I am looking to buy land or house around Rayong. Not sure what is best, I plan to retire in about 5 years. I'm married to a thai national. Can I buy in both our names? Also I am worried if I leave it till I retire maybe the price by then will make it out of my price range of about Bht2mill will the property prices keep rising? Maybe the visa problems and current political uncertainty will keep real estate prices flat, what are your thoughts? Thanks Dasmai.

I am looking to buy land or house around Rayong. Not sure what is best, I plan to retire in about 5 years. I'm married to a thai national. Can I buy in both our names?

A farang cannot legally own land in Thailand.

What most farang do is one of the following:

1. land in wife name/house in farang name - 30 year lease on land in farang name.

or

2.usufruct - farang lives there until he dies but does not own anything.

There are variations on this theme also.

Some people (estate agents mostly) may suggest the company route whereby the land/house is owned by a company and you own the company and hence 'own' the land - I did this route and I suggest you avoid it like the plague - it is at least dodgy and at worst illegal.

If you read this forum over the next few weeks you will see all the issues relating to the methods

I have mentioned above.

You may see lots of posts from me implying /wishing I had never bought a property here at all.

I am joking slightly here - but if I had invested the money I used to buy my house here in Thailand in the UK housing instead - or even just received interest from a bank account in the UK/Offshore and rented in Thailand I would be a lot happier today I can assure you!

Mind you 2M Baht investment is probably an amount you can afford to lose should it all go pear shaped???

good luck.