Northpoint Condos Now 26% Off

[beginner]

Raimon Land are promoting 14 units in Northpoint, Pattaya at 26% off listed price and 13% off 15 units in the River, Bangkok.

They also have a display advertisement in the Bangkok Post (p16) today offering Northpoint units at 4.5 million baht.

Is this the start of a general price adjustment for condos aimed at farangs? Most observers of the Pattaya market have been expecting the apparent huge oversupply and frantic promotion of speculative new buildings by developers to eventually lead to a price crash.

Reliable sales statistics are not published here so most knowledge is anecdotal or provided by people with a vested interest. Consequently the pessimists or perhaps buyers claim that very that few condos are actually selling unless they are 'realistically' priced. ie half price or 50 cents on the dollar

The optimists or perhaps sellers claim that all is well in a slow market. Prices are holding up well and anyway exchange rate fluctuations mean that farang sellers can break even if repatriating cash at lower than original purchase prices.

Is the Pattaya condo market about to follow the stagnant house market where hardly anything is selling? Will the new type of tourist from India and Iran and Asia replace the missing farang buyers?

What do our experts think about all this?

[somtampet]

They were 25% too much anyway,a bit more realistic now.Its daylight robbery to charge big bucks for condos,as the companies are taking advantage of theloophole to say farangs can own their own shoebox

[bcross2001]

They were 25% too much anyway,a bit more realistic now.Its daylight robbery to charge big bucks for condos,as the companies are taking advantage of theloophole to say farangs can own their own shoebox

Does this apply to Phuket and Samui as well - if so who will the new buyers be?

[bcross2001]

Does this apply to Phuket and Samui? If so would are the new buyers going to be?

[Lazy Sod]

I doubt those big discounts apply for foreign quota at Northpoint Last time I checked they were simply trying to get rid of the remaining Thai quota units.

[InterestedObserver]

I doubt those big discounts apply for foreign quota at Northpoint Last time I checked they were simply trying to get rid of the remaining Thai quota units.

Last time I checked there were roughly ten units lit up at night. Either everybody goes to bed early or hardly anybody is living at Northpoint.

[DoubtingThomas]

They were 25% too much anyway,a bit more realistic now.Its daylight robbery to charge big bucks for condos,as the companies are taking advantage of theloophole to say farangs can own their own shoebox

I can never understand this kind of comment. It really baffles me. Why? It implies people are being screwed ("daylight robbery"). Nobody is being screwed. The price is what the market will bear, which is precisely what this thread is about. Caveat Emptor. If you're silly enough to pay over the odds for a "shoebox" whose bloody fault is it? A fundamental of cost vs. price is that the only relationship is margin. You sell at what the market will pay. If it makes you 10%, tough luck, that's the market. If it makes you 500%, good luck to you. That's the market.

Perhaps you might also explain the "loophole" that allows foreigners to own condo's. Why is it a "loophole" (it isn't) and why, given the tone of the post, does it imply an opportunity for Thai's to skin foreigners? It affects the market, for sure, through increased demand, but I can't ever recall a Thai developer snatching foreigners from the street and holding them ransom until they buy a unit. As far as I can see, they are all more than willing buyers. Sellers charge market price everywhere, in general. Yes, some people walk into a car dealer and pay list, some people snatch a bargain here and there, but in general, it's the market, and that's that. When I sold my house in CA and made megabucks did I rob the buyer? No. When I sold my house in TX and lost $50k did the buyer rob me? No.

Rant over.

[Theo007]

New condos seems to be springing up everywhere between Pattaya and Jomtien, like mushrooms after the rain. About four new blocks together at the top of Pratumnak 5, just wonder who is going to purchase them all.

[A. BOOZER]

New condos seems to be springing up everywhere between Pattaya and Jomtien, like mushrooms after the rain. About four new blocks together at the top of Pratumnak 5, just wonder who is going to purchase them all.

The Russians?

[bangkokjohn]

property in Thailand has been dropping for years. This report using bank of Thailand data was written before the riots of May and should worry anyone in the business. Prices dropped 18% in 2008! http://www.globalpro...d/Price-History

Friends of mine in the real estate business have given up on Thailand and now are selling London properties to rich Thais.

Frang market here is dead.

[hhgz]

"I can never understand this kind of comment. It really baffles me."

Me too. Raimon Land is selling 30 units at a discount, and posters who don't own homes, never have owned homes, and never will own homes point to it as evidence that the condo market is collapsing. Look, did you see that? It was my best over-the-top eye roll.

If you follow the "financial crisis" thread, the posters are waiting for the crash of the Thai baht. Before you can say "Jack Robinson", the THB/USD exchange rate will be 60-to-1. Wow, cheap condos made even cheaper...in just a few days...cue the eye roll.

[trogers]

Friends of mine in the real estate business have given up on Thailand and now are selling London properties to rich Thais.

F(a)rang market here is dead.

Yes, this last statement is mainly right if you only consider farangs who bought with USD and Euro. They are now selling due to favorable exchange rates. But in order to sell, someone will have to buy.

Who are these buyers? Farangs from countries whose currencies are not falling, and foreign asians and local Thais.

[craigt3365]

property in Thailand has been dropping for years. This report using bank of Thailand data was written before the riots of May and should worry anyone in the business. Prices dropped 18% in 2008! http://www.globalpro...d/Price-History

Friends of mine in the real estate business have given up on Thailand and now are selling London properties to rich Thais.

Frang market here is dead.

Prices dropped almost world wide in 2008. Pick any country, UK included. For sure there are political uncertainties here, but the economy is really robust and the local market is doing great, as you point out. I drove up Soi Siam Country Club the other day and was amazed at the new construction. People with that kind of money don't start projects on that scale if they think they will lose money. The exchange rate is also killing the farang market.

Great link. Also from that article:

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House prices then recovered, and rose by an average of 4.8% p.a. from 2000 to 2006.

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Not a bad appreciation...but the past several years have been really tough!!!!

[london]

I was interested in Northpoint when it was first released, however, I thought the prices at the time were too high and my lawyer in BKK advised me not to buy until it was completed.

I have received the email re discounts and I believe that it relates to many foreign buyers who have not (and possibly can't) complete their purchases. Lets face it, its been a tough couple of years.

However, that said, I wonder if the discounted units on sale are available to foreigners anyway, or whether they are only for Thai buyers ? I know that The River has a large amount of unsold units for Thai ownership whereas the foreign component is full (49%).

Regarding property prices going nowhere here, well, from experience, its not totally accurate. I sold one of my units here (prime BKK) at a considerable profit in the last 7 months. I am not saying that is everyone's experience, as I know that its not, but the fact is that there are people around who are not losing capital.

Oh, I still hold property here that I have no intention of selling.