How to Own Real Estate Properties in Bangkok, Thailand

Are you interested to own a real estate property in Bangkok? Read this article as it will discuss all things about ownership of real estate properties by a foreign individual or by a foreign company that's willing to set-up a business hub in Bangkok.

The Laws on Property ownership in Thailand are kind of nationalistic, because foreign individuals could legally secure a property in only a certain number of ways. For those not legally secured in Thailand though, expect that there will be several risks involved if you decide to purchase a property.

Foreigners could possibly buy some other things outright, but some must be leased or must be purchased properly. The two most common method of securing a property are:

· You have to become a largest shareholder of a local company and the company should own the property on your behalf.
· Sign a 30-year lease (or less) with a local company or with a Thai national with an option to renew it for another 30 years. This method is often referred as the "2 times 30" way.
A lot of foreign nationals followed these simple procedures in securing a property and they did not encounter any problems at all.

There are also some other ways on how to obtain a property in Bangkok but some are deemed "questionable", and might lead to some problems in the future. Business individuals as well as lawyers often have their own ways on securing some real estate properties but it is highly advised to seek legal help from professionals before you deal with transactions that involves huge amount of money. It’s alarming to hear so many foreigners buying real estate properties in Bangkok without seeking the help of any professional. They might not realize it at first, but sooner or later, problems may eventually occur.

For foreigners buying properties on any country where the language is not familiar to you, it is a must to seek the help of a lawyer that could assist you in all the legalities involve on that certain transaction. Another important thing to consider when buying properties on some foreign land is to learn and familiarize the proper laws governing that country and to know your rights on that country as well. These are just some words of precautions, but going back to the acquisition of properties in Thailand, here is a summary of the present status of foreign real estate property ownership in Thailand:

· A foreigner may own a condominium or an apartment, for as long as less than forty percent of that condominium or apartment in the building is owned by foreign nationals.
· A foreign company may own a property such as a house and lot, as well as purchase a land via their company, for as long as no foreigner owns more than thirty-nine percent of the company and the total foreign ownership on that particular company should not exceed to forty percent.
· Any Thai wife or husband of a foreigner could own a property but that property must be under her name only. This is totally okay, for as long as you do not have much marital problems.
· A foreigner may be able to lease a land in Thailand for up to thirty years, with an option of renewing it for another thirty years, this, according to the press, although most Thai lawyers has already confirmed this, and is in fact, one of the most convenient ways of owning a property there.

There are already numerous foreigners that have secured land as well as houses in Thailand, in addition to condominiums and apartments. So far, there haven't been any major problems at all. However, the worst problems that usually occurs is when a foreign national decided to purchase vast land properties under the name of his wife, and unfortunately, the time came that they got separated. The sad fact is, the foreigner was left with nothing on his possession, because all properties he bought were now under the possession of his wife. Although we don't really want to see our marriages breaking up, but it is just practical to consider some written legal contracts when buying properties under your wife’s name, to save you from any trouble in the future.

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