Phuket Real Estate- Info and Values Post-Tsunami

[alexandermic]

Originally Posted by Phukethomebuyer

Greetings to all,

I am a new member and this is my first post. I have been reviewing various international locations in reference to buying a residence for part-time residence with appreciation potential. I have many questions on the subject and I'd like to begin by asking opinions as to the wisdom of buying property in Phuket. After reviewing many previous posts I couldn't find any recent posts discussing housing prices or related information.

There are many Phuket real estate websites, however, almost everyone I've found has not been updated to address the post-Tsunami effects on the real estate market. Realtors are also worthless for any unbiased information.

Given the devastating effects on the local economy combined with the prospect of severly depressed tourism for an indefinite period it would seem such conditions may present a good buying opportunity? What are newer construction three bedroom homes with a private pool/ backyard selling for, both near or on the sea, or in the interior? Have these prices declined to any degree following the Tsumani? How close to asking price have homes been selling for recently?

What are considered some of the better parts of the island to live? Is it preferable to live close to the Patong bar district or a "safe distance" away.

Will look forward to your input

I do not know your financial situation, but I can tell you you will not be able to probably afford anything you want near the sea-Tsunami had an affect for 2 weeks maybe, prices have been rising fast the last 3 years- you probably afford something in the interior-now it the low season but this does not affect housing- many farang are buying up the land and putting houses up and selling them- do not buy a house with a pool- buy a house and have someone put it in- the labor is about 150 baht ($3) a day for each worker maximum-your fellow farang will gouge you-if you are interested in investing in a place let me know because I have a little capital and wanted to invest in real estate- but you have to know the ropes- Patong is very, very expensive but I know Kathu is building homes for around 3-6 million baht and it is close to the Central Mall, International School, and Patong- Now, are you aware that as a farang you cannot own land, but you can own the home- this means you can lease the land over a period of 30 years and extend it if you put it in the lease, but YOU cannot own the land- You can buy a condo and own it with title but many condos are expensive because of this- if you start a business, you can have 49% of the business and Thais own 51%, but have the 51% divided between a few Thais with the clause that they cannot combine their shares so you meet the law requirement that Thais own the majority but you own the most shares and so you can put the home and land in your business' name and later if you want to sell it you can-

[LivinLOS]

Originally Posted by alexandermic

I do not know your financial situation, but I can tell you you will not be able to probably afford anything you want near the sea-Tsunami had an affect for 2 weeks maybe, prices have been rising fast the last 3 years- you probably afford something in the interior

What a patronising arrogant comment... How do you know what he can or cannot afford ???

Seaview apartment complex in panwa approx 4m.. Kamala had some seaview in a development at 4 or 5..

Also while farangs may 'gouge' you on prices you ever tried to organize or deal with those 150 baht per day burmese labourers ?? Farang business charge more becuase in general they finish to a high standard.. Thai businesses can be pushed and pushed and finally get the job done but it is really rare to find a thai run business that operates on time, comes when it says it will, does the job the way it is described, uses any common sense. I have experience with some of the 150 baht a day labour and if you want to do the job 3 or 4 times to get it right, monitor what they do constantly, have them apply no logic to the order of work so things have to be done and redone, take a day to do what a 'skilled' labourer would do in an hour or two, then go ahead and hire them..