Pattaya Property Buyer's Guide

Property Ownership Rules in Thailand

Under Thai law foreigners are not allowed to own land in the kingdom. Those who are able to buy land (usually spouses of Thais) prefer to buy houses or build, as this presents the best value for property in Pattaya. However, foreigners are allowed to own a condominium provided the total number of units in the building owned by foreigners does not exceed 49 per cent. There are some legal loopholes that allow for property ownership above 49%, typically these require you to set up a Thai corporation, which ownes the property. If your property is for rental purposes, this may be an advisable route for you since you can aquire some properties for cheaper.

Many foreigners 'acquire' land property in Pattaya through their Thai spouse. Although they enjoy del facto ownership, the land is never legally theirs. They may mitigate the risk by creating a 30 year lease and owning the building outright but the main drawback is if the marriage were to end acrimoniously the foreigner would almost certainly lose the land and eventually the house. This happens fairly frequently, you have been warned!!

In Pattaya, buying condos is the most popular option among foreigners. There are a few important facts that you need to look at before buying Condominiums in Pattaya. The first thing you need to do is figure out what you purpose for buying the property is (i.e. to rent the property, resale or to live in the property). Your property choices will most likely be much different if you are renting property vs. living in the property.

Rental property buyers guide

When you are buying rental property the main things you want to consider is price of the property, target renter, and location.

First off look at the price of the property and compare that with other prices in the building. Go to the land office and look at the comprable sales, look at the original sales price of the units in the building. Do you homework. The main issue with price is return on your investment. So once you establish that you are giving a cheap price for this unit, then look at what the units are renting for in the building. Also look to see if the units are renting or not. Our advice to you is that cheaper units usually make better rental properties, because you can invest some extra in the unit and get a good rental price and most importantly keep you unit rented. We would suggest looking at foreclosure property to get the best value.

The second thing you want to look at is target renter. Who are you trying to rent the property too, most likely you are going to want to rent your property to foreigners, which means you need to consider what people on holiday want.

The final thing you want to consider is location. Think about the location from the stand point of what the target renter wants. People on holiday want a close proximity to the beach, walking street, beach road, or second road in Pattaya. In Jomtien, it will be a closer proximity to the beach. You can sacrifice some location if you are going for value, the closer a property is to these tourist hotspot the higher the price of the property will be.

Resale property guide

Ok, for resale, you are looking for value value value. It is fairly cheap to fix up or refinish a room and labor is really cheap, so look at properties that need to be fixed up, properties that are being sold by a desperate seller or foreclosures. If you are from out of town, and looking to refinish your property, we would advise you to contract with someone to oversee the construction. Although thai contractors are good at what they do, sometimes they need oversight. You will also need to get advice on who to get to do what. For this we would recommend our parent company Muangthai Woodcrafts Co., Ltd. They service many contractors in Bangkok and Pattaya and can advise you on who does good work and where to get materials for cheap. We have included a listing of the current foreclosures in this website, for your review. We also offer a service to help out of town buyers purchase these foreclosure properties and we can recommend individuals in Pattaya to oversea construction for you.

Home buyers guide

If you are buying a condo to live in, then you want to pick a place that meets your desires. Our suggestion is look at the location you want, the amenities in the building and finally the price. Refinishing a room is fairly cheap here so you can usually create the room you want, but you can't pay for a pool to be added in the condo. So I would not be concerned so much about the quality of the room, just look at the building and location to start with. Then once again I am going to recommend looking for foreclosures and properties that are being sold by a desperate seller. Get your room first, then you can build the home of your dreams.

Additional Information for Buyers

1. Houses near or within the city centre provide you with modern entertainment and commercial opportunities. The drawback is the high cost of property within the city limits. On the other hand, if you want somewhere peaceful and quiet, spots outside the city are perfect and cost much less.
2. The average price of grade-A high-rise condominium developments at prime beachfront locations is now between 85,000 and 110,000 baht per square metre. This is the general rule, but if you are patient you can find properties for much less.
3. Sales agents and Pattaya property companies are nearly as easy to spot as 7-11s. We would advise staying away from them unless you want to give a premium for your property.
4. The critical consideration before purchasing a condo is who owns the building and how it will be maintained.
5. The popular units in beachfront front condos are usually priced at over 100,000 baht per square metre for property in Pattaya.
6. A good agent is not essential when you buy a property in Pattaya.
7. Always be careful in analyzing your particular investment requirements.
8. It is wise to appoint a lawyer or legal service who is fluent in your language so that you understand properly all the legalities and proceedings. Most lawyers in Pattaya speak English but check to be sure. If you need a list of local legal services that can help you contact us and we will send you some recommended services.
9. Pattaya property has been very bouyant since the middle 2000s and continues to have a robust outlook, it's probably the safest property investment bet in Thailand.