House hunting in Udon

[darrenm]

Avoid buying on the Bansansaran estate (Lake Garden City).

The management company fizzled out, because the majority of residents did not want to pay the 300 baht a month charge.

The first casualty was the 24 hour security, now gone, the pill box is empty with the barriers left up.
Heard last night the the street lights will be turned off soon.

These are issues that I worry about. Only by living in Udon for a while will I be able to work out these issues for myself. "Never get involved in something you know nothing about", someone told me a long time ago. Buying a property in Thailand is a risk. Thanks for the reply.

[darrenm]

correct and the gold you can take with you and has been known to get you past a closed border or any other tight places just saying john

I think gold has hit the bottom. It can only go up form here on. Thanks for the comment John.

Darren

[Sakhonnick]

Avoid buying on the Bansansaran estate (Lake Garden City).

The management company fizzled out, because the majority of residents did not want to pay the 300 baht a month charge.

The first casualty was the 24 hour security, now gone, the pill box is empty with the barriers left up.
Heard last night the the street lights will be turned off soon.

I once had a house in Pattaya, 11 houses in one street, from 6million to 14million price range

6 Thai owned

5 farang owned

When the developer had his money he pulled out the maintenance for the village so it was down to the home owners, day/night shift guards, gardener, street lighting repairs, gaurd hut repairs, garbage pick up etc, If all 11 paid it was 13,000/year to have everything.

6 houses refused to pay anything ill let you guess what 6

[Prenders88]

I once had a house in Pattaya, 11 houses in one street, from 6million to 14million price range

6 Thai owned

5 farang owned

When the developer had his money he pulled out the maintenance for the village so it was down to the home owners, day/night shift guards, gardener, street lighting repairs, gaurd hut repairs, garbage pick up etc, If all 11 paid it was 13,000/year to have everything.

6 houses refused to pay anything ill let you guess what 6

Yes, not much to protect the value of the house and to keep the estate looking nice. Just short term thinking. The grass around the Lake Garden is now nearly waist high. One neighbour said it all really. "Why pay 300 baht a month, I would rather spend the money on food for my dog". No sympathy from me when Thai xxxxx's go round the estate, riding motorcycles with no plates, casing houses with poor security, then coming back to help themselves to their consumer durables. When the street lighting goes it will attract them like flies round nonsense.

[GARYZX6R]

Does make me smile Prenders at the falang who keep defending the Thai mentality or lack of it .
Common sense ? whats that..

[parrot]

Does make me smile Prenders at the falang who keep defending the Thai mentality or lack of it .
Common sense ? whats that..

I'll bite. I view the problem in a different way.....that is, the falang who comes here and expects the same sort of housing maintenance he's used to in his home country. In the US, you'd be a oddball to build a million $ home next to an established recycling center or next to a neighborhood of 50k homes. Over here, it's normal normal. And that tells me that the typical Thai isn't very concerned about anything outside the walls of his/her home....whereas the Westerner wants a nice neighborhood park, security, well-maintained homes (none painted in chartreuse), no RVs/boats parked on the street etc. Different strokes for different folks.
I was in Bangkok last weekend....ended up traveling on the outskirts of the city for several hours. I passed neighborhood after neighborhood of 20-60++ million Baht homes.....all in areas that I'd never consider building a home (mostly swamp land and mostly surrounded by neighborhoods that didn't cater to that class of living). But for Thais, it's perfectly acceptable.
Perhaps wise advise for the new home buyer would be to shop around in subdivisions that have been completed for at least a few years. Look at the general condition of the homes, streets, common areas. If you start to see people opening up mamasan stores in their garage or streets that are neglected or flood at the slightest hint of rain, you're probably in the wrong neighborhood.
I stand by the advice for any newcomer to spend at least a year here, exploring the area, renting a house/apartment. Any experience you have as a tourist in Thailand doesn't count toward experience living here.
In the end, I guess you can count me as someone who defends the Thai mentality.....not that I necessarily agree with it, but I understand it. I'd be more prone to criticize the western mentality of people who come here to live and expect the same standard of living as they had in their home country.
It's going to be a beautiful day in the neighborhood!

[Shado]

Good observations and good advice parrot. We rented when I first retired to Thailand. We did this fulling intending to purchase or build a home after an evaluation period. One of the benefits of first renting is that you don't feel pressured to buy quickly. You have a place to live and can take your time looking around. Another nice thing about renting is that your are in a great position to take advantage of any unexpected/unplanned "bargains" that do crop up from time to time. The best time to purchase anything is when you don't really have to.

[Balthasar G.]

I think gold has hit the bottom. It can only go up form here on.

The "bottom?"
Exactly 5 years ago I thought the same about ING stocks (ING is a major European bank/insurance company).
As both my rechnical and fundamental analysis indicated that they had bottomed out, I stepped in heavily, and lost a ton
Check a historical chart of gold and you can see how low it can go.

[FrazeeDK]

concur with Parrot's recommendation.. Come, rent for a while, recon the areas then make your decisions armed with definitive knowledge.. And, in the event everything goes tango uniform, be prepared to abandon in place with minimal regrets..

[darrenm]

remember a long time ago a wise man told me" if you cannot put it on your back and bring it home with you? Do not buy it". In reference to Thailand. Good advices at the time but times have changed. South East Asia is buzzing and investing in Land or property seems like a good idea.
A lot of good posts and good quotes/advice.
The conclusion is that I will not buy a house but will buy land and a condo. A house will come only once I have done my homework.
I will let you know how it all goes........
Thanks again for the feedback.

Darren

[747man]

Darrenm, But YOU Can't buy land in you're own name, But of course you already knew that, Did'nt you...??

[Barney]

darrenm

My personal experience may be similar to you. My partner of a few years and I have been looking seriously for 12 months now with the itention to move to Udon, buy land and then build. It has taken this long to get down to the last few blocks that would suit our life in the future. Our decision is soon. Have met some real good people with some sound advice along the way both Falang and Thai and a couple of dodgy sellers who were not completely honest till the end about who actually owned the land or changed their price. I have had the advantage of living in Khon Kaen for a couple of years on and off and able to travel up to Udon from time to time. Which enabled me to go and inspect at different times of the year and times of the days for traffic, actually have driven all the routes each time from the land into the city to test the water so to speak, able to check possible flood areas during wet times, schools, medical faciltiies, shopping, near the city or just out of town or even in an existing village, PRICING etc etc. There are many things to look at which will only come to mind with your length of stay. My thoughts are the same as others whom have advised that renting is a good way to start then you can do similar to myself and over time check everything out. You only want to do this once. Guaranteed you and your wife will change your minds prior to your final decision.
Believe it or not time has made it a more pleasurable experience for both of us ( our falang and Thai thoughts are more attuned now to what we actually want).
Good Luck

[darrenm]

The land will be in my better halfs name..

[tomjones]

I have been here 3 months and looking for a house too..Most of the estates are still building..have empty lots..Most of the old estates 3 yrs or more have gone to S%%%..Dogs barking in almost every house,and their crap liberally spread on every road..Thas how the Thais live here.forget it..if u want a house then buy a small piece of land and build,,AT least then you have half a chance at a peaceful life>>>Living in a Thai small estate will drive you crazy unless you aready are...good luck....Tom

[bumper]

You going to n build a house hope you have a strong heart. It won't be down the way you want it done. Be prepared to be on the job site everyday. Unless you speak Thai your wife needs to be a really strong person, who will back you up against a Thai.

Anything written in English, will not be accepted in a Thai Court. Every Document should be translated to your native language before you ever begin. Make sure the builder has something you can take from him if you have to spend seven years in court getting deposits back.

Not an easy process guys.

I bought in first homes simple because I knew what I was getting and changed things the way I wanted them. Yes there are dogs in First Homes and they are not managed by Western Standards.

Good Luck

[747man]

I have been here 3 months and looking for a house too..Most of the estates are still building..have empty lots..Most of the old estates 3 yrs or more have gone to S%%%..Dogs barking in almost every house,and their crap liberally spread on every road..Thas how the Thais live here.forget it..if u want a house then buy a small piece of land and build,,AT least then you have half a chance at a peaceful life>>>Living in a Thai small estate will drive you crazy unless you aready are...good luck....Tom

Tom, We have lived on a SMALL Estate since 1995, O.K.the estate Itself has fallen into disrepair,But NOT Our house & A Few others have taken care of theirs also,Yeah, There are also a few dogs that live on the estate,But I would'nt say there is Sh** all over the place, Most owners do clean up their own dogs Sh**.......And after 18 Years I'm still NOT Crazy....... :-"

[grievous]

My wife and I have had a go at building on a block of land we purchased and also buying in an estate in Udon.
The second option has proven to be the best for us as we only visit the house every few months and having good security and neighbours who will keep an eye on our place is very important. We have had the property for around two years without any problems. The house we built was great, had beautiful views in a lovely rural setting however we were worried that it would be broken in to if it was left unoccupied and it my wife found it a little scary at night when I was away working.
I believe you need to purchase a place that you'll feel safe and comfortable in and which you'll have the peace of mind that the likely hood of it being broken in to when your away is minimal.
There may be one or two housing estates that can offer the above or a condo would be best bet for the part time resident.

[Prenders88]

If you can afford it a place like Celleni where everyone pays the estate management fees, all the street lights work, no dog nonsense, well kept communal gardens, and a swimming pool that won't leave you with a nasty eye infection. The estate is light years ahead of any thing else in Udon Thani.

[Baht Man]

I agree, many interested an a particular area, but a piece of land for a future build