Why is land so expensive in Thailand? Is it?!

[kannot]

Wife Paid 800k for 15 rai (53000 per rai) 3 years ago in Pranburi............3 km from main Phetkasem road with electric and paved road, 20 minutes to Hua Hin 5 minutes into Pranburi and beaches Sam Roi Yot in 20 minutes............dumb prices in Hua hin compared to what she got here, Nor sor sam gor price opposite for nor sor sam only is 150k + now and sold recently

[1FinickyOne]

I live in a much more fertile area than Isaan and farm land is 100-150,000 a rai depending upon road access and water... also, a rai of land is less than half an acre so, not sure where you got any of your figures... we did have someone offer land at 500,000 a rai but that was ridiculous.

I think you are being misled...

[theguyfromanotherforum]

Even wine growing land in California is cheaper.

In California, you never really own the land.

Hilarious. As if in Thailand you do.

[nongsangcity]

Here near Sakon Nakhon....1 rai around 35-40000 bht....with water and electric.....wish the wife could get 500000 bht a rai for her land.....she bought the land 10 years ago for 9000 bht a rai.....and the pound was 70 bht to the pound....10 rai for 1250 english pounds....happy days

[khunPer]

For 500,000 baht a rai farmland in Nakhon Nowhere, I know a lot who will sell – however, it's more likely somewhere between 50,000 and up to 100,000 baht a rai, depending of location, for example water and access from road. Some prime areas with Chanote title deed may be selling for more, but I can hardly imagine 500,000 baht a rai for farmland.

Do OP know anyone who has bought land at that price, and where..?

[Robm579]

You cannot own land in Thailand ... So whatever you pay is 100% expensive

Someone wise and wealthy once said ...." If it flies, floats, or plucks ...rent it!"

[ericthai]

1 rai of rice field not on a main road is about 100k +/- depending on whether you have access to water all year round etc. I don't know where you have the 500k from.

All depends on where.

In our village which is not far from down town 1 rai is selling between 200,000 - 300,000B. My wifes sister sold 2 rai to a neighbor about 5 months ago for 500,000B, but this is good land with water all year round.

My friend gave his wife 20,000B to buy one rai near her parents house. When I was looking to build a new factory I was looking at land on main roads in Issan (Surin) and prices where as high as 1 million a rai lowest was 400K but again this was not farm land and on a main road.

[rct99q]

Family has ten rai about 20km outside of Nong Khai. Not on river but good road access, electricity and water year round.

In December neighbor sold 1 rai for 500,000 baht. People from Bangkok bought and building rental homes. Wifes Uncle was offered 800,000 baht for his 1 rai but is a nice piece if land with a small river (year round water) and a fresh water pond on it.

Wife has 4 rai in her name on 2 seperate plots of land all in the same village of the above and has been offered 500,000 to 800,000 baht for each plot. People from Bangkok and Laos are looking to buy land near us for our proximity to Laos as well as having year round access to fresh water (located in wetlands area).

Our land for whatever reason is priced the same as or even higher than some land closer to Nong Khai.

Wife will never sell as she wants to keep land in the family (for our two kids) but other family members have sold theirs.

As with all real estate it is only as expensive as what someone will pay for it. The actual "value" of the land is probably around 100,000 to 150,000 just due mainly to our access to fresh water year round.

[cornishcarlos]

You cannot own land in Thailand ... So whatever you pay is 100% expensive

Someone wise and wealthy once said ...." If it flies, floats, or plucks ...rent it!"

I guess some land in Thailand floats

[rct99q]

Edited - duplicate post

Edited April 6, 2016 by rct99q

[BudRight]

"You do not really own the land in California."

Then buy it in Washington state. No property taxes there.

[Emster23]

No real estate taxes makes it better than money in the bank. Profit from later selling can be easily disguised with little "tip" to land office.

[inzman]

Plenty of newbies getting off the plane would be happy to pay stupid prices to think they are getting land. The truth is they are getting fleeced. Som nom na!

[Craig krup]

Not to say that it's a bad system, because it forces real estate decisions based on the highest and best use of the land as a precious and finite quasi-public resource, and not as a commodity to be held idle ad-infinitum, which seems to happen here.

I'd be curious to see how the prices would change if the owners were paying a point or two in taxes every year just to hold on to their idle land. I suspect some would be more motivated to sell.

That's basically the idea behind a land value tax - much loved by those who read the classical economists and by the Singaporeans.

[tingtong]

Thai love land, even if with today's inflated prices it often doesn't make any financial sense to own it.

If only maybe that they still expect that past price run up will continue...but I fear sooner or later they will realize it cant go on forever that way.

In my Chaiyaphum no name village with gravel road and electricity, rather poor farmland sells about 100-120k. As usual, larger plots in the lower range, last year opposite to us the 10 rai sold for 1 million (100k/rai).

Next to village, with access to water all year round farmland sells for about 250-300k here.

Next to amphur town, even though it still village like, being next to main road ( 4 digit! number) 6 rai recently enough was sold for 6 million.

5 years ago you could pick up land at 40-50k in my area, now I wish it would be the case. 100k really is the low of the going prices.

ps: all land prices mentioned are full chanote lands.

[liverpool fc]

In buriram province its 200000a rai Thais won't sell for less near a road and you can triple

That price

[bbbbooboo]

I can't think of anything more expensive than something you pay for, cannot own and get to pay the up keep bills too.

Lol......this is so true

[chiang mai]

Average price for UK arable farm land in 2015 was 12,500 Pounds per acre (not for 2.5 acres) hence your estimate needs to be doubled at least.

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2015/sep/22/english-farmland-prices-double-in-five-years

[uthaithanirules]

Condos....on sukhumvit, more expensive than Melbourne now.

We have rice land for sale, 5 mil per rai. ....

What the what what? What have you been smoking?

[uthaithanirules]

You cannot own land in Thailand ... So whatever you pay is 100% expensive

Someone wise and wealthy once said ...." If it flies, floats, or plucks ...rent it!"

Sigh, there is always some guy that has to point that out like its some big revelation

Oh no! The thai wife who is raising your kids might take $20,000 of land off you.....compared to the western wife that could do the same for $1 million

So what? Ive told mine its hers, here have a big pickup too if you are going to drive my kids around thailand

House, land, you beaut toyota dual cab 4WD thingy, still only comes to what I'd pay around 2 1/2 years just in mortgage interest for just the house and land in Sydney

Let me say that again, in another way, the house and land cost me at least 1/20th of what it would have cost in Sydney

1/20th!!!

Who cares?! If she owns it

I get back to Sydney, see all these guys, pretty much every cent is going to go to the mortgage for 30 years, I'm like whaaaaat?

[sloopysman]

In your post you state that in UK 1 Rai = 2.5 acres. Is an acre in UK different than a US acre? I thought a Rai is a fraction of an acre.

[chiang mai]

I can't think of anything more expensive than something you pay for, cannot own and get to pay the up keep bills too.

You mean like renting a condo?

[BB1955]

Hangdong same thing land prices have doubled in the last five years ..

[zaZa9]

I can't think of anything more expensive than something you pay for, cannot own and get to pay the up keep bills too.

You mean like renting a condo?

Ive never rented a condo wherein I had to 'pay the upkeep'.

Maintenance and body corp fees were paid for by the long suffering Englishmen ( both ) who were going to have a problem getting back what they paid for them.

One condo has been for sale for years ...

[BudRight]

You cannot own land in Thailand ... So whatever you pay is 100% expensive

Someone wise and wealthy once said ...." If it flies, floats, or plucks ...rent it!"

Sigh, there is always some guy that has to point that out like its some big revelation

Oh no! The thai wife who is raising your kids might take $20,000 of land off you.....compared to the western wife that could do the same for $1 million

So what? Ive told mine its hers, here have a big pickup too if you are going to drive my kids around thailand

House, land, you beaut toyota dual cab 4WD thingy, still only comes to what I'd pay around 2 1/2 years just in mortgage interest for just the house and land in Sydney

Let me say that again, in another way, the house and land cost me at least 1/20th of what it would have cost in Sydney

1/20th!!!

Who cares?! If she owns it

I get back to Sydney, see all these guys, pretty much every cent is going to go to the mortgage for 30 years, I'm like whaaaaat?

Maybe the problem is that we are not as rich as you.

Edited April 7, 2016 by BudRight

[chiang mai]

I can't think of anything more expensive than something you pay for, cannot own and get to pay the up keep bills too.

You mean like renting a condo?

Ive never rented a condo wherein I had to 'pay the upkeep'.

Maintenance and body corp fees were paid for by the long suffering Englishmen ( both ) who were going to have a problem getting back what they paid for them.

One condo has been for sale for years ...

And there's not too much upkeep on a piece of arable land either!

And FWIW I made a handsome profit on my most recent condo. and I didn't even have to go looking for a buyer, the buyer knocked on my door and asked me to sell! So I think a lot of the condo. aspect is about buying right.

[trogers]

Since the flood, the price of farm land in Loei province has skyrocketed. Small farms on dirt roads with no electricity available go for 100,000 baht or more per rai. The opinion is that Bangkok people want the local land around here because we are a thousand feet above sea level on flat land, thus no flooding problems. Ten years ago, I bought my wife a ten rai farm for 18,000 baht per rai.

And they are now finding out that flat land a thousand feet above sea level is parched...

[AlQaholic]

My Thai work friend's home town is Lop Buri, he told me one Rai there goes for around 50,000 Baht.

[DrDave]

Even wine growing land in California is cheaper.

In California, you never really own the land. You own the right to use the land for specific permitted purposes, as long as you pay rent in the form of property taxes.

The difference being that the "rent" (taxes) you pay in California provides funding for:

- A well-trained police force that actually does their job

- A fire protection force that has proper training and equipment

- An education system that actually educates children

- Construction and maintenance of infrastructure (water, sewers, local roads, etc)

- Transparent local government and enforcement of safety and zoning regulations (want a pig farm next to your new home?)

Thailand, which has no "rent", provides none of the above.

[Langsuan Man]

Simple answer to why land is so expensive is because it cost's Thais basically nothing to hold on to it

Every attempt to tax unused land has gone down in flames regardless which government has proposed a land usage tax

Thais look at land as an investment for their family's future and are loathe to get rid of it

If it were taxed then they would think twice about keeping it but as the system is set up now, there is no downside in keeping it in the family, so the price goes up since there is demand but limited supply

Make the Bangkok hi so's pay for owning land up country and I guarantee that the prices will drop like a rock