Buying A Condo

[whitespider]

I am hoping to buy an appartment on my next trip to Thailand for holiday use and in preparation of a more permanent move next year.

Apparently I have to provide a Thai bank and a Tor Dor 3 certificate.

My original idea (somewhat naieve as it transpires) was to come out to Thailand and open a "foreign currency" account which the Thai banks have told me is no problem.

I was then going to deposit a £GB cheque to cover the cost of the purchase.

The problem is that I will be in Thailand for 14 days.

Apparently the cheque will take up to 45 days to clear.

For the Tor Dor 3 certificate I (apparently) have to prove that the funds originate from outside Thailand - in my case the UK.

Anyone have any experience/ideas about what and how I can do all this?

Thanks

Andy

[taxexile]

open a thai bank account in your name.

send over the funds for the condo purchase , the funds will be in your account here within two or three days.

send the funds over as pounds sterling and let them convert to baht here in thailand. label the transfer "condo purchase" or similar.

the bank will provide you with a tt3 certificate , its called something else now , the foriegn exchange transaction form , make sure it says "condominium purchase "and "318069" under "purpose" on the form. the bank will do this , all you need to do is sign it.

some banks will try and palm you off with a letter confirming only the receipt of funds into your account , dont accept that , make sure you get the tt3 / f.e.t. form ,

make sure that the bank stamp the form and sign it.

get a photocopy for your records.

the transfer must be more than $ 20,000 equiv. to be able to get this certificate , if you do multiple transfers then make sure they are for more than $20,000. each

take the form and photocopies of all relevant pages of your passport along to the land office when you do the transaction.

i did all this last week myself and used the head office of the bangkok bank on silom road , they are possibly more geared up and knowledgeable about foriegn transfers and property purchasing than a local branch and they were friendly , helpful and efficient.

[corkscrew]

I am hoping to buy an appartment on my next trip to Thailand for holiday use and in preparation of a more permanent move next year.

Apparently I have to provide a Thai bank and a Tor Dor 3 certificate.

My original idea (somewhat naieve as it transpires) was to come out to Thailand and open a "foreign currency" account which the Thai banks have told me is no problem.

I was then going to deposit a £GB cheque to cover the cost of the purchase.

The problem is that I will be in Thailand for 14 days.

Apparently the cheque will take up to 45 days to clear.

For the Tor Dor 3 certificate I (apparently) have to prove that the funds originate from outside Thailand - in my case the UK.

Anyone have any experience/ideas about what and how I can do all this?

Thanks

Andy

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I am right now in the process of purchasing a condo in Bangkok. I am having the money wired from my bank in the US directly to the condo developer's bank here in BKK. The receipt I get shows that the money was wired in from the US in US dollars. The wire transfer takes just a few days.

[mbkudu]

I am having the money wired from my bank in the US directly to the condo developer's bank here in BKK.

Hmm...this sounds a little strange to me. How about having the money sent to your

bank account in Bangkok, not to the deveoper's bank.

[greenfuji]

Is there no way for a foreigner on a tourist visa to buy a condo without jumping through all these hoops? I was thinking like the originator of this post to come to Thailand cashed up and buy and exisiting apartment. Is this a situation were money just wont talk?

[corkscrew]

I am having the money wired from my bank in the US directly to the condo developer's bank here in BKK.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hmm...this sounds a little strange to me. How about having the money sent to your

bank account in Bangkok, not to the deveoper's bank.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I am buying a place in the yet to be completed Athenee Residence and this is the way the payments are structured for all of the new owners.

[corkscrew]

Is there no way for a foreigner on a tourist visa to buy a condo without jumping through all these hoops? I was thinking like the originator of this post to come to Thailand cashed up and buy and exisiting apartment. Is this a situation were money just wont talk?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

There is also a Thail legal requirement that at least 51% of the condo building be owned by Thai citizens.

[taxexile]

am buying a place in the yet to be completed Athenee Residence and this is the way the payments are structured for all of the new owners.

if you want to get your name on the ownership papers then i believe you must have the correct paperwork to show that the funds came from abroad.

you need to be sure beforehand that whatever bank you send the money to will give you the tt3 form.

if the money is wired into someone elses account , you may not be able to get those forms without a lot of running around.

the banking procedures here are still in the dark ages , left hands dont know about right hands , staff are not familiar with procedures , without the right paperwork and signatures you can easily get stuck in a labyrinthine bureacratic neverending nightmare

without those tt3 forms you wont be able to send money out of thailand if you ever sell the condo in the future.

consider sending the money to your account in thailand , getting the tt3 sorted , and then sending the money to the developer.

[Tiger7Moth]

am buying a place in the yet to be completed Athenee Residence and this is the way the payments are structured for all of the new owners.

if you want to get your name on the ownership papers then i believe you must have the correct paperwork to show that the funds came from abroad.

you need to be sure beforehand that whatever bank you send the money to will give you the tt3 form.

if the money is wired into someone elses account , you may not be able to get those forms without a lot of running around.

the banking procedures here are still in the dark ages , left hands dont know about right hands , staff are not familiar with procedures , without the right paperwork and signatures you can easily get stuck in a labyrinthine bureacratic neverending nightmare

without those tt3 forms you wont be able to send money out of thailand if you ever sell the condo in the future.

consider sending the money to your account in thailand , getting the tt3 sorted , and then sending the money to the developer.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, apparently I am very naive. It is a fortunate coincidence that I read this. I just wire transferred a significant amount from my bank account in US to my account in Thailand (I live in BKK). As a matter of fact, 15 minutes ago the manager of the building I live in gave me a message to call the bank about the transfer.

I intend to use this money (and additional funds I will transfer some time in the future) to buy a condo or house or land (not sure at the moment. But, I don't expect to make a purchase for another 6 months to a year. So, I would appreciate any advise you might give as to how I should handle the bank. Obviously, from what you said I should have tt3 so that I have the option to transfer money out of Thailand in the future. But, since I am not making a purchase now and I am not sure if it will be condo, house or land, can you suggest how I should handle this with the bank? Thanks very much in advance.

[taxexile]

tiger moth 7 ,

i'm not an expert on the regulations regarding the tt3 , but i dont think there is a time limit on how quick you have to buy after transferring funds into the country.

someone told me 6 months and someone else told me there is no time limit.

you can get the tt3 as soon as the funds are in your account here , you will be asked what the funds are for , and tell them its for a property purchase.

when i bought my condo last week , i used 2 tt3 certificates , one of them was 7 months old , and there was no problem at the land department with it.

the 7 month old tt3 had property purchase as the reason for bringing the funds in ( as we had planned to build ) , those plans were abandoned and on the more recent tt3 i put "condominium purchase" down as the reason for the funds.

maybe someone else knows if there is a time limit on the validity of the tt3 form.

[whitespider]

Thanks guys - especially Taxexile

I think perhaps I didn't make the situation very clear. The problem is that i don't have a Thai bank account.

I cannot open one UNTIL I get there. Lets assume I come to BKK and open the account - which I understand is actually quite easy.

However HOW do i get my bank in the UK to send the money without my permission. After al I hope to god they wouldn't just accept a telephone call saying hey send $50 to this bank account in Bangkok please.

My lawyer has suggested using his ESCROW account and for 2500 her will have the tt3 ready and waiting for me on arrival. Now that seems like a good idea to me - 2500 to save all that aggro. However having done business here for many years and seen numerous property purchases go terribly pear-shaped for people I am reluctant to send $50k to someone else's account even a lawyers ESCROW.

Any further suggestions?

Andy

[taxexile]

However HOW do i get my bank in the UK to send the money without my permission. After al I hope to god they wouldn't just accept a telephone call saying hey send $50 to this bank account in Bangkok please.

you set up "telephone banking" with your uk bank before you leave , you provide them with passwords and other security information and then when you get here you just call them up , they ask you for part of your password and other information and you tell them how much you want transferred and to where.

you could also do it over the internet if you set up online banking services with them.

i prefer the phone.

i wouldnt send one baht to a thai lawyers account , its easy to arrange transfers into your thai account , the money is here within a couple of days and the transaction costs about 30 pounds. send it in sterling , dont let them buy baht in england and send it , send pounds and the thai bank will change it to baht , you will get a far better rate.

[mbkudu]

Thanks guys - especially Taxexile

I think perhaps I didn't make the situation very clear. The problem is that i don't have a Thai bank account.

I cannot open one UNTIL I get there. Lets assume I come to BKK and open the account - which I understand is actually quite easy.

However HOW do i get my bank in the UK to send the money without my permission. After al I hope to god they wouldn't just accept a telephone call saying hey send $50 to this bank account in Bangkok please.

My lawyer has suggested using his ESCROW account and for 2500 her will have the tt3 ready and waiting for me on arrival. Now that seems like a good idea to me - 2500 to save all that aggro. However having done business here for many years and seen numerous property purchases go terribly pear-shaped for people I am reluctant to send $50k to someone else's account even a lawyers ESCROW.

Any further suggestions?

Andy

Make sure the money goes into an account that is in your name, period, then if there is a cockup, at least it's not in someone else's account, dohh! Like Taxexile said before you send, make sure to write on the wire transfer form, 'for the purchase of a condominium.'

This is the way I did it. I went over on a 30 entry stamp that is obtained on arrival, got a simple savings account at Kasikorn bank and then went condo hunting. Once I found one I liked, I put down 50,000 baht as a deposit with the agent, got a receipt and then flew home. I then sent the rest of the money to my account and flew back two weeks later to go through the land office routine. It was a lot of flying around, but well worth going through it. You could also authorise a lawyer or estate agent to do it for you at the land office, then you might eliminate a trip.

[whitespider]

Thanks everyone - especially taxexile. I can't do the two trips so have to have it all done in one but it seems fairly clear if I get my skates on.

I WILL get the lawyer to soprt out the Land Registry section, do the lien searches and check the contract tho. I know at least one individual who "lost" his condo for want of not having the contract checked.

Regards

Andy

[taxexile]

if you are buying the condo from anybody other than the developer ( i.e. from an owner) then make sure there is no mortgage outstanding on the property and that all service charges have been paid to the condo management by the previous owner , if the previous owner was a company , make sure the seller has the right to sell , there are documents to verify all these situations , make sure the agent who accompanies you down to the land office knows his /her stuff and that you can communicate properly with them. when you get your documents for the purchase , check that the address is for the unit you have bought and not the one next door.

if there is some mortgage then a bank rep. has to come to the land office and clear his interest , before handing over the title deed.

check , check and check everything again , before you sign anything.

[mbkudu]

You can request a copy of the current title deed which will be all be written in Thai. I took this copy and had it translated so that I could compare the seller's name with the name on the deed, the address and the square area. All this information on the deed matched that of what I was dealing with, so all went well. It isn't all that complicated as long as you take the time to check into things. Most of it you can do yourself rather than pay a lawyer to do it.

[FRM-BKK]

Whitespider,

The details taxexile has given you are all correct, tot tor 3 is no longer used and has been replaced by certificate of foreign exchange in quantities of 20 thousand US dollars or equivalent.

I went through the process last year, without a hitch.

As already mentioned by another poster, I too requested a copy (front and back) of the current title deeds, in order to find out if there were any monies outstanding. they were clean.

I was in a similar position as you.........and not had a bank account in Thailand. I contacted the Bangkok Bank branch in London. They were extremely helpfull.

They were not in a position to open an account for me, but they transferred my money for me, deposited into Bangkok Bank Silom branch next day, awaiting for me to turn up in Bangkok and open an account a week later or so.

When they transferred the money they added to the details apart from the usual, my passport number and the reason for the remit (condo purchase)

When I went to the BKK bank at Silom HQ everything was ready waiting for me. I was lucky too, as the exchange rate had increased between transfer and opening my account. Money was held in Sterling whilst awaiting for me to turn up in Bangkok.

I hope this is of some help.

FRM-UK

[afalang]

Just 2 weeks ago I was told that my Foreign Currency Exchange Certificate was 3 days out of date !!! they only last for 6 months.

[mark744]

Afalang

After reading your post, I've been trying to sort out the validity period of the "Foreign Exchange Transaction Form" (tt3), as I intend to make a downpayment on a newbuild condo now and then the balance in 2 years time. I asked at the Dept of Land Office today and they told me that there wasn't a time limit, however I have heard 6 months as well so wondered who had given you this info?

Thanks Mark

[Sophon]

send it in sterling , dont let them buy baht in england and send it , send pounds and the thai bank will change it to baht , you will get a far better rate.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I agree that you always get a better exchange rate by making the transfer in a major currency. But more importantly (in the case of buying a condo) it's a requirement for obtaining a "certificate of remittance" (formerly TT3) that the transfer was received in Thailand in foreign currency.

Sophon

[pmugghc]

How much is the admin transfer fee you're supposed to pay ? SOmeone said 3.3%, is that correct ?

Thanks, Roland