Our Private Village Turned Over to the Municipality...a NIGHTMARE!

[transam]

My chum bought a place in a gated community. When all the plots were sold, shortly afterwards, the ''guard'' and barriers were removed.........

[Wong!]

The only thing that has changed in the village is that the clubhouse (which was rarely used and poorly maintained anyway) has been lost until someone decides to make a go of it.

The security rarely stopped anyone from coming or going and dogs have always been allowed to roam by negligent owners.

I take umbrage with the village being 'upscale' too. Sub 3million baht homes are hardly 'upscale'.

The reality is, that very little has changed for the majority of people who live there.

I appreciate your feedback Wong, but are you sure we live in the same village? With all due respect your first two sentences with regard to the clubhouse and security just don't equate with my experience and observations. I will admit that sub 3 M baht homes are not necessarily upscale homes compared to those which are available in the marketplace today, but at the time of my purchase they were some of the finer tract homes in Udon and the maintenance in the village was impeccable compared to most that I have toured.

I will have to agree with you with respect to your comment that very little has changed for the majority of people who live here, but only in the sense that they were complacent and apathetic before the vote and they are the same today in that they just don't care. After all, we needed a majority of residents to attend the voting process, and in as much as that didn't happen in the last three voting events, the village was turned over to the Tessaban by default. Therefore I would surmise that the majority of residents are not happy with the outcome and the direction in which this village is headed. I personally don't know of any resident who doesn't feel betrayed, but then again I don't speak with those on my soi of whom I am certain failed to vote for the establishment of the HOA. I could look in their yards and tell you which way they would go even before the votes were cast. One can tell a lot about a person by the way he maintains his own residence.

Of course, I am in no way lambasting you since you have only made some personal observations; however, I would like to know how you feel about the way things have turned out in the village if in fact we are talking about one and the same village. My guess would be that you preferred that we remain a private village.

The voting issue was primarily due to a large number of homes not being lived in by the owners but tenants who have no voting rights. The biggest issue I heard about the meetings was a farang who kept asking questions about stuff that had already been dealt with because he didn't take along someone who could translate properly. Despite the said person disrupting the meetings, the Thais still did their best to go back and answer his queries, even though he doesn't actually have a voting right. Very accommodating of them, I thought. If it was in an English village the foreigner would've been told to shut up.

The last meeting was not an open meeting for all villagers but an effort to get the money collection sorted better.

Form my perspective, things seem to be moving (slowly) in the right direction and nothing untoward has happened. Fees are collected, bins are emptied, security grins inanely and the street lights are on.

[Tanaka]

I could never understand why someone would want to put a lot of money in a house in a ghetto, sorry a "gated" community, where you have your neighbours a few meters away and no control of your surroundings. I have rented in such a place and in a thai village where the village leader starts the village loudspeakers 6 oclock every morning.

You would not contemplate buying into that in your mother country, why here?

We are building our house on our land, several rais, and the nearest neighbour is a km away. Shops and market two kms. Very quiet and good air.

[transam]

Buy a bit of land and build a house. Don't get involved with these complexes cos you will never be in control.

Just a side note, few months back a farang guy came to my place to look at a plot next to mine, very nice lakeside position. A little expensive but that is the premium for the nice position.

Any hoooo, just found out he bought a place in one of these complexes instead, a few weeks back , the houses have little room between them and neighbours are playing loud music at all hours, he is now depressed and wants to try and sell it.