Prices going up :)

[meechai]

Have seen others mention it & have noticed for foods

even in the Thai places have been creeping up. Foreign food menus of

course has risen but as we do not dine out on Foreign foods much I tend not

to notice.

Today my regular truck & motorcycle wash place went up 25% Pretty good jump.

Still a good price of course when I compare to where I came from just a few years ago.

Although back there I could do many things like this myself + earn much more $$$

But I imagine it is starting to maybe become noticeable for some on fixed incomes ?

Also although we own our condo for many years I have noticed of course those prices.

Some though like the big LCD Billboard on one of the moats corners...Did I see 19 million?

I did not notice if it was new homes or condos but 19 million baht in Chiangmai?

Anyone else see that sign? I will have to go back & look again as I am curious but the light changed to green

Anyway curious what others have noticed has jumped in price in these last couple years the most?

Edited November 4, 2013 by meechai

[eyecatcher]

I think to chiang mai's credit they have pretty much kept inflationary costs under control certainly for the last 3yr.

Not much has gone up, maybe rents is the biggest but I have noticed fuel isn't what it was also.

I noticed egg prices rise a few month ago but that must have been a supply and demand blip...as they are back down in price.

bar girl rate been the same since I was getting 67bt to the quid. Will that ever change.......the exchange rate I mean

Sent via tin can and string after pigeon shot

[narkeddiver]

I remember the halcyon rates of 71 baht for a quid - now hovering around the 50 baht mark

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[elektrified]

The 19 million Baht sign has been there for years. Obviously no takers.

Yes prices have been on the rise for 6 years now. Many things are up 100% during the time period. Yes, oil prices go up and down. Nothing new.

[chiang mai]

My car wash price was static at 180 baht (pickup, inside.outside), then my wife bought a book of ten tickets for 1,000, entitles us to ten washes of the P/U or any other vehicle, we're currently six months on and the guys still there, next to Rimping, and we're half way through the book. So no, not all prices going up.

[worgeordie]

The biggest price rises have been mostly on food stuffs,

and obviously fuel,while the utilities costs have not gone

up so much,the days of cheap vegetables,meat,rice are

gone.I must be very difficult for poor people to survive,

we all know why rice is so expensive,and in the biggest

growers of rice in the World,thats just not right.

regards worgeordie

[meechai]

while the utilities costs have not gone

up so much

regards worgeordie

Yes that is one thing that always amazes me.

How much cheaper electricity is here.

Does the govt subsidize that?

[chiang mai]

The biggest price rises have been mostly on food stuffs,

and obviously fuel,while the utilities costs have not gone

up so much,the days of cheap vegetables,meat,rice are

gone.I must be very difficult for poor people to survive,

we all know why rice is so expensive,and in the biggest

growers of rice in the World,thats just not right.

regards worgeordie

Depends where you shop, if in Rimping then sure, no way out, but if in the markets, lots of scope to keep prices under control plus the quality is arguably the same or better.

[PostmanPat]

Prices generally have gone up in Chiang Mai (eg 2 items I regularly need at Home Pro were 99 and 189 baht last month, but 119 and 229 baht today). However, last week I was in Krabi & Khao Lak on holiday from CM.....try eating out there.....your average ( Very average!!) Pizza in a few restaurants down there coming in at well over 300 baht, we can still get them for around 200, and you should see the price of wine on Ao Nang beach front, even in a 711.......even allowing for more touristy prices there, well beyond CM prices.

We re still quite lucky here compared to most of the other tourist towns and cities.....but I fear catching up!!

[Sparkles]

Washing/cleaning a car ,cleaning your own house,washing and ironing ,cutting your lawn (if you have one) easy mundane chores a lot of people now find below their status in life.

Inflation will only increase here as the Government of the day claws back the money it either gives away on mega projects or is gobbled up in corruption.

So the answer is simple,if its a problem, adjust your lifestyle and get back to doing things for yourself.

[chiang mai]

November is the month when retailers typically increase their prices here, expect more.

[anto]

Washing/cleaning a car ,cleaning your own house,washing and ironing ,cutting your lawn (if you have one) easy mundane chores a lot of people now find below their status in life.

Inflation will only increase here as the Government of the day claws back the money it either gives away on mega projects or is gobbled up in corruption.

So the answer is simple,if its a problem, adjust your lifestyle and get back to doing things for yourself.

Exactly ,especially for retired people .Doing such things as washing the car is also good excercise .Mowing the grass yourself puts you in touch with nature

[uptheos]

The 19 million Baht sign has been there for years. Obviously no takers.

Yes prices have been on the rise for 6 years now. Many things are up 100% during the time period. Yes, oil prices go up and down. Nothing new.

The Pinnacle on Thanon Padaed

http://thepinnacle.koolpuntville.com/HomeType.html

[meechai]

Washing/cleaning a car ,cleaning your own house,washing and ironing ,cutting your lawn (if you have one) easy mundane chores a lot of people now find below their status in life.

Inflation will only increase here as the Government of the day claws back the money it either gives away on mega projects or is gobbled up in corruption.

So the answer is simple,if its a problem, adjust your lifestyle and get back to doing things for yourself.

Well to tell you the truth I love doing everything myself & do any repairs etc in our condo myself.

Same for our laundry etc.

In fact come to think of it we do not hire any help except maybe twice a year to have the air con cleaned & refilled.

Also do most repairs on my bikes etc.

But in a condo your not allowed ( at least this one ) to wash your vehicles

Which I like to do actually. Not because I do it better but just something to do that I enjoy.

It is not a big deal or a deal breaker for living here but just something I thought about

today while waiting for the truck wash.

Also I was thinking percentage wise wash the Motorcycle went up 25% in price

33% for the scooter & roughly 20% on the truck.

But again that is not to say it is now expensive to me. Just that I notice things going up

Edited November 4, 2013 by meechai

[meechai]

The Pinnacle on Thanon Padaed

http://thepinnacle.koolpuntville.com/HomeType.html

Thanks yes that is it.

Can't say I have noticed it for years but

$636,000 is pricey for anywhere in the world much less Chiangmai Thailand

[MESmith]

The 19 million Baht sign has been there for years. Obviously no takers.

Yes prices have been on the rise for 6 years now. Many things are up 100% during the time period. Yes, oil prices go up and down. Nothing new.

The Pinnacle on Thanon Padaed

http://thepinnacle.koolpuntville.com/HomeType.html

Only one maid toilet. Oh dear

[CobraSnakeNecktie]

Supposedly 10% of Chinese street food is cooked in "gutter oil"

I guess food quality in Thailand could go down due to prices etc.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1ed_1382996617

[Thailand]

Umbrellas seem to be the only things going down.

[elektrified]

Supposedly 10% of Chinese street food is cooked in "gutter oil"

I guess food quality in Thailand could go down due to prices etc.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1ed_1382996617

I wish I hadn't opened that link. I always see those motorcycles with side-cars delivering used, bleached palm oil sold in large plastic bags to street vendors and it always freaks me out. That is one reason I never eat food from people on the street - with the exception of the Muslim ladies at Pratu Chang Mai once in a while. Knock on wood I've never gotten sick from their food in six years now. But I think they use clean food. I hope.

Hopefully they will raise prices rather than resort to using "gutter oil".

[WinnieTheKhwai]

while the utilities costs have not gone

up so much

regards worgeordie

Yes that is one thing that always amazes me.

How much cheaper electricity is here.

Does the govt subsidize that?

Yes, they do. And the less you use, the more they subsidize.

[Ulysses G.]

The "gutter oil" link is about places in China. Hopefully, they do not use it in Thailand. Used oil is not the same thing.

Several of my favorite Thai places have raised their prices considerably in the last few months. The Thai "J" vegetarian places have not.

[Mapguy]

Umbrellas seem to be the only things going down.

Well, this thread will go on and on. There are lots of close budget-watchers who post here, and this topic is always good for a long chat. Unfortunately, this might be a "hot thread" for those in richer countries looking for a cheap place to live.

I saw some posts earlier on this thread (and much more in previous similar threads) from those who migrated here during the truly memorable "Thai Bhat Crisis!" Thailand looked soooooo cheap! (And bar girls, too! Whoopie!!) Well, guess what ! Now, entirely too many people are in deep budgetary shit and barely able to afford 10gb internet access to ThaiVisa and for downloading movies!!

Sorry, couldn't resist!

Anyway, for those retiring and considering relocating to a "cheap" place, it depends not just on resources but also on what your expectations are and how you live. Don't believe the BS in many "relocation" and "best-places-to-retire" public relations media stories and crap sites Here, yes, many things are indeed less expensive than in some countries. But it depends on what you have and what you want.

More generally, yes, the price of living here IS going up. But the discussion of that gets a lot more complicated. Day to day on TV CHiang Mai ? You'll find a lot of opinions here. Some of them are from people who can barely afford access to the Internet. Some are better off.

But don't migrate here on a whim, a wish and a prayer!

[hellodolly]

while the utilities costs have not gone

up so much

regards worgeordie

Yes that is one thing that always amazes me.

How much cheaper electricity is here.

Does the govt subsidize that?

Yes, they do. And the less you use, the more they subsidize.

Isn't it free if you get below a certain amount or is that an income related thing?

[hellodolly]

Well i have to admit that I am not one of those who checks the prices on every thing and remembers them for years.

I just go to the store and get what I want. certain things I know nothing as the wife goes to the local market by her self. She has not said any thing to me about the price for keeping her motor bike on the road and I don't own a vehicle so I can not comment on that other than 6 years ago when myself wife and two other couples drove to Phuket and fuel seemed to be around 30.

As for going shopping as I said I don't pay any attention to it but I do know my total bill has gone up and is continuing to rise.

[PostmanPat]

As far as utility prices go, my son and his wife no kids both out at work all day, very modest small house, pay on average £150 a month for gas and electricity over the year in the UK.

My larger house in Chiang Mai averages less than £25 a month.

Thats certainly an area where we are very fortunate here.

[Beetlejuice]

We may not realise that the cost of living is going up by much, it sort of sneaks up on us, but if like me having lived in Thailand for many years and have always kept records of your monthly expenditure, it comes as a quite a shock when looking back over a long period of time.

I think the hardest hit by inflation has been the social scene, wining, dining, women and song. It is still possible to subsist on a pittance here in Thailand, if you can be content with the very basics type of lifestyle.

In the last 5 years my cost of living has increased by 19%, which is almost an annual increase of 4% and I am living the same sort of lifestyle as back in 2008. Also there is the crap bank foreign currency exchange rates to take into consideration, but for those who have savings, the bank interest rates have improve over the last 4 years, which as helped.

Edited November 4, 2013 by Beetlejuice

[jreidy]

My regular wine, Cedar Creek Cabernet Shiraz, went up over the past month from between 860 and 890 to between 1200 and 1225...all outlets....nice increase....... enough to drive you to drink !!!.

[jreidy]

My regular wine, Cedar Creek Cabernet Shiraz, went up over the past month from between 860 and 890 to between 1200 and 1225...all outlets....nice increase....... enough to drive you to drink !!!.

Should have added this is a 5 litre box......

[uptheos]

The Pinnacle on Thanon Padaed

http://thepinnacle.koolpuntville.com/HomeType.html

Thanks yes that is it.

Can't say I have noticed it for years but

$636,000 is pricey for anywhere in the world much less Chiangmai Thailand

The Pinnacle is not far from where I live and has only been completed about a year.

Maybe they started advertised waaay before construction, as they usually do.

Edited November 5, 2013 by uptheos

[meechai]

In the last 5 years my cost of living has increased by 19%, which is almost an annual increase of 4% and I am living the same sort of lifestyle as back in 2008. Also there is the crap bank foreign currency exchange rates to take into consideration, but for those who have savings, the bank interest rates have improve over the last 4 years, which as helped.

That is something I would expect 3-4% per year.

Which is why I tend to notice when something goes 20-33% up in one step.

I agree savings interest is quite good here compared to where we are from.

Savings here can generate a couple months living expenses per year for us. Which is not something

that can be said for elsewhere.

Edited November 5, 2013 by meechai