Saint Barack lectures black men

[ROBINPATTAYA]

Hi all,

I live in a large village (160 homes) on the dark side.

The developer is trying to hand over the common property to the Juristic Committee but in it's present state, we are refusing to take it over.

We have estimated 2 million baht worth of repairs need to be done.

We are looking for a survey/engineer in construction or someone who can prepare a report/audit of the village assets.

This can then be costed & handed to the Land Office for consideration about whether the village is suitable to hand over to the residents or the repairs need to be done first. The developer is a powerful man around Pattaya & about to start another development.

• Pool in bad state with faulty pumps & broken filters & incomplete fit out
• Clubhouse infested with pigeons in the ceiling space causing very bad odours downstairs
• Clubhouse skirting boards & laminate flooring all lifting due to rain accessing the area
• A back wall due to collapse anytime soon.
• A series of fountains at the entrance of the village & clubhouse are all broken & the water left is putrid & a health hazard.
• All the gutters & down pipes on the clubhouse are rusted through or disconnected
• All the original gym equipment is broken or unusable.

All helpful comments are welcome, this is a problem for many villages so many be of interest to many people.

Cheers

[Guderian]

Yes, it does seem to be a general problem when taking over the management of a village. We took over ours 2 1/2 years ago and we are still back in court regularly trying to get the developer to pay for all the things they originally agreed to do in front of a judge. The swimming pool alone needs almost 2 million Baht spent on it and the court said we could sort it the repairs ourselves and ordered the developer to pay whatever it cost. Of course, with no guarantee that the court will stand by its ruling if push comes to shove and not having 2 million Baht to spare we are stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Don't you just love the Thai legal system and its, um, flexibility?

As for getting an engineer in to look at it, good luck with that. Did you have a structural surveyor check your house before you bought it? I doubt it, but if you then did why not use him? Failing that find a reputable builder who has no ties to the developer and ask him to put together a list of what's needed and the cost.

[ROBINPATTAYA]

Guderian,

Thanks for the not so good news.

I think a builder may be a starting point at least. We can cost the work & hopefully show the developer we are serious.

Cheers.

[KittenKong]

Yes, it does seem to be a general problem when taking over the management of a village. We took over ours 2 1/2 years ago and we are still back in court regularly trying to get the developer to pay for all the things they originally agreed to do in front of a judge. The swimming pool alone needs almost 2 million Baht spent on it and the court said we could sort it the repairs ourselves and ordered the developer to pay whatever it cost. Of course, with no guarantee that the court will stand by its ruling if push comes to shove and not having 2 million Baht to spare we are stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place.

And of course if the developer goes out of business or has no money (which is common as they often use a new company name for each new development) then you wont get much back from them even if the judge finds against them. Of course the developer may actually have valid insurance to cover that eventuality, or maybe not.

[Anthony5]

I think your local Orbotor/Tetsabaan can point you to a licensed structural engineer.

Edited January 7, 2015 by Anthony5

[craigt3365]

I met a lady lawyer at an office next to Big C South Pattaya a few months ago. She really knows her stuff when it comes to villages and associated laws. She was willing to visit us and spend a few hours talking with our management committee about various issues. I think the cost was only about 2k Baht. Money well spent. She's involved in her village's management committee, so knows the ropes quite well. Perfect English also.

If you are interested, her name is Rena and I think the company is Thai Euro Law, or something like that. Not too far from AA Insurance in that strip of offices opposite Big C to the North.

[ROBINPATTAYA]

I met a lady lawyer at an office next to Big C South Pattaya a few months ago. She really knows her stuff when it comes to villages and associated laws. She was willing to visit us and spend a few hours talking with our management committee about various issues. I think the cost was only about 2k Baht. Money well spent. She's involved in her village's management committee, so knows the ropes quite well. Perfect English also.

If you are interested, her name is Rena and I think the company is Thai Euro Law, or something like that. Not too far from AA Insurance in that strip of offices opposite Big C to the North.

That is exactly what I was hoping to get from my TV superiors.

I will go there today & pop in to make an appointment.

Almost every more upmarket village is mainly farangs (even tho their partners may be on the Chanote) & we are vulnerable to the unscrupulous developers.

We will always be a visitor in this country & are generally treated this way by the law.

This isn't only in this country by the way, we just need to be smart enough to work around the obstacles before us.

Thanks for that useful contribution.

[tolsti]

I would contact one of the major property management companies like CBRE, JLL or Savilles.

They have qualified staff across all discilines who would be able to do this work and provide credible reports to an International Standard.

They wont be cheap of course but you will at least know that what you have is correct.

You may then also find a proper management company who will run you estate correctly and with full accountability.

[ROBINPATTAYA]

Unfortunately Rena does not want to make an sppointment with me. Not sure why but thanks anyhow. Maybe her experience tells her you never win....555

[craigt3365]

Hmmm...that's strange. Did you see her in person?