Condos don't appreciate in value

[i claudius]

Just my two penneth,but the wife is in real estate,I reckon that not one condo she has sold in the last year has reached its original buying price, now for myself I would not live in a shoe box I like a nice big detached house with garden and at least three bedrooms ,a disaster to buy when it comes time to sell,you could wait years,I know of 3 on our estate that have been on the market for years,and they are all very nice but hardly ever get viewings ,anyway I digress,the wife never buys property ,but now land,that's a different matter,we have lots,and I don't worry a jot that it's in her name,nearly everything is

[Heng]

There's no getting around the fact that they have a limited shelf life. Just keeping it real, and my wife's family builds them.

Sure, flippers and short term investors can win, but in the end, someone has to be left holding the bag or will be the person without a chair when the music stops.

:-)

[i claudius]

Just like the Dubai market did

[lcp0761]

_{I'm getting ready to purchase "housing" in Thailand (a condo) and when reviewing the various listings, I almost always see a quote saying "Foreign Owned" versus "Thai Owned".}

_{Question --- what does this ownership phrase mean, if anything, other than maybe one would assume foreign ownership might have different housing options versus Thai, i.e. bathroom amenity style, kitchen,...?}

_{NOTE --- the listings I have seen this in are mostly condo's but have also seen it in single family housing so I don't think it's in reference to the land as only a Thai can own land.}

[WorkingTourist]

I'm getting ready to purchase "housing" in Thailand (a condo) and when reviewing the various listings, I almost always see a quote saying "Foreign Owned" versus "Thai Owned".

Question --- what does this ownership phrase mean […]

For a condominium, only 49% can be owned by foreigners. This translates to roughly half the units only being allowed as “foreign owned”.

If you see it for a villa, then likely it’s a leasehold. I.e. you buy the house but lease the land, for at most 30 years, if you’re buying second hand, there would be less than 30 years left on the lease.

I suggest you do a bit of reading about these things before buying “housing” in Thailand, as there is a big difference between buying freehold, leasehold, or a Thai owned property via some questionable setup.

[coulson]

_{I'm getting ready to purchase "housing" in Thailand (a condo) and when reviewing the various listings, I almost always see a quote saying "Foreign Owned" versus "Thai Owned".}

_{Question --- what does this ownership phrase mean, if anything, other than maybe one would assume foreign ownership might have different housing options versus Thai, i.e. bathroom amenity style, kitchen,...?}

Every Ad placed for cars/ motorbikes in the gulf region has the 'ex-pat owned' signature closing statement - it infers the car/ bike has received the sort of TLC it might not get from the locals.

I believe in this case it is similar, a unit previously owned/ inhabited by foreigners may contain fixtures & fittings that make it more appealing to the buyer.

[KittenKong]

I believe in this case it is similar, a unit previously owned/ inhabited by foreigners may contain fixtures & fittings that make it more appealing to the buyer.

That's certainly possible but it's still a very tenuous assumption. There are plenty of farang-owned units in my building that are in very poor condition: generally (but not always) the ones that have been rented out.

When "farang" appears in the description of a condo it almost invariably means that it falls into the 49% of farang ownership, as mentioned previously. This is an advantage in buildings that are popular with farangs as many of them will not be interested in buying company-name or Thai-name units and will be prepared to spend a bit more on a fully legal purchase in their own name. It is not an advantage in buildings that are not popular with farangs.

I suggest that lcp0761 does a lot more research before getting his wallet out. Property in Thailand is very easy to buy but very hard to sell, so it pays to know what you are letting yourself in for.

[Anthony5]

_{I'm getting ready to purchase "housing" in Thailand (a condo) and when reviewing the various listings, I almost always see a quote saying "Foreign Owned" versus "Thai Owned".}

_{Question --- what does this ownership phrase mean, if anything, other than maybe one would assume foreign ownership might have different housing options versus Thai, i.e. bathroom amenity style, kitchen,...?}

_{NOTE --- the listings I have seen this in are mostly condo's but have also seen it in single family housing so I don't think it's in reference to the land as only a Thai can own land.}

If a condo is foreigner owned it means you can transfer it in your name. If it is Thai owned chances are small that you can transfer it in your name.

For that reason foreign owned condo's are more popular, and fetch a higher sales price, with foreign buyers.

[coulson]

I believe in this case it is similar, a unit previously owned/ inhabited by foreigners may contain fixtures & fittings that make it more appealing to the buyer.

That's certainly possible but it's still a very tenuous assumption. There are plenty of farang-owned units in my building that are in very poor condition: generally (but not always) the ones that have been rented out.

When "farang" appears in the description of a condo it almost invariably means that it falls into the 49% of farang ownership, as mentioned previously. This is an advantage in buildings that are popular with farangs as many of them will not be interested in buying company-name or Thai-name units and will be prepared to spend a bit more on a fully legal purchase in their own name. It is not an advantage in buildings that are not popular with farangs.

I suggest that lcp0761 does a lot more research before getting his wallet out. Property in Thailand is very easy to buy but very hard to sell, so it pays to know what you are letting yourself in for.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't the farang/ thai ownership ratio get determined by the land registry at the time of sale? A unit does not get allocated as a *foreigner* unit just because it was owned by a foreigner at one point.

Thai can always buy. A foreigner can buy any unit at any given time....provided the ratio at the time meets the 49.51....or am I missing something?

Granted a foreign owned unit could always be bought by another foreigner as it is just carrying on the same ratio...hence I could understand being sold as *foreign* owned

[newnative]

'Foreign owned' is always referring to a condo that is registered at the Land Office under the 49% ownership rule and this foreign ownership can be transferred to the new buyer. I strongly recommend that you only buy a condo in foreign ownership. This phrase is not referring to the type of fittings in the condo. Usually a condo listing will say something like "renovated to a high European standard" to indicate that it has furniture, kitchen, bathroom, etc. with western fittings/design.

[KittenKong]

I believe in this case it is similar, a unit previously owned/ inhabited by foreigners may contain fixtures & fittings that make it more appealing to the buyer.

That's certainly possible but it's still a very tenuous assumption. There are plenty of farang-owned units in my building that are in very poor condition: generally (but not always) the ones that have been rented out.

When "farang" appears in the description of a condo it almost invariably means that it falls into the 49% of farang ownership, as mentioned previously. This is an advantage in buildings that are popular with farangs as many of them will not be interested in buying company-name or Thai-name units and will be prepared to spend a bit more on a fully legal purchase in their own name. It is not an advantage in buildings that are not popular with farangs.

I suggest that lcp0761 does a lot more research before getting his wallet out. Property in Thailand is very easy to buy but very hard to sell, so it pays to know what you are letting yourself in for.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't the farang/ thai ownership ratio get determined by the land registry at the time of sale? A unit does not get allocated as a *foreigner* unit just because it was owned by a foreigner at one point.

Thai can always buy. A foreigner can buy any unit at any given time....provided the ratio at the time meets the 49.51....or am I missing something?

Granted a foreign owned unit could always be bought by another foreigner as it is just carrying on the same ratio...hence I could understand being sold as *foreign* owned

The quota is actually determined based on a document provided by the Juristic Person Manager, which to my eyes leaves a lot of scope for dishonesty. You are correct that units are not permanently allocated to any particular ownership type.

So yes, a farang can buy any unit as long as the quota remains below 49%. In some buildings (even in popular areas like Jomtien) the quota is nowhere near 49% and so a farang can buy anything he fancies from anyone who wants to sell.

And yes, a Thai could buy a unit that is owned by a farang and this would result in the farang quota dropping accordingly. In practice, in buildings that are popular with farangs and in which the quota is already 49%, this rarely happens as the farang-name units sell at a premium. And why would a Thai want to pay more for a unit that is owned by a farang just to see the price difference eroded as soon as he bought it? Maybe if the unit was in extremely good condition, I suppose.

But yes, it is possible and yes it certainly does happen in buildings that are not very popular with farangs and in which the quota is not at 49%. But it's quite rare in buildings where the quota is at 49%.

[lcp0761]

Do not buy A condo for investment reasons.You should buy one to live in or maybe rent it out.But if you buy A condo now for 3 million and think in 3 years you can sell it for 5 million you need to think twice.Investment property is always

iffy.

Looking for basic insight --- what does it mean for housing (CONDO) to be "Foreign Name" vs "Thai Name"? When buying,

[trogers]

Do not buy A condo for investment reasons.You should buy one to live in or maybe rent it out.But if you buy A condo now for 3 million and think in 3 years you can sell it for 5 million you need to think twice.Investment property is always

iffy.

This strategy and expectation of price rise is not Investment. It is Speculation. Speculating that a greater fool would arrive to buy it at a higher price.

Investment in real property would have a much longer time horizon, usually over 8 years.

[ldnguy]

Some appreciate and some don't. I know people that have done well with condos near good international schools. I'd buy to live but not to invest. Better investments elsewhere. Why are so many farangs obsessed with Thai property investment? Some can make it work, but the majority have no idea.