BUYING A HOUSE

[Guest]

Shes very honest, so I am trusting her and besides shes hardly going to run away, she lives and works in Phet, good government job.

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Khun Sanuk made a good point about this issue. Your observation about her honesty may be perfectly true, but I have lived here 8+ years and I know scores of Farangs that have been burned big time by putting property and businesses in their GF (or wife's) name. It is generally a disaster waiting to happen.

 

Look at this way: even when people share the same culture and enter into a relationship with the best of intentions, a very high percentage of those relationships simply don't work out. Even those who have not been married before can probably recall relationships that they thought were perfect, but for whatever reason, simply didn't work out. (And if they did work out, what are they doing spending time on a board devoted to sanuk in Thailand :hubba:?) Think of all the marriages that end in divorce.

 

Now consider a situation where you have two people from vastly different cultures. The odds of problems are even higher. I am not saying your relationship is doomed, but that you need to be realistic.

 

I hope I don't sound overly cynical, but I have seen so many people I know get so badly burned by putting property and businesses in the names of their Thai GFs that I instinctively start to look for a soap box everytime anyone mentions doing something like this.

[Guest]

personally, i think that speculating on the original poster's future wife's honesty without him giving any indication of his wife being dishonest is very bad manners and incredibly intrusive.

my advice to you is not to do that to people in real life, they might take that the wrong way.

 

:onfire:

[SingaporeSteve]

I think the negativity towards setting up a company is based on lack of information from anyone that's done it and potential problems with 'dummy' corporations. I have bought two properties via companies and I have had no problems whatsoever. Firstly you instruct a lawyer to set up a company with you as one of the 7 shareholders. Your ownership is below the majority (i.e something like 30% from memory) of the stock. In the rules of the company, the lawyer will insert a clause indicating that only one shareholder/director can sign on behalf of the company. That is you. Therefore the remainder of the shareholders cannot do anything without your signature. The remainder of the shareholders must be Thai - either you choose them or the lawyer has a pool of nominee's normally his staff which he can use.

 

This ownership method is completely legal and is in no way a dummy corporation as as someone points out, there is a need to submit company accounts every year. For me, I submitted lots of expenses in buying and maintaining the house, which resulted in a net loss, for the company. I still had to pay some taxes but nothing too onerous and less than 30,000 baht.

 

I know many people who have bought property in this way and providing you use a good lawyer, I have never heard of any bad experience. Other friends pay considerably less than the near 30,000 I paid for the annual return but there are personal reasons for this that are not relevant here. I also have friends that have property in their wifes/girlfriends name who have come to regret it, but also a couple who have had no problems. Key thing to remember is do you want to be in control of your money or leave it entirely to your fiance?

 

Your choice but this method is sound - banks will lend money on this basis and they have done so to me twice. Despite an earlier poster banks HAVE money and are pushing to lend it out.

 

Cheers

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

Fly, relax. Gadfly did not insunate anything, and did not say anything I hadn't said already.

 

Neither of us is saying that his wife is dishonest, we are just trying to make sure he knows the risks.

 

Sanuk!

 

[lopburi3]

Despite an earlier poster banks HAVE money and are pushing to lend it out.

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If that is me I agree that banks have money. But I do not believe they are eager to lend it out for unbuilt property yet.

 

As for company deals the fact there has been no problem does not say that there will not be problems in the future. I still suspect that it could be found illegal anytime the powers like.

[SingaporeSteve]

Hi Lopburi - Agree with your point about the money - My bank would not release any payment until the place was finished.

 

In terms of company setup - sure nothing would surprise us in Thailand however dont forget that many multinationals are set up in the same way in Thailand as the manner in which i described including the one I work for. The law is pretty clear on this and I suspect that it pretty much depends on what someone expects to get out if it. With a Chanod, your company is the definative and registered owner of the land - No dodgy subleases or anything - If someone blew the whistle - what would they gain (certainly not the land for sure as it would need to be sold or tranferred to another company you nominate). Ideally sure full personal ownership is ideal but this in MHO is the next best thing and certainly safer in my eyes than putting it in someone elses name.

 

Cheers

[antbears]

:: Again mucho thanks for all the information. The posts on the legal issues and methods for company formation were great and I will follow those up.

 

Thanks also for those posts which offered messages of 'take care'. I will. I am going to Phet early in May to look at the set-up and see whats going on. Also I have a Thai colleague who will help me with questions etc. Transactions like this are always risky but I have to show some level of trust. It was my idea after all. Phet is a nice place to live, near Bangers, the sea and fairly central with good services. A bit expensive for property, though.

As soon as I start paying the deposit installments which are paid over 8 months, the company start building the house and it will be Christmas before the house is ready to bring to the bank for the mortgage.

I wonder if you have to be permanently living in Thailand to borrow from banks here. I will be a permanent resident here, but not for a few years yet. Also I think the lending rates are higher than European interest rates.

Does anybody know the legal status of a farang married to a Thai with regards to owning property. I accept that the land will be in her name but would the house be jointly owned.

The important thing for me is that I have lots of time (8 months) to check these things before the house is finished. I will be getting married in July so contracts etc will have to reflect this.

The contractors seem to have a good name in the area. I have spoken to a doctor who has already finished his house in this estate and he is well happy. I have seen the insides of two houses and they look great and well finished

But I have until May 20 th to make the initial committment and I should be have all the details by then. Will keep you all posted.

As for the woman I know her for 3 years, she has been home with me and her family are also great. I still can't see any signs that I am been set up. However I know it happens and I am keeping all my options as open as I can.

 

Thanks again for all the help.

 

Antbear

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

"Does anybody know the legal status of a farang married to a Thai with regards to owning property. I accept that the land will be in her name but would the house be jointly owned."

As far as I am aware joint ownership is not possible. The house will also be in her name only.

 

"I still can't see any signs that I am been set up."

Wasn't so much refering to being set up, but more about the consequences with a divorce (again, not saying this will happen). In the West the house would get split, in Thailand your wife would get it all.

I have known my wife for 5 years, married for 3, and I do not expect a divorce. Still I would not want to risk this much money, and a large part of my future, on it.

 

Sanuk!

 

[Guest]

"Does anybody know the legal status of a farang married to a Thai with regards to owning property. I accept that the land will be in her name but would the house be jointly owned."

As far as I am aware joint ownership is not possible. The house will also be in her name only

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You are right and if the Thai authorities know she is married, they will require the Farang husband to sign a document (in Thai) disclaiming any interest in the property.

 

A friend of mine had to do this about a year ago when he brought property with his now ex-wife. Guess who now lives in the house and will ultimately obtain the full value of the property when it is sold?? She wasn't a BG, but worked for an insurance company, and as far as I know her intentions were probably sincere; I think, as often happens here with older Farang men, they just moved way too fast.

 

Thanks on the earlier message. You are right; I was not insinuating anything about anyone's honesty. Indeed, I was trying to make the simple point that even when people enter relationships with the best of intentions, those relationships often still don't work out. The added wrinkle in Thailand is that if you buy property or put a business in the name of that other person, you are generally SOL.

[OldAsiaHand]

When a Thai has a foreign spouse, there is an affidavit that she (he) and the foreign spouse must execute as a part of every property registration package that includes land as opposed to a condo. The affidavit is, interestingly, in English. It attests that all of the money used to buy the property came from the Thai spouse alone and that the property beongs solely to her (him) as separate property. Foreign lawyers call it the Bar Girl Affidavit.