Best Way To Invest Money In Thailand.

[yoshiwara]

I've taken issue with the "I'm alright, Jack; pull up the ladder" attitude from Naam before. He's just one of those people who are programmed to be obstinate, unhelpful and downright acerbic.

Trust me, the best way to get rid of Naam on a thread is to directly ask him for his advice.

For example, "Naam, what would you suggest I do?"

You won't hear from him again.

You mean he won't bow to the 'buy gold' mantra presumably.

Edited July 6, 2012 by yoshiwara

[HardenedSoul]

I've taken issue with the "I'm alright, Jack; pull up the ladder" attitude from Naam before. He's just one of those people who are programmed to be obstinate, unhelpful and downright acerbic.

Trust me, the best way to get rid of Naam on a thread is to directly ask him for his advice.

For example, "Naam, what would you suggest I do?"

You won't hear from him again.

You mean he won't bow to the 'buy gold' mantra presumably.

Nothing to do with that.

The OP asked for some advice. Instead of providing positive input, he simply shows up and slags off everything others suggest.

That, in and of itself, would be fine if he actually provided an alternative viewpoint.

[yoshiwara]

I am in the same boat as the OP. Still too young to collect SS and IRA (without penalty). I was looking through Bangkok Bank (my bank) mutual fund performances. They looked very impressive. Anybody have experience with them? I have modest fund (250k usd) that I want to stretch till my IRA and , later, SS kicks in.

Would appreciate constructive advice

Impressive returns can sometimes mean that these investments are higher risk. Do you want higher risk?

[mikekim1219]

I am in the same boat as the OP. Still too young to collect SS and IRA (without penalty). I was looking through Bangkok Bank (my bank) mutual fund performances. They looked very impressive. Anybody have experience with them? I have modest fund (250k usd) that I want to stretch till my IRA and , later, SS kicks in.

Would appreciate constructive advice

Impressive returns can sometimes mean that these investments are higher risk. Do you want higher risk?

Nobody wants high risk for their investment. We all want zero risk and highest possible returns. This being impossible, most of us are trying to find a balance. The risk we are willing to take is proportional to the amount of capital and whims of the individual. I am just trying to stretch my capital as long as possible and safe as possible learn from others of their experience and advice.

[yoshiwara]

I am in the same boat as the OP. Still too young to collect SS and IRA (without penalty). I was looking through Bangkok Bank (my bank) mutual fund performances. They looked very impressive. Anybody have experience with them? I have modest fund (250k usd) that I want to stretch till my IRA and , later, SS kicks in.

Would appreciate constructive advice

Impressive returns can sometimes mean that these investments are higher risk. Do you want higher risk?

Nobody wants high risk for their investment. We all want zero risk and highest possible returns. This being impossible, most of us are trying to find a balance. The risk we are willing to take is proportional to the amount of capital and whims of the individual. I am just trying to stretch my capital as long as possible and safe as possible learn from others of their experience and advice.

Not so in practice. Any bank/financial advisor for example will try to ascertain whether you have a propensity for high/medium/low risk re your planned investments and allocate a portfolio accordingly. Generally potentially higher returns (and losses) imply a higher risk allocation. An idea of total amount available to invest against one's total savings is a useful starting point.

Edited July 7, 2012 by yoshiwara

[Naam]

I've taken issue with the "I'm alright, Jack; pull up the ladder" attitude from Naam before. He's just one of those people who are programmed to be obstinate, unhelpful and downright acerbic.

Trust me, the best way to get rid of Naam on a thread is to directly ask him for his advice.

For example, "Naam, what would you suggest I do?"

You won't hear from him again.

trust me...

[Naam]

I've taken issue with the "I'm alright, Jack; pull up the ladder" attitude from Naam before. He's just one of those people who are programmed to be obstinate, unhelpful and downright acerbic.

Trust me, the best way to get rid of Naam on a thread is to directly ask him for his advice.

For example, "Naam, what would you suggest I do?"

You won't hear from him again.

The OP asked for some advice. Instead of providing positive input, he simply shows up and slags off everything others suggest.

That, in and of itself, would be fine if he actually provided an alternative viewpoint.

the OP asked for advice providing no background information at all:

What would you say was the best way to Invest and make your Money grow in Thailand?

instead of pointing that out the lady got a load of rubbish and "funny" advice. the situation is similar to somebody who phones a car mechanic asking "there's something wrong with my car. can you tell me what it is and how i can fix it?"

any car mechanic, or in this case, financial "adviser" who does not ask two dozen questions to evaluate the individual situation acts reckless without slightest due diligence.

best of all was "advising" an obvious financial greenhorn:

you use a stop-loss & pay some attention to the technical indicators. You're in cash before it tanks, or your fund manager has already upped the percentage of cash, limited the losses, and is ready to play the recovery

over the 6 years in Thaivisa i have privately advised a number of persons in financial matters, but not before receiving answers for the questions i asked. even then i was utmost careful regarding my suggestions by pointing out possible risks and shortcomings.

[yoshiwara]

I am in the same boat as the OP. Still too young to collect SS and IRA (without penalty). I was looking through Bangkok Bank (my bank) mutual fund performances. They looked very impressive. Anybody have experience with them? I have modest fund (250k usd) that I want to stretch till my IRA and , later, SS kicks in.

Would appreciate constructive advice

I will explain what I do, BUT (and I always say this to anyone I give advice to) don't take my advice I'm alway wrong.

I'm now about to receive my second SS check, just turned 62. I need dividend income. You want to try and not draw down principal. There is risk involved in what I'm going to tell you do but it's the best trade off of income to risk I've found.

I use Charles Schwab. Get an American address for your account. You can use a family member's address. Indicate you only want electronic communication. Whenever I need to talk to Schwab I use Skype. The reason to do this is you need to reside in the US to trade mutual funds (at least with them). The ability to use their bank to pull money from your account with no ATM fees is a key feature. If you have your IRA someplace else, transfer it to them. I would try not to pull income from the IRA because it's taxed. You may not have a choice but I leave my IRA money alone as much as possible.

What I suggest is high yield equities. These are ETFs and Mutual funds that produce dividends monthly or quarterly. I have about 15 different ones. They generate about 8% a year of dividends. Hopefully they also increase in value. 250k X .08 is 20k a year or 1600 a month. That's fully invested which would make me nervous.

I invest in 4 types of equities.

Junk bonds: JAHYX, TIYRX, STHTX, JNK, HYG, LQD

REITS: AGNC, HTS, NLY, MTGE, ARR, ANH

Senior Loans: EFT, TLI, VTR, VVR

Business Development Companies (BDCs): MMT get recommendations

REITs are particularly attractive now and some of them pay 15% and up. Remember the higher the dividend the more the risk. You can also buy Verizon and AT&T paying 5%+ or Exxon and Chevron paying under 4% but with a good growth potential. There is also high yield muni bond funds that kick out tax free income around 4% see SNTIX.

Every trade of ETFs cost $10 at Schwab. All the mutual funds mentioned are no load no fee funds. Mutual fund high yield tend to be more stable than the HY ETFs. Mutual funds are the way to go for amateurs. Easier to grasp. Schwab has recommendations in all these catagories.

Spread out your investments. Don't do anything until you know all you can about these kinds of investments. If you don't know about any of this stuff, get to work. You've got a lot of studing to do. Don't do anything till you're knowledgeable. It takes time to manage a portfolio. If you're just drawing down your IRA you're bleeding to death. Have a plan. Stick to it. Put stops in place.

Buy low sell high is the idea but dollar cost averaging buying a little at a time or monthly, slowly adding to your position may help. I would buy these equities in $10,000 lots (The market is high at the moment but these tend to be not as volitile as other investments. Put stops in place. These are orders to sell if the stock should suddenly drop, I would recommend somewhere around 7%.

2010 about 14%

2011 10%

2012 about even so far

I have slightly more money now than when I came to Thailand and I spend about 65K baht a month. Now I have SS so I expect to start to grow the nest egg.

Got that? What have I left out? Oh yea, don't take my advice.

Since I have all my asset in China and will be moving it to Thailand, this plan is not feasible to me. Also it's little too risky for my taste. Putting all my eggs in mutual fund seemed insane for my situation.

Since I am planning a cost of living budget of 40k baht per month, I suppose I can have them all in fix deposit at 3% and stay safe. With 5% inflation adjustment, I should be okay until SS kicks in.

I might dabble with Thai mutual with small fund and get feel of how it turns out. Thanks for your (non) advice anyhow..

Investning in Thailand is a gamble, and the only way to make a little money here is to bring a lot of money. They satong and baht you to death. I am at present moving my money out of Thailand and then myself. I have had it with the tax that comes in moderation with prejudice. You live here for awhile, you start buying and once your settled in....that's when you start seeing money leaving your hands without interest. I am not talking about women as you get what you pay for there.

Whether one brings one's money to Thailand or not (I am currently in the 'or not' camp) the key aspect of the 'plan' above which I take away is the IMHO eminently sensible idea to aim for dividends/returns from one's investments.

[besth]

Phil Conners gave very good information about investing in the Thai stock market. I have explored it a bit too, not great results but ok. I'm sure someone with dedication can do a lot better.

I very much disagree with the advice to buy off plan condos (but hey, even I have been in a casino sometimes, so if the OP is in for high stakes, why not?).

Buying a finished condo in a good area in Bangkok and renting it should give the OP a quite safe, decent return. I am talking about 5/6/7%, better than having the money in the bank and still quite safe. In Bangkok there should not be any problems in most buildings to have the condo in your own name.

I did decide years ago that I would not buy property in Thailand for myself (money I couldn't afford to lose), but I did buy a condo in Bangkok 3 years ago, for investment purposes and it has worked well so far. I doubt there is any chance of losing ownership even with all government/s screw ups.

Gold and other commodities are also markets where a lot of money can be made, but you must have a knowledge which I don't posess and it seems the OP doesn't have either.

[yoshiwara]

I did decide years ago that I would not buy property in Thailand for myself (money I couldn't afford to lose), but I did buy a condo in Bangkok 3 years ago, for investment purposes and it has worked well so far. I doubt there is any chance of losing ownership even with all government/s screw ups.

Gold and other commodities are also markets where a lot of money can be made, but you must have a knowledge which I don't posess and it seems the OP doesn't have either.

I think it is worth saying that some do not have the confidence/inclination to manage the ownership of a condo, some do not have the confidence/inclination to own stocks and some do not have the inclination/confidence to own either. This is not a criticism. Just the way it is. In which case be happy with saving money in bank deposits. Better to sleep soundly.

[besth]

I did decide years ago that I would not buy property in Thailand for myself (money I couldn't afford to lose), but I did buy a condo in Bangkok 3 years ago, for investment purposes and it has worked well so far. I doubt there is any chance of losing ownership even with all government/s screw ups.

Gold and other commodities are also markets where a lot of money can be made, but you must have a knowledge which I don't posess and it seems the OP doesn't have either.

I think it is worth saying that some do not have the confidence/inclination to manage the ownership of a condo, some do not have the confidence/inclination to own stocks and some do not have the inclination/confidence to own either. This is not a criticism. Just the way it is. In which case be happy with saving money in bank deposits. Better to sleep soundly.

I agree

[happyAA]

Re this discussion and Thai share investing have come up

There a website for investors in value shares, www thaistocks com (as opposed to day trading)

Great site but costs a fair bit too be member every year. We have been member sfor many years and reckon it's worthwhile

I think if you register for free can still see some information for free and see what the background of his thinking/thrust is which should be useful

Regards

[kblaze]

happyAA since you have promoted this website across several threads recently, can you elaborate a bit more on how it has worked out for you? you said you reckon it has been worthwhile. I understand Renauds basic low-cap, high dividend strategy, but how have returns played out for you? Are you holding these positions he recommends long term? How many years exactly have you been a member?

[PCA]

happyAA since you have promoted this website across several threads recently, can you elaborate a bit more on how it has worked out for you? you said you reckon it has been worthwhile. I understand Renauds basic low-cap, high dividend strategy, but how have returns played out for you? Are you holding these positions he recommends long term? How many years exactly have you been a member?

I had the same thoughts last night, sounds just like pumping their services. Usually those things come up after a nice run in order to lure new "clients" into their service chain.

Disclaimer: Past performance is not indicative for future performance, hehehe - just subscribe sheep

[gerry53]

I started reading this with some interest even though it has been inactive for 5 months. I can't understand why people who want to invest in Thailand do not utilize some of the better equity mutual funds? Many of the larger banks have these and their performance has been great. In 2112 I believe the SET (stock exchange of Thailand) ended up 36%. My mutual fund here in 2012 gained 42% and is off to a great start in 2013 posting a +11% so far - mid February. In my fund it is managed by a large bank, has a great record and is diversified in numerous sectors plus the returns (redemptions) are NON TAXABLE unlike dividends. I do not mind taking calcuated risks if the rewards are promising - I don't do fixed income!

It is only 20% of my portfolio with the other 80% in my home country in markets which I understand better from 25 years investing. My returns here of course are superior and I take my profits off the table regularly. I can't see why I would run a bar or other business, invest in real estate, or invest in individual stocks here with this type of hands off returns. I am retired (early) and all I have to do is monitor this funds progress against other similar funds to make sure the fund managers are keeping up or outperforming the competition.

Cheers

[BlackJack]

agree

a lot of these armchair investors are now eating crow after a stellar year for Thai funds

with all the nonsense overseas Thai funds still managed to return 80%

more crow any one

[klikster]

over the 6 years in Thaivisa i have privately advised a number of persons in financial matters, but not before receiving answers for the questions i asked. even then i was utmost careful regarding my suggestions by pointing out possible risks and shortcomings.

Yup. Thanks, Naam!

[watcharacters]

I would say the Thai stock market. It is both easy and cheap to get started here, much more so than in the west. Of course you shouldn't just jump into the deep water, but either paper trade for a year or so to get an understanding of how it works, what news to believe (and more importantly, what not to believe).

I do not have a clue about Thai stock market, at all. Where do i begin to learn about it ?

I am totally lost when it comes to this...... never felt the need to look at it before, but now in a better position to maybe.

Don't touch anything with a bargepole you do not understand and do not under any circumstances consult any 'financial advisor' in Thailand.

Leave your money in the bank and settle for the interest offered.

If that doesn't interest you, open a bar.............................

.

I think we can improve on that.