Honeymoon Period Over for Kamala Harris Polls Show Tight Race

[MoreTime]

Hello All

I am on a hunt for your opinions.

First let me start by saying I live in Singapore. I am interested in aquiring a vacation home in Wong Amat, with the intention to retire there in 5+ years.

I understand the condo glut situation and have seen all the great debates on this forum. 

My Budget is 16m tbh.

I have my eye on a 2 bedroom 96sqm upper floor unit at "The Palm" in Wong Amat.  I like the developments position and the unblock-able views it provides.  The unit i am looking at will provide a full ocean view, slight pattaya view, and a view of the sanctuary of truth.

As I have not spent years in Pattaya, i would like to ask you locals...

1.  Is the developer "nova group" reputable?

2.  Is the management of their past projects reputable?

3.  Is the quality of their past projects good?

4.  Any specific rumors about this development i should be aware of?

5.  What kind of % discounts are generally achievable off list prices with new Pattaya developments?

6.  Are there any comparable existing luxury properties or new developments i should look into further.

7.  Lifestyle & privacy aside, are there any investment trends/incentives/facts in buying a private villa verses a highrise luxury condo in Pattaya?

I would like to thank you all in advance for your valued input.

[monty]

Moved to the Pattaya forum, more people here who might give some insights!

[BlackPuddingBertha]

Most of this has been covered hundreds of times here. Have a look back in older threads.

Nova Group has been around quite a long time. I dont think their quality level is significantly lower or higher than average, the average build quality in Pattaya (if not the whole of Thailand) being quite low by international standards.

The last time I drove past the Palm with an agent, he said "Ooh, have they actually started building it?". The same could be said about many other buildings.

If buying a condo with a view, have a good look on Google Earth to see what empty plots lie between you and your view. If there is an empty plot someone will probably build on it at some point.

Any "investment trends/incentives/facts" related to buying a house rather than a condo? The obvious one is that you (as a non-Thai) cant buy a house and land but you can buy a condo. The same applies to the non-Thai that you may want to sell your property on to in a few years time.

Discounts? Agents get up to 8% or more as commission on new build sales so this would be a good place to start. Apart from that all prices are highly negotiable, which ought to give you a clue.I

16MB for 96sqm? Rather you than me. This is Pattaya, not Singapore.

Is there any competition? Yes, lots. And more coming.

But you also said this:

"I understand the condo glut situation....."

which makes me wonder if you understand it, why the #@% are you thinking of participating in it?

[monty]

And maybe as some info on your inquiries:

The Nova group "seems" to be reasonably well managed and reliable. They are also partnered with the Amari group in the hotel business. It certainly is not a new player by any means and a bit of research should be able to dig up a track record of some sort.

Not much more info on that part of your questions.

Regarding comparing a condo to a a luxury villa, it's quite simple. With a villa/house you will get (much) more value/living-space for your money, but the major drawback is that as a foreigner you cannot own the land your house is sitting on, so you'll need to be pretty savvy legal wise on how to handle such an investment safely and staying withing the law.

[toenail]

I use to rent a condo, (siam penthouse- one first apartment buildings built on that point) and it is true, you will have great views of the area if you are facing the islands (west) and not looking at the harbor which is mostly north. That area along soi 16 use to be a sleepy neighborhood,but now the condo developers are gobbling up the quiet area. It is still far away from the main drag so it would be more quiet than if you were in Jomtien. But around Long Beach hotel, it has become a mini-Russian tourist trap with huge busses blocking the sois. But you will get this anywhere in Pattaya now days. Nova is a decent company.I haven't seen any of their planned apartment projects fizzle out. If you are looking for this apartment as an investment, then it won't since there will soon be a glut of these buldings from Naklua all the way to Jomtien.

[simple1]

Just a thought, why not rent a holiday apartment in the area, whist waiting for your eventual move to the Pattaya area. Pattaya is changing quite quickly with the advent as a mass tourism destination. There are infrastructure projects planned to ease things such as traffic congestion, but the fist major project has now been delayed for a year and that is only for one junction; other planned. Also there are two major tourist attractions, theme parks, being built towards Bang Saray that will be a big draw card for even more packaged tourists.

In summary suggest you wait a few years before making such an important life style change as Thailand/Pattaya is rapidly changing & not so sure it's good for the retirement demographic.

Edited December 12, 2012 by simple1

[MrJ]

i would consider purchasing an already finished development - e.g. North Point you get arguably better construction quality than Nova Group for about the same rates/prices. Up to 10 % discount are possible if you avoid any agent.

Next to North Point the new project Zire will be finished in about 2 years - after that all plots around are occupied.

[BlackPuddingBertha]

"What kind of % discounts are generally achievable off list prices with new Pattaya developments?"

Earlier today I drove past a sign saying "5% cashback on all our units". It was from a well-known local developer. So 5% discount would seem to be a minimum starting point at least from them.

There are quite a few other discount posters around town also, and one bit of agent's literature I read recently said that local developers were offering discounts in order to make the most of the large number of tourists around in high season, which is rather odd as normally one would suppose that discounts would be offered when there are fewer buyers rather than when there are more.

I'm fairly sure that there will be resales available in most (if not all) off-plan buildings also. There is a lot of advertising in Jomtien near the Hanuman statue for units at 30% off developer price on Pratumnak.

One fairly upmarket building is doing (has just done?) an "auction" for their "last remaining units", which doesn't seem like a good sign to me.

[WaywardWind]

I have my eye on a 2 bedroom 96sqm upper floor unit at "The Palm" in Wong Amat. I like the developments position and the unblock-able views it provides. The unit i am looking at will provide a full ocean view, slight pattaya view, and a view of the sanctuary of truth.

When you say upper floor, which floor exactly? I live right next door to the Palm, and am trying to imagine which units in the building would have the views that you describe, since you have the 24 story Silver Beach directly adjacent to the north and west with only 10 meters separation between the front elevation (west) of the Palm and the rear elevation (east) of Silver Beach, and the 32 story Palm Beach where I live directly to the south and 100 meters distant.

I seem to recall that the Palm will rise to 40 stories; if that is accurate, you would have to be in a front (western facing) unit on one of the very upper floors to have the views that you describe and could potentially have very little privacy given the proximity of Silver Beach.

[WaywardWind]

I have my eye on a 2 bedroom 96sqm upper floor unit at "The Palm" in Wong Amat. I like the developments position and the unblock-able views it provides. The unit i am looking at will provide a full ocean view, slight pattaya view, and a view of the sanctuary of truth.

When you say upper floor, which floor exactly? I live right next door to the Palm, and am trying to imagine which units in the building would have the views that you describe, since you have the 24 story Silver Beach directly adjacent to the north and west with only 10 meters separation between the front elevation (west) of the Palm and the rear elevation (east) of Silver Beach, and the 32 story Palm Beach where I live directly to the south and 100 meters distant.

I seem to recall that the Palm will rise to 40 stories; if that is accurate, you would have to be in a front (western facing) unit on one of the very upper floors to have the views that you describe and could potentially have very little privacy given the proximity of Silver Beach.

Disregard the above. There are two towers going up - The Palm and Wong Amat Tower, and the issues that I raised relate to the latter. Senior moment, I guess....heh