Phuket Property Developers Say Life Is Good After Coup

[sriracha john]

in places like Phuket (Thailands richest province).

Might I ask upon what criteria this assessment was made and its source?

[cclub75]

in places like Phuket (Thailands richest province).

Might I ask upon what criteria this assessment was made and its source?

Easy. The criteria is : stupidity + bad taste + sheep mentality.

In this regard, Phuket is undoubtly a winning location.

[Sir Burr]

Phuket is Thailand's second richest province. The first is the one Bankok is in.

[jimbob]

Phuket is Thailand's second richest province. The first is the one Bankok is in.

I am not sure. I have heard that Phuket was the country's richest province. I guess it depends on which statistics ie. the economy province as a whole or the networth/net income of the average individual. Depending on what criteria you base it on either Bangkok or Phuket could be the wealthiest province (assuming anybody believes Government statistics).

Edited September 27, 2006 by jimbob

[sriracha john]

Phuket is Thailand's second richest province. The first is the one Bankok is in.

ok, then...

"Might I ask upon what criteria this assessment was made and its source?"

Edited September 27, 2006 by sriracha john

[jimbob]

Phuket is Thailand's second richest province. The first is the one Bankok is in.

ok, then...

"Might I ask upon what criteria this assessment was made and its source?"

http://www.1stopphuket.com/what_to_see/

"Thailand's largest island and its richest province by capita, Phuket is the most sophisticated and best developed of the tourist centres across the Kingdom."

Seeing how much the Hotel and property companies are paying people it is no wonder that per capita people do so well - there is such a high demand (and short supply) for good staff that you have to pay through the nose to get anything with a pulse sometimes.

Edited September 27, 2006 by jimbob

[sriracha john]

I do appreciate cclub's contribution as his criteria is stated and the source would appear to be personal.

...and it was quite humorous to boot.

Thanks for that.

[sriracha john]

Phuket is Thailand's second richest province. The first is the one Bankok is in.

ok, then...

"Might I ask upon what criteria this assessment was made and its source?"

http://www.1stopphuket.com/what_to_see/

"Thailand's largest island and its richest province by capita, Phuket is the most sophisticated and best developed of the tourist centres across the Kingdom."

Seeing how much the Hotel and property companies are paying people it is no wonder that per capita people do so well - there is such a high demand (and short supply) for good staff that you have to pay through the nose to get anything with a pulse sometimes.

Thanks for the link... but as a typical regional tourist information site (with it's objectivity is naturally suspect) and with the following disclaimer:

Information provided on this website is offered as a guide only and was deemed to be reasonably accurate at the time of publication. All information is offered without warranty of any kind.

We do not guarantee the validity and accuracy of this supplied information.

not to mention it's follow on statement is even more vague and subjective and indescript "most sophisticated" and "most developed"...

I was hoping for something more definitive.

I appreciate the effort, however.

[Tornado]

having just returned from a trip to phuket and samui , although i cannot dispute that there may be buyers pecking around , there are also hundreds of unsold properties , dozens of projects seemingly abandoned half way through building and the usual scene of bomb site moo baans with more builders than residents.

its a very strange market indeed

This is the case. The positive posts are just agents talking the market up. The smart money in Phuket is going into the SCB for 4% interest. Thats how good the market here is!

There are thousands of empty plots, and hundreds of areas cleared for development that are just stood empty, cleared of trees but no action. Land is not limited here, it is readily available everywhere. You need to go and look for it yourself and don't listen to some fat loudmouthed falang developer. Rent a bike and tour the Island, save yourself a fortune.

Two sales in one week!! I think its the "dead cat bounce" we used to hear of in politics. Its its also impossible that two sales would go from initial visit to completion of sale in one week.

These are either completions from previous months or offers not yet completed, in which case they are not sales.

Keep up the bullshit boys, somebody somewhere is daft enough to believe you. Just look at all the bars that sell here.

what a load of drivel!

Please tell us Mr Phuket about all of the land you find on your bike cruises. Ill be very interested.

Land is cleared for many reasons: waiting for smaller plots to be issued titles, land banked, ready for sale for high season or maybe even enviromental impact paper work etc etc.

Please let all of us investors know where all that great land is in abundance. Ill have 5 rai on the beach anywhere on the Ilsand. Ill put my money where my mouth is. Up to 40 mil.

Ill also have 10 Rai or smaller in Rawai or Chalong with sea views. Budget 35 mil.

I await your experienced reply.

[steveromagnino]

Please let all of us investors know where all that great land is in abundance. Ill have 5 rai on the beach anywhere on the Ilsand. Ill put my money where my mouth is. Up to 40 mil.

Ill also have 10 Rai or smaller in Rawai or Chalong with sea views. Budget 35 mil.

I await your experienced reply.

If you are talking to me (which i am unsure...) then I think you might need to open your cheque book a bit more than that; smaller plots under 10 rai have a lot more potential developers than what the people I know are doing (which is big plots).

The smallest plot that the people I know have purchased within the last 2 years is <30 rai on the east coast; other ones are in the triple digits; and yes, all water front sites.

Already one buyer lined up for the <30 rai plot on the east coast, nice beach (for east coast); at somewhere around a little under 7m per rai.

I know for a fact that larger sites than this are available....at a price somewhat higher than your 5 rai for 40m number multiple in many cases. Like I said, it is there, but whether you can make money out of it is an entirely different story. And that is the issue....almost everything in the world is available...but at what price?!

[Tornado]

Please let all of us investors know where all that great land is in abundance. Ill have 5 rai on the beach anywhere on the Ilsand. Ill put my money where my mouth is. Up to 40 mil.

Ill also have 10 Rai or smaller in Rawai or Chalong with sea views. Budget 35 mil.

I await your experienced reply.

If you are talking to me (which i am unsure...) then I think you might need to open your cheque book a bit more than that; smaller plots under 10 rai have a lot more potential developers than what the people I know are doing (which is big plots).

The smallest plot that the people I know have purchased within the last 2 years is <30 rai on the east coast; other ones are in the triple digits; and yes, all water front sites.

Already one buyer lined up for the <30 rai plot on the east coast, nice beach (for east coast); at somewhere around a little under 7m per rai.

I know for a fact that larger sites than this are available....at a price somewhat higher than your 5 rai for 40m number multiple in many cases. Like I said, it is there, but whether you can make money out of it is an entirely different story. And that is the issue....almost everything in the world is available...but at what price?!

No Steve, I wasnt actually posting directly at you. You have made my point though. It is very hard to get a small plot anywhere in Phuket. I have been in the real estate game for 10 years here and I KNOW "good land" is very hard to get and small plots of great land is very rare and comes at a premium price. Land in Phuket is running out fast and that is fact.

It seems "the big boys" think's the region is still worth the investment.

Saudi Prince inks B4.3bn resort deal

http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/index.asp?id=5254

[Steph1012]

Nice try Tornado. Keep talking it up and try not to get too steamed up about it as well, we all have opinions and this is mine.

I am a keen cyclist and clock up hundreds of KM every week on and off the Island. Get out of your office and car a bit more if you want to know whats going on here.

Just seen 350 rai being auctioned off, and here are four full pages of houses for sale.

http://phuketgazette.net/classifieds/phuke...f=2006929151115

Also try a search on Google, theres thousands of adds. Lot of land was bought up by speculators and they are struggling to shift any of it.

Some of these have been on for over a year. A lot of these adds are for multiple houses on developments and there are massive plots of land.

Try Chao Fah Road as well. There are hundreds of properties for sale at Land and house, Middle Road, Phuket Villa etc. etc., Massive complexes going in up at Talang as well.

Hundreds of plots for sale and when you ring about one, you are always offered more choices as a lot of the adds are from agents and discounts are always offered.

[jimbob]

There certainly are a few properties on the market in Chalong. In my opinion (I'm not a property guy by the way - not rich enough but am a bit of a &lt;deleted&gt; so halfway there) a lot of these are by Thai developers who do not understand the farang market. They try to charge farang prices for houses only Thais would want. Land and House, Phuket Villa etc are nothing special, have no seaviews and are a fair way from the beach - they have no selling point and their marketing is crap.

As you note, the condo and villa developments in the north are being built still so since these are mostly funded off-plan it would seem there still is demand.

I think things in the market will even-off eventually but if we have a good high-season (not more coups or bombs please!) then there will an active market of drunk and happy holidaymakers looking to buy (or lease) a slice of paradise.

Tornado is right about the big boys investing heavily still. Lehman Brothers, Kingdom Group, Hilton, Conrad, Raimon Land, Shinawatra Group, Watson Group etc all are involved in major buying and selling on the island. We are talking big boys with big bucks here.

Edited September 29, 2006 by jimbob

[steveromagnino]

There certainly are a few properties on the market in Chalong. In my opinion (I'm not a property guy by the way - not rich enough but am a bit of a &lt;deleted&gt; so halfway there)

Tornado is right about the big boys investing heavily still. Lehman Brothers, Kingdom Group, Hilton, Conrad, Raimon Land, Shinawatra Group, Watson Group etc all are involved in major buying and selling on the island. We are talking big boys with big bucks here.

You, my friend, are a LEGEND :-) Great line :-)

Yep, a few active big investors down there; not so sure that Shinawatra are going to keep going with their dog project down there.........

[Tornado]

Nice try Tornado. Keep talking it up and try not to get too steamed up about it as well, we all have opinions and this is mine.

I am a keen cyclist and clock up hundreds of KM every week on and off the Island. Get out of your office and car a bit more if you want to know whats going on here.

Just seen 350 rai being auctioned off, and here are four full pages of houses for sale.

http://phuketgazette.net/classifieds/phuke...f=2006929151115

Also try a search on Google, theres thousands of adds. Lot of land was bought up by speculators and they are struggling to shift any of it.

Some of these have been on for over a year. A lot of these adds are for multiple houses on developments and there are massive plots of land.

Try Chao Fah Road as well. There are hundreds of properties for sale at Land and house, Middle Road, Phuket Villa etc. etc., Massive complexes going in up at Talang as well.

Hundreds of plots for sale and when you ring about one, you are always offered more choices as a lot of the adds are from agents and discounts are always offered.

Im not getting steamed up, Im suggesting you are looking at crap land in crap locations.

Who wants to live in these areas? That is the Thai market. Your initial response to this thread was regarding land being plentifull, this is not the case.

Houses are always for sale and always will be. Land on the other hand is very hard to get in the right areas.

Hundreds of plots for sale, but where? How much? Are the titles ok? due dilligence done? under the 80 meter height restriction? flying sor kor 1? national park? airport noise? zone? build height restrictions? servitude? water? electricity?

The west coast has 5 plots left on the beach and that is a pretty large coast.

The Panwa area: looks like loads of land until you get the paperwork and they are either tor bor 6 or sor kor 1, which is no good to a foreigner.

The Kathu area: try and find a 1 or 2 Rai plot without a major overhead powerline behind you.

The Layan area: Last year selling at 3-4 mil per Rai, now 7 mil and up and very hard to find.

The Surin area: try and find a nice sea view plot.

Kamala: millionaires row. 3 plots left on the whole road.

Mai Kao: 2 beachfront land plots and other than that, some jungle plots in horrible locations.

Rawai: find a 1 rai plot.

Nai Harn: rare as rocking horse shit.

Patong: two larger plots left under the 80 meter mark and no 1 rai plots.

Cherngtalay: plenty of low level land that needs to filled (cost about 600 k a Rai to fill)

Thalang: last year 500 k per rai, now 1 mil per Rai and selling to Bangkok Thais and a few foreigners.

Chalong: I can go throgh every road if you like.

East Coast: Ao Phor, not much sea view left and selling at 7 mil per Rai and upwards.

Yamoo: 25 mil per Rai if you buy in the nice area and other land in this area is land banked by Thais from Bangkok or anyone with money for that matter.

Koh Sirea, a dump and the most lawless area on the island and the land price is still 6 mil and up per rai.

Now lets go through your post:

Just seen 350 rai being auctioned off, and here are four full pages of houses for sale."

350 Rai isnt what the average foreigner wants and the houses I've already covered.

"Also try a search on Google, theres thousands of adds. Lot of land was bought up by speculators and they are struggling to shift any of it."

Thousands? Please show me the adds where they are struggling to sell. What price did they pay for it and what area was it in?

"Some of these have been on for over a year. A lot of these adds are for multiple houses on developments and there are massive plots of land."

Developers usually advertise for many years, it obviously depends on location and price and the quality of the product.

"Try Chao Fah Road as well. There are hundreds of properties for sale at Land and house, Middle Road, Phuket Villa etc. etc., Massive complexes going in up at Talang as well. "

Very badly built, thrown together with sub standard fixtures and fittings, aimed mainly at the Thai market. Thalang is also a Thai village area and we can wait and see if the average foreigner thinks its for them.

"Hundreds of plots for sale and when you ring about one, you are always offered more choices as a lot of the adds are from agents and discounts are always offered."

I have been in this game for ten years and anyone who knows anything about searching for land, is, there is always another plot. When looking for the right plot, there is much due dilligance to do and most turn out to be far from perfect and after you have gone through all of the neccesary checks, your out on the road again looking for more.

I am out and about everyday in my job and deal with every Thai broker on this Island. I get 60 plots a week brought into my company by 1 broker alone and after I sift through the crap, I end up with less than 10 percent.

Since arriving in Phuket way back in the late 90's, I have seen land prices (1 area for example) in Rawai go from 300,000 baht per Rai to todays price (same land) 7 million baht.

Phuket is a very good investment and I dont think there are many places in the world you could have gains like this. THERE IS ONLY A SMALL AMOUNT OF LAND LEFT AVAILABLE IN GOOD AREAS AND I DONT CARE IF NOBODY BUYS IT, I DONT CARE ABOUT BEATING UP THE MARKET, ALL I CARE ABOUT IS THAt THE RIGHT INFORMATION IS GIVEN.

Please dont listen to arm chair real estate gurus, there are more of them than land.

With new zoning laws in place it isnt as easy as before.

(I have'nt promoted my business, nor have I got anything to gain from the post above. There are well over 100 brokers on this Island now, send a few emails away to them and see if I am right) Good Luck to all!

Edited September 29, 2006 by Tornado

[geoffphuket]

Massive complexes going in up at Talang as well. very badly built, thrown together with sub standard fixtures and fittings, aimed mainly at the Thai market. Thalang is also a Thai village area and we can wait and see if the average foreigner thinks its for them.

I live on a new estate in Thalang. Ok, maybe they're not built to western standards, but to say they're thrown together and badly built isn't fair at all. The construction of my 3 bedroom bungalow is faultless, and the area, Thalang, far better than living in a designated area for Foreign investors where the prices have gone crazy.

[LoveDaBlues]

Wow on the prices. Glad I don't like the beach. 5.5 rai 460K.....life is good.

[LoveDaBlues]

Massive complexes going in up at Talang as well. very badly built, thrown together with sub standard fixtures and fittings, aimed mainly at the Thai market. Thalang is also a Thai village area and we can wait and see if the average foreigner thinks its for them.

I live on a new estate in Thalang. Ok, maybe they're not built to western standards, but to say they're thrown together and badly built isn't fair at all. The construction of my 3 bedroom bungalow is faultless, and the area, Thalang, far better than living in a designated area for Foreign investors where the prices have gone crazy.

yea......but you've got a brain......not the type that appeal to people in a certain profession

[Ulysses G.]

Please dont listen to arm chair real estate gurus, there are more of them than land.

With new zoning laws in place it isnt as easy as before.

(I haven't promoted my business, nor have I got anything to gain from the post above. There are well over 100 brokers on this Island now, send a few emails away to them and see if I am right) Good Luck to all!

Seems like very good advice here - and FREE!

[younghusband]

I guess I totally misperceived the Phuket real estate market. I was under the impression that at any given time, hundreds of properties were for sale island-wide... and that the most optimistic realtor that they could find for the article had sold two (with btw, just as much probability that they were on the low end 1 million baht) was rather pathetic.

If two sales constitutes a boom, then I have much clearer idea about the size of the Phuket real estate business.

Thank you.

Raimon Land are one of the biggest developers in Thailand. They do not sell properties for 1 million baht (in fact no developers sell property in Phuket for 1 million baht - maybe in the resale market but not in a state-of-the-art development).

Current Raimon Land projects in Phuket sell for between 15 and 30 million baht. Selling two of those in the middle of a military coup is one hel_l of a payday.

Property development here is now aimed increasingly at the highest end of the market - basically at the Hong Kong and Singapore business crowd.

The area on the west coast from Kalim up through Kamala to the airport is now known as millionaires mile as it costs about 1 million US to buy a villa there.

Land space is finite here so the emphasis is on quality and price rather than quantity.

Raimon Land is a wonderful and trustworthy company.A quick glance at the SET site shows its directors include Bob McMillen and Jeremy King, sure evidence that Raimon is committed to good governance, transparency and honest dealings.

[jimbob]

As a rule I trust neither private or public companies. Some are less worse than others but I couldn't name any off hand (well maybe the chap that runs the local minimart but even he is a bit shifty).

[Tornado]

Massive complexes going in up at Talang as well. very badly built, thrown together with sub standard fixtures and fittings, aimed mainly at the Thai market. Thalang is also a Thai village area and we can wait and see if the average foreigner thinks its for them.

I live on a new estate in Thalang. Ok, maybe they're not built to western standards, but to say they're thrown together and badly built isn't fair at all. The construction of my 3 bedroom bungalow is faultless, and the area, Thalang, far better than living in a designated area for Foreign investors where the prices have gone crazy.

yawn. I love how you edited that to make it look like I was having a dig at a particular area. I actually was referring to Land and House and Phuket Villa 3 re construction quality. How the hel_l would I know where you live. I stated that Thalang was a Thai village area and we will see how the foreign market feels about this area over time. I actually like Thalang.

Thanks for picking a small hole in my post to justify your own existance.

[Steph1012]

(quote)

Massive complexes going in up at Talang as well. very badly built, thrown together with sub standard fixtures and fittings, aimed mainly at the Thai market. Thalang is also a Thai village area and we can wait and see if the average foreigner thinks its for them.

Tornado! You are too picky by far.

Horses for courses! My point was that there is land available, and houses for sale across the board. My advice was also valid. If you go and look for it yourself, its better and cheaper than being led by the nose by some agent skimming off 6%.

My point is that at any given time, any foreigner can come here and choose from a shed load of developments at all price ranges, all of them cheaper than Western Europe.

As for Thalang being too Thai for the "average foreigner" I wound say the

'average foreign buyer" lives here because it is Thai! Most of us have been here for years and can work things out for ourselves.

Lots of the new buyer, investors and speculators are scared shitless to get off the well worn farang areas, thus, sky high prices here and rock bottom for those of us that love living with Thais, living in Thai areas, having Thai kids, learning Thai, eating Thai, shopping on the markets etc. Screw anybody that is just interested in "investment potential" they are only driving the price up.

IMHO there are too many miserable faced westerners coming these days, building massive walls round their properties, installing expensive alarm systems (this says loud and clear "I do not trust you Thais") not engaging with the local population and pissing off their Thai neighbours by complaining about Thailand and writing all those "why oh why don't the Thais....." letters.

[ColPyat]

My point is that at any given time, any foreigner can come here and choose from a shed load of developments at all price ranges, all of them cheaper than Western Europe.

As for Thalang being too Thai for the "average foreigner" I wound say the

'average foreign buyer" lives here because it is Thai! Most of us have been here for years and can work things out for ourselves.

IMHO there are too many miserable faced westerners coming these days, building massive walls round their properties, installing expensive alarm systems (this says loud and clear "I do not trust you Thais") not engaging with the local population and pissing off their Thai neighbours by complaining about Thailand and writing all those "why oh why don't the Thais....." letters.

As for properties in Thailand cheaper than in most western European countries, i would have a careful look again at prices in western Europe. If you make your due diligence you can find properties in western Europe that are far cheaper than in Thailand's overheated real estate business, and in addition to that - higher returns in a far safer legal and economical environment. No need in western Europe to make fishy bogus companies in order to directly own your property.

The foreigner oriented real estate business in Thailand lives mainly from one aspect - Thailand being promoted as a safe destination in a tropical climate. This is an assumption based more on wishful thinking than on any reason behind.

Recent political developments have shown that Thailand is far from stable, and given Thailand's laws concerning farang restrictions on real estate, and notorious corruption of the courts, it shows that legal protection for foreign investors is rather weak.

Crime statistics are rising, and the situation in the three southern provinces are in danger of getting out of hand. If a solution is not found soon, it is only a matter of time and a bomb goes off in Phuket. And then anyone can stuff his real estate investments here in Thailand's foreigner oriented sector up his behind.

Maybe your motivation of living in Thailand might be immersing yourself in Thailand's culture and society, but i fear that the motivation of the average farang moving to places like Phuket is still to live in a tropical country very cheaply. This person will hardly be able to take advantage of the protection of the local community, and therefore he will have to live in a protected area, walled off and seperated from the average Thai.

I enjoy living here, and if i would have enough cash i could risk loosing i would buy a house here. Not as an investment, but simply to live in. My investments in real estate though stay in western Europe, where i have a safe income, returns of more than 10%, a good rise in appreciation (last year double digits!), and proper legal protection.

Maybe i won't double my wealth within a year, but i have minimal risk of loosing my investment in the volatile situation of a developing nation, in which i have to use loopholes in the law if i want to directly own real estate other than in notoriously badly built condos.

Lots of money can be made here in real estate, but equally, lots of money can be lost. I don't need that sort of headache.

[LoveDaBlues]

(quote)

Massive complexes going in up at Talang as well. very badly built, thrown together with sub standard fixtures and fittings, aimed mainly at the Thai market. Thalang is also a Thai village area and we can wait and see if the average foreigner thinks its for them.

Tornado! You are too picky by far.

Horses for courses! My point was that there is land available, and houses for sale across the board. My advice was also valid. If you go and look for it yourself, its better and cheaper than being led by the nose by some agent skimming off 6%.

My point is that at any given time, any foreigner can come here and choose from a shed load of developments at all price ranges, all of them cheaper than Western Europe.

As for Thalang being too Thai for the "average foreigner" I wound say the

'average foreign buyer" lives here because it is Thai! Most of us have been here for years and can work things out for ourselves.

Lots of the new buyer, investors and speculators are scared shitless to get off the well worn farang areas, thus, sky high prices here and rock bottom for those of us that love living with Thais, living in Thai areas, having Thai kids, learning Thai, eating Thai, shopping on the markets etc. Screw anybody that is just interested in "investment potential" they are only driving the price up.

IMHO there are too many miserable faced westerners coming these days, building massive walls round their properties, installing expensive alarm systems (this says loud and clear "I do not trust you Thais") not engaging with the local population and pissing off their Thai neighbours by complaining about Thailand and writing all those "why oh why don't the Thais....." letters.

Ah if were only that cheap

[egeefay]

One developer told Phuket Post that he had been inundated with requests about a piece of land he had been trying to sell for over a year. “Last week we had three people interested in a plot of land we had for sale,” the developer, who asked to rename nameless, told the Post. “Yesterday [saturday] one buyer called to make a definite offer. When the second called and I told him the land was already under offer, he said he’d take the other plot we had. Then the third called and said he would improve on the first offer we’d received so he could get that first plot.”

--Phuket Post 2006-09-25

Why would a developer with land for sale want to "rename nameless" (I suppose the author meant to write "remain nameless")

...unless, of course,he doesn't exist.

Looks and sounds like "paid advertisment"

[Tornado]

(quote)

Massive complexes going in up at Talang as well. very badly built, thrown together with sub standard fixtures and fittings, aimed mainly at the Thai market. Thalang is also a Thai village area and we can wait and see if the average foreigner thinks its for them.

Tornado! You are too picky by far.

Horses for courses! My point was that there is land available, and houses for sale across the board. My advice was also valid. If you go and look for it yourself, its better and cheaper than being led by the nose by some agent skimming off 6%.

I can see your point, but I dont agree. 6%? I dont know who your talking to, but 3% is the norm.

It is never better or cheaper going direct in my opinion. There is a lot more to buying land than saying "yes thats nice, Ill have it". The reputable agents have checked all that has to be checked, before it even comes onto the market. Agents know the local market and have experience in dealing with the Thai sellers. I know plenty of land held by Thais that are waiting for the "dumb farang" who has no idea of price, zones, heights etc.

Let me put it this way: Why wouldnt you go to an agent to buy land when they have done all the relevant checks and have taken all the head aches out, as the due dilligence is already done.

If the only reason is that you think you will get a better price, then I would suggest you use a reputable agent that lets you deal direct with the owner on price.

My point is that at any given time, any foreigner can come here and choose from a shed load of developments at all price ranges, all of them cheaper than Western Europe.

Cheaper?

As for Thalang being too Thai for the "average foreigner" I wound say the

'average foreign buyer" lives here because it is Thai! Most of us have been here for years and can work things out for ourselves.

Yes but your talking about such a small demographic that wants to live in Thalang. The average buyer is looking for the holiday home or a safe environment for the family to stay in, will not choose Thalang as the infrastructure is not there and many wives or female buyers will not live in a unsecure location/development. Security is paramount to most clients, unless you are married to a Thai or have lived here for some years, Thai villages are not on top of the list.

Lots of the new buyer, investors and speculators are scared shitless to get off the well worn farang areas, thus, sky high prices here and rock bottom for those of us that love living with Thais, living in Thai areas, having Thai kids, learning Thai, eating Thai, shopping on the markets etc. Screw anybody that is just interested in "investment potential" they are only driving the price up.

That is for expats and people with Thai spouses. Investment potential is driving the market as it is EVERYWHERE on this planet. Some people do other types of business other than clocking in at 9 and clocking off at 5. Screw them? a bit harsh I would say.

IMHO there are too many miserable faced westerners coming these days, building massive walls round their properties, installing expensive alarm systems (this says loud and clear "I do not trust you Thais") not engaging with the local population and pissing off their Thai neighbours by complaining about Thailand and writing all those "why oh why don't the Thais....." letters.

I used to think along the lines as you do. Then I realised just because I feel safe, doesnt mean all of the potential residents/buyers are going to feel the same way. The way the Island is growing and with the undesirable's coming in thick and fast, security should be paramount on everyones mind.

By the way you write about westerners on this Island, I guess you spend a lot of time with Thais. If that rocks your boat fine, not for me mate, I need a little more brain stimulation.

Not all people that live here come to eat Tom Yum with the neighbours, some of us just like the weather.

[Heng]

Business is still pretty much even keel. On track for the avg. 3-4 units sold per month for us, both before and after, all with at least one party (husband or wife) having 100% legal right to own property in Thailand though. That said, I'd advise friends who don't have that legal right to wait a year. All it takes is one televised announcement from a guy or gal wearing a navy business suit and gold clip on tie to ruin your day. Traditionally, the army mindset towards being nationalistic and anti- foreigner is a bit (just a bit) less friendly than the police mindset.

edit: a bit off topic, but on tangent. this is in reference to our Pattaya development

Edited October 2, 2006 by Heng