How Much Does A Modest House & Land Cost In Ubon

[ShanePashen]

Firstly, yes i CAN USE GOOGLE, AND IF YOU CAN LINK ME TO SOME REAL ESTATE SITES, ALL THE BETTER.

I won't hold anyone to any figures, but how much roughly in Baht would a reasonable 2 or bedroom house & Land package cost in Ubon, on a nice little parcel of land.

Alternatively a ballpark figure to build a house, from scratch on TGF's land.

Say typical Thai 2 or 3 bedroom modest type bungalow.

Not planning on acting quickly. just running some stuff through my heads at the moment.

Thank you for your rep[lies.

[necronx99]

Shane, this is one of those "peice of string length queries"

Your idea of reasonable,nice, modest etc is entirely in your head.

While you might get guides here the range of answers may not really help you.

Your best idea is to go up there and look around, ask some questions.

If you find a "nice" bit of land you can factor in building costs at 5000 baht per sqm for a nice thai finish.

10k baht per for a avaerage farang finish (as you swould be used to) and the sky is the limit after that.

One of the Mod has a build thread coming along here Build in the Boonies

That is probably coming along at the 5k mark and will give you an idea of countryside building.

As supaprik says below, there are a lot of things that can blow your expenses out.

You can build cheap and comfortable here, but it's not going to be an AV Jennings showhome. There is a fair bit of expecation managment required on your part.

You do have lots of choices with style and materials however.

Edited April 10, 2012 by necronx99

[supaprik]

Necronx's "guesstimates" are about right but you should do your costing on more as there is ALWAYS added expenses....

BTW...How many heads do you have man?

[TommoPhysicist]

If you are building a traditional house on stilts.

Out of corrugated iron about 80-160k

Out of man made materials about 70-140k

Out of wood 200-500k

No glass, just shutters.

Modest style bungalows are not really typical Thai village buildings, more of a western concept and have many associated problems.

Hotter (no air flow under the building), wetter (liable to flooding), more expensive (concrete slab needed)

In my village no labour costs, the person building it, will live in it. Everyone goes along to help when they have free time. There is one going up at the moment, as we are all waiting for harvest, there will be 6-8 of us hanging around each day.

Edited April 10, 2012 by TommoPhysicist

[David48]

Shane, great advice by the two guys above.

Expectation in Thailand are totally different.

Do you want a Western style bathroom?

Do you want a kitchen in the house or outside?

Does the land have title?

You know that YOU can't own the land?

After you have read the thread that suggested by necronx99 above, read through some of the entries in the http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/forum/59-real-estate-housing-house-and-land-ownership/

59-real-estate-housing-house-and-land-ownership

And the http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/forum/124-do-it-yourself-housing-forum/

124-do-it-yourself-housing-forum/

Then, when you are thinking about the home, think WHO will live in the home ... and I am sure YOUR thinking will be different then your GF's thinking.

[sezzo]

I have just moved into Ubon town itself and renting at the moment. We have been looking around the new developments for a house and land package. 3 bedrooms/2 bathroom will start at 1.7m baht up to 2.1m depending on quality of finish and size of block of land. We are now looking around for land close to our needs and will get a home built from one of the bigger building companies in Ubon. Can let you know later after we check out prices for both land as well as builder.

Hope this answers your question

[ShanePashen]

I have just moved into Ubon town itself and renting at the moment. We have been looking around the new developments for a house and land package. 3 bedrooms/2 bathroom will start at 1.7m baht up to 2.1m depending on quality of finish and size of block of land. We are now looking around for land close to our needs and will get a home built from one of the bigger building companies in Ubon. Can let you know later after we check out prices for both land as well as builder.

Hope this answers your question

To everyone who has responded, thank you, yes I know it was a very vague enquiry, and as usual I have qualified nothing.

The truth is I really don't know what I want, or what I am looking for.

Yes I will be quite interested in hearing prices, of H & L packages.

I have done a rudimentary search for an equivalent of realestate.com,That covers the Ubon Ratchithani area, if there is one please advise me.

My girlfriends parents are rice famers and she tells me she has quite a bit of land, what the qulaity of that land is, the jury is still out!

It is in Lao sua koak, if anyone has an opinion on thsi area, pleae don't hesitate to fill me in.

I am in a postion, where if i am judicious and things work out for us, it is not beyond the realms of possibility, that I could invest in something there, as aholiday/retirement home.

Once again thanks

Edited April 10, 2012 by ShanePashen

[TommoPhysicist]

I have just moved into Ubon town itself and renting at the moment. We have been looking around the new developments for a house and land package. 3 bedrooms/2 bathroom will start at 1.7m baht up to 2.1m depending on quality of finish and size of block of land. We are now looking around for land close to our needs and will get a home built from one of the bigger building companies in Ubon. Can let you know later after we check out prices for both land as well as builder.

Hope this answers your question

Buying in a moobaan will cost 3x-4x the normal building cost.

The land is very very expensive, the building will be done by the moobaan builder.

Big profit margins for everyone, and moobaan fees to be paid in perpetuity.

[Gweiloman]

I just finished building a house near Yasothon. Original budget (as given by wife) was 500,000 for a simple 3-4 bedroomed, typical Isaan style house. Finished product around 2 million due to lots of additionals (my choice). This is 5-6 bedrooms, separate living and dining, one en-suite, one other toilet and one other bathroom, two patios, small fish pond, single storey, about 3,000 sq ft.

I would suggest to give your gf a budget of 500,000 but prepare to spend 1 million if you need mod-cons like western style bath/toilet, aircon etc. Ultimately, the land is free (I presume) so it's very little money to have a comfortable home.

[necronx99]

I just finished building a house near Yasothon. Original budget (as given by wife) was 500,000 for a simple 3-4 bedroomed, typical Isaan style house. Finished product around 2 million due to lots of additionals (my choice). This is 5-6 bedrooms, separate living and dining, one en-suite, one other toilet and one other bathroom, two patios, small fish pond, single storey, about 3,000 sq ft.

I would suggest to give your gf a budget of 500,000 but prepare to spend 1 million if you need mod-cons like western style bath/toilet, aircon etc. Ultimately, the land is free (I presume) so it's very little money to have a comfortable home.

pics?

[transam]

There are dozens of housing developments in and around Ubon, as well as land for sale. Location is the key to land costs. How much land do you want ?, or like me don't want the upkeep of continuous gardening. My friend just bought 5 Rai at 500,000bht a Rai and he's been offered 600,000bht for a couple of Rai within a few months. It's all happening in Ubon.

[ShanePashen]

I just finished building a house near Yasothon. Original budget (as given by wife) was 500,000 for a simple 3-4 bedroomed, typical Isaan style house. Finished product around 2 million due to lots of additionals (my choice). This is 5-6 bedrooms, separate living and dining, one en-suite, one other toilet and one other bathroom, two patios, small fish pond, single storey, about 3,000 sq ft.

I would suggest to give your gf a budget of 500,000 but prepare to spend 1 million if you need mod-cons like western style bath/toilet, aircon etc. Ultimately, the land is free (I presume) so it's very little money to have a comfortable home.

Land free, what that land is like however, i have no idea, and how remote, road access, I also have no idea.

Sounds like a great house for a mere Aud $60000., if i could get a decent house, perhaps not so palatial as yours for half that, i' be over the moon.

A mate of mine here, spent that on a Harley not so long ago, dam_n fool IMHO.

[ShanePashen]

There are dozens of housing developments in and around Ubon, as well as land for sale. Location is the key to land costs. How much land do you want ?, or like me don't want the upkeep of continuous gardening. My friend just bought 5 Rai at 500,000bht a Rai and he's been offered 600,000bht for a couple of Rai within a few months. It's all happening in Ubon.

Ok Boy am I learning fast here, so I googled a Rai, Rai is 1600 Sq metres, and costs about $15600 Aud, yeah that is cheap, 5 RAi cost him about approx $78000 Aud, for about 2 Acres in the old lingo.

While that's not bad, what it tells me, is land still costs good money, even in the sticks in Thailand.

Was that for like absolute Primo land?

Sorry if I'm sounding all this out, and I'm trying to get my head around all this.

I am really just trying to get a feel for what sort of dollars realistically, investing in a Ubon would be.

While it is comparatively inexpensive, i would say it's far from dirt cheap, and if you have some free land it's a hell of a start.

All things considered.

Anyone feel free to throw their $0.02, How are rates calculated, in thailand?

I have done some googling, and this video demonstrates the kind of house, which would suffice our needs i feel.

Edited April 10, 2012 by ShanePashen

[kevjohn]

We don't pay land rates.

Pay garbage (20bht a month) and water (depending how much you use)

[transam]

There are dozens of housing developments in and around Ubon, as well as land for sale. Location is the key to land costs. How much land do you want ?, or like me don't want the upkeep of continuous gardening. My friend just bought 5 Rai at 500,000bht a Rai and he's been offered 600,000bht for a couple of Rai within a few months. It's all happening in Ubon.

Ok Boy am I learning fast here, so I googled a Rai, Rai is 1600 Sq metres, and costs about $15600 Aud, yeah that is cheap, 5 RAi cost him about approx $78000 Aud, for about 2 Acres in the old lingo.

While that's not bad, what it tells me, is land still costs good money, even in the sticks in Thailand.

Was that for like absolute Primo land?

Sorry if I'm sounding all this out, and trying to get my head around all this.

I am really just trying to get a feel for what sort of dollars realistically, investing in a Ubon would be.

While it is inexpensive, i would say it's fa from dirt cheap, and if you have some free land it's a hell of a start.

Anyone feel free to throw their $0.02, How are rates calculated, in thailand?

As l said, location. I live on the edge of the lake in Ubon and there is a plot next to me that is l think a quarter of a Rai, last l heard they wanted 1.5 Mill for it, lake view.

My pals 5 Rai is about half Km away but no lake view. Loads of surrounding land for sale. Really depends what you want. If you come to Ubon l can show you some stuff up for grabs.

[Gweiloman]

I just finished building a house near Yasothon. Original budget (as given by wife) was 500,000 for a simple 3-4 bedroomed, typical Isaan style house. Finished product around 2 million due to lots of additionals (my choice). This is 5-6 bedrooms, separate living and dining, one en-suite, one other toilet and one other bathroom, two patios, small fish pond, single storey, about 3,000 sq ft.

I would suggest to give your gf a budget of 500,000 but prepare to spend 1 million if you need mod-cons like western style bath/toilet, aircon etc. Ultimately, the land is free (I presume) so it's very little money to have a comfortable home.

pics?

[TommoPhysicist]

that is one ugly house!

[Gweiloman]

that is one ugly house!

My wife likes it. That's all the matters to me

[transam]

that is one ugly house!

Hmmmm, we haven't seen your wife yet Tommy. Back off l think.

[cdmtdm]

that is one ugly house!

My wife likes it. That's all the matters to me

yes exactly !!! if u dont mind me asking did you engage a builder or did you contract the work out yourselves ? and how long did you take to get to this stage ? your 2 mill did not include land price as well i take it ?? well done cheap house in my books ...

[Gweiloman]

that is one ugly house!

My wife likes it. That's all the matters to me

yes exactly !!! if u dont mind me asking did you engage a builder or did you contract the work out yourselves ? and how long did you take to get to this stage ? your 2 mill did not include land price as well i take it ?? well done cheap house in my books ...

We engaged a builder. As this was the first (and possibly last, haha) house that I built, I wasted quite a bit of money unnecessarily. The many (and thick) columns were meant to support a much thicker (4 pack?) roof tile but due to the large area, the roof tiles were going to cost me a fortune so I changed these.

Biggest problem of course is that my partner and I both actually live in Bkk so project managing was left to the other members of the family. No need to tell you how that turned out .

Best advice would be to project manage it yourself on the spot. Check heights of all doors and architraves. Check levelling of bathroom counters. Check locations of power points etc. No floor plan and measurements, no matter how detailed, will be transferred from paper to ground. Measure everything yourself.

Actually, that's second best advice. Best advice, sabai sabai, no big deal how the house turns out, as long as the BBQ works, the beer's cold and the wife's still loving, what more does one need in life?

[KunMatt]

that is one ugly house!

My wife likes it. That's all the matters to me

yes exactly !!! if u dont mind me asking did you engage a builder or did you contract the work out yourselves ? and how long did you take to get to this stage ? your 2 mill did not include land price as well i take it ?? well done cheap house in my books ...

I'm guessing by the style and finish on that house and seeing things like the support posts in the middle of a bedroom it was done by a village builder, or even his family members in their spare time and if so 2 million baht is steep. My gf's dad and his family and friends built his house for 200k and the finish looks very similar to that. 3000ft2 works out to 7k per m2; we just paid 10k per m2 with a building company in Ubon and it is European quality - kinda! At least we get a year guarantee to right all the wrongs...

OP it all depends on your circumstance. I've just paid 2 million for a house in a part of Thailand I wouldn't live if it wasn't for my gf and son, and we only plan to be here for a few years until our son is of school age. Chances of us selling this place in the end is virtually zero as Thai's generally don't want to buy a second hand house, they want to build a new one. I did it to be close with my gf's family as we all get on really well, it is great for my son to be here and I can afford to spend 2 million for 3 years accommodation, plus whenever we come back in the future to visit family our house will be waiting for us. If you've got the money and plan to stay here for a long time then it is worth investing in a very comfortable place with all mod cons, if it's only temporary or short term and you don't have the money to throw away then try to find somewhere to rent , or stay with your Thai family!

Oh yeah, and building a house in Isaan has been one of the most stressful things I have ever done in my real life. I don't recommend it.

[KunMatt]

We engaged a builder. As this was the first (and possibly last, haha) house that I built, I wasted quite a bit of money unnecessarily. The many (and thick) columns were meant to support a much thicker (4 pack?) roof tile but due to the large area, the roof tiles were going to cost me a fortune so I changed these.

Biggest problem of course is that my partner and I both actually live in Bkk so project managing was left to the other members of the family. No need to tell you how that turned out .

Best advice would be to project manage it yourself on the spot. Check heights of all doors and architraves. Check levelling of bathroom counters. Check locations of power points etc. No floor plan and measurements, no matter how detailed, will be transferred from paper to ground. Measure everything yourself.

Actually, that's second best advice. Best advice, sabai sabai, no big deal how the house turns out, as long as the BBQ works, the beer's cold and the wife's still loving, what more does one need in life?

We were in quite a similar situation. We were in BKK for most of the build and came back once every couple of months to tell them what they were doing wrong, like building the whole house with the wrong bricks!! I made them knock it down and start again!

Also, I never once saw a spirit level and I only saw a tape measure once. Suffice to say a lot of our walls are not straight and it really shows against the floor tiles.

You definitely want to be there even if using a building company. A family member has brought all of his staff from BKK to Ubon to build his house for him, he knew them very well and trusted them very much so he stayed in BKK while they built his house. Within the first 2 weeks they were already cheating him by getting invoices for more materials than they were actually taking.

"Sabai Sabai", a great theory for building a house but very difficult to do in practice. I couldn't manage it!!

[Gweiloman]

that is one ugly house!

My wife likes it. That's all the matters to me

yes exactly !!! if u dont mind me asking did you engage a builder or did you contract the work out yourselves ? and how long did you take to get to this stage ? your 2 mill did not include land price as well i take it ?? well done cheap house in my books ...

I'm guessing by the style and finish on that house and seeing things like the support posts in the middle of a bedroom it was done by a village builder, or even his family members in their spare time and if so 2 million baht is steep. My gf's dad and his family and friends built his house for 200k and the finish looks very similar to that. 3000ft2 works out to 7k per m2; we just paid 10k per m2 with a building company in Ubon and it is European quality - kinda! At least we get a year guarantee to right all the wrongs...

OP it all depends on your circumstance. I've just paid 2 million for a house in a part of Thailand I wouldn't live if it wasn't for my gf and son, and we only plan to be here for a few years until our son is of school age. Chances of us selling this place in the end is virtually zero as Thai's generally don't want to buy a second hand house, they want to build a new one. I did it to be close with my gf's family as we all get on really well, it is great for my son to be here and I can afford to spend 2 million for 3 years accommodation, plus whenever we come back in the future to visit family our house will be waiting for us. If you've got the money and plan to stay here for a long time then it is worth investing in a very comfortable place with all mod cons, if it's only temporary or short term and you don't have the money to throw away then try to find somewhere to rent , or stay with your Thai family!

Oh yeah, and building a house in Isaan has been one of the most stressful things I have ever done in my real life. I don't recommend it.

Maybe I should have mentioned as well that the 2 million baht includes furnishings (lights, furniture, appliances etc etc. It would be good for the OP to know the total cost and not just the building costs) To be honest, I didn't really keep track of every single expense because the ultimate figure (2 million) is in my books, good value for money.

[strollling]

About a mill will see you right.

Perhaps rent long term, not buy. You never know but some disco, pig farm, motorbike racing boys, could move in next door, you know (or maybe not) the type of Thai that puts his music on full blast at 4.30am. A mate of mine bought a place and a pig farm opened up next to him within 6 months, he can barely live there with the stench, cannot open any windows, all the Thais (with local authority) that he spoke to laughed, nothing he can do. He's waiting for a small disco club to set up in the shack on the other side.

Rent long term, don't buy in this country. But if you insist, about a mill will see you do alright for what you want.

Edited April 10, 2012 by strollling

[Gweiloman]

We engaged a builder. As this was the first (and possibly last, haha) house that I built, I wasted quite a bit of money unnecessarily. The many (and thick) columns were meant to support a much thicker (4 pack?) roof tile but due to the large area, the roof tiles were going to cost me a fortune so I changed these.

Biggest problem of course is that my partner and I both actually live in Bkk so project managing was left to the other members of the family. No need to tell you how that turned out .

Best advice would be to project manage it yourself on the spot. Check heights of all doors and architraves. Check levelling of bathroom counters. Check locations of power points etc. No floor plan and measurements, no matter how detailed, will be transferred from paper to ground. Measure everything yourself.

Actually, that's second best advice. Best advice, sabai sabai, no big deal how the house turns out, as long as the BBQ works, the beer's cold and the wife's still loving, what more does one need in life?

We were in quite a similar situation. We were in BKK for most of the build and came back once every couple of months to tell them what they were doing wrong, like building the whole house with the wrong bricks!! I made them knock it down and start again!

Also, I never once saw a spirit level and I only saw a tape measure once. Suffice to say a lot of our walls are not straight and it really shows against the floor tiles.

You definitely want to be there even if using a building company. A family member has brought all of his staff from BKK to Ubon to build his house for him, he knew them very well and trusted them very much so he stayed in BKK while they built his house. Within the first 2 weeks they were already cheating him by getting invoices for more materials than they were actually taking.

"Sabai Sabai", a great theory for building a house but very difficult to do in practice. I couldn't manage it!!

Sabai sabai is the main reason I decided to live in Bkk. I have quite a stressful job (still) and Thailand keeps me grounded and in perspective about life.

[KunMatt]

Maybe I should have mentioned as well that the 2 million baht includes furnishings (lights, furniture, appliances etc etc. It would be good for the OP to know the total cost and not just the building costs) To be honest, I didn't really keep track of every single expense because the ultimate figure (2 million) is in my books, good value for money.

Your house still doesnt look finished in those pics. And why is the floor of the house on ground level, why not raise it up at least 60cm? Have you seen how much it rains here when it does?

The 2 million we paid to the housing company included all lights, floor tiles, everything painted, stepped ceilings with spotlights and fans, both bathrooms all completely furnished and finished. Basically the house was ready to live in for 2m and we did the day it was completed by the electrician. It also included 20cm Q-con bricks for the whole house and two tone C-Pac tiles.

Where the hell did your 2 million go?? It looks like a normal Isaan village style house. You dont even have quality branded roof tiles.

I hate to tell you this mate, but I think there is a builder walking around with about 1 million baht of your money in his pocket.

[Gweiloman]

Maybe I should have mentioned as well that the 2 million baht includes furnishings (lights, furniture, appliances etc etc. It would be good for the OP to know the total cost and not just the building costs) To be honest, I didn't really keep track of every single expense because the ultimate figure (2 million) is in my books, good value for money.

Your house still doesnt look finished in those pics. And why is the floor of the house on ground level, why not raise it up at least 60cm? Have you seen how much it rains here when it does?

The 2 million we paid to the housing company included all lights, floor tiles, everything painted, stepped ceilings with spotlights and fans, both bathrooms all completely furnished and finished. Basically the house was ready to live in for 2m and we did the day it was completed by the electrician. It also included 20cm Q-con bricks for the whole house and two tone C-Pac tiles.

Where the hell did your 2 million go?? It looks like a normal Isaan village style house. You dont even have quality branded roof tiles.

I hate to tell you this mate, but I think there is a builder walking around with about 1 million baht of your money in his pocket.

It's not yet 100% finished. It's on ground level but that's because it's raised up about a meter from street level. I can't remember exactly but I think we had about 200 truck loads of soil put down. Builders fee was actually only a couple of hundred thousand baht, I bought most of the materials myself.

A substantial amount of money went towards things which are not visible in the picture and which may not be necessary for some. For eg, 60,000 baht for main door and 20,000 baht for patio door (from Home Pro - not the cheapest but the most convenient for me). Lots and lots of windows with mosquito netting. A as yet unstarted outbuilding comprising kitchen and workshop (about 800 sq feet). A 50,000 bht 48 (?) inch 3D HDTV as yet undelivered. Vllleroy & Boch and Grohe fittings for my bathroom (extended family just regular stuff).

I could have easily built a liveable house for 1 million but it's not everyday that one builds one's own house so might as well make it worth the effort. I guess I could have easily saved 20% off what I paid but the I decided that convenience and less stress was worth the money.

[Gweiloman]

that is one ugly house!

Hmmmm, we haven't seen your wife yet Tommy. Back off l think.

At least I'm not sponging off my wife

[ShanePashen]

food for thought 1000000, is about $31500 Aud, so not that much money really at all.

Actually it seems like sweet FA really if you have land, i have a bad feeling about Thai builders, and whiskey swilling in laws however.