Thread: Why Thailand?
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Old 09-30-2008, 05:47 PM   #7
shokdee
Avalon Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 32
Default Re: Why Thailand?

Q-Is property expensive there? What are the monthly living costs for the average person?

In the main tourist areas such as Bangkok, Phuket, Koh Samui and so on, land can be very pricey but everywhere else it is much cheaper. Thailand is such a big country that you have many areas to choose from. You can certainly get large, lush pieces of land at rates that are very good compared to most countries. Although foreigners (non-Thais) can not legally own land, there are a number of ways around this such as renting long term or setting up a holding company. Also be aware that there are a range of different types of land deed which I won't go into now. Hundreds of thousands of foreigners live happily in Thailand, so none of these are major impediments.

Thailand is one of the world's cheapest places to stay in terms of rent, infrastructure (water/electric/transport), food, clothing, taxes, etc. That is why many retirees end up in Thailand - they can live at a much higher standard of living on their pensions then in say the EU or the USA. The average person could live very comfortably in Thailand on 1,000 US dollars (over 33,000 baht) a month.

Q-You forgot to include the residency visa proceedure. Is it easy? How many palms to grease? People need to take into consideration that planning you escape needs to be done LEGALLY otherwise you could lose everything you have invested in.

I agree that you should do everything legally. There are a number of options in terms of visas. These range from retirement visa if over 50 year old, to work visa, study visa, tourist visa, marriage visa and so on. For many long term residents the "visa run" to the nearest border is a minor inconvenience that is part of living in Thailand. For visas there are no "palms to grease" as Thailand and surrounding countries (Burma, Laos, Malaysia, Vietnam) are generally "clean". I have stayed in Thailand many years and have never had to pay any bribes to any Thai official or any official from any other country (and I have been in and out of the surrounding countries quite a bit). You can browse a website such as www.thaivisa.com and read more in the forum. Of course there is corruption and you will have to pay bribes if you break the law (I paid a small one recently when caught speeding).

Basically in Thailand if you keep your nose clean and play by the Thai rules, you will have no problems at all.
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