30 + 30 Lease Agreement

[ozzydom]

LEASE AGREEMENT

AGREEMENT MADE AT_______________

_________________________________

_________________________________

DATE_____________________________

This Lease Agreement is between________________________________________

__________________________________hereafter known as the Lessor and

____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________hereafter known as the lessee

It is hereby agreed as follows

1. The Lessor agrees to lease and the Lessee agrees to rent a____storey home and land,located at_______________________in accordance to Land Title Deed No.______________________Land Number_______________________________

Book number_________________________Page number____________________

Tambon__________________________Total Land Size_____________Sq Wah

hereinafter known as the "Said Premises" for a rent period of 30 years.

2.The Lessee agrees to a one time advance payment for the entire rent period in the amount of________________Baht (_______________) to the Lessor on the date of this Agreement.The Lessor and the Lessee agree to register the leasing terms and conditions at the District Land Office within 7 days after making this agreement. The rent begins on the date of registration at the District Land Office.

3. Both parties agree that the Lessee shall have an option to renew this lease for an additional 30 years, for rental terms and conditions as mutually agreed by both parties.

4. After the date of this agreement the Lessee shall have the right to live in and conduct legal and socially acceptable businesses in the Said Premises during the term of this Lease Agreement.

5. The Lessee agrees to take care of and to preserve the Said Premises as one would do to his/her own and maintain the upkeep of and also attend to repairs of the Said Premises which may be caused by accidental or intentional actions of the Lessee or the Lessee,s subordinates.

6.The Lessee may assign or sublet the Said Premises to other Parties. Should there be the need to make official registration or other legal proceedings,the Lessor agrees to give consent and to assist the Lessee in providing proper documentation and shall not ask for any returns from the Lessee. The Lessee agrees to pay for any fee and other expenses that may arise from such proceedings,

7. The Lessee agrees not to damage or deface the Said Premises or make structural alterations or additions thereto without the written consent in writing of the Lessor and all structural alterations shall be in accordance with government and municipal guidelines. The Lessee agrees to pay any costs involved while the Lessor agrees to provide necessary documentation in obtaining such official permits.

8.Should the Lessor wish to sell the Said Premises, the Lessee shall have the first option to purchase from the Lessor or the option to find other party to purchase from the Lessor. Should the Lessee be unable to find such party to purchase from the Lessor the Lessor may sell Said Premises as he/she so wishes. The Said Premises shall not be sold or Title transferred during the Lease period. Debts accrued by the Lessor to outside parties shall not effect the lease terms.

9.Should Thai laws allow non-Thai citizens to purchase properties, the Lessor shall give the first right to purchase the Said Properties to the Lessee as a special condition.

10. The terms and conditions of this Lease Agreement obligate the heirs of both parties to fulfill to the letter and shall not be altered without mutual consent.

11. The Lessee shall be responsible for paying Building Tax (Rong Ruen Tax) and Land Tax for the duration of the lease period.

12.On the day the Lease Agreement is made, the Lessee shall inspect the Said Premises including all the fixtures and fittings therein to be of good and tenantable condition and accepts lease responsibility henceforth.

13. Should the Lessor be unable to carry out the terms and conditions stated above the Lessee have the right to ask for compensation five times the rent amount and the special condition amount that the Lessee has prepaid.

14 In the event of the Lessee untimely death while the Lease Agreement is still in effect,the rights and obligations of the Lessor shall be transferred to________________________________________________adress________________________

_____.

Both parties having read and fully understanding its contents,agree to comply with all the terms and conditions. Ttherefore both parties have hereunder affixed their signatures in presence of two witnesses on the date at the place first written above.

___________________The Lessor

___________________The Lessee

___________________Witness

___________________Witness

/edit by RDN: tidied up font and size

Edited May 17, 2005 by RDN

[ozzydom]

/edit by RDN to remove quoted text

SPECIAL NOTE...Dont throw knives at me re this posting, I am merely the messenger ,I dont have an opinion on whether this agreement is good or bad as I am not qualified, it is posted as a service to TVmembers,

Evidentally billions of baht value of properties are leased to farangs using this agreement as a base. The solicitor who drafted the agreement is a Chiang Mai resident who ,I am told speaks excellent english and I can point members in his direction if requested personally. I have already received pm re legality of the agreement. Answer.... I dont know whether it has ever been tested in court but in my humble opinion I doubt if the government dept that ratifies them would do so if it were not kosher.

ozzydom

Edited May 17, 2005 by RDN

[tutsiwarrior]

great topic...very handy document if indeed it's true that these arrangements are recognized by the courts.

Would be wonderful to have the Thai translation available to print as well...

[Digger]

A perfect contract agreement written by the seller, but alas does not seem to actually offer anything much to the lessee or buyer.

For example, no mention made of communal areas - who is keeping them clean and tidy. What about price increases of unstated service fees

What happens when the project stalls half way through - do you have the right to cancel the agreement and get a refund, or just have to grin and bear living on a building site. Actually thats perhaps not very fair given most buyers are naive on that point.

No definition of price for acquiring the property freehold should the law change - should be stated as a monetary figure I would have pushed for.

What about restrictions on what business can be conducted in the house next door - can they open a somtam stall if they so choose or even a bar in their front room.

Has the land already been split and if the buyer wishes to convert freehold ownership at a later point to wife or child, who pays the land taxes for transfer etc etc.

What about guarantees for communal facilities continuing going. Who replaces the gym equipment after 4 years, re-tiles the swimming pool in 6 years etc etc - probably down to you but always better to include it in a contract. Also who pays when the roadway needs re-doing? and at what price?

Most of my points are relevant to a housing village as against a stand alone house.

I am sure I will think of more as I read through in more detail but these are my initial observations (and mostly gained from being burnt before on these points).

[Sumitr Man]

My primary concern would be with Clause 2. You make payment before registration at the Land Registration Department - something I would never agree to.

I would also be concerned with the fact there are no Events of Default on the part of the Lessor, nor are there any warranties, representations or undertakings. Although a "freindly" agreement, the lease is binding on "heirs" of the Lessor.

[ozzydom]

A perfect contract agreement written by the seller, but alas does not seem to actually offer anything much to the lessee or buyer.

For example, no mention made of communal areas - who is keeping them clean and tidy.  What about price increases of unstated service fees

every village I have lived in levies a monthly fee to cover security, garbage, street cleaning etc

What happens when the project stalls half way through - do you have the right to cancel the agreement and get a refund, or just have to grin and bear living on a building site.  Actually thats perhaps not very fair given most buyers are naive on that point.

read items 12&13

No definition of price for acquiring the property freehold should the law change - should be stated as a monetary figure I would have pushed for. 

see item 9

What about restrictions on what business can be conducted in the house next door - can they open a somtam stall if they so choose or even a bar in their front room.

developer and council regulations govern this

Has the land already been split and if the buyer wishes to convert freehold ownership at a later point to wife or child, who pays the land taxes for transfer etc etc. 

see item 6

What about guarantees for communal facilities continuing going.  Who replaces the gym equipment after 4 years, re-tiles the swimming pool in 6 years etc etc  - probably down to you but always better to include it in a contract.  Also who pays when the roadway needs re-doing? and at what price?

communal facilities and roads etc are owned and maintained by the developerHave you heard of body corporate fees.

Most of my points are relevant to a housing village as against a stand alone house.

I am sure I will think of more as I read through in more detail but these are my initial observations (and mostly gained from being burnt before on these points).

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Are you sure you dont want a clause to say how many kids the neighbours can have.? Use a bit of nous instead of spouting your undoubted vast knowledge,perhaps as a first step, read the agreement properly before you comment. As was stated this is only a base agreement currently in use and virtually any clause agreeable to both parties can be included (so long as it doesnt contravene regulations) Instead of nit-picking, use your knowledge to draw up a contract you deem suitable, I am sure many will appreciate it.

ozzydom

[ozzydom]

My primary concern would be with Clause 2.  You make payment before registration at the Land Registration Department - something I would never agree to.

I would also be concerned with the fact there are no Events of Default on the part of the Lessor, nor are there any warranties, representations or undertakings.  Although a "freindly" agreement, the lease is binding on "heirs" of the Lessor.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

S,man re your pm to me ,I am assured that the law you refer to states that leases in excess of 3years must be registered with the Amphur, not that they are not allowed. And once again, I stated it is a base agreement and you can add clauses as you see fit as long as they are legal and agreeable to vendor and buyer, also if you had been following other threads ,it is an agreement primarily used between a thai wife and farang husband to give the husband adegree of legal tenure if A. the wife passes away or B. in the case of a marriage breakdown. Peace of mind and security for the farang husband is what we are about. Perhaps you also would like to come up with a contract to suit this need.

ozzydom

[Sumitr Man]

You are, of course, right - you can contractually sign a lease of 30 years without having to register it at the Land Registration Department. The problem is:

Section 538 of the CCC

A hire of immovable property is not enforceable by action unless there be some written evidence signed by the party liable.  If the hire is for more than 3 years, or for the life of the letter, it is enforceable only for 3 years unless it is made in writing and registered with the competent official

As such, you would not be able to enforce your 30 year lease if you have not registered it - and having paid the money and with no event of default clause, what's there to entice the lessor to go down to the land registration department? Even with a friendly agreement, we can wait till tomorrow. But what happens if the lessor (heaven forbid) dies, and now you need to enforce against the heirs?

Now you have a problem.

So, I stand by what I said, even with a "friendly" lease, if the period is over 3 years you pay at the land registration department and not before.

Which is not to say your lease is not great - if for no other reason than it gets us chatting like this and hopefully together we can come up with a fool-proof TV lease agreement that Dr. P and George can then sell for millions

Edited May 17, 2005 by Sumitr Man

[RDN]

... it gets us chatting like this and hopefully together we can come up with a fool-proof TV lease agreement ...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Exactly what I was going to say. Thanks Ozzydom for doing this - it is most appreciated.

If other members have criticisms - maybe about clauses that are missing - could they post their clauses here?

Thanks again Ozzydom.

[Digger]

A perfect contract agreement written by the seller, but alas does not seem to actually offer anything much to the lessee or buyer.

For example, no mention made of communal areas - who is keeping them clean and tidy.  What about price increases of unstated service fees

every village I have lived in levies a monthly fee to cover security, garbage, street cleaning etc

What happens when the project stalls half way through - do you have the right to cancel the agreement and get a refund, or just have to grin and bear living on a building site.   Actually thats perhaps not very fair given most buyers are naive on that point.

read items 12&13

No definition of price for acquiring the property freehold should the law change - should be stated as a monetary figure I would have pushed for.  

see item 9

What about restrictions on what business can be conducted in the house next door - can they open a somtam stall if they so choose or even a bar in their front room.

developer and council regulations govern this

Has the land already been split and if the buyer wishes to convert freehold ownership at a later point to wife or child, who pays the land taxes for transfer etc etc.  

see item 6

What about guarantees for communal facilities continuing going.  Who replaces the gym equipment after 4 years, re-tiles the swimming pool in 6 years etc etc  - probably down to you but always better to include it in a contract.  Also who pays when the roadway needs re-doing? and at what price?

communal facilities and roads etc are owned and maintained by the developerHave you heard of body corporate fees.

Most of my points are relevant to a housing village as against a stand alone house.

I am sure I will think of more as I read through in more detail but these are my initial observations (and mostly gained from being burnt before on these points).

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Are you sure you dont want a clause to say how many kids the neighbours can have.? Use a bit of nous instead of spouting your undoubted vast knowledge,perhaps as a first step, read the agreement properly before you comment. As was stated this is only a base agreement currently in use and virtually any clause agreeable to both parties can be included (so long as it doesnt contravene regulations) Instead of nit-picking, use your knowledge to draw up a contract you deem suitable, I am sure many will appreciate it.

ozzydom

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Perhaps in my haste I read this as a contract between a developer and farang as against a husband and wife. I read that it was drafted by one of Chiang Mai's largest developers - however upon seeing later messages, your infering its an agreement between husband and wife in which case a lot of my comments are not relevant.

However you do not state what it is - its either one or the other - the two are not compatible.

This agreement though is not in my opinion constructive to an agreement between husband and wife - its does not specify fully that the farang will have unconditional use of the property for the duration of the lease, nor does it stipulate who's heirs are held into the contract - farang or farang/Thai? Forget the legal wording, you are invariably dealing with uneducated Thai's in these scenarios - my suggestion is to spell out exactly what it means in simple terminology.

However your tone is not exactly helpfull to soliciting advice so I will leave it at this and the following general comments. Firstly, I am not a supporter of husband to wife leases for many reasons. Good luck in drawing up a contract with a lawyer however if this was drafted by one of Northern Thailands top lawyers, i would eat my hat - it should be running to over 10 pages if written by a leading professional lawyer and as I stated before it really has no consideration for what MAY happen and what if scenarios. I have expereince of going to court before for multinational corporations and contracts are always searched out for what they do not say. It really does nothing to protect the farang in my opinion but then what do I or any of us really know. As someone else has stated, it also needs to be written in Thai to prevent ANY misunderstanding between the lessor (Thai) and the lessee (farang) which has occured before in presentation of legal documents written in English along the lines that the Thai did not understand what they were signing as it was in English. Therefore simply it needs to be a correctly written Thai agreement translated into English.

The simple truth is that any agreement in Thailand needs to be fully understood in layman language to avoid any need to end up in court unless your involving professional business people on both sides. By doing this you will likely make things a lot easier. Personally, I do not think this agreement really does provide any meaningfull help - in my opinion its a cobbled together developer contract conveniently stated to a farang as being suitable for husband and wife. In reality its anything but what its claiming to be.

Sorry to be negative on your efforts but that is how I see it and speaking personally, I would never sign such an agreement and seek out a lawyer who actually understands what it is we are attempting to contract as against a one size fits all version.

[Jai Dee]

Much appreciated for posting this ozzydom.

Cheers mate.

No comments from me (cos I'm a dumb schmuck), but I also welcome comments from other TV members.

The more the merrier, and you'll soon be able to choose which clauses you want included to create a custom contract that suits your own situation.

[ozzydom]

First off, my apologies for snapping at s,man and digger , I myself am not interested in a contract of this type ,I trust my wife to do the right thing by me. I appreciate that most of your points are valid ,I also stated first up that I was only the messenger (dont shoot the messenger ) ,I believe this agreement is a translation from Thai, that is probably why the grammar is a bit iffy. It was obtained and posted merely as an example that a contract can/may be drafted to protect the security and tenure of the farang should demise of a partner or seperation unfortunately occur.

I went to a fair amount of trouble to obtain the contract and one finger re-type it to post in good faith ,but did not expect the criticisms to be directed at me personally, the lesson to me is ,keep my typing finger in my pocket and dont volunteer .

cheers to all

ozzydom

[Sumitr Man]

Ozzydom:

You have no need to apologize to me mate, I REALLY appreciate the effort you made and also that you have started a thread here that really could benefit the other members of TV who have yet to go through what you have.

As an aside, with a friendly agreement I see no reason why you would need more than a 4 page document, which includes an appendix attaching a map of where the property is located. Of course, if you are talking about purchasing a house being constructed, Digger is right, you need reams of paper. But any lawyer giving me a contract of 10 pages to ask my missus to sign is (i) dreaming - she'd give up after page 2; and (ii) is likely working on an uncapped hourly fee rate and is trying real hard to justify their fee.

Again, a million thanks for the effort you have made in starting this thread Ozzydom - and always remember that I never intend to criticize, but only try to point out (from my own experience) where things may be improved - or not, as the case may be.

SM

Edited May 18, 2005 by Sumitr Man

[dr_Pat_Pong]

You are, of course, right - you can contractually sign a lease of 30 years without having to register it at the Land Registration Department.  The problem is:

Section 538 of the CCC

A hire of immovable property is not enforceable by action unless there be some written evidence signed by the party liable.  If the hire is for more than 3 years, or for the life of the letter, it is enforceable only for 3 years unless it is made in writing and registered with the competent official

As such, you would not be able to enforce your 30 year lease if you have not registered it - and having paid the money and with no event of default clause, what's there to entice the lessor to go down to the land registration department? Even with a friendly agreement, we can wait till tomorrow. But what happens if the lessor (heaven forbid) dies, and now you need to enforce against the heirs?

Now you have a problem.

So, I stand by what I said, even with a "friendly" lease, if the period is over 3 years you pay at the land registration department and not before.

Which is not to say your lease is not great - if for no other reason than it gets us chatting like this and hopefully together we can come up with a fool-proof TV lease agreement that Dr. P and George can then sell for millions

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Can we get it on the market while George is away ? A one size fits all lease is a bit improbable to achieve, but it's worth a go.

[Dragonman]

The lease appears OK to me based on a simple contract between husband and wife. As with all contracts there are certain elements which could be challenged in court. However the main theme is acceptable under my knowledge of thai law. A judge would be the only person to decide on the application of an individual clause.There is no such thing, whatever lawyers tell you, of a cast iron contract, and despite some comments, a long complicated contract can lead to openings for more challenges.

However the main theme is that it covers basic requirements, which is far better than nothing. If that's your way of thinking. I personally am with ozzydom in that I wouldn't bother with a contract with my wife. If something happened in our relationship. Ah well, my pension will still cover rent on a condo

[samran]

I thought agreemements in Thailand weren't valid unless they were written in Thai.

[Sumitr Man]

Samran:

Urban myth, I'm afraid to say. However:

(1) if you want to enforce the contract in a court of law in Thailand, you will need to translate the material provisions of the agreement in order for the agreement to be admissible as evidence; and

(2) in the event that both a Thai language document and English language document are executed, and there is any discrepancy between the two, the Thai language document will have precedence over the English language document.

SM

[roscoe]

Samran:

Urban myth, I'm afraid to say.  However:

(1) if you want to enforce the contract in a court of law in Thailand, you will need to translate the material provisions of the agreement in order for the agreement to be admissible as evidence; and

(2) in the event that both a Thai language document and English language document are executed, and there is any discrepancy between the two, the Thai language document will have precedence over the English language document.

SM 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I don't mean to be pedantic but by English do you mean OED (Queens) English? or not.

If on the untimely death of the Lessee ect. ect .does the address of the "inheritor"have to be a thai address?

[Sumitr Man]

Roscoe:

I don't think that a beneficiary of a will needs to be a resident of Thailand, but the I have a feeling that certain procedures might need to be complied with if they're not.

Let me get back to you on that one.

SM

[xyz]

This 30-year lease thing is too obvious as a loop hole used by foreigners to get around the law that prohibits property ownership by foreigners, so the authorities may change the rules later.

[Dragonman]

xyz. Unlikely they would alter previous contractual agreement, Wouldn't even put Thaksin in the Robert Mugabe bracket. There would have to be a new law to exclude foreigners from leasing property. They would be more likely to crack down on "company purchases" which are an easier target from a legal standpoint. After all a thai will still have ownership of the land ad infinitum despite lending it to somebody for 30 or 60 years.

[Gary A]

Duplicate post. Ipstar SUCKS!

Edited May 7, 2006 by Gary A

[Gary A]

I would also have concerns that the document is in English. I was told by a lawyer that if the document is not translated to Thai and then legalized by the government office in Laksi it is not legal. Doing the translation after the fact is no good because if there is a problem the lessee would not be likely to sign the translated document. If the document is in English I seriously doubt that the land office would record the lease at all.

I have discovered that a Thai lawyer will write any contract you want but that doesn't mean it is legal or that he is responsible for the document being legal. Tread carefully.

Edited May 7, 2006 by Gary A

[Dragonman]

I would also have concerns that the document is in English. I was told by a lawyer that if the document is not translated to Thai and then legalized by the government office in Laksi it is not legal. Doing the translation after the fact is no good because if there is a problem the lessee would not be likely to sign the translated document. If the document is in English I seriously doubt that the land office would record the lease at all.

I have discovered that a Thai lawyer will write any contract you want but that doesn't mean it is legal or that he is responsible for the document being legal. Tread carefully.

Not having the lease in thai does not make it illegal! However thai Courts do not deal with any language but thai and therefore a translation would be necessary. You would be extremely lucky to get a lease translation certified at the MFA, as their knowledge is not that good.

A number of Land Offices however will only register the lease in thai, and sometimes only their own approved thai lease

The vast majority of lawyers have translation capabilities and will provide the lease in english, thai, or sometimes other languages.

[JimGant]

FWIW....

A nice flowery lease agreement, if it doesn't fly in the face of codified Thai law, may be nice to have. For example, an option to renew for a second 30-year term, might be nice. But as I understand it, this could be challenged in court, since it is not codified -- and not includable on the registered lease in the Land Office (at least it wasn't in our case). And contractually, if it's not registered with the authorities, I'd be somewhat wary.

And it is the registered lease in the Land Office that is key: It's on record; fees paid; in accordance with codified Thai law; written in Thai; and most importantly, you the Farang have your name as the lessee for 30-years (I believe this is actually endorsed on the back of the chanote - but I'm too lazy to go check my copy). Thus, the meat of the deal should (well, TIT....) be sacrosanct, and you're home free for 30 years, regardless of what happens to the original lessor. And if you have, in addition to the Land Office lease, additional contractual agreements written out, this could possibly be of value in court, if needed, at least if the original lessor is still alive.....

For husband and wife (my situation), I doubt anything over and above the Land Office lease is required. Disposition of the land/lease upon death can be taken care of in the wills. But I guess if there's a chance of divorce, a flowery lease that addresses situations more akin to a business deal vice marriage would be appropriate. Just don't bet the farm your interests will be adhered to in court.

[mouse]

Would be wonderful to have the Thai translation available to print as well...

I thought agreemements in Thailand weren't valid unless they were written in Thai.

Actually I specifically remember that a law was passed in Thailand less than 2 years ago, stating that any contract of any type did not have to be in Thai to be enforcable within the country. I saw it here in Thaivisa, but, cannot find it for the life of me.

Once the need arises, I would insure that the translation is done properly and even checked by a second top level service, if you feel a need.

[pepi1]

I consider myself to be one of the lucky ones. Married to Thai lady and now we have baby in Uk. My lawyer in Bangkok was insistant I went down the Co route before this fiasco. My London lawyer looked over the rule and regs etc. Advised -No Way. Said in a court it could be ruled a sham. Anyway, since then I have been trying to make contact with Thai lawyer- seems he has gone on a long fishing holiday! Lesson to be learnt- ask to see his or hers lawyers reg no. and then check it with the relevant governing body. Must say Sunbelt seem on the ball,just a pity all this legal davice is coming out now. imo

[eddy-ham]

Hi,

Reading all this negative information regarding hoses, land ect.It really amazes me that so many of the apparent negative thought, vibes are originating from people who live in Thailand.

Do all the residents live here with their Thai wives? Do they rent?

Own condos?Lease?

Can we see how they have avoided the curent problem before answering the problem raised.

[guyham]

I have a thirty year lease on “my” house and land which is owned by my Thai wife although obviously paid for by myself. The lease is registered at the Land Office (the lease was prepared by a lawyer – shark rather – and then modified by the officials at the Land Office to their satisfaction). What I would like to know is if anyone has a similar setup and actually had to take the situation to court to obtain legal protection against being sold out, evicted etc. Legal documents may be wonderful things but the actions of the courts and legal system is what counts in the end.

[lannarebirth]

I assume this is a "sweetheart" lease between family members? If not, the lessor could demand onerous conditions when it comes time to extend, if in fact the lessor is still alive, which is another problem.