Monthly cost of living (Sukhumvit) ?

[gobbledonk]

OK, I know this is a tedious one, but lets leave Sanuk out of the equation. It seems that a condo on Sukhumvit can set you back anything from 25K to 200K+. Excluding things like medical and dental, what sort of monthly outlay would I be talking to live on/near Sukhumvit ? I dont want to live on street food exclusively, so I'd be looking to cook a lot of my own meals, and I dont have to travel to/from a job. At this stage, I'd spend my days learning Thai and possibly doing a bit of code cutting to keep my hand in, but I'm not actively considering working in BKK - this is largely a 'what if'.

 

Any feedback most welcome.

 

(OH, I am just examining my options, as my current employer isn't doing the little things like pay my superannuation on time ...)

[billywan]

I'm curious too. Am moving to Bkk in July. Am retired so am not going to work. Like you, plan to study Thai and do a few other things to keep me busy. Will be looking for a furnished apt or condo in the 15K to 26 K range. Don't want to pay over 26K, will have income around 80 to 100 K Baht/Mo. Should be able to live OK on that if I don't hit the bar scene too hard. Have to start over as my #1 GF I knew for 5 years recently got married and #'s 2 and 3 no longer around either. Looking forward to doing a little travel and having fun while I am there , much more fun than what I have here in the US.

[Julian2]

It totally depends on rent guys.

If you want to cook yourself you can live cheaply food wise; other overheads like electric, water, internet, cable TV, maid etc add up but aren't expensive.

I live exceptionally well in the sticks for about 25K a month but I don't pay rent. My car costs me about 20K a year for insurance and tax/registration.

 

[..]

Here's a sample of average monthly expenses:

 

Rent -- B40k for 110M^2 (a *very* good deal in an older but well maintained building in a prime location)

Electric -- B8k in hot season

Water -- B450

Internet -- B1k for TOT 2Mps DSL

Cable TV -- B1.8k for UBC platinum

Maid -- B4k (overpaid, should be B3k)

 

For food, if you want to cook farang food, figure 50-75% more in cost than in farangland. Local ingredients are still pretty cheap, but prices up by 15% since 1 Jan.

 

Cheers,

SD

[gobbledonk]

Thanks guys - I know how tough this question is when you know so little about my lifestyle, but its handy to establish a baseline.

 

Here in Oz, I would estimate that I need (AUD) 2,000 a month just to cover the basics, and things like food are going up continually. We are constantly told that 'working families' are doing it tough, but the restaurants around me are packed, every plane I've caught from an Oz airport has been chockers : maybe its all on plastic, but its difficult to reconcile 'reality' with the news reports.

 

I know - things are tough all over :smirk:

 

 

[wonderlust]

Water -- B450

 

You don't have to fill the jacuzzi every night.

[simie]

Just depends what sort of lifestyle you want? Plenty of acceptable apartments under 25k a month if you don't want anything too big and you have a good look around.

And as others have mentioned if you cook local food at home your food bill will be low as well.

Some apartments charge a decent rate for electric and water. But watch out for some that charge rip off rates. Some places just charge a set monthly fee for water around 400-450B.

One thing to remember with the electric is that it could be cheaper for a one bedroom apartment than a decent sized studio. When we had a studio the electric bill was about the same as when we had a 2 bedroom apartment. As in the 2 bed place we just used aircon in the bedroom and fans in the rest of the apartment. Where as even though we used fans in the studio we had to cool the whole apartment when we put the A/C on at night.

Simie.

[drogon]

Suk soi 1-3: Quite a few condos for rent, about 10-15K/month, quite decent if nothing luxurious, bedroom, kitchen, balcony, Airco and clean.

 

Suk soi 24: Liberty place, apartments for rent, basic bedroom, cable internet, airco, bathroom

(some with a kitchen), quite basic but clean, secure and cheap: Between 8500 to 12K/month + electricity and water.

 

Sukhumvit: Plenty of condos to rent

 

Sukhumvit soi 22: Admiral suites, I negotiated with the management (by email) a monthly rate of 36K, serviced apartment, nice clean room with kitchen and of course airco.

 

Water/electricity: Except for serviced apartments it all depends on your needs.

Can run as high as a total of 6K/month (especially if they overcharge the electricity rates)

[gobbledonk]

Suk soi 1-3: Quite a few condos for rent, about 10-15K/month, quite decent if nothing luxurious, bedroom, kitchen, balcony, Airco and clean.

 

Thanks Drogon, but knowing what you know about my recent stay on Suk Soi 4, do you really think its wise for me to look at anything so close to that particular pussy plantation ? With rent so reasonable, even a miser would be tempted to partake far too often, methinks. :smirk:

 

The other side of that coin is that I may well become bored with the whole nightlife thing inside a month and become one of those sad figures who just sits in the bar drinking listlessly.

 

Anyhoo, this is the FINANCE forum, so I'll thank all who contributed and return to the Board Bar ASAP.

[CTO]

SD come on!

 

He can get a fuck flat on Thonglor or Ratchada - 10 minutes from Suk - for 5K a month - then his elec wold be 500 - 1k a month

 

I rent a 200 sqm two story house with 5 rooms 3 bathrooms for 25 K a month!

 

40K will get you a great place with 2 spare rooms to rent out to fellow traveler's

 

Internet -- B1k for TOT 2Mps DSL - OR Unlimited by AIS Mobile connect to your laptop anywhere in THailand @ 400kbps - works for me

Cable TV -- B1.8k for UBC platinum OR Some parts of Bangkok have pirate cable - 250 - 500 baht a month OR very often the cheap studio (like I have) has pirate cable/satellite - totally illegal but the owners problem not yours - and maybe 5 - 10 channels in english

Maid -- B4k (overpaid, should be B3k) - full tie is 5K++ these days - pretty impossible to get live in full tie maid for 4K unless she's Burmese slave maid you don't need a maid - in a little fuck flat you can live with a women coming 3 times a week - 2K max for that -

CLOTHES WASHING - this is a biggy - need to find a place that does it cheap and doesn't fuck the collars/coloours up!