Furnished Vs Unfurnished Rentals

[Nelson07]

Hi,

Apologies if this has been posted before (I'm sure it has).

I am moving to BKK in about 3 weeks (from Australia). My job will be with an international company and is likely to be a number of years in BKK, but with strong possibilities of being posted to other S.E.A. cities in future. I have been given a reasonably generous rental allowance, and a 20' container to bring furniture and presonal effects.

I have noticed that almost all rental properties on various websites are listed as fully furnished. Is this the standard in BKK? I have a house full of furniture which I will be taking, is it easy enough to find unfurnished apartments?

Also, are listed prices on these real estate sites flexible or negotiable? If so, what sort of discount off the listed price should I expect?

I will be staying in a serviced apartment for a month, so will have time to work a lot of things out when I get there, just looking for some ammunition before I arrive.

Thanks

[Cloggie]

One bed, table and chair is sometimes also called 'fully furnished' so always check what they mean with 'fully furnished'!

[BlackPuddingBertha]

Condos do tend to be furnished, though not necessarily very well. Unfurnished houses are more common, though houses also throw up their own security-related can of worms depending on where they are. I dont think that I would like to take on a house in Thailand in an area that I didnt know fairly well.

As for prices, EVERYTHING to do with property in Thailand is highly negotiable. So negotiate hard and if you dont get what you want just walk away. There will be a hundred other identical places available next door.

And dont assume that anything that any agent, vendor or landlord tells you is the truth. It probably isn't.

[davejones]

I've lived here for almost 3 years and have seen very, very few unfurnished apartments. Most furnished apartments have seen have been fully furnished and will have everything, or almost everything you need. I wouldn't bother importing furniture, especially if you might get posted to another country. I send 6 boxes of my stuff here, and 3 of them I never used. Looking back, I should have just brought one suitcase. It's plenty. Most things are cheap here, so it's cheaper to just buy whatever you need. But in your case the company is paying for the container, so up to you. But it will be a real hassle to move if you have a container of furniture to haul around SE Asia. Traveling light is always the best option. Will also allow you to move around to different areas to see what they're like. You could move into an unfurnished place and end up wanting to live in another area of the city.

Regarding how negotiable the rent is, I have found that mostly you can get 5,000 discount off a place that's advertised at 30,000-40,000. Not always, as it depends how fair the price is to begin with. Many would rather keep their condos empty than cut the rent. But always offer less, and see what they say.

[55Jay]

Good points above from DaveJones.

If you plan to return to home country, store your things there and only take specific things you think you would like to have in Thailand.

See if you can keep a return shipment clause in your contract regardless, inevitably you'll pick things up over the years you would like to send home.

If you do decide to ship things over, wait a while and explore to find the area you really like.

Review the Thai customs clearance rules and ensure your company gets a reputable clearing agent in Bangkok.

http://www.customs.go.th/wps/wcm/connect/custen/individuals/importing+used+or+secondhand+household+effects/importingusedsecondhandhouseholdeffects+

Off topic again but if you like Thailand/SE Asia, use that rental allowance and buy something if you are inclined. I went 20+ years on allowances around the world and never bought anything, and I regret that.

Good luck and enjoy your postings abroad.

[wordchild]

Yes as the others have said most condos are rented furnished. You maybe able to get the landlord to move it out but he may well want you to pay for storage. I was in your situation, when I moved here,and wanted to bring all my furniture,what worked for me was finding a new build condo,that I liked, and then,through the condo office, contacting prospective landlords,before they had put any furniture in. Ended up renting from a guy who was so grateful he didn't have to put anything in apart from the curtains (and with no rental agency fee to pay) that he gave me a great deal on the rent.

On the rent a good tip someone gave me ,when I was looking , was to take the size in sq m then divide by 2 the resulting figure should be the maximun rent in thousands of baht ,per month,for a high end condo good location (say sathorn or around emporium) and close to sky train; eg 160sqm new well decorated condo close to asoke bts you should target paying under 80000 bt per month. For something a little less high-end or further from the bts knock 10 to 20% off that figure and so on. Also you will get a better deal if you can rent directly rather than through an agent. Though I am sure the agents on here would not agree.

Edited February 16, 2013 by wordchild

[BlackPuddingBertha]

On the rent a good tip someone gave me ,when I was looking , was to take the size in sq m then divide by 2 the resulting figure should be the maximun rent in thousands of baht ,per month,for a high end condo good location (say sathorn or around emporium) and close to sky train; eg 160sqm new well decorated condo close to asoke bts you should target paying under 80000 bt per month. For something a little less high-end or further from the bts knock 10 to 20% off that figure and so on.

Using that calculation I should be paying 32000B/month for my 65sqm unit, which would make my landlord delirious. I'm actually paying 10000 which seems about right to me.

I find it hard to believe that anyone would actually pay such silly prices, even in Bangkok. But I also find it hard to believe that anyone would want to live in Bangkok at all so maybe that explains it.

[wordchild]

On the rent a good tip someone gave me ,when I was looking , was to take the size in sq m then divide by 2 the resulting figure should be the maximun rent in thousands of baht ,per month,for a high end condo good location (say sathorn or around emporium) and close to sky train; eg 160sqm new well decorated condo close to asoke bts you should target paying under 80000 bt per month. For something a little less high-end or further from the bts knock 10 to 20% off that figure and so on.

Using that calculation I should be paying 32000B/month for my 65sqm unit, which would make my landlord delirious. I'm actually paying 10000 which seems about right to me.

I find it hard to believe that anyone would actually pay such silly prices, even in Bangkok. But I also find it hard to believe that anyone would want to live in Bangkok at all so maybe that explains it.

i did stress maximum rent for "high end' in Bangkok CBD or Sukhumvit upto Thonglor and close to sky train. In that area it works pretty well and i have found it useful myself as a reference . outside that area it obviously doesnt work. People do pay that kind of money in central Bangkok and some even more! Horses for courses as you (sort of) say. Edited February 16, 2013 by wordchild

[davejones]

On the rent a good tip someone gave me ,when I was looking , was to take the size in sq m then divide by 2 the resulting figure should be the maximun rent in thousands of baht ,per month,for a high end condo good location (say sathorn or around emporium) and close to sky train; eg 160sqm new well decorated condo close to asoke bts you should target paying under 80000 bt per month. For something a little less high-end or further from the bts knock 10 to 20% off that figure and so on.

Using that calculation I should be paying 32000B/month for my 65sqm unit, which would make my landlord delirious. I'm actually paying 10000 which seems about right to me.

I find it hard to believe that anyone would actually pay such silly prices, even in Bangkok. But I also find it hard to believe that anyone would want to live in Bangkok at all so maybe that explains it.

You don't need to believe it; you just need to accept it. Millions do indeed want to live in Bangkok, whether you believe it or not.

[wordchild]

On the rent a good tip someone gave me ,when I was looking , was to take the size in sq m then divide by 2 the resulting figure should be the maximun rent in thousands of baht ,per month,for a high end condo good location (say sathorn or around emporium) and close to sky train; eg 160sqm new well decorated condo close to asoke bts you should target paying under 80000 bt per month. For something a little less high-end or further from the bts knock 10 to 20% off that figure and so on.

Using that calculation I should be paying 32000B/month for my 65sqm unit, which would make my landlord delirious. I'm actually paying 10000 which seems about right to me.

I find it hard to believe that anyone would actually pay such silly prices, even in Bangkok. But I also find it hard to believe that anyone would want to live in Bangkok at all so maybe that explains it.

i did stress maximum rent for "high end' in Bangkok CBD or Sukhumvit upto Thonglor and close to sky train. In that area it works pretty well and i have found it useful myself as a reference . outside that area it obviously doesnt work. People do pay that kind of money in central Bangkok and some even more! Horses for courses as you (sort of) say.

if you work through the maths its not such a bad deal for the tenant; eg new high (ish) end condos in Bangkok probably start at 120k+ per sqm, lets say 100sqm at 120k is 12mil cost of the unit before decoration and furnishing. rented out at 50k per month = 600k per year. So at that price psqm a rental yield of 5%. Rather a poor return (for rented residential property) and, as in many cities around the world, the yield for the landlord drops further for more expensive properties. Edited February 16, 2013 by wordchild

[BlackPuddingBertha]

...if you work through the maths its not such a bad deal for the tenant; eg new high (ish) end condos in Bangkok probably start at 120k+ per sqm,

I think these prices are silly also.

When I look at condos in Thailand anything more than perhaps 40K/sqm seems overpriced to me. Not that I would be looking in Bangkok, admittedly.

[BlackPuddingBertha]

You don't need to believe it; you just need to accept it. Millions do indeed want to live in Bangkok, whether you believe it or not.

I suspect that it is a question of necessity rather than desire.

[davejones]

You don't need to believe it; you just need to accept it. Millions do indeed want to live in Bangkok, whether you believe it or not.

I suspect that it is a question of necessity rather than desire.

I don't think people would be paying millions for condos out of necessity. I want to live in Bangkok, and I know plenty of others that want to live here, and wouldn't leave, even if they got offered a better job elsewhere. 8 million people don't just turn up somewhere they don't like out of necessity. Plenty of people could live elsewhere if they wanted. They don't have to be here. They want to be here. Probably to difficult for you to comprehend. Just because you think something, doesn't mean everyone else thinks the same. It's a common mistake that a surprising number of people make.

[BlackPuddingBertha]

You don't need to believe it; you just need to accept it. Millions do indeed want to live in Bangkok, whether you believe it or not.

I suspect that it is a question of necessity rather than desire.

I don't think people would be paying millions for condos out of necessity. I want to live in Bangkok, and I know plenty of others that want to live here, and wouldn't leave, even if they got offered a better job elsewhere. 8 million people don't just turn up somewhere they don't like out of necessity. Plenty of people could live elsewhere if they wanted. They don't have to be here. They want to be here. Probably to difficult for you to comprehend. Just because you think something, doesn't mean everyone else thinks the same. It's a common mistake that a surprising number of people make.

Most of the Thais I know who live in Bangkok do so because of the necessities of employment. All the farangs that I know who live in Bangkok do so because of the same necessities. Hardly any of them intend living in Bangkok a minute longer than they have to.

Luckily I dont have any such necessities.

YMMV

[Carib]

Sell your stuff, travel as light as you can. No hassles with moving companies, no hassle with customs, no import duties to be paid, no damaged goods, whatever.

Make life easy on yourself. Why drag a lot of weight around the world. Some very nice apartments to be had, with nice furniture, or make a good deal wit a serviced apartment hotel.

If you take your own stuff you are stuck if for whatever reason you don't like the place you moved in to.

I fully agree with posting #4 (davejones).