hotel is a better bet that your condo will

be managed as a good as the hotel where their main

business are.

The case of The Regent Residences which is located

in the same compound as The Regent Hotel would be

such example:

http://www.grandeasset.com/regent/index.htm

The property developer Grande Asset has signed a contract

with The Regent to manage its property for 20 years

and another 10 year of option to manage it further.

Grande Asset is also the company that will undertake

the project, and not Grande Asset’s subsidiary that are usually

the case of other developers. In fact most other developers

set up new subsidiary for each condo they develop so that

they can insulate themselves against claims if things go

bad for their condo developing subsidiary.

Grande Asset currently owns The Grande Westin

and some other hotels in the development. Grande Asset

has also secured financing for the development of all of their properties.

Moreover, you may ask the Regent to market your

condo for tenants for a fee, since you live in Europe

and you dont have to worry that the Regent will

run away with your rent money.

I bought one unit at this Regent since it has all the qualities

I am looking for in a condo. It is only 1 minute walking

to BTS Nana. It does not have balcony. Balcony more

often than not is usually misused by tenants like

to dry clothing or puting some plants, putting some left

over furniture (as there is not enough space inside)

and many other things (such as killing yourself), making

the whole appearance on the building ugly.

Having lived in Hong Kong most of my life, I know what happen to

many apartments with open air balconies in Hong Kong. Some

crazy people just rent apartment to kill himself/herself

or even rent a room in a hotel with balcony only to kill

himself (just like what happened to the singer Leslie Cheung).

Once there is a suicide case in the condo, the owner will have

difficulties in selling/renting out his condos again. Asians

are superstitious and will not want to have the same badluck

to happen to them.

Balcony also makes cleaning difficult; window cleaners do not

usually clean balcony part. Balcony cleaning is usually left to

the owners. Because Bangkok is a dusty city, it does not make

sense to sit in balcony. Now in Hong Kong, most developers opt to

build apartments with balconies that are fully covered with glass

and that are protruding outward from the apartment to enhance

the view. Developers here in Bangkok are still yet learning such

things that are preferred by condo occupants.

Worse since most of BKK developers never live their lifes in an apartment.

Most of these developers live their life inside big mansions and imagining

life in a condo. And therefore they are all building luxury lowrise condos, which are

contradicting in every sense of its development. Why low rise? People

choose to live in condo because they hope to live in cleaner air and quieter.

If it is low rise and luxury, then you might as well buy a house. why buy

expensive condo?

Because I am from Hong Kong and I have lived all my life in high rise

apartments, I know very well people preference. In Hong Kong,

if you are moving from 5th floor apartment to say 30th floor, people

will say wow, prosperity has come to you therefore you can afford

higher floor. But people will pitty you if you move the other way around.

After all, you have to understand the mindset of the majority buyers

who are Thai and who are more or less share the same kinds of thinking as

other Asians. By following the mindset of the majority people, you

make sure that you can sell your condo in the future.

In early days, some westerners living in Hong Kong thought Chinese Feng

Shui was very stupid and they dont believe in it at all. And they went

ahead with buying apartments that are next to hospital, or close to cemetry,

in the end they lost money on these condos since no one else want to buy

these condos. So even if they don’t believe, by acting against the majority

belief was even more stupid than believing in it.

Why buy at lower floor?

People wants to buy condo because they want a nice view

Even if you dont want the view, by the time you want to sell your condo

you may have difficulty in selling your condo. Because most

people want condos with a view.

Higher floor condos means:

1. Better View

2. Better air quality (pollution from motorcycle, tuk-tuk, etc) is less at high

    floor, low floor guarantees you to gasoline smell or other smell, kerosene

    from food street vendors, etc)

3. Quieter (you wont be woken up by the sound of loud motorcycle/tuk-tuk

4. Higher social status (to some people, they will only move

    from smaller to bigger condo, from lower to higher floor condo,

    from C-class Mercedes to S-Class Mercedes) very few goes the other

    way around

5. Much more liquid investment (easier to sell than lower floor condos)

6. for your condo case, why add the worry that people may get into your

    condo because it is located close to the ground

The point of view from someone who has been living in a condo all his life.

Hi all, I have been browsing this forum for a few months and are now considering buying a condo in Viewtalay 2B on the ground floor and hope you guys/gals can give me some info to the questions below.

My wife and I are hoping to retire to Pattaya in the near future , can anybody see any problems with a ground floor condo (I have no interest in sea views etc) and I am hoping that it will make access easier in old age.

What is the security like on the Viewtalay2B condo.

What would be the average monthly expenditure required to live comfortably in Pattaya.

I have holidayed in Pattaya a number of times and have visited the general area on numerous occasions previously. 

Cheers

Cryo.

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Very informative Khun Suh sah. As I am thinking of buying one in the near future, have no idea about living in Condo. Wish a higher floor with good view and good pollution..oppss...good air, but only one thing still in my mind, what happen if it fires ? Do I have to collect some sefl-parachute in the room ..in case of emergency ;-)

Do you think View Talay Condo is good to live or if one day dont like to stay anymore....still good to sell with little plus ? And if I dont stay for many months in a year..how can I manage to hire...for some months during my absent ? ( I am living in Europe ). The anual paying for electric and water are the same price as other thai ppl or higher ? I have no idea.

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Thanks for your reply Khuh Suh Sah Sih, I'm really very appreciated your informations about living in a Condo. Why I like to choose a Condo in Pattaya and dont..in Bangkok ? We never want to live in BKK, as I used to live there almost half of my life there. Now I have been living in Europe and coming to visit my parents and sisters once a year. Our favarite places and beaches are always far away from BKK. But as I think of buying a condo, and we should at least a beach near the nose and not too far to let my only sister to take care sometimes. And since we are not a fan of Pattaya place. But this year I was stayed there for a week and felt that place more symphatic than years before.

It came to a thought ....a place for holiday for my hubby and I. It likes a must that we might come over and stay for a while. My hubby let me decide what I am thinking, and he will then follow me what I am planning. So, I wish I can find at least a nice place for us.

YOur advice about the Regent.....sounds really great. I shall follow and have some informations , if only I can afford the price. I shall soon making a decision.

Many thanks for your brilliant advices.

Saothai