Buy or rent? i would like to spend 6months a year in thailand should i rent or purchase a bike?I would like to purchase a bike like a cbr 250 or is it a hassle to lisense and register and store a bike?drivers license ect. for 6mo. I know you can rent a scooter for around 3000bht a month but would like a nicer bike I definately need trasportation.

For scooters its better to rent if for only 6 months .For a bike like the CB250 i would try to buy a near new one and sell after 6 months .That model should be easy to sell .

You can get a decent scooter for 15k so you would do better to buy one, you can get a used CBR250 for 80,000

But the insurance is going to be more.

But it's much nicer to own. Do you have a place to store the bike when you are not here?

For scooters its better to rent if for only 6 months

Disagree. 6 months x 3000 baht = 18000 baht

You can buy not bad scooter for 15000 baht and quickly resell it for 10000 baht or more, depends how quick you want get rid of it.

Also, in 6 months you might scratch your bike and rental company will charge you for repair a lot. If you scratch your own one, it will not decrease much on value.

I do not know how much to rent CBR250, but must be similar proportion.

For scooters its better to rent if for only 6 months

Disagree. 6 months x 3000 baht = 18000 baht

You can buy not bad scooter for 15000 baht and quickly resell it for 10000 baht or more, depends how quick you want get rid of it.

Also, in 6 months you might scratch your bike and rental company will charge you for repair a lot. If you scratch your own one, it will not decrease much on value.

I do not know how much to rent CBR250, but must be similar proportion.

800Baht per day with cheaper rates if you do it long term. But even if you get it for 15,000/months instead of 24,000 it's much smarter to get a used one.

Also, the Ninja250 should start devaluing much quicker now that the 300 came out.

While the CBR might be a better in town bike with the lower RPM grunt, the Ninja is nicer when ridden in the higher RPM's and looks 1000x better than the CBR

Buy new and ask the dealer how much for buy back... they sometimes give good rates (depending on bike) and is piss easy on the paperwork.

Whatever you buy or rent, don't get the ever so stupid model which has the shopping basket under the headlight.

The Thais drive around at night, apparently oblivious to the fact that they have no front light, but their shopping is well-lit!

Buy. When I first arrived, a friend told me that I should definitely rent and several months later I'd spent as much in rental as it cost me to buy a used one. Worst advice I ever got.

If you spend half of the year here, I would definitely recommend buying one instead of renting it. Especially if you decide to get a nicer bigger one instead of a scooter. In your case it's worth it more than renting. Then when you are back, your bike is going to be here waiting for you. And later, if you decide to, you can still sell it at a good price because a good bike always keeps its value.

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Secure storage is relatively cheap around 400 baht a month for the smaller bikes. That is what I have been quoted in a secure locked building not sure how much for the bigger bikes.

If you spend half of the year here, I would definitely recommend buying one instead of renting it. Especially if you decide to get a nicer bigger one instead of a scooter. In your case it's worth it more than renting. Then when you are back, your bike is going to be here waiting for you. And later, if you decide to, you can still sell it at a good price because a good bike always keeps its value.

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Thanks for all the imput first.I should have said i am more concerned about a non resident being able to buy a bike and register a bike and insure a bike with a international drivers license.or do i need a thai license?

For 6 months deffo buy. You will need a residence permit to register. Usually an international licence is acceptable but check your insurance co requirements if buying a good bike and going for 'first class'.

Depending how adventurous you want to be consider a dual purpose bike. The first time I was there I rented a CBR but last time I bought a CRF and found it much better overall, nearly as fast cruising and a lot better on trails.