If your under 50yo are you wasting time in Thailand?

[SoiBiker]

If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans.

@SB, despite your high post count you still remain as an "unknown quality", If the above quote was yours I would like this, but I am a Woody Allen fan. Do you keep a collection of famous quotes alongside you? as you amass your post count.

Don't expect anymore from me on this subject, as I have no interest in your soi biking life style amongst the cosmopolitan gentry of grung thep, I prefer the more spartan and genuine of the Thai lifestyle, here on my verandah in the outer 'burbs of KK its now 37c in the shade, I cannot hear anything other than a nok kaow in my garden and the beautiful yellow blossom's of the mhai koon along our soi, and despite the sun not yet over the Y/arm I just opening an iced beer Lao gold.

You realise that if I don't interest you, you can simply stop reading, right? There's no need to compose a small essay on the subject

[anto]

Saving for retirement is a sane logical idea. I have known people who managed to make a lot of money here in Thailand. The problem with that was the fact that they saved very little of it. You are going to need an income when you get too old to make the big money. Thailand is a great place to retire if you have money. It doesn't take BIG money but being broke here would be a miserable life. Some young people make the mistake of living for today and they don't worry about tomorrow. The problem with that thinking is that they forget that they too will get old.

Being broke in any country is a miserable life.

At least in Thailand you won't be broke and cold.

You should also remember, quite a lot of people don't get old.

1. Friend of mine sold his house in NZ when he was 45, was living in CM quite happily on 20kbht a month.

Had enough money to last him until age 70, then died at age 50 from cancer. Didn't need the money after all.

2. Another friend of mine, from Holland, eked out a meager existence in CM, age 38, died from liver failure.

3. French guy, lived in CM, around age 40, crashed his m/c into a tree, now in a coma, will never recover.

4. Belgium, early 50s, drowned in the CM moat.

5. From Canada/Hungary, early 40s, had a stroke, now back in Hungary using a zimmer frame.

These are all people I knew in CM in the last 2-3 years.

Plenty of similar stories to tell. I know knew loads of people that never got old.

Went to a funeral 3 months ago .Farang died here in Chiang Mai of a brain tumor at 52 years old .On the other hand know a Farang in my village recently had a quadruple heart bypass at 80 and is still going strong .

[alocacoc]

Everyone is different. I was below 40 when i came to Thailand. I was self-employment in my home country and i was quite successful. But I'm sure, if i didn't take the step o move to TH, I would became crazy. After a some Years of party doing here, i started a new online business. After some hurdles, I'm quite successful again. My goal, to improve my income and move back to Europe. But not to my home country again. Nanny state par excellence. Europe is a great place to live. Many different countries. I love to work. But not for strangers. I don;t want sell my time to others. It's my time. I nothing regret. Apart from health, financial freedom is the key. But this is valid for me. Others may have different views.

Apart from all that, in the last Years i lost some friends. Health issues or accidents. Both here and in Farangland. This guys was in the same age as me. So, nothing is safe. Everyone have to go its own way. Only the Fool listen to other meanings and follow them.

[subterminalvelocity]

For the OP, what's a ballpark figure on what you left with and plan to have following your work home in Aus?

[anto]

For the OP, what's a ballpark figure on what you left with and plan to have following your work home in Aus?

My impression is that he is doing a job he hates with no free time to have any kind of bearable life .He just might stick it for a year .I would advise him to be on the look out for something that may not pay so well but that gives him a bearable life to stick at till 65 ,with long hollidays in Thailand or elsewhere in Asia .Then he will have savings plus the Government pension .

[BritManToo]

I would advise him to be on the look out for something that may not pay so well but that gives him a bearable life to stick at till 65 ,with long hollidays in Thailand or elsewhere in Asia .Then he will have savings plus the Government pension .

I understand the new Aussie pension rules mean you need to spend your first two pension years in Australia.

So 67.

[1rak]

Anyone wonder how a security guard can save 4K per month? Or even earn that?

OB

if you work as a security guard on a union job for a outfit like BART, or any of the other mass transit operations in the USA, saving 4k per month is nothing. Those guys make over 10k dollars a month. The only thing is.. EVERYBODY wants those jobs. The only way you can get one of these jobs is if you have an inside connection like a family member or friend.

[Rimmer]

Off topic post removed

[1rak]

I hsve no problems to understand people want to go back to home country and save some money . If you really can save 40000 baht per month, but most people can't because the living expenses back in your home country is huge compared with Thailand.

If I move back I have to pay maybe 40000 baht just in rent and then there's food , electricity etc, so it would be very hard to save money unless you have a really well paid job .

If you are paying 40k baht a month in rent back in the states, why not consider living in a RV or a camper van? MOVE to a cheaper city. You don't HAVE to pay 40k baht for rent. It's YOUR choice.

Next year, there will be many cities in the USA that have minimum wage of 15 dollars an hour. Each 5 dollars an hour is equivalent to 10k dollars a year. 15 dollars an hour is 30k dollars a year. After income taxes, that's about 25k dollars. About 2k dollars a month for whatever. If you can figure out how to live on 1k dollars a month and a little luck, you will have your 1k dollars saved each month.

The key to success is no addictions. aka drugs, smoking, drinking, gambling, etc. FOCUS.

[Gary A]

I had dreams of retiring early in Thailand. I moved here and tried a business. I ended up getting cheated. And no, not by a girlfriend but by an old lady and a crooked law firm. That likely was a lucky stroke. I went back to the US and luckily due to my specialized skills, I was able to find a very well paying job. I knew that I was going to retire in Thailand. I leased a car and bought a house trailer. I saved all the money I could. When I was able to retire, I sold the house trailer for what I paid for it. I then used my savings until I was able to start collecting a private pension. My savings along with the small pension allowed me to wait until I got the full benefit from Social Security.I am still lucky enough to have not needed my retirement fund. Not that it is huge but it is there in case of any serious medical emergency. i like to think that I planned well but there was a lot of luck involved. I wasn't happy working that last five years in Kalifornia but I got through it. Life here in Thailand is good.

[zierf1]

I hsve no problems to understand people want to go back to home country and save some money . If you really can save 40000 baht per month, but most people can't because the living expenses back in your home country is huge compared with Thailand.

If I move back I have to pay maybe 40000 baht just in rent and then there's food , electricity etc, so it would be very hard to save money unless you have a really well paid job .

If you are paying 40k baht a month in rent back in the states, why not consider living in a RV or a camper van? MOVE to a cheaper city. You don't HAVE to pay 40k baht for rent. It's YOUR choice.

Next year, there will be many cities in the USA that have minimum wage of 15 dollars an hour. Each 5 dollars an hour is equivalent to 10k dollars a year. 15 dollars an hour is 30k dollars a year. After income taxes, that's about 25k dollars. About 2k dollars a month for whatever. If you can figure out how to live on 1k dollars a month and a little luck, you will have your 1k dollars saved each month.

The key to success is no addictions. aka drugs, smoking, drinking, gambling, etc. FOCUS.

I know of some truck drivers living in their trucks. They can retire very quickly since they make $20,000+/month w/ no mortgage or bills. This is an option if you want to speed up your retirement and 'live the dream'.

[uthaithanirules]

I work for a relatively big Security Company and they follow the award rates, that is time and half Saturday plus double time Sunday which makes my pay bigger. Plus im on casual rates not permanent .

I work Tuesday to Sunday 6pm to 6am even though last Monday i was called in because my replacement called in sick.

How am i handling after all thise years in Thailand? Answer --- vert very very hard .

The work is not physically demanding, its guarding hardware warehouses at night , watching CCTV and walking patrols with only about 5 warehouse staff unloading the trucks at night im virtually by myself.

But 12 hours of vurtually sitting etc is starting to knock me around followed by sleeping then back up to do it all again.

I keep thinking of my future in Pattaya so it keeps me motivated .

Im trying to take extra vitamins etc to keep my energy up.

Im back again tonight for another boring 12 hours..i dont want to go , but of course I have to, my fear is going back to Pattaya with nothing so its keeping me motivated .

I hope i can last at least 12 months doing this because its very good money.

My greatest fear is giing back to Pattaya and being a bum like thise i used to see... Arse out of your pants, unable to do anything but walk around all day and eating noodles.

I couldnt afford to go out most night so it was sitting in the room at Jomtien or uo at Flybird Condo watching Thai tv because we didnt have cable .

Despite what Canarysun says and others, having limited money was no fun at all,you know how boring some days were in Pattaya??

Yes i miss the life in Pattaya, sometimes i feel like giving up this job and rushing back, but something stops me and says ' hey if you go back this time it will be your last and you will fail again .

I need to go back next time with enough cash to last me .

My plan is to go back buy a medium sized condo probaly around Day Night area .

Pattaya will always be there for me, my fear is if im there too early again in life , then it will change around me and leave me behind .

I do pity thse guys i see in their 30' and 40's who havent enough and surviving off even disability pensions but mostly their loans or redundancies , too young to live there in my opinion , come back and make money whilst you can .

Doesnt sound like you are going to be able to hack that job for very long though, 12 hr shifts at night, not really doing anything, by yourself most of the time.

Once you have this job under your belt, a certain amount of time in a regular job you can prove to the next employer, maybe it is time to move on to something better paying, something that will keep you busy, something during the day

You said you are from Australia, some industries arent what they used to be, the ports or mining are mostly automated nowadays, and even if you can get a job, same thing, alone at night twiddling your thumbs, sends a lot of guys crazy or into drug addiction/depression

But construction/transport/government there are still plenty of jobs available cos many guys just dont seem to want or be able to stick with 12 hrs for 6 days a week....many that will pay double your current job. Even those lollipop ladies you see alongside the council or construction outfits would be pulling what you do a week, and during the day, and slightly more interesting, at least they have people to talk to.

And as others have said, its just as much about spending, if you can live with you folks, or relatives, or even out of a campervan, you are laughing. If you are going to be working 12 hrs/ 6 days, not like you can do anything else anyway.

When it comes to your plans in Thailand. Last time I had this argument in another thread, some one said, well you can do the cheap house thing somewhere in rural australia if you want to, well no, stamp duty and council rates, and building codes / costs ruin that idea, Still ends up being 4,5 times what it is in Rural Thailand

It might seem very stingy to say no to a $200,000 house in say Wagga or wherever, for a $40,000 house in rural thailand especially if you are earning 7 figures a year, but thats $160,000 more thats not compounding in your super fund for how ever many years, if it involves a mortgage for a couple years thats an extra 7% on whatever and thats just in the initial couple years, then you have the on going costs, your rates even in a country town in aus are going to be a couple thousand a year, a couple thousand that again isnt compounding in your super vs 0 for rates in Thailand. $2000 a year over 30 years, is $60000, $90000 if you instead stick all that money in your super. Then there is getting hit by stamp duty, CGT because its not your primary place of residence. S**t adds up over time. We are talking in the end hundreds of thousands of dollars in difference, just on that, some seemingly cheap house in a country australian town vs thailand.

Even in Thailand, if you are really only in Pattaya for the girls, why bother staying there if you can live somewhere non touristy for half the price, live there long term, not like you are going to bother going to soi 6 every week, live somewhere dirt cheap, take the bus down to pattaya for a week every couple of months, have your fun, still end up being a couple thousand bucks better off a year.....and pick up the language quicker.

Jomtien? too much crap with other falangs, especially the russians, and dodgy condo managers, motorsy taxi guys...all for 5 times the price of what some little flat in where-the-thais-live-ville will cost you.

Somethings arent all that much cheaper in Thailand, but its the real estate thing that really makes the difference, that difference is staggering. Any tool that tells you , oh get in to the Sydney property market especially is full of himself. House prices have been rising 10% a year for the last decade, but thats the gross value which doesnt compound, once you factor in all costs, especially if a mortgage is included you are still talking about netting per year less than savings bank interest rates, then compared to sticking the same amount in your super over decades starts to become -10% with the property investment compared to what your super can do, even when that house value increases 10% a year

By a million dollar place in Sydney, sure 20 years later its worth three million, but you still owe half a mill on the mortgage, youve payed almost 1,5 mill in mortage interest and fees, 1-3 hundred K in strata fees, CGT if not your primary residence, realtor fees when you sell it. youve made 1/2 a mill in 20 years....over the same time frame, instead stick all that money in your super, and you make triple that

[anto]

>>Jomtien? too much crap with other falangs, especially the russians, and dodgy condo managers, motorsy taxi guys...all for 5 times the price of what some little flat in where-the-thais-live-ville will cost you.<<

I lived on and off for 7 years in Jomtien ,and did not have any of those problems .Bought my own Condo by the beach in JBC for B400,000 .Sold it 7 years later for B650,000 .Great management ,2 large pools ,baht bus to Pattaya B10 every 3 minutes ,when i did not want to use the scooter .Plenty of Russians about then but they never gave me a problem .

[Rimmer]

One off topic post has been removed, the topic is about:

If your under 50yo are you wasting time in Thailand?

[georgegeorgia]

Thanks for the replies, im trying to stick at this job the best i can because the money is there.

I just had a bar owner from KK email me to tell me he's on his way back to New Zealand to work in construction for the next 3 years to save to come back to Thailand and good on him for thinking of his future.

But if you do go back, go at it warts n all meaning find a job with long hours , even find a 2nd job drving a cab or something, make it your first priority .working .working saving working saving nothing else .

Onky have that ONE goal and thats to get back to Thailand!!

Too many goals and it gets mixed up.

Its not going to be easy though , but you need to sacrifice your time now for later .

My goal is to work as many hours asi can to SAVE to get back there .

Now i have no other goals BUT to save to buy a house or condo and enough to buy a business of some sort.

I have worked out 3 years working should get me there cmfortably.

I am investing my $4000 money saved into Shares but will look at paying off a house in the Country which should of made a Capital Gain hopefully in 3 years.

As for my housing situation, because im working 12 hours a night and hopefully will soon work 7 nights a week , i have rented a share room in a house nearby to the hardware warehouse.

I pay $100 per week but im only there during the day to sleep.

Im trying ti get my eating right rather than buy takeaways , im trying to eat fruit vegetables etc but drinking so much coffee.

Im taking Berocca drinks a lot .

I know another guy here in Sydney , he' 48yo living in a single room same as me , he' came back after 7 years in Udon Thani, he's washing cars for a dealership monday to friday and working as a cleaner on Saturdays at a sports ground followed by driving for Uber any time he can .

He even is desperate for the cash he done work a few shifts as a bouncer/security at a rough nightclub , i dont think i could do that !!!!

But im tryng to look for resilience and being middleaged i get tired quicker than 20 years ago ., so im motivated but being in a semi sleep less state half the time, sometimes it has its advantages , and having a major GOAL has its advantages to your life because i stopped worrying about other things in my life , even going to the supermarket this morning after i finished work some guy pushed in front of me in the line, before i would of said somethung now im too tired and have too many important things to worry about that him pushing in front of me .

Funnily enough i felt i was on some type of "high" walking around the supermarket this morning like nothing bothered me, usually im anxious but i guess its due to lack of sleep but i felt relaxed and still thinking onky of my goal.

Start wotking long hours like this , even if its driving for Uber or a taxi 15 hours a day and everything else in life, your problems etc become insignificant, you only have the ONE goal.

I am going to ask for 7 nights soon to get to that ONE goal even quicker !!

Edited April 15, 2016 by georgegeorgia

[fireplay]

No, I'm not.

Hey man...What exactly do you do in Thailand anyway. I'M sorry to ask but I am so curious..I know you have a western wife...And I follow what you say here...so many comments...but I can't for the life of me figure out what you do in LOS and why you persist here...you aren't a teacher as far as I can tell or a digital nomad...and from your previois posts it seems you are ready to bounce out whenever.....so...?

[anto]

>>but will look at paying off a house in the Country which should of made a Capital Gain hopefully in 3 years.<<

The housing bubble in Australia has to burst shortly .We went through it in Ireland 8 years ago .Nobody believes it till it happens .

[SoiBiker]

I do nothing in Thailand, other than enjoy it here - which is precisely why I stay.

[simon43]

Living on 20,000 baht a month is more like existing than living.

That rather depends if you see the need to have money at all.

You don't need to be Buddhist to have free board and lodging at your local temple, on a long-term basis. My local temple is given so much free food every morning that they allow anyone to come and take as much as they want for nothing.

If I were to be completely penniless, I would probably book in for a long-term stay at the local wat, then work full-time as a volunteer teacher or similar at the local school.

You do not need money to have a good and fulfilling life.

[johnatong]

Living on 20,000 baht a month is more like existing than living.

That rather depends if you see the need to have money at all.

You don't need to be Buddhist to have free board and lodging at your local temple, on a long-term basis. My local temple is given so much free food every morning that they allow anyone to come and take as much as they want for nothing.

If I were to be completely penniless, I would probably book in for a long-term stay at the local wat, then work full-time as a volunteer teacher or similar at the local school.

You do not need money to have a good and fulfilling life.

"If I were to be completely penniless, I would probably book in for a long-term stay at the local wat, then work full-time as a volunteer teacher or similar at the local school."

That suggestion fails to address the 'small' problem of visas and work permits.

You are not really advocating long term overstay as a "solution" ------------are you ?

[anto]

>>You are not really advocating long term overstay as a "solution" ------------are you ? <<

Well if its the only way you can stay in Thailand !!! some will take the risk .

[taninthai]

i agree with op ,i came here at 33 through a bit of luck hardly spent much money here no rent free food,it was always in the back of my head although I'm not spending much money in thailand my savings in the uk were not growing so always planned to head back at the age off 40 i have a trade so well paid jobs always available,though after living thailand for 8 years cannot handle the miserable winter in the uk so i do 6 months each country ,actually love the warmer months in the uk get to enjoy my hobbies and earn a bit of good cash,keep my flat rented out and stay at my mums house while back in the uk so easy to save loads of cash on top of it all thailand can get a bit boring and stale when your a little younger so at the moment have the best of both worlds,quite happy to keep it like that for a few more years.

[Naam]

Living on 20,000 baht a month is more like existing than living.

That rather depends if you see the need to have money at all.

You don't need to be Buddhist to have free board and lodging at your local temple, on a long-term basis. My local temple is given so much free food every morning that they allow anyone to come and take as much as they want for nothing.

If I were to be completely penniless, I would probably book in for a long-term stay at the local wat, then work full-time as a volunteer teacher or similar at the local school.

You do not need money to have a good and fulfilling life.

You do not need money to have a good and fulfilling life.

of course money alone does not provide a good and fulfilling life. for the latter you also need shares, bonds, gold, precious stones, works of art, a fistful vintage and contemporary cars, various immobile property in top locations, a classy wife, a racy mia noi (or two) and last not least health.

[georgegeorgia]

i agree with op ,i came here at 33 through a bit of luck hardly spent much money here no rent free food,it was always in the back of my head although I'm not spending much money in thailand my savings in the uk were not growing so always planned to head back at the age off 40 i have a trade so well paid jobs always available,though after living thailand for 8 years cannot handle the miserable winter in the uk so i do 6 months each country ,actually love the warmer months in the uk get to enjoy my hobbies and earn a bit of good cash,keep my flat rented out and stay at my mums house while back in the uk so easy to save loads of cash on top of it all thailand can get a bit boring and stale when your a little younger so at the moment have the best of both worlds,quite happy to keep it like that for a few more years.

Great ... But you have a trade so your in front.

Guys especially with trades shouldnt be wasting their earning years in Thailand

[georgegeorgia]

As for living on 20,000 baht a month, i think most of us do that now dont we ?

When i lived in the aflybird Condo i rarely went over 15,000 baht a month .

20,000 baht is about $900 Australian.

I doubt most Aussie pensioners nor UK pensioners spend that a month !! ( oh i forgot the Poker Machines)

Granted you are better off if you own your own Condo /house but if you are exceeding 20,000 a month i guess you are spending on alcohol .

Edited April 15, 2016 by georgegeorgia

[taninthai]

i agree with op ,i came here at 33 through a bit of luck hardly spent much money here no rent free food,it was always in the back of my head although I'm not spending much money in thailand my savings in the uk were not growing so always planned to head back at the age off 40 i have a trade so well paid jobs always available,though after living thailand for 8 years cannot handle the miserable winter in the uk so i do 6 months each country ,actually love the warmer months in the uk get to enjoy my hobbies and earn a bit of good cash,keep my flat rented out and stay at my mums house while back in the uk so easy to save loads of cash on top of it all thailand can get a bit boring and stale when your a little younger so at the moment have the best of both worlds,quite happy to keep it like that for a few more years.

Great ... But you have a trade so your in front.

Guys especially with trades shouldnt be wasting their earning years in Thailand

thing is you have to find a happy balance,I don't really fit in back in the UK now,people just seem to work and watch tv then have the yearly meet ups for birthdays anniversaries etc etc,all they talk about is what they watched in tv football etc etc.I don't watch tv and dint follow football for me I love motorbikes so it's working and out on motorbikes on the road and on the racetrack I rarely even see my mates when I go back.

I could more or less stay in Thailand with the income from my rented out flat in the UK plus a couple of other things I have going on but as said it can get a little boring in Thailand it's also hard to have your hobbies/things you enjoy doing due to lack of facilities or location that you stay in Thailand.

Edited April 15, 2016 by taninthai

[thaiduncankk]

Granted you are better off if you own your own Condo /house but if you are exceeding 20,000 a month i guess you are spending on alcohol .

I go out once or twice a week, not because of financial constraints, but after having had a bar for nearly 10 years, and drinking almost everyday during my tenure, I decided it was time to slow down.

I go to a great local bar, meeting some long time friends, and as I only drink beer now (after some seriously heavy vodka drinking in my early days), at 70 baht for a large Leo, my favoured tipple, I find it difficult to spend 500 baht per session. Over a month, that is not even 5,000 baht on alcohol.

Obviously, if the novelty of go go bars has not worn off yet, it would be possible to exceed 5,000 baht in one evening.

[Gary A]

At my age, if I were completely penniless, I'd seriously consider taking that final step off a tall building. I'm not rich but I am comfortable so I don't have to consider that final step. I'd like to spend more on beer but my old body punishes me severely for over imbibing.

[SeniorNice]

I don't understand why people are so set on thailand. I wasted a few years here in my 20s. My time spent in thailand was in 3-9 month stints. I left quickly when my newborn took ill & wouldn't recover, no matter how much money I threw at the Dr's at the private hospitals.
I left on 2 days notice & my daughter was on the mend within 2 weeks of being in the UK.
I didn't return to Thailand for 6 years. When I did visit again the country had lost lots of its charm. I still enjoyed visiting quiet areas around the central/northern region.
In my experience chiang mai, pattaya, koh Chang had changed.
The areas were less friendly & people were more desperate.
I have a good life in the UK & am fortunate to live in a good area (voted 4th nicest in uk). My daughter was scouted early by a good school & sits the entrance exam soon. Things change. The country has changed & so have my priorities. I actually appreciate my own country more. I appreciate my police, my countries laws (before I felt it was a nanny state)
By all means save as much as you can but don't make thailand your be all & end all. Try to make life more enjoyable in your own country. There are genuine people were I come from, it's far safer & people are less desperate.
I used to love hua hin, it seemed ideal as a tourist spot. I used to believe that due to it being the King's town people behaved themselves more, almost proud to live there.
Only today I read about attacks on foreigners by local gangs. Things change, if you don't adapt your plans you can be stuck in an entirely different situation than what you imagined.
Best wishes whatever you do. I hope you find the success & lifestyle you are looking for.

[SoiBiker]

I don't understand why people are so set on thailand. I wasted a few years here in my 20s. My time spent in thailand was in 3-9 month stints. I left quickly when my newborn took ill & wouldn't recover, no matter how much money I threw at the Dr's at the private hospitals.

I left on 2 days notice & my daughter was on the mend within 2 weeks of being in the UK.

I didn't return to Thailand for 6 years. When I did visit again the country had lost lots of its charm. I still enjoyed visiting quiet areas around the central/northern region.

In my experience chiang mai, pattaya, koh Chang had changed.

The areas were less friendly & people were more desperate.

I have a good life in the UK & am fortunate to live in a good area (voted 4th nicest in uk). My daughter was scouted early by a good school & sits the entrance exam soon. Things change. The country has changed & so have my priorities. I actually appreciate my own country more. I appreciate my police, my countries laws (before I felt it was a nanny state)

By all means save as much as you can but don't make thailand your be all & end all. Try to make life more enjoyable in your own country. There are genuine people were I come from, it's far safer & people are less desperate.

I used to love hua hin, it seemed ideal as a tourist spot. I used to believe that due to it being the King's town people behaved themselves more, almost proud to live there.

Only today I read about attacks on foreigners by local gangs. Things change, if you don't adapt your plans you can be stuck in an entirely different situation than what you imagined.

Best wishes whatever you do. I hope you find the success & lifestyle you are looking for.

Thailand is a place that exerts a strong emotional hold over people. Sometimes so strong that they frequent forums devoted to the place years after they claim to be done with it.