Can I Rent A Flat In Central Bangkok With £300 A Month?

[fantasyvn]

Dear all, may I ask if it is easy to rent a one-bedroom flat, which consists of a bedroom, a living space, toilet and a kitchen space, for £300/month in central Bangkok?

4 years ago, I rented a flat, paid by my then company, a few minutes' walk from the Chit Lom station on the BTS Skytrain Sukhumvit line.

I was wondering if it is possible to do the same for £300/month.

My sincere thanks for your kind advice.

[ukrules]

Yes, but you will need to do some legwork to find it by walking around the various buildings, checking the noticeboards and asking what's available in the offices. I know someone who rented something similar to what you're looking for in Sukhumvit Soi 4 for 11,000 a month a week or two ago.

I suggest you check if you'll be paying the electric bill directly to the electricity company or how much the building management will charge you per unit for it before renting - I'd say if it's not direct (and a lot of them aren't) that anything more than 5 Baht a unit is too much - they're already adding about 20-25% on at 5 Baht but that seems to be the going rate in a lot of places. I've heard of rates as high as 7 or 8 Baht a unit which is a complete rip off.

If you want a phone line / internet access it might be worth making enquiries with the telephone company as to the availability of a line, once I found that even though there was a socket all the lines were in use locally which made it quite hard to get connected, that's another story though.

[fantasyvn]

Hi, thank you for your kind advice. It is really helpful.

I'm looking at the website http://www.thaiapartment.com to see if there is anything suitable.

May I ask on average, how much do you pay for the electricity, water and phone/internet access per month? I forgot these expenses initially.

Thank you.

[sulasno]

expect to pay 4k baht for electricity, water, phone and internet

[fantasyvn]

Thank you, Sulasno, for your information.

[MichaelJohn]

I rent a 76 Sq/m apartment in Baan Satthorn for B15k/m ....... +B4k for elec/Internet/Water ................

[MunterHunter]

Electric very much depends on the size of the property, the rate you are paying and how Air-con addicted you are

I've paid anywhere between 5k a month for electric in a small one bedroom apartment, using the air-con a lot and paying stupid rates for electric to the building. I have also paid as little as 2500b for a big 3 bedroom house using the air-con frequently and paying direct to the electric company.

Water varies too, if you pay direct to the water company, expect your water bill to be around 150b a month however if you are in a condo/apartment building who charge you direct it can be anything upto 1000b a month (one place i stayed at charged that due to the pool - they claimed)

Internet again varies, you can get a direct package with companies like True for around 600-1000b depending on the speed you want etc, however if you are using a shared wifi in an apartment block you can expect to pay around 1000b a month for real cr@ppy speeds - again very much depends on the property, the management and the other users...

Direct line telephone should cost around 117b a month for line rental plus tax - then after that its down to the number of calls you make etc. Mobile phones you can get some nice packages now (free call minutes, sms's and data) for around 700b a month.

Hope that helps

[jalansanitwong]

You will have to look around but 15,000 b sounds more than enough including water and electric. As other people pointed out its very IMPORTANT you check what the electricity rate is because the Thai manager will never give you a bill from the utility board. It will always be an 'in house' electric bill. Usually a total rip off.

I pay same as Thai's ... 2 baht per unit plus tax (60 satang) in a shophouse in Thonburi....... In Sukhumvit rd condo area they may boost it up to 10 baht a unit !! Thai Manager's wife drives a Benz.

Domestic Water usage per Thai person per month in BKK is about 50 baht. You will probably pay a flat rate to the manager of about 200 - 500 b /month maybe a bit less if youre lucky. Thai manager pockets the difference .

In a one bedroom apartment with one a/c unit blowing mostly at night only ,your overall electric bill should be no more than 1,000 b/m... If the Thai manager hits you with a bill for 2,500 b he is definitely pocketing the balance. see Thai wife above !

Lights and appliances cost virtually nothing. Its the a/c thats the bigey.

4000 baht / month for sundries ??????? thats way up at the generous farang top end. Sounds like the above posters have a very happy Thai manager

Edited September 14, 2011 by jalansanitwong

[jamstock]

I rent a 76 Sq/m apartment in Baan Satthorn for B15k/m ....... +B4k for elec/Internet/Water ................

wow, how did you manage that? That is very good value for what it is.

[Bakseedaa]

My advice would be ...Go to Vietnam... Thailand is going downhill quickly, prices are going up , up , up....and the girls are too streetwise, dirty and greedy... add lazy on to that also...

[fantasyvn]

Dear all, first I want to thank you for all your helpful information and advice.

A building near the BTS Victory Monument wants to give me an offer. Although the accomodation fee is higher than my initial budget, but I think I can manage that, especially because I will only stay for three months, and most apartments are for at least 6 months. Because of my short stay, I think I cannot afford to be picky.

However, they tell me that the water charge is 17 Baht/unit and electricity 7 Baht/unit. What do you think of this?

Thank you.

[bkkjames]

First of all rent a condo-anyone wanting to charge you 7baht a unit for electricity will also ensure you have the oldest, most energy inefficient lighting, air con and appliances in town.

Kinda like printers that are cheap to buy but $ to operate.

[phuturatica]

If you check out the Thaivisa classified there are some apartments going for about £200 per month so it's definitely possible to get a place, you're just gonna have to look around to find the best one.

[balo]

Dear all, first I want to thank you for all your helpful information and advice.

A building near the BTS Victory Monument wants to give me an offer. Although the accomodation fee is higher than my initial budget, but I think I can manage that, especially because I will only stay for three months, and most apartments are for at least 6 months. Because of my short stay, I think I cannot afford to be picky.

However, they tell me that the water charge is 17 Baht/unit and electricity 7 Baht/unit. What do you think of this?

Thank you.

There are several 1 br condos available around sukhumvit area and BTS. With a separate bedroom and kitchen area.Around 35 sqm. And the rent is 10 to 12000 baht , electricity 4 baht .

I can recommend some new condo bulidings near the new BTS extension Udumsok . The name of the place is S&S Sukhumvit 188 , it was finished last year. And many available units. Nice big swimming pool and gym.

You can rent directly from the owners , just call them , you find more information here:

http://prakard.com/d...?g=topics&f=951

Although most of them would like 12 month contracts its possible to find 6 months.

Good luck!

Edited September 14, 2011 by balo

[Bkkorupcountry]

My advice would be ...Go to Vietnam... Thailand is going downhill quickly, prices are going up , up , up....and the girls are too streetwise, dirty and greedy... add lazy on to that also...

We will miss you when you're gone.

[fantasyvn]

Dear all, I have shopped around and indeed, it is possible to find a nice condo at budget price. However, my problem is I only stay for 3 months so they refused to let me in. They said my best bet is to find a serviced apartment whose price would be higher, as it is geared toward short-term tenants.

Now I found a good apartment. The rent is ok.

However, they list the price for utilities. Could you pls let me know if it is fine?

Laundry - 3,210.00 baht/month, inclusive of VAT

Water - 535.00 baht/month, inclusive of VAT

Electricity - 7 baht/unit, inclusive of VAT.

Thank you.

[bkkjames]

Rediculous prices, keep searching for a condo

[aridion]

3,500 for laundry. Are they aving a laugh?

[MrHammer]

Second not to rent an apartment. Condo is always the better choice. You pay utilities directly to the provider and you can generally negotiate the terms you prefer with your landlord (provided he/she is honest and you get along). Most Bangkok apartmens seem short term to me and I can't understand how anyone can live in them for longer periods. 15000 baht should get you a nice 1 bedroom condo in a central location

Edited September 18, 2011 by MrHammer

[balo]

Dear all, I have shopped around and indeed, it is possible to find a nice condo at budget price. However, my problem is I only stay for 3 months so they refused to let me in. They said my best bet is to find a serviced apartment whose price would be higher, as it is geared toward short-term tenants.

Now I found a good apartment. The rent is ok.

However, they list the price for utilities. Could you pls let me know if it is fine?

Laundry - 3,210.00 baht/month, inclusive of VAT

Water - 535.00 baht/month, inclusive of VAT

Electricity - 7 baht/unit, inclusive of VAT.

Thank you.

I think you can do much better than this , even if its short time rent.

Water should be no more than 100 or 200 baht.

Laundry, ive never heard of anyone paying that much

Elevtricity : Yes that is normal for a serviced apartment , in a condo it would be 4 baht

[nocturn]

I have a 2 bedroom 2 story house for that on lower Sukhumvit.

Does not include utilities.

deals are out there you just have to find them

[nocturn]

I have a 2 bedroom 2 story house for that on lower Sukhumvit.

Does not include utilities.

deals are out there you just have to find them

[tw25rw]

Looking at mrroomfinder, I would say it is easy to get a place for less than that. Of course if it has to be staggering distance from Nana Plaza, it will be dearer.