SURVEY: Should Foreigners be Allowed to own Property?

[wowfactor10]

Well Looking at the survey about 92% of the voters would like to be able to own his land plot here.

Just like Thais can own land plots in our countries.

A poorly 8% is against any landowning these are the guys from u better go home brigade with their questionable motives...

If u make limited land owning ship like example max one rai in our own name then land speculation cant happen and neither will it bring up the prices.

What it will do is bring back a life the dead Thailand property market..

Nowadays Foreigners no longer buying houses here and houses are no longer getting sold there for laws need get fixed and made more equal..

[micmichd]

"more equal"?

where have I read this before?

[JB300]

Well Looking at the survey about 92% of the voters would like to be able to own his land plot here.

Just like Thais can own land plots in our countries.

A poorly 8% is against any landowning these are the guys from u better go home brigade with their questionable motives...

If u make limited land owning ship like example max one rai in our own name then land speculation cant happen and neither will it bring up the prices.

What it will do is bring back a life the dead Thailand property market..

Nowadays Foreigners no longer buying houses here and houses are no longer getting sold there for laws need get fixed and made more equal..

I often see the argument "If a Thai can buy a property in my country why can't I buy one in Thailand" but I never see any acknowledgment that a much higher percentage of people from "My" country. (UK)...

1) Wants to & is able to travel there e.g. we can just turn up & be allowed in for 60 (30 day exempt + 30 days extension) whereas a Thai needs to jump through so many hoops to get a much more limited visit...

2) Would like to buy a house there

3) Can afford to buy a house there... Let's say the average price of a house in UK is around £150,000 & in Thailand is £50,000 (2.5Million Baht) then say the average UK income is £25,000 & in Thailand is £12,500 (all numbers picked to make the Maths easier) an average UK person could buy an average house in Thailand for 2x their annual salary, whereas the Thai would need to spend 12x theirs...

Not a member of the "Well Go Home Then" camp, but do believe that allowing Foreigners free reign to buy property in Thailand will be bad for the Thais & eventually bad for guys who are happy to buy a house in their Kids/Wives name as they find themselves priced out of the market.

[wowfactor10]

Well Looking at the survey about 92% of the voters would like to be able to own his land plot here.

Just like Thais can own land plots in our countries.

A poorly 8% is against any landowning these are the guys from u better go home brigade with their questionable motives...

If u make limited land owning ship like example max one rai in our own name then land speculation cant happen and neither will it bring up the prices.

What it will do is bring back a life the dead Thailand property market..

Nowadays Foreigners no longer buying houses here and houses are no longer getting sold there for laws need get fixed and made more equal..

I often see the argument "If a Thai can buy a property in my country why can't I buy one in Thailand" but I never see any acknowledgment that a much higher percentage of people from "My" country. (UK)...

1) Wants to & is able to travel there e.g. we can just turn up & be allowed in for 60 (30 day exempt + 30 days extension) whereas a Thai needs to jump through so many hoops to get a much more limited visit...

2) Would like to buy a house there

3) Can afford to buy a house there... Let's say the average price of a house in UK is around £150,000 & in Thailand is £50,000 (2.5Million Baht) then say the average UK income is £25,000 & in Thailand is £12,500 (all numbers picked to make the Maths easier) an average UK person could buy an average house in Thailand for 2x their annual salary, whereas the Thai would need to spend 12x theirs...

Not a member of the "Well Go Home Then" camp, but do believe that allowing Foreigners free reign to buy property in Thailand will be bad for the Thais & eventually bad for guys who are happy to buy a house in their Kids/Wives name as they find themselves priced out of the market.

Mate 92% of the 700 voters are disagree with u ....

Limited landownership for foreigners under certain conditions example correct visa and maximum one rai of land would only attract more foreign investments and revenues for Thailand.

[geriatrickid]

I don't think that anyone should be allowed to by land where he isn't a citizen. I've watched the issues in Ecuador where much is mountainous and good land is scarce. Foreigners including expats have bought so much of the good land that the locals can no longer afford any for themselves.

There's always some disparity in income with wealthier people seeming to like to buy up land in poorer areas. They often don't care if they get a return on investment until they sell, hoping for appreciation. There's even that dynamic in the US and Canada where there is a lot of land but rich people from big cities buy a farm while they are on vacation and then lease it to a poor farmer on a share crop basis. The word "sharecropper" has always had a negative connotation - meaning a poor farmer.

When there is more and new demand chasing the same supply of land, prices go up and make it almost impossible for a farmer's children to buy land or for the farmer to increase his holdings. The price shouldn't be based on speculation but rather on what it can produce. That can happen only when the producers are the interested buyers.

Your argument falls apart once one looks at the purchases that would arise. How many foreigners want to buy up the poor quality land of Issan? I doubt you will find more than a handful of people who would want a "hobby" farm in rural Ubon. That doesn't mean that the concern should be ignored.

Foreigners would be looking to purchase in their frequented zones such as Chiang Mai, Phuket, Hua Hin and Pattaya. The government could easily allow the purchase of small residential plots in some regions without any harm to Thailand.

[JB300]

Well Looking at the survey about 92% of the voters would like to be able to own his land plot here.

Just like Thais can own land plots in our countries.

A poorly 8% is against any landowning these are the guys from u better go home brigade with their questionable motives...

If u make limited land owning ship like example max one rai in our own name then land speculation cant happen and neither will it bring up the prices.

What it will do is bring back a life the dead Thailand property market..

Nowadays Foreigners no longer buying houses here and houses are no longer getting sold there for laws need get fixed and made more equal..

I often see the argument "If a Thai can buy a property in my country why can't I buy one in Thailand" but I never see any acknowledgment that a much higher percentage of people from "My" country. (UK)...

1) Wants to & is able to travel there e.g. we can just turn up & be allowed in for 60 (30 day exempt + 30 days extension) whereas a Thai needs to jump through so many hoops to get a much more limited visit...

2) Would like to buy a house there

3) Can afford to buy a house there... Let's say the average price of a house in UK is around £150,000 & in Thailand is £50,000 (2.5Million Baht) then say the average UK income is £25,000 & in Thailand is £12,500 (all numbers picked to make the Maths easier) an average UK person could buy an average house in Thailand for 2x their annual salary, whereas the Thai would need to spend 12x theirs...

Not a member of the "Well Go Home Then" camp, but do believe that allowing Foreigners free reign to buy property in Thailand will be bad for the Thais & eventually bad for guys who are happy to buy a house in their Kids/Wives name as they find themselves priced out of the market.

Mate 92% of the 700 voters are disagree with u ....

Limited landownership for foreigners under certain conditions example correct visa and maximum one rai of land would only attract more foreign investments and revenues for Thailand.

I don't think we're disagreeing too much about the limited ownership mate, I was just highlighting something about the "They can buy here, why can't I buy there" argument that I haven't seen mentioned before.

So what Visa criteria do you think should be allowed to buy houses in their own name? Personally I think it's somebody with "Strong Ties" to Thailand (e.g Married with Kids, neither of which applies to me btw), but you could argue that if you wanted to encourage Foreign Investment then you would simply change the Investment Visa regs to allow it to be used to purchase 1 property (restricting size of land) for personal residency usage.

How many people would support it if it meant bringing 10Million THB into the country?

[wowfactor10]

Well Looking at the survey about 92% of the voters would like to be able to own his land plot here.

Just like Thais can own land plots in our countries.

A poorly 8% is against any landowning these are the guys from u better go home brigade with their questionable motives...

If u make limited land owning ship like example max one rai in our own name then land speculation cant happen and neither will it bring up the prices.

What it will do is bring back a life the dead Thailand property market..

Nowadays Foreigners no longer buying houses here and houses are no longer getting sold there for laws need get fixed and made more equal..

I often see the argument "If a Thai can buy a property in my country why can't I buy one in Thailand" but I never see any acknowledgment that a much higher percentage of people from "My" country. (UK)...

1) Wants to & is able to travel there e.g. we can just turn up & be allowed in for 60 (30 day exempt + 30 days extension) whereas a Thai needs to jump through so many hoops to get a much more limited visit...

2) Would like to buy a house there

3) Can afford to buy a house there... Let's say the average price of a house in UK is around £150,000 & in Thailand is £50,000 (2.5Million Baht) then say the average UK income is £25,000 & in Thailand is £12,500 (all numbers picked to make the Maths easier) an average UK person could buy an average house in Thailand for 2x their annual salary, whereas the Thai would need to spend 12x theirs...

Not a member of the "Well Go Home Then" camp, but do believe that allowing Foreigners free reign to buy property in Thailand will be bad for the Thais & eventually bad for guys who are happy to buy a house in their Kids/Wives name as they find themselves priced out of the market.

Mate 92% of the 700 voters are disagree with u ....

Limited landownership for foreigners under certain conditions example correct visa and maximum one rai of land would only attract more foreign investments and revenues for Thailand.

I don't think we're disagreeing too much about the limited ownership mate, I was just highlighting something about the "They can buy here, why can't I buy there" argument that I haven't seen mentioned before.

So what Visa criteria do you think should be allowed to buy houses in their own name? Personally I think it's somebody with "Strong Ties" to Thailand (e.g Married with Kids, neither of which applies to me btw), but you could argue that if you wanted to encourage Foreign Investment then you would simply change the Investment Visa regs to allow it to be used to purchase 1 property (restricting size of land) for personal residency usage.

How many people would support it if it meant bringing 10Million THB into the country?

Hi,

I not think we should create loads of obstacles for any investor.

In my opinion anyone willing to bring a minimum of 3 Million BHT should be able to buy his land plot of max one rai and have a house built on it..(in his own name).You can even grant such a person an investor visa...

More Foreigners will bring in more money in here so why chase them out?

[JB300]

Be careful what you wish for, there are several million Chinese looking for opportunities to buy assets outside of China who would soon drive up the price of land/housing & leave a lot of guys with a genuine reason/need to have property in Thailand priced out of the market.

I think you either need to apply a strict criteria (again, for me this is Strong Ties to the country) or make the price of entry high high enough to limit the people coming in driving house prices too high.

I'd also suggest that there's a minimum period of time you have to live in the property before being able to sell it with a sliding scale of Tax to be paid depending on how long you've lived there...

Again, just my 2cents

[lostoday]

Be careful what you wish for, there are several million Chinese looking for opportunities to buy assets outside of China who would soon drive up the price of land/housing & leave a lot of guys with a genuine reason/need to have property in Thailand priced out of the market.

I think you either need to apply a strict criteria (again, for me this is Strong Ties to the country) or make the price of entry high high enough to limit the people coming in driving house prices too high.

I'd also suggest that there's a minimum period of time you have to live in the property before being able to sell it with a sliding scale of Tax to be paid depending on how long you've lived there...

Again, just my 2cents

Chinese are buying in NY, Los Angles, London and Sydney. You really think they will be tempted by Thailand?

USA according to the National Association of Realtors, Chinese buyers represent around 12% of total foreign purchases in the, second only to Canadians. However, foreign buyers represent only 6.3% of US housing purchases. Therefore, the proportion of Chinese buyers in the broader $1.08 trillion US housing market is miniscule.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/samdiedrich/2014/04/24/does-chinese-land-banking-activity-pose-a-threat-to-the-global-property-market-and-specifically-to-the-us-housing-recovery/2/

[JB300]

Yes I do.... After all, they are the "Quality Tourists" that TAT are targeting...

Also they're buying in Singapore, Malaysia, UK & South Africa... Basically anywhere they can get money out of China & hedge against a China slowdown.

[JB300]

Edit: ok so you edited your post to add the Forbes link after I'd replied...

We're not talking about buying in the U.S. But I'd love to see this survey redone with the question/options being...

"Should Foreigners be allowed to own Property in Thailand"...

1) YES, if they're married to a Thai & have children (t)here.

2) YES, if they're married to a Thai & are supporting their partners children

3) YES, if they're willing to invest a reasonable amount of money in Thailand (per current Investment visa 10MB )

4) YES, if they've got a few quid to spare...

5) No

Edit2: Did you actually read that article, I'll be honest I tried (twice) but by the time I got to the point in the reporters story where they're talking about priming the kids & timing their naps, I hit the little x in the right hand corner...

[lostoday]

Edit: ok so you edited your post to add the Forbes link after I'd replied...

We're not talking about buying in the U.S. But I'd love to see this survey redone with the question/options being...

"Should Foreigners be allowed to own Property in Thailand"...

1) YES, if they're married to a Thai & have children (t)here.

2) YES, if they're married to a Thai & are supporting their partners children

3) YES, if they're willing to invest a reasonable amount of money in Thailand (per current Investment visa 10MB )

4) YES, if they've got a few quid to spare...

5) No

Yes sir Thailand is so much economically smarter than the USA.

That's why anyone from Thailand can buy land in America.

[JB300]

Edit: ok so you edited your post to add the Forbes link after I'd replied...

We're not talking about buying in the U.S. But I'd love to see this survey redone with the question/options being...

"Should Foreigners be allowed to own Property in Thailand"...

1) YES, if they're married to a Thai & have children (t)here.

2) YES, if they're married to a Thai & are supporting their partners children

3) YES, if they're willing to invest a reasonable amount of money in Thailand (per current Investment visa 10MB )

4) YES, if they've got a few quid to spare...

5) No

Yes sir Thailand is so much economically smarter than the USA.

That's why anyone from Thailand can buy land in America.

Completely missed the point of my argument... NO... Anybody (majority of people) in Thailand CANNOT buy in America because 1) They cannot go there & 2) They cannot afford it...

Edit: (because I'm obviously not managing to get my point across...) Whereas... Anybody from the U.S. can go to Thailand & (if the 3MB limit was in place) probably a large majority of them could afford to buy there...

[wowfactor10]

Be careful what you wish for, there are several million Chinese looking for opportunities to buy assets outside of China who would soon drive up the price of land/housing & leave a lot of guys with a genuine reason/need to have property in Thailand priced out of the market.

I think you either need to apply a strict criteria (again, for me this is Strong Ties to the country) or make the price of entry high high enough to limit the people coming in driving house prices too high.

I'd also suggest that there's a minimum period of time you have to live in the property before being able to sell it with a sliding scale of Tax to be paid depending on how long you've lived there...

Again, just my 2cents

I do not see a tsunami of foreigners who will suddenly ump in to buy land and a house after their deposit of 3,000,000 BHT payment.

Look chinese can buy already freehold condos here in Thailand and they are not doing that either !

Thailand is sadly unstable and try to resale your existing unit it is a big problem ,rental returns are weak here, so enough problems.

Thailand must make it much more attractive for foreign investors and maybe some foreigners buyers will purchase their plots and so what? it brings only lots of money in the country and fat revenues at the land offices...it creates job/sales/revenues etc.

It brings foreign investments back but if you create poor laws foreigners invest elsewhere that where we standing now.

[JLCrab]

Be careful what you wish for, there are several million Chinese looking for opportunities to buy assets outside of China who would soon drive up the price of land/housing & leave a lot of guys with a genuine reason/need to have property in Thailand priced out of the market.

I think you either need to apply a strict criteria (again, for me this is Strong Ties to the country) or make the price of entry high high enough to limit the people coming in driving house prices too high.

I'd also suggest that there's a minimum period of time you have to live in the property before being able to sell it with a sliding scale of Tax to be paid depending on how long you've lived there...

Again, just my 2cents

I do not see a tsunami of foreigners who will suddenly ump in to buy land and a house after their deposit of 3,000,000 BHT payment.

Look chinese can buy already freehold condos here in Thailand and they are not doing that either !

Thailand is sadly unstable and try to resale your existing unit it is a big problem ,rental returns are weak here, so enough problems.

Thailand must make it much more attractive for foreign investors and maybe some foreigners buyers will purchase their plots and so what? it brings only lots of money in the country and fat revenues at the land offices...it creates job/sales/revenues etc.

It brings foreign investments back but if you create poor laws foreigners invest elsewhere that where we standing now.

Gee -- those are some really good suggestions. What did your friends at the Ministry of Interior have to say when you spoke with them about what changes you propose they should make in the best interests of the Kingdom?

http://www.moi.go.th/portal/page?_pageid=814,1036641&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL

[Colin Foreman]

Thailand has retained it's revered and treasured culture and it's independence and should continue to do so.

Why should farang be allowed to own Thai land when it does not belong to them?

Thai people deserve to own land abroad because they work hard and contribute to the countries they live in... whereas farang, generally, pretend to work as a 'teachers' and marry bar girls, and treat Thai people with no respect.

Go figure!!!

[JB300]

Be careful what you wish for, there are several million Chinese looking for opportunities to buy assets outside of China who would soon drive up the price of land/housing & leave a lot of guys with a genuine reason/need to have property in Thailand priced out of the market.

I think you either need to apply a strict criteria (again, for me this is Strong Ties to the country) or make the price of entry high high enough to limit the people coming in driving house prices too high.

I'd also suggest that there's a minimum period of time you have to live in the property before being able to sell it with a sliding scale of Tax to be paid depending on how long you've lived there...

Again, just my 2cents

I do not see a tsunami of foreigners who will suddenly ump in to buy land and a house after their deposit of 3,000,000 BHT payment.

Look chinese can buy already freehold condos here in Thailand and they are not doing that either !

Thailand is sadly unstable and try to resale your existing unit it is a big problem ,rental returns are weak here, so enough problems.

Thailand must make it much more attractive for foreign investors and maybe some foreigners buyers will purchase their plots and so what? it brings only lots of money in the country and fat revenues at the land offices...it creates job/sales/revenues etc.

It brings foreign investments back but if you create poor laws foreigners invest elsewhere that where we standing now.

And with that Sage like insight I'm out of here....

Here's hoping you get your wish, because if you do, I'll buy 5 or 6 of them, Flip 'em & the next poor sap that comes along to try to buy a home for his family can just pay that little bit more...

[lostoday]

Edit: ok so you edited your post to add the Forbes link after I'd replied...

We're not talking about buying in the U.S. But I'd love to see this survey redone with the question/options being...

"Should Foreigners be allowed to own Property in Thailand"...

1) YES, if they're married to a Thai & have children (t)here.

2) YES, if they're married to a Thai & are supporting their partners children

3) YES, if they're willing to invest a reasonable amount of money in Thailand (per current Investment visa 10MB )

4) YES, if they've got a few quid to spare...

5) No

Yes sir Thailand is so much economically smarter than the USA.

That's why anyone from Thailand can buy land in America.

Completely missed the point of my argument... NO... Anybody (majority of people) in Thailand CANNOT buy in America because 1) They cannot go there & 2) They cannot afford it...

Edit: (because I'm obviously not managing to get my point across...) Whereas... Anybody from the U.S. can go to Thailand & (if the 3MB limit was in place) probably a large majority of them could afford to buy there...

Pshaw. Lets take one American city Los Angles. How many Thais live there? 80,000. Hardly nobody. Do a little research before posting.

[JB300]

Edit: ok so you edited your post to add the Forbes link after I'd replied...

We're not talking about buying in the U.S. But I'd love to see this survey redone with the question/options being...

"Should Foreigners be allowed to own Property in Thailand"...

1) YES, if they're married to a Thai & have children (t)here.

2) YES, if they're married to a Thai & are supporting their partners children

3) YES, if they're willing to invest a reasonable amount of money in Thailand (per current Investment visa 10MB )

4) YES, if they've got a few quid to spare...

5) No

Yes sir Thailand is so much economically smarter than the USA.

That's why anyone from Thailand can buy land in America.

Completely missed the point of my argument... NO... Anybody (majority of people) in Thailand CANNOT buy in America because 1) They cannot go there & 2) They cannot afford it...

Edit: (because I'm obviously not managing to get my point across...) Whereas... Anybody from the U.S. can go to Thailand & (if the 3MB limit was in place) probably a large majority of them could afford to buy there...

Pshaw. Lets take one American city Los Angles. How many Thais live there? 80,000. Hardly nobody. Do a little research before posting.

And how many own property there???

Oh, just did a quick bit of googling & apparently 80,000 isn't quite a majority when talking about 70+ Million.... I did double check on my calculator & even asked my mum, apparently both mum & Google are correct....

[lostoday]

Thailand has retained it's revered and treasured culture and it's independence and should continue to do so.

Why should farang be allowed to own Thai land when it does not belong to them?

Thai people deserve to own land abroad because they work hard and contribute to the countries they live in... whereas farang, generally, pretend to work as a 'teachers' and marry bar girls, and treat Thai people with no respect.

Go figure!!!

So you propose some kind of moral test before land is bought or sold? How dumb is that? Thais are allowed to buy land in USA and Americans should be allowed to buy land in Thailand. Tit for tat. Why should Thais be allowed to own American land that does not belong to them?

[JB300]

Thailand has retained it's revered and treasured culture and it's independence and should continue to do so.

Why should farang be allowed to own Thai land when it does not belong to them?

Thai people deserve to own land abroad because they work hard and contribute to the countries they live in... whereas farang, generally, pretend to work as a 'teachers' and marry bar girls, and treat Thai people with no respect.

Go figure!!!

So you propose some kind of moral test before land is bought or sold? How dumb is that? Thais are allowed to buy land in USA and Americans should be allowed to buy land in Thailand. Tit for tat. Why should Thais be allowed to own American land that does not belong to them?

I completely agree....

And in the same spirit, Americans should be subject to the same Visa regulations / processes / rigmarole in Thailand as Thais are when they visit the U.S.

Retirement Visa?... What Retirement Visa???

[lostoday]

Thailand has retained it's revered and treasured culture and it's independence and should continue to do so.

Why should farang be allowed to own Thai land when it does not belong to them?

Thai people deserve to own land abroad because they work hard and contribute to the countries they live in... whereas farang, generally, pretend to work as a 'teachers' and marry bar girls, and treat Thai people with no respect.

Go figure!!!

So you propose some kind of moral test before land is bought or sold? How dumb is that? Thais are allowed to buy land in USA and Americans should be allowed to buy land in Thailand. Tit for tat. Why should Thais be allowed to own American land that does not belong to them?

I completely agree....

And in the same spirit, Americans should be subject to the same Visa regulations / processes / rigmarole in Thailand as Thais are when they visit the U.S.

Retirement Visa?... What Retirement Visa???

The treaty of Amity (Thai/USA) also allows for preferential treatment for Thai businessmen applying for visas to conduct business in the United States. The formalities for their applications are kept to a minimum. Under the treaty the U.S. Congress may not enact discriminating laws against Thai firms. Their profits may be freely remitted to Thailand and their assets may not be expropriated

[JB300]

Thailand has retained it's revered and treasured culture and it's independence and should continue to do so.

Why should farang be allowed to own Thai land when it does not belong to them?

Thai people deserve to own land abroad because they work hard and contribute to the countries they live in... whereas farang, generally, pretend to work as a 'teachers' and marry bar girls, and treat Thai people with no respect.

Go figure!!!

So you propose some kind of moral test before land is bought or sold? How dumb is that? Thais are allowed to buy land in USA and Americans should be allowed to buy land in Thailand. Tit for tat. Why should Thais be allowed to own American land that does not belong to them?

I completely agree....

And in the same spirit, Americans should be subject to the same Visa regulations / processes / rigmarole in Thailand as Thais are when they visit the U.S.

Retirement Visa?... What Retirement Visa???

The treaty of Amity (Thai/USA) also allows for preferential treatment for Thai businessmen applying for visas to conduct business in the United States. The formalities for their applications are kept to a minimum. Under the treaty the U.S. Congress may not enact discriminating laws against Thai firms. Their profits may be freely remitted to Thailand and their assets may not be expropriated

Relevance to this discussion being?

[lostoday]

I completely agree....

And in the same spirit, Americans should be subject to the same Visa regulations / processes / rigmarole in Thailand as Thais are when they visit the U.S.

Retirement Visa?... What Retirement Visa???

The treaty of Amity (Thai/USA) also allows for preferential treatment for Thai businessmen applying for visas to conduct business in the United States. The formalities for their applications are kept to a minimum. Under the treaty the U.S. Congress may not enact discriminating laws against Thai firms. Their profits may be freely remitted to Thailand and their assets may not be expropriated

Relevance to this discussion being?

You wrote, "Americans should be subject to the same Visa regulations / processes / rigmarole in Thailand as Thais are when they visit the U.S."

You think 80,000 Thais live in LA because it is difficult to get in?

[JB300]

I completely agree....

And in the same spirit, Americans should be subject to the same Visa regulations / processes / rigmarole in Thailand as Thais are when they visit the U.S.

Retirement Visa?... What Retirement Visa???

The treaty of Amity (Thai/USA) also allows for preferential treatment for Thai businessmen applying for visas to conduct business in the United States. The formalities for their applications are kept to a minimum. Under the treaty the U.S. Congress may not enact discriminating laws against Thai firms. Their profits may be freely remitted to Thailand and their assets may not be expropriated

Relevance to this discussion being?

You wrote, "Americans should be subject to the same Visa regulations / processes / rigmarole in Thailand as Thais are when they visit the U.S."

You think 80,000 Thais live in LA because it is difficult to get in?

I suspect that there's a little more to it than turning up with your passport...

Edit: Damn, I'm English & I need to do more to visit the U.S. Than I do to visit Thailand.

No idea what I'd need to do to actually live there (hit 50 & pop $25k in a bank account & I'm all set in Thailand).

[micmichd]

JB300:

Maybe you *want* to live in Thailand?

I'm rather here as a guest than as an enemy in Europe.

[JB300]

JB300:

Maybe you *want* to live in Thailand?

I'm rather here as a guest than as an enemy in Europe.

Sorry, you've lost me fella... I haven't lived in Europe for 10 years though am popping back to the UK for a couple of weeks next month to visit the folks if that counts.

[micmichd]

Good luck.

My folks in Europe are mostly dead now.

[JB300]

Sorry to hear that, mine are getting on (70 & 65) so I try to get back 3-4 times a year to visit whilst I still can...

Probably (definitely) the worse part of living in Asia is being so far away from your family...

[DavisH]

What's this about the Chinese now?

Many ethnic Chinese are in fact Thai nationals (eg from Bangkok), mostly born in Thailand, some of them may have never been in China. Please don't confuse.

On another note, anyone who works / studies in China is allowed to buy a house/land there. I think there are some restrictions, but it makes Thailand look backwards in this respect. Has there been a massive land grab in China from this policy? Either way, there should be restrictions on buying land, e.g. cannot buy agricultural land and can only buy up to one rai and put a house on it. The owners should live in the house full time (which would eliminate speculators/investors) and have work / work permit or have their own income / pension. The Chinese have recently been in the use about some 'land grab' in Australia and it's effect on driving up prices, but the facts show this not to be happening. Had Thailand been colonised they may have a different view (I don't include the Chinese colonisation by stealth ).