Thai Real Estate Advice

Pattaya and Jomtien Property Market

Much has been written lately regarding the Thai property market, and locally, the Pattaya/Jomtien market. It is a difficult subject to really get a true feel for, as 90% of what is written is pure speculation or opinion. On one hand, there are the skeptical soothsayers who enjoy forecasting the demise of the property market. On the other hand we have the real estate agents whose job is to talk up the market in the most positive light possible.

Ask most business owners around Pattaya town how their business is, and chances are you'll hear 'slow'. This goes for anything from restaurants to retail to real estate. We're experiencing a 'lull'. No, the property boom is not over. No, the market has not reached a saturation point. And no, Malaysia is not taking away our customers with their 10 year homeowner visas (has anyone actually spent more than a week in Kuala Lumpur without wanting go back to Thailand as soon as possible?). Truth is, though there may not be as many customers to be had, it seems that the ones that are here are serious buyers. After speaking with several real estate agents around Pattaya town, closing percentages are up quite a bit even if the numbers of people coming through the doors are down. We can almost guarantee that the market will continue rolling and those who wait will lose out.

It is important to remind people to keep their eye on the ball. Every market has it's ups and downs. The market here in Pattaya is quite unique, though, in it's future potential. Remember - we are in Pattaya the seaside suburb of Bangkok, a metropolis with a Titanic sized economy that will continue to grow at a rapid rate. Unlike countries like the United States, there are no alternative cities that can offer something along the same lines as Pattaya can. Beyond this, the new airport just over an hour away, the new motorway will still be crossing through Pattaya and Jomtien, there are several new world-class condos under development as we speak, and possibly most importantly, there seems to be some clarification on the horizon regarding the Foreign Business Act.

Building activity is high in Pattaya and Jomtien

Many existing property owners as well as potential buyers have been holding their collective breaths regarding the Thai governments decision on what is to be done regarding 'Thai company' owned properties. This has been the favorable way of purchasing land & house as well as apartments / condos that exceed the 49% allotted for foreigners.

A couple of months ago, the outlook in Pattaya seemed quite grim as the government stated that it would be strictly enforcing the Foreign Business Act which precluded that foreigners who used these Thai companies with nominee Thai shareholders were, in fact, in breach of Thai law, and would be given 24 months to restructure their companies in keeping with these laws. This would mean having to essentially sign-off these properties to a Thai citizen and taking out a leasehold - not an idea that many were enamored with.

Skip ahead a couple of months and we're hearing rumblings of easing of the Foreign Business Act.

The Thai government has announced that they want to encourage foreign investment - and with much of the foreign investment that has been flowing into the Thai economy being real estate related, I think it's quite safe to say that the Thai government is going to be looking for solutions for homeowners, rather than cause problems. I think they have become quite aware that scuttling the foreign-owned housing market will affect Thais a lot harder than it will foreigners.

It is in everybody's best interest to make Thailand a comfortable place to live as well as to invest.