Why are condo"s so much more than houses?

[i claudius]

The wife and i live in a quite large 3 bed detached house with all mod cons ,but since our son went off to uni we thought about getting a condo , so off we went to look at ones between 5/6 million and to be honest were amazed , they were no bigger than bloody boxes in fact i dont think there was one that the living area was as big as our bedroom now. , why any ideas. oh! and although they were in nice positions they were not on the sea front.

[ThaiBob]

This has been discussed soooo many times on this forum. Foreigners can own a condo in their own name, foreigners cannot own land and look for all kinds of ways to skirt the intent of the law.

[NCC1701A]

supply and demand. be happy farang can not buy a house, (only pretend to) or they would skyrocket in price.

[Pattaya28]

I looked at new condo's and houses a few weeks ago. Working out the cost per square metre, houses per square metre were 50-66% cheaper than condo's.

The cost of registering a company so a foreigner can indirectly own a house / land and the yearly filing of company accounts is by far the best option in my view.

[OMGImInPattaya]

Per sq ft, isn't high rise construction much more expensive than single or double storey build?

[i claudius]

This has been discussed soooo many times on this forum. Foreigners can own a condo in their own name, foreigners cannot own land and look for all kinds of ways to skirt the intent of the law.

Actually i was looking to buy in my wifes name ,as foreigners can only own 49% why are the prices so high for Thais then? answer that , the Thai price was not much lower

[Basil B]

First, the selling price has no reflection as to how much it cost to build, but more on how much people will pay.

For a condo you are not just buying an apartment but a proportion of the communal property, so the gardens, the pool, the gym, corridors, lifts, car parks, club house, management office and equipment, etc, you partly own.

I do not think on initial sale there is any difference in the price for the 49% for foreign ownership for new build, but I have heard stories of owners being shafted by developers who oversold the 49%.

Edited August 11, 2013 by Basil B

[AnotherOneAmerican]

This has been discussed soooo many times on this forum. Foreigners can own a condo in their own name, foreigners cannot own land and look for all kinds of ways to skirt the intent of the law.

Actually i was looking to buy in my wifes name ,as foreigners can only own 49% why are the prices so high for Thais then? answer that , the Thai price was not much lower

Usually it's because the condo is not aimed at the Thai market and they are quite happy for the Thai 49% to remain unsold, or used as personal pads for the developers Mia nois, etc. In CM one of the big condos has every other floor bricked off, no fittings inside, no intention to sell. You can also convince some foreigners to buy in the Thai half, wife, gf, company and still get the gullible foreigner to pay an unrealistic price.

[guzzi850m2]

And still they are building them and the units are getting smaller and smaller, some are 27 m2 now, hell my master bed room is bigger than that.

More and more BKK Thais are buying here as a weekend getaway, both condo's and houses. I think I read somewhere that over 40.000 units are under construction.

No wonder traffic are horrible in the weekends/holidays, I wonder how it looks in 5 years time

[Basil B]

And still they are building them and the units are getting smaller and smaller, some are 27 m2 now, hell my master bed room is bigger than that.

More and more BKK Thais are buying here as a weekend getaway, both condo's and houses. I think I read somewhere that over 40.000 units are under construction.

No wonder traffic are horrible in the weekends/holidays, I wonder how it looks in 5 years time

In five years, Pattaya will have its wonderful Monorail Rapid Transport System that will put the Baht Bus Maffia out of business and nobody will need a car.

[ThaiBob]

.........

More and more BKK Thais are buying here as a weekend getaway, both condo's and houses. I think I read somewhere that over 40.000 units are under construction.

. .....

True..... the number of cars in the condo parking lot has doubled and they are mostly Thais.

[pattjock]

I looked at new condo's and houses a few weeks ago. Working out the cost per square metre, houses per square metre were 50-66% cheaper than condo's.

The cost of registering a company so a foreigner can indirectly own a house / land and the yearly filing of company accounts is by far the best option in my view.

I don't think the difference is that high and in most cases houses are more expensive. You need to compare condo with house in the same location. Most condos are built in prime locations where there is a shortage of land and land prices are very high, houses on the dark side is very cheap as the land prices are much lower.

[LennyW]

I looked at new condo's and houses a few weeks ago. Working out the cost per square metre, houses per square metre were 50-66% cheaper than condo's.

The cost of registering a company so a foreigner can indirectly own a house / land and the yearly filing of company accounts is by far the best option in my view.

 

I don't think the difference is that high and in most cases houses are more expensive. You need to compare condo with house in the same location. Most condos are built in prime locations where there is a shortage of land and land prices are very high, houses on the dark side is very cheap as the land prices are much lower.

 

 

That does not compute if you divide the cost of the plot by two or three hundred owners, condo's are waaaay over priced! !!!

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[i claudius]

And still they are building them and the units are getting smaller and smaller, some are 27 m2 now, hell my master bed room is bigger than that.

More and more BKK Thais are buying here as a weekend getaway, both condo's and houses. I think I read somewhere that over 40.000 units are under construction.

No wonder traffic are horrible in the weekends/holidays, I wonder how it looks in 5 years time:(

Its the same for us even our sons bedroom is as big as that ,anyway condo buying is a no no ,we are staying put in our house. i cant imagine a couple living in places that size ,my bedsit in my student days was bigger (and only cost 4 quid a week in a posh part of London)

Edited August 11, 2013 by Rimmer
Quotes fixed

[SantiSuk]

Unlet-to-Thais condos must be a holiday resort thing. Does not seem to apply in Bangkok where the Thai element is definitely fully let and more. I get the impression that many of the condos at the higher end of Sukhumvit in Bangkok are built for middle class and rich Thais to buy for their kids who go to college (but there is a high proportion of HK, Sing and Japanese second property/retirement investments too. No dual pricing either. My wife was reading the same price lists as me, but in Thai and on a couple of occasions asked about discounts before a potential falang interest could have been clocked - none other than the printed promotions.

[bangkokstick]

Because your house is not yours but your condo will be in your name.

Also condos are so much easier to re-sell than houses, whatever the morons who have houses to sell on this board will tell you...

[bkkjames]

Because your house is not yours but your condo will be in your name.

Also condos are so much easier to re-sell than houses, whatever the morons who have houses to sell on this board will tell you...

Why easier sell? Condos don't have ghosts?

[guzzi850m2]

Because your house is not yours but your condo will be in your name.

Also condos are so much easier to re-sell than houses, whatever the morons who have houses to sell on this board will tell you...

Why easier sell? Condos don't have ghosts?

I would also like to know why condo's are easier to sell? There are thousands of second hand condo's for sale here but I guess the owners expectations are too high.

Any house or condo will sell if the price is right.

[dighambara]

This has been discussed soooo many times on this forum. Foreigners can own a condo in their own name, foreigners cannot own land and look for all kinds of ways to skirt the intent of the law.

Well, considering the intent of the law is to keep wealthy Thais rich and Poor Thais on the farm, the law seems to be working.

Yes, because foreigners can own condos, the price is high. A condo (in Udon) half the size of a niuce house, is the same price as that house.

I much prefer a house (with land) to a condo on floor X, with noisy neighbors...LOL

[Naam]

Because your house is not yours but your condo will be in your name.

Also condos are so much easier to re-sell than houses, whatever the morons who have houses to sell on this board will tell you...

pure words of wisdom!

and when they take you to the crematorium or the graveyard they can burn or bury the title papers of the condo with you because... it's in your name!

morons who enjoy living in comfortable homes and resent condos will have an unpleasant surprise after they died. they burn or are buried all alone. serves them morons right!

[gmac]

I looked at new condo's and houses a few weeks ago. Working out the cost per square metre, houses per square metre were 50-66% cheaper than condo's.

The cost of registering a company so a foreigner can indirectly own a house / land and the yearly filing of company accounts is by far the best option in my view.

I don't think the difference is that high and in most cases houses are more expensive. You need to compare condo with house in the same location. Most condos are built in prime locations where there is a shortage of land and land prices are very high, houses on the dark side is very cheap as the land prices are much lower.

That does not compute if you divide the cost of the plot by two or three hundred owners, condo's are waaaay over priced! !!!

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Exactly! It's because they can, not because they are worth it.

[DD13]

Because your house is not yours but your condo will be in your name.

Also condos are so much easier to re-sell than houses, whatever the morons who have houses to sell on this board will tell you...

What a rude person you are......you must have an inferiority complex to make comments like that

[i claudius]

Because your house is not yours but your condo will be in your name.

Also condos are so much easier to re-sell than houses, whatever the morons who have houses to sell on this board will tell you...

Of course the house is mine and my wifes ,we have been married over 20 years , if i was worried all i had to do was take a 30 year lease on it ,you go on living in your box ,i will wonder around my house and garden ,park on my drive with space for 4 cars , and when i am dead my wife can cut the price of it and ell it , the ones that are priced right sell , i fear its you who are the moron ,for posting crap.w

Because your house is not yours but your condo will be in your name.

Also condos are so much easier to re-sell than houses, whatever the morons who have houses to sell on this board will tell you...

Of course the house is mine and my wifes ,we have been married over 20 years , if i was worried all i had to do was take a 30 year lease on it ,you go on living in your box ,i will wonder around my house and garden ,park on my drive with space for 4 cars , and when i am dead my wife can cut the price of it and sell it , the ones that are priced right sell , i fear its you who are the moron ,for posting crap.

Edited August 12, 2013 by i claudius

[Suradit69]

This has been discussed soooo many times on this forum. Foreigners can own a condo in their own name, foreigners cannot own land and look for all kinds of ways to skirt the intent of the law.

Well, considering the intent of the law is to keep wealthy Thais rich and Poor Thais on the farm, the law seems to be working.

Yes, because foreigners can own condos, the price is high. A condo (in Udon) half the size of a niuce house, is the same price as that house.

I much prefer a house (with land) to a condo on floor X, with noisy neighbors...LOL

"I much prefer a house (with land) to a condo on floor X, with noisy neighbors...LOL"

And yet so many of the complaints about noise from drunken parties, dogs. Karaoke, etc. come from house dwellers ...LOL. On the rare occasion when someone (usually a short term renter in the high season) is too noisy. Complaints to the manager have worked wonders for me. She's a no nonsense person and I sat in her office when she called up one character who had generated several complaints. Following her call peace and silence reigned. How's that work for you in your house with a noisy neighbor?

Definitely one factor in pricing is that foreigners can buy condos and that also explains in part the rationale against allowing foreigners to buy houses ... the price of houses at the lower end would rise and make it all the more difficult for lower income Thais to get a house. All politics is local and a sudden rise in house prices would not be popular amongst those hoping to get a house one day.

Another factor is the amenities ... swimming pool, laundry service, gardens, building maintenance, security guards and location.

As far as ghosts are concerned, in my building most units that are resold are gutted and renovated. I know of several people, Thai and farang, with the money & experience to buy units, renovate and resell or rent. They wouldn't see any profit in doing that with houses unless the location and basics were really sellable. Presumably all the commotion sends the ghosts packing. Gutting and renovating a house is probably more of an undertaking than seems worthwhile for sitting owners or potential buyers.

In our building more Thais seem to be buying or renting, especially after the big flooding a few years ago.

There is no supposed discount for Thais in a building that's near full capacity or in prime locations. As someone else said, in the end the price of a condo is what someone is willing to pay for it. Whoever the seller is, he/she is going to get the best price he can regardless of the person's nationality and, despite what some people seem to assume, there are a lot of Thais with money to spend.

Edited August 12, 2013 by Suradit69

[JSixpack]

This has been discussed soooo many times on this forum.

Yep, it's the monthly HATE CONDOS thread with more of the same ol' same ol'.

But I haven't seen the FOOLS BUY REAL ESTATE brigade show up quite yet. Waiting . . . .

[bangkokstick]

These real estate experts who "own" (in their dreams) houses are amazing...

[Suradit69]

This has been discussed soooo many times on this forum.

Yep, it's the monthly HATE CONDOS thread with more of the same ol' same ol'.

But I haven't seen the FOOLS BUY REAL ESTATE brigade show up quite yet. Waiting . . . .

It's also difficult for the EVEYONE HATES PATTAYA cabal to make much headway since this thread seems to confirm a whole lot of people are still buying in here whether in either houses or condos.

Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded.

Yogi Berra

These real estate experts who "own" (in their dreams) houses are amazing...

Especially those who think they own the land beneath the house and that amounts to a magical moat that gives them super powers not available to condo owners or other lesser humans.

Edited August 12, 2013 by Suradit69

[Benmart]

It's sad to see the caustic venom and name calling. Renter vs buyer, condo vs house. It's all irrelevant as i believe the was OP asking why are condos so much more than houses?

Be nice. It makes everyone happy.

[jacko45k]

In CM one of the big condos has every other floor bricked off, no fittings inside, no intention to sell. You can also convince some foreigners to buy in the Thai half, wife, gf, company and still get the gullible foreigner to pay an unrealistic price.

What a great idea, no noise from those above and no worries about your own tap-dancing club!

[ThaiBob]

This has been discussed soooo many times on this forum. Foreigners can own a condo in their own name, foreigners cannot own land and look for all kinds of ways to skirt the intent of the law.

Actually i was looking to buy in my wifes name ,as foreigners can only own 49% why are the prices so high for Thais then? answer that , the Thai price was not much lower

There are a few developers that charge a premium for foreign units but many such as View Talay, do not, and I avoid those developments that do. However, at resale time the foreign units can demand a premium of 10-20% if the 49% threshold is met, so your wife can get a better price by buying a Thai unit. Ask yourself the question, why are Bangkok condo prices so much higher than Pattaya? When you can answer that question then you will have the understanding to answer your original question.