Residence Safety

[FarangFatal]

Going to be a newbie and would first like to have a good safe place to live whilst learning for myself what is best!

Keeping things simple which is best safe Condo or House.... Generally speaking which will be least likely to have a break in!

Edited January 15, 2009 by FarangFatal

[Thaifan2]

Condo by far,especially if on a high floor .

[PattayaParent]

I've lived in both and always felt safer in a condo, even leaving doors open all day and night. Wouldn't do that in a house.

But then it depends on the quality of the condo you're in and your neighbours, just as living in a house does.

[LennyW]

House by far, with our dogs around, too much unknown "people" coming and going in a condo!

[MeetJohnDoe]

There are pros and cons to both...as there are in most things in life. Good security can be found in either environment as is mostly due to the habits of the owner/renter. Keep doors and windows shut and locked at either. For houses, if you don't have tempered security glass or double-glazed casement type windows, there should be security bars on all doors and windows. Solid core doors and quality dead-bolt locks with inside hinges are required for both house and condos.

Condos do have lots of people of various character levels wandering about (guests and staff) which you don't have so much with houses.

There really is no difference IMHO...you can have good or bad security at either. At least with a house, you're cannot become a member of the Pattaya Flying Club

[Thaifan2]

House by far, with our dogs around, too much unknown "people" coming and going in a condo!

You are joking ,right ! With a Condo the only means of entrance is the front door and balcony door .It is easy to secure both with security devices .Dogs can easily be poisoned .

[PattayaParent]

If you're living in a house on a compound of other housese then you do have many unknown people coming and going to the other houses, same as in a condo.

If you live in a stand alone house then fair enough you don't. But you have security issues when you are away for a while. OK the maid/wifes family member or whatever can look after the place when you're gone, but likely not in the case of the OP being a newbie and knowing nobody.

Definitely a condo with security is going to be the most secure for him.

[LennyW]

House by far, with our dogs around, too much unknown "people" coming and going in a condo!

You are joking ,right ! With a Condo the only means of entrance is the front door and balcony door .It is easy to secure both with security devices .Dogs can easily be poisoned .

Appreciate what you are saying Thaifan2, but for the time i stayed in JBC all the "unknown" people coming and going used to un-nerve me, and the nightly clickety click of high heels coming and going at all hours was most annoying.

Whilst the guards at the gate were usually awake, the ones in the bottom of the building were usually asleep.

I just feel more at ease in my house, i guess your "security devices" would just be as easy to overcome as poisoning my dogs, bottom line is if a theif wants in he will get in!! But each to his own i suppose.

The OP will have the option, by renting, to try both to see what suits him.

[MeetJohnDoe]

Many condos have low lying balconies, various fire-exits that may be accessible and unguarded. Service personnel coming and going all the time. Plus, many burglaries are inside jobs (the guards AND neighbors know when you're away).

Also, houses also have only a front and/or back door to secure. The point is not the number of doors but their quality and the quality of the locking hardware.

[Guderian]

I agree with what seems to be the majority view that a decent condo is likely to be more secure than a house, unless you convert the house into Fort Knox, in which case it will be more like living in a prison (bars on the windows, steel doors, etc.).

HOWEVER, that said, I have met people here living in 24/7 guarded condos whose rooms have been broken into, as well as people living in relatively insecure town houses who have never had a problem. Perhaps luck plays an important part in things?

Compared with the big condo blocks, gated housing estates have fewer security guards and staff around at night. There are stories from people whose houses were burgled, and who believe that it was probably the security guard who did it, or that he was at least complicit in it. I have no idea if there is any truth in these tales.

I'd also say that it's important to use common sense and keep your wits about you. Ask people living in a place if they know of any problems. If there have been beak-ins, or if security is obviously lax, then do what you can to beef up your own security. Install triple locks on doors, etc. I live in a big condo block in Jomtien, and haven't heard of any break-ins here in the last 3 or 4 years. Security is quite good, but as it's a busy condotel, there are far more people coming and going than I would ideally like. Public access is via guarded doors with a key card system, but of course the guards seldom challenge a farang without a key card. Nowhere is going to be perfectly secure, but you can do a lot to help yourself by keeping your eyes and ears open --- and, of course, hope that you are lucky!

Edited January 17, 2009 by Guderian

[Thaifan2]

Many condos have low lying balconies, various fire-exits that may be accessible and unguarded. Service personnel coming and going all the time. Plus, many burglaries are inside jobs (the guards AND neighbors know when you're away).

Also, houses also have only a front and/or back door to secure. The point is not the number of doors but their quality and the quality of the locking hardware.

You forgot about the windows !....I agree about having good locks ,and i would also put in hard wood outer doors .

[monkfish]

I once asked myself the same question and decided on a House.

Not because of security but safety, most of the Condos I looked would simply be death traps in the event of a fire.

I think a condo has the edge on a house security wise, although some housing estates have good security some don't.

On our estate the guards sleep most of the time, once I had to wake one up.