I understand that a bank deposit of at least approximately 20,000 USD is required for the one-year retirement visa. When buying a condo (or house in a Thai's name), a foreigner can often get bank financing, providing he maintains a deposit in the bank large enough to cover the entire loan plus 10%. Can you do this with the bank deposit required by the government for the retirement visa?

Thanks

Larry,

It should not be a problem doing this, as long as you can show that you have B800,000 in your bank account when you go to renew your visa each year.  As you probably know the alternative is to have a combined monthly income (pension or whatever)  from abroad and funds in a bank here that totals B800,000.

Example:  You can deposit only B200,000 in a bank, but then you must have a monthly income of B50,000, or B600,000 per year.  The total is B800,000.  

Immigration is interested only in seeing that you meet trhe minimum requirements forextending your visa, not in your maintaining B800,000 in the bank all year.  The money is supposed to be for your costs of living here.

We do ,or will in about two months, own a house and land ,well lease anyway. My wife and I are both farang but have decided on Thailand as our final, not too soon, resting place.

Anyway we have the "retirement visa" and I considered buying a couple of Condos for growth,hopefully,and income.

I would prefer to use OPM(other peoples money) to do this. Could I use the Chanot,which apparently we will receive as security for loans. My thai is not good enough to ask at a bank or finance house yet.