Normal Process Of Property Transfer?

[Apothecary]

Hi could someone kindly offer an overview of the process of tranferring property? I have a view to buy a condo and the agent is requesting I make a desposit and sign agreement straight with the owner without involving a lawyer.

my prefer would be use a mutual holding account under lawyer supervision but the agent says it makes it more complicated and take longer.

i guess it comes down to trust. to be honest i'd rather pay the extra.. better safe than sorry..

how do other people think about this?

[Dragonman]

Hi could someone kindly offer an overview of the process of tranferring property? I have a view to buy a condo and the agent is requesting I make a desposit and sign agreement straight with the owner without involving a lawyer.

my prefer would be use a mutual holding account under lawyer supervision but the agent says it makes it more complicated and take longer.

i guess it comes down to trust. to be honest i'd rather pay the extra.. better safe than sorry..

how do other people think about this?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Having practiced law for many years I'd advise not to trust anyone, not even your lawyer.

[naritdr]

Hi could someone kindly offer an overview of the process of tranferring property? I have a view to buy a condo and the agent is requesting I make a desposit and sign agreement straight with the owner without involving a lawyer.

my prefer would be use a mutual holding account under lawyer supervision but the agent says it makes it more complicated and take longer.

i guess it comes down to trust. to be honest i'd rather pay the extra.. better safe than sorry..

how do other people think about this?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Having practiced law for many years I'd advise not to trust anyone, not even your lawyer.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I think it's common practice in this country to put down some deposit before acquiring any real estate. So with this regard all you can do is to make sure the agreement to buy and to sell is binding and to verify the ownership of the owner which has to be clear of any encumbrance.

If you don't really trust the owner at all, instead of mutual account you can bargain with the owner for no deposit at all. This is practically possible. All you have to do is to verify the ownership of the owner , to set up a transfer date at the land office and to make an appointment with the owner. The setback of no deposit is that under the Civil & Commercial Code the seller who dose not take any deposit is free to sell his condo to anyone else at will and is not bound to sell to you, unless he agrees to sign the agreement to buy and to sell. If the seller dose not recieve any deposit at all, it is highly unlikely that he will agrees to sign the agreement to buy and to sell to commit himself.

So to make a long story short, I probably suggest that you just verify the seller's ownership and ensure the agreement to buy and to sell is binding. The mutual account could be alternative, but I think it's less commonplace than deposit or no deposit. Best of luck.

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[whosyourdaddy]

It is quite easy really. Both parties show up at the local land office at an agreed upon time and wait in the cue. Once the officer looks at the papers and all the forms are filled out, taxes are paid. The taxes are about 5% and the contract should state who is responsible for paying them. When that is complete both parties go to the dept head and the deed is given to the seller and the cash is given to the buyer. Everything is now legal. If the buyer has mortgaged the house the bank will take the deed and another fee ( we paid 10000) will be paid to the land office to recognize the bank as the owner of the house.

The land office will verify that it is a legal sale (ie all owner(s) are present etc) A lawyer usually charges 15000ish to be present at the sale. I dont think it is necessary since it is a simple process. Once you have the deed there is nothing the owner can do to take it away from you.

But yes make sure a lawyer looks at it and your deposit is not too much. Usually we pay about 10-20K for it.

Edited July 10, 2005 by whosyourdaddy

[FRM-BKK]

Hi Apoyhecary,

In Brief how I went through the process last year.

Made contact with property agents.

Selected one who, in my opinion did the best job

This agent found me the property I liked (a condo)

The Agent (who also happened to be a property Lawyer) drew up contracts in two languages.

I asked the agent to to supply me with the title deeds, back and front to see if any encumbrances were outstanding...............they were clean.

Part of the contract was a deposit of 10 % payable to the agent, with the clause that if either party defaulted, the deposit was forfeited in case of the seller, a return of the deposit plus the same 10% again as penalty.

Agent, seller and buyer (me) had a meeting in which all documents were inspected by all parties again (I had a contract some 7 days before) all parties had to hand over passports and ID cards. These were photo-copied and attached to the contracts, all signed (the passport and id copies) by the respectfull owners.

All 3 signed the contract

All parties had a witness present, who all signed the contract.

I paid the 10% for which the agent issued me with a receipt.

Six weeks later I went back to Thailand to complete.

arrived on sunday,

went to the bank on Monday to prepare cheques

By now I had all the paperwork required from a foreigner to proof where money had come from.

Tuesday, met again with the Agent, seller and myself and all witnesses

Proceeded with the transaction, got keys immediately.

Wednesday afternoon I had the title deeds

Thursday little party to celebrate!

All done in 3 days................remarkable

I too had doubts about not using a lawyer.................but the agent i found totally trustworthy.

It is the way property sales are done here.

I had the advantage of the agent being a lawyer as well.

Any more info you want ask me.

Good luck

FRM-UK

[Apothecary]

Hi FRM-UK,

Thank you for responding and detaling the process as it was for you. it seems more straightforward than i imagined which is a first for my exeprience with things Thai.

Cheers!

RC