Investing In Condos: Your Opinion

[Khun Jean]

In my opinion investing in condos with the purpose of renting them is a good business, maybe the only good business in Thailand. But nobody say how to do it in legal way. A farang can not have an income in Thailand without making a thai company, so can not have an income by investing in condos without making a company. So how to do it? Can someone give a good answer?

Thank you in advance

So, start a company.

Which kind of company to do this business? How many quota I must have in this company? How many thai people I need to do this company? Someone says no more than 49%, someone suggests no more than 35%, someone says thai company needs just one managing director, someone suggests that Thai company needs two managing director to do this business, one thai and one farang. But as you can see in this topic nobody will answer to this questions because nobody in thailand rent own condos in the legal way.

You forget about just being an 'owner/shareholder'. As an owner/shareholder you don't need a workpermit, but you do have to pay taxes on your dividend. There is no salary. It would be nice if you have someone that you can trust that can manage the company for you. When incorporating the company you can decide who has what kind of decision making power.

If you want to be a manager, then you need a workpermit 2 or 4 Thai employees depends on if you are married to a Thai or not.

Depending on your nationality a minimum salary of 40-60k per month.

I am married so i don't need a workpermit to have a visa, that is how i started, perfectly legal. Me 49% my wife 51%. 2 Employees, my wife as manager and a 'helper' that does the inspections/small repairs etc.

Now that i live in Thailand fulltime (since one year) i have taken the manager role and have a workpermit. I could just stay only a shareholder but i am now more active and you don't want to risk being caught working without a workpermit. Before my wife did most of the work so it was not a problem.

When you are married with a Thai it is easy. If your not married, you need someone you can trust.

And if you don't have that, just buy a few. Nobody bothers you when you have a few condo's anyway.

One piece of advice. Don't listen to anybody giving you advice about businesses. You are the one responsible so know what you are going to do.

Start by reading the goverment websites that have all the details. Let lawyers explain it when there are parts you do not understand or ask for opinions here. But never follow someones advice. In Thailand it can cost you dearly, and nobody is accountable for their mistakes and certainly not for yours.

The only one that takes care of you, is you!

Edited October 8, 2012 by Khun Jean

[Jameskahomungai]

Freehold, message me if you need to know more.

Cheers

G'day Ezythai,

I hope you don't mind but I saw your invitation to another member about details you had on buying freehold condos in a foreign name in a building in ladprao which were at great prices. One with a thai chinese owner.

I am a longtime resident of chonburi and looking to move to bkk but cannot find any good places to buy.

I love the ladprao area but have not seen anything close to as good as what you are talking about.

I realize that you don't know me and i have just joined thaivisa so you cant really verify my creds. But I am not a realestate agent trying to do resale. I am just looking for a nice apartment for myself, wife and child.

I would really appreciate some details but also fully understand if you are reluctant to reply to me.

all the best,

James

[sotsira]

I asked this in the Visa forum but did not get a reply.

Perhaps someone here can answer?

When you own a condo in a foreigners name & it is part of the foreigner

allowed quota of that building, Do you get a Blue Book/Tabien Baan in your name?

Does this qualify same as a Yellow book for proof of address required for foreigners to buy/sell cars & bikes?

Thanks

Yes. A foreigner can use the blue book as proof for place of residence. And a foreigner who does not own a condo but is only renting can use the lease agreement as proof for place of residence to do the same.

I was always told that the blue book was only for Thai nationals that live at the property and that foreigners could not have their names listed

in them.

I've owned a few condos in my name over the years and have never had my name listed as the owner in any of them, only on the back of

the title deeds.

[Samedeepwaterasyou]

The Thai real estate business is nothing but a big money launderette for a big chunk of the dirty money created by the illegal Thai economy .

[balo]

I paid 1.4 Mill baht for a new condo in Jomtien area that will be ready to move in next year.

I expect to rent it out for 10k pr month , if I can find any long term tenants. Its a nice building with a big pool and shops / security .

If not it will be a nice place to stay in for me and family.

Edited October 10, 2012 by balo

[cheeryble]

The Thai real estate business is nothing but a big money launderette for a big chunk of the dirty money created by the illegal Thai economy .

I often hear about illegal money and laundering money.

It seems every bit of real estate is from drug money.

Every other country has real estate developers who do it to make a living and I would assume Thailand's the same.

Do you have some inside knowledge about this? I'm dying to know......

[uhuh]

Strolling: what's wrong with property investment in Thailand? I understand a foreigner can't own land/house, but no such issues with owning a condo.

The country is far too unstable in the long term.

Future visa laws?

When the inevitable/unspeakable happens?

Long-term social and political instability.

As the Thais say, 'Thailand is for the Thais'... Rent, enjoy your life here, just don't get overly involved or start investing what you'll cry over if you lose.

And a foreigner can own a house. Just not the land it's built on unless they 'invest' 40 million baht.

And now speaking from my experience of renting condos out for 6 years I am now getting out of the market to some degree.

Unlike imaginary theoretical posts Ill deal with BKK only

30m2 is absolutely NO problem to rent Ive done this for 6 years, always full longest vacant room 3-4 weeks and that was unusual.

Price/ location as always is critical but now there is another thing to throw into the mix...............................oversupply.

When I bought my rooms (5) they were a good price ( 1 million each) and i got rent of 15k a month each which slowly over the 6 years has come down due to oversupply to 10-11k a month.

I also bought when my home currency was 72baht to the £ n ow its 49 and this has made a BIG difference as to why Im not buying now.

It was good for 6 years, now too many rooms, returns well over 10% and at 6 years old I have sold two of the rooms already, YES SOLD in the last 2 months at a small profit of 300k per room which in fact is not so small.

I have kept 3 rooms and will plod on eventualy selling maybe another 1-2.

Many were selling their rooms at 1.5 million baht I sold at 1.35 million very quickly,

If you can do your own maintenance it might be ok but really there is so much choice now it is getting harder to hook a customer.

New rooms also are not cheap roughly around 2 million now so the returns are even smaller and not viable for me.

If you want my website and any info you can pm me for clarification, no bullshit fantasy theoretical crap form armchairs pundits.

In the 6 years I managed to get back virtually what I paid for the rooms in rent and then a capital gain, the timing was critical, now its not a good time IMO.

hi,

i read your posts about your condos, you say you have a website?

i may have more questions but let me have a look at your website first

thx

[Khun Jean]

You will find that the condos are priced such that they never sell.