I started this same thread in the general forum cause I thought I'd get a much larger audience and a fair amount of replies but only got 1 so I thought I'd bring it here, my home turf.

I am a non-working (retired) American living in Chiang Mai and haven't been back to the US for over 6 years.

This inquiry is for "non-working" single or married foreigners, living in LOS at least 6 to 8 months a year but still enjoy returning to their home country for several months and do not stay with any family member.

I hope some of you can share your housing situation in your home country by anwering the following questions which apply to you,

. do you own your home (house or apartment)?

. if you do not own, do you rent year round or find a sublet for the few months?

. if you leave it unoccupied when returning to LOS, how do you secure it from theft?

. if you either own or rent, do you sublet it out when you return to LOS?

I know there are other housing alternatives out there such as living in a RV, house sitting, etc., so feel free to add any other practical alternatives you have experienced.

Thanks for your useful comments.

Please do not cross post, pick one and I will close it. thanks

Please do not cross post, pick one and I will close it. thanks

Well I think it would be subject to what you want.

If you can afford two residences in different countries it should be based on your wants not other peoples experience. I am sure there is good and bad points to all your choices. When I moved here it was because this is where I wanted to say home was. So I sold almost all my material things and gave all the household things to my boy except my car which I let the ex use. Have since signed it over so she can insure it with out me.

Go for a visit have kids and ex in Canada plus a couple of friends up north and brothers and sisters in the states. I can stay with them all and that is why I go back to visit them. Besides the home I owned was 300 miles away from the closest of the lot.

Please do not cross post, pick one and I will close it. thanks

At the same I posted this, I asked the mods to close the other one. Hopefully they will. I just checked and it is still not closed.

Can I assume that I simply request closure within the thread, right? Never done it before.

. do you own your home (house or apartment)?

No

. if you do not own, do you rent year round or find a sublet for the few months?

Rent year round

. if you leave it unoccupied when returning to LOS, how do you secure it from theft?

Badly - broken into once already! Nothing of great value left in the house and a notice on the back window tells burglars that! I lock the TV in the car trunk when I come to Thailand. Have to have a mate do a bi-weekly property inspection to satisfy the insurers. Have security sensor lights for the dark areas at the back. I do not switch on the ancient alarm - if its triggered when you are away its more trouble than its worth (I state 'no alarm' to the insurer)

. if you either own or rent, do you sublet it out when you return to LOS?

No. Letting out a property when you are not in-country is more hassle than it's worth

I don't recommend this approach to others! I do it to make an aged aunt happy (I rent it from her as she is in a Nursing Home round the corner). That way other family members, who live nowhere near her or overseas like me, can use it as a base and she gets to see family. It's a significant expense when taken with keeping a car in the UK too. Much more sensible to use hotels and hire cars if you visit for only 2 months of the year (spread over 5 visits) like me.

While I know people who rent someplace different every year, I rent year round in Thailand because I like having a place that feels like home. I feel the same way about my US residence, which I own.

If you can afford to maintain two residences halfway around the world, that's the way to go. If not, you'll have to deal with short-term rentals in at least one of them.

My US residence is in a very secure condo. There has never been a robbery in 45 years. I've occasionally rented it out while I'm here in Thailand, but usually it's not worth the hassle and risk since I live in a location where the laws favor the tenant.

Property in another country is simply an investment that should be looked after by a property mamagement company, not really your home. If you choose to leave Thailand for a couple months a year then that is a vacation where you can rent, stay at a hotel or whatever.

Sounds like you are on the fence about really relocating and/or need the property as a safety net if you need to return.

I live in accommodation blocks provided by offshore drilling companies,or hotels paid for by offshore drilling companies,should I have the misfortune of returning to my home town I couch surf.