Real Estate – Thai Immigration Ltd.

3 common questions on property purchases in Thailand:

Q1) What are the legal restrictions?

A: Foreigners in Thailand can legally purchase apartments and receive permanent property rights. However, for townhouse / villa / landed house, foreigners will not have permanent property rights.

Q2) What is the property purchase procedure in Thailand?

A: There are typically two ways to buy a home.

a) Off-the-plan:

Deposit
Contract payment
Instalments
Pay the balance and transfer
Obtain real estate license

b) Existing home:

Deposit
Signing fee
Pay the full amount and transfer
Access to real estate license

Q3) For foreign property owners away from Thailand for extended period of time, will there be option to lease out the property?

A: Yes. Fragrant and Sansiri are two examples of real estate company in Thailand. They provide purchasing, leasing and sales services. Property owners can get in touch with them to discuss their needs and requirement.

Purchasing real estate in Thailand usually takes one to two months for the entire purchasing process. The purchasing process include:

Inspection, signing of contract, delivery of deposits, remittances, bank to issue remittance certificates & checks, real estate land title transfer at the Land Office.

The process seems easy, but before you buy, be sure to check out the minefields that are easy to miss.

In general, foreigners can look for Thailand’s real estate and negotiate good prices. They can hire a lawyer to help them complete a series of formal procedures such as contracts. Once contract is signed, there are no going back. The first payment of 10% deposit are generally non-refundable if you change your mind.

Like other countries, there are stamp duties and taxes when you purchase real estate. A transfer fee of 2%, special commercial tax 3.3%, stamp duty 0.5% are charged. It is worth mentioning that special commercial tax can be exempted if owner hold the property for more than 5 years.

Generally, per real estate transaction, there is approximately 4 – 6% extra fees payable between the buyer and the seller. Agent’s fee is usually paid by the seller. In addition, according to Thailand’s new land tax law, land tax cuts expire in March 2013. The new law specifies that the residences must pay taxes of 0.01% – 0.5%. These taxes are:

General building and land tax levy of no more than 0.5% of the tax base;
If the real estate is not for commercial & business purposes, no more than 0.1% of the tax base;
The land tax for agricultural purposes does not exceed 0.05% of the tax base.

Foreigners purchasing a home in Thailand can apply for a loan, but must meet certain criteria, such as having a valid work permit or a permanent residence permit, employer’s statement of employment, a business license or marriage certificate. Loan applicant’s age shall not exceed 60 years of age.

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