Buy a home or have one built?

[trubrit]

Well I am sorry for those whose only reason for preferring to rent is that they may lose their money if they buy and the TW cons them . To me that shows a level of distrust or doubt in the partner that would have precluded me from developing the relationship anyway. What about your landlord? Surely he is pocketing your money every month and you don't get to sleep with him .How much more sensible to make repayments on a mortgage if you don't want to outlay the capital .
Without the appreciation factor that Douglas mentions, you will be accumulating a tidy sum which , even if your relationship goes pear shaped, will give you and her, money in hand. How much of your rent back will either of you have?
It must be obvious whether you are renting a house or even a car, someone has bought it and is now making a profit on your renting it . Why shouldn't that someone be you? Even without the financial considerations there are other factors . For me, I get pride and pleasure from having my own home as does my wife. We put plants in the garden knowing that we will see them mature. The small trees we planted all those years ago, we can now enjoy sitting in the shade of. We have spent the last week painting the surrounding wall and ornamental ironwork, and at the end of each day, tired and exhausted, we look at our work and are happy to see "our" home looking nice again .You know. I like to travel so a couple of times a year we take a holiday somewhere, but it doesn't matter how good the break was, when we are opening our gates, we both say the same thing " Nice to be home" Could you really say that about a rented property no matter how luxurious it was ? No doubts in my mind.
To answer the original question. I built my own in the country but the benefits outlined above should also apply to a developers house .

[drillpig]

Rented five properties in different parts of Thailand before finally buying in Udon got my deposit back from two of the landlords, 50% from one and nothing from two. No damage was done to these properties it was all about normal wear and tear eg. warped doors, lifting tiles etc. so although i do recommend you rent for a while before you buy, make sure you get a decent rental agreement drawn up. Chose a house in an estate in town and as OT said the rest of the estate looks fairly shabby mainly because the thai neighbours after buying their house usually just let it gradually fall down, but that doesnt bother me as it just makes our well maintained house look even better. Even if you do trust your wife unconditionally you should still get a thirty year lease on the land just in case something happens to your wife as in this case you will be at the mercy of her family who may seem nice now but will suddenly change when they stand to inherit a 3million baht property.

[merchant seaman]

If you buy a house in your wife's name and she dies you inherit the house if it is so stated in her will. The house goes in your name. The law states you must sell it in 2 1/2 years but they usually won't come after you after the 2 1/2 years. If you check with FBI Real Estate he can tell you a couple of options that will protect you to some extent.