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  1. #151
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    Phuketrichard's Avatar
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    Koh Rong;

    Cambodia's beaches are often neglected in favor of Thailand's. But slowly, surely, the country's idyllic islands and shining white sands are becoming known to the world's beach lovers.

    Read more: 5 best Cambodian beaches | CNNGo.com 5 best Cambodian beaches | CNNGo.com

    And if ur looking for the next popular island to get into now
    head up to Ranong and tak ethe boat out to Ko Phayam
    "I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol or insanity, but they've always worked for me" HST

    View my pics

  2. #152
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    ^ sure but access is not so easy for most people

  3. #153
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    Hum, still weird feeling about Thai people cheating around...

    Many years here buying properties and never have been cheated by anyone, so even when knowing that Simon is smart and knows a lot about many many topics, I wonder if in the past he was obviously too rich and arrogant so that some people might not like him ? Or maybe you didn't choose the right persons to work with ?

    Of course I totally agree that a beach land will be a higher risk, but what can they do against a Thai family form Bkk who is going to settle down at Koh Phangan...
    (no plan to show my white face so fast)

    Also, even when not buying beach land, I was thinking that buying any land would be cheap for you and I still think that buying is better than renting any condo/house/land, just because I hate anyone tells me to leave when he decides !
    And as you already have kids, what is the risk for you to buy lands and propertiies ?

    Also still very grateful for all your reports, thanks again.

  4. #154
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    DrAndy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by buycondojomtien
    just because I hate anyone tells me to leave when he decides !
    if you have a lease, then they cannot tell you to leave, until the end of the lease

  5. #155
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    Simon43's Avatar
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    I wonder if in the past he was obviously too rich and arrogant...
    Nope -been hear 10 years and never been rich in Thailand, (I was once in the UK before my 1st divorce...)

    Arrogant? I don't think so

    Let me say that I have many personal Thai friends and no Thai enemies. But I have learnt through some past experiences to trust Thai officials and 'professionals' about as far as I can throw them after 10 bottles of Beer Chang.

    That goes for banks, land offices, police, immigration, any Amphur official, lawyers, builders, garages, computer shops, (any shop come to think of it), tourist information offices, tour companies, travel companies, monks, nuns ...

    I trust my local somtam lady and I trust my pet cockroach - that's about it.

    I'm sure that in the above list of villians, there are some good souls. But I can no longer be bothered to search for them

    Buying land in Phuket is not a cheap option. It's comparably expensive or very expensive and wastes valuable cash flow for my business. The first rule in Thailand is rent, not buy

    Simon

  6. #156
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    Quote Originally Posted by Simon43 View Post
    The business is not usually perceived by Thais as a competing business, (they recognise that hotels for non-Thais are best managed by non-Thais
    That is funny.

  7. #157
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    Thank you Simon, and sorry I was thinking you were still rich :-)

    I am sure that you will succeed because 10 rooms is nothing compared to how many passengers use Phuket airport everyday, but I know that I would never stay at an airport hotel for more than 1000 thb when I know that some perfectly new and clean hotels at 100 meters from Patong beach cost only 500 thb a night and allow to have breakfast on the beach which is so close. Anyway I am not your target, I hate Phuket ! :-)
    But really, people pay 2000 thb during high season for a small airport room ? They are weird !

    I keep thinking that when renting it's always easy for the owner to ask you to leave even though you have a contract, because we all exactly know that these documents are worth nothing in Thailand... (people who think differently can believe in god as well :-) ) And also, anybody with some connections (even me) can give few thousand baht to any cop or gangster to push tenants to leave...


    Good luck !

  8. #158
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    Simon43's Avatar
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    I would never stay at an airport hotel for more than 1000 thb when I know that some perfectly new and clean hotels at 100 meters from Patong beach cost only 500 thb a night
    That would be true if you are staying in your holiday hotel. But if you are transiting through Phuket, or arriving very late, (or leaving very early), then financially it does not make any sense to pay the 800 baht taxi to Patong, stay in your 500 baht hotel, then pay another 800 baht to get back to the airport again.

    Simon

  9. #159
    Have you got any cheese Thetyim's Avatar
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    ^
    So your business is dependent on the Tuk-Tuk mafia staying in control

  10. #160
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    Simon43's Avatar
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    So your business is dependent on the Tuk-Tuk mafia staying in control?
    No - tuk-tuks are not allowed to pick up from the airport and no-one with more than 1 brain cell would use a tuk-tuk to go from Patong to the airport when a taxi is cheaper and more comfortable. But why go all the way to Patong if you are only staying overnight in transit through the airport?

    My business relies upon the existence of the airport, and it's location in north Phuket, which is not close to the majority of the island hotels.

    Simon

  11. #161
    Have you got any cheese Thetyim's Avatar
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    OK that makes sense and you only need a very small percentage of the airport traffic to have full occupancy.

  12. #162
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    OK that makes sense and you only need a very small percentage of the airport traffic to have full occupancy.
    About 0.05% to be exact

    Simon

  13. #163
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    Quote Originally Posted by Simon43 View Post
    [at]DrAndy, both projects can be considered as airport hotels. The Nature Resort is within 1km of the airport, only about 100 metres further away than my old resort. But the style of each project is different, in line with their immediate environment.

    So I'll market the Nature Resort as a relaxing 'gem' set in wonderous natural and unspoilt surroundings etc etc (where families and their kids can tap a REAL rubber tree) blah blah (more marketing speil...) - whilst being located just a stone's throw (Olympic thrower) of the international airport and cosmopolitan Nai Yang Beach (that means there is a choice of hooker...)

    Well, you get the idea maybe

    [at]Butterfly - more like 3 million baht each, maybe less, I'm surprising myself everyday at how cheap the materials and labour are when there is no middleman and when I can deal in Thai direct with suppliers, - makes me realise how much I was ripped off last time.

    I have a materials/labour/admin spreadsheet that estimates the overall costs, but I'm keeping that a secret for the moment.

    Sorry, no new photos until I'm back in Phuket on Monday. I think the well diggers will be starting work, so I'll get some photos

    Simon

    Simon
    Hi Simon,

    I just read a post about you, may be if you have time you could give me some advices and informations because i would like to build my house in Ao Nang.

    Cheers

  14. #164
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    Advice on opening business in Thailand

    Hi, myself and my partner are planning on starting a business in Thailand on the island of Koh Yao Noi, we would like to purchase some land and build some bungalows, one for us to live in and the others to rent out to tourists.
    we are unsure of how many to build as we don’t really know the costs of building at this stage we are just researching for information at this point.

    we would really appreciate any advice and information you could give on being able to own land in Thailand as foreigners, the costs of legal advice and support,costs of building and materials, the process and costs of gaining work permits and visas, the process and costs of registering a business and for tax etc we would need to enroll our children into school there so if you know anything about the costs and process of this that would be helpful.

    Anything you could offer would be really helpful in making our plans more solid and hopefully a reality!
    Thanks in advance, Daisy

  15. #165
    I'm in Jail

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    Surely you need to determine the tourism capacity to see if you are likely to get the footfall to justify the investment before you consider any further?

  16. #166
    Excommunicated baldrick's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DaisyS View Post
    Thanks in advance, Daisy
    if the Thai man who is your partner does not know any of these answers , then stop now - you will be putting everything in his name and you will end up with nothing

  17. #167
    I'm in Jail

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    Plies doesn't care

  18. #168
    I'm in Jail

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    Reminds me of a guy that told me he became a millionaire in Thailand.
    Said he showed up with two million, the rest was history.

    Now if you have mastered the laws, lingo and trust those in power it may "may" pan out.

    As for myself, would not be in that position. Another quote would be " Don't invest more than you could comfortably walk away from." Or in some instances run!

    Just my two bits worth.

  19. #169
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    “we would really appreciate any advice and information you could give on being able to own land in Thailand as foreigners”
    That sounds as if both of you are foreigners ? Which means you cannot buy land as individuals, you would have to set up a company with a majority Thai ownership. The most you could own of the company is 49% !
    Sure, there are dodgy ways around this but they are illegal and you could end up losing everything.
    Perhaps a better way would be a long term lease over an existing resort, but make sure the rent is fixed for as long as possible .....if the owner sees business is good then likely he will want to increase the rent !

  20. #170
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    DaisyS - I started this thread way back in 20111. So maybe I can give you some advice about your plans.

    I know Koh Yao Noi (and Koh Yao Yai) very well (they are located between Phuket and ao Nang on the mainland, and I used to have small hotels in both locations. I'd take the speedboat from Phuket to Ao Nang every week and stop off in Koh Yao.

    Both islands are very much Islam religion, perhaps 95%. This is one reason why they haven't been developed like Ao Nang and Phuket, for the simple reason that the locals are too involved with their religion to be interested in western tourists etc. You do know that drinking alcohol on those islands is frowned upon, and it's very difficult to even buy alcohol on the islands.

    Koh Yao Noi is more developed than the larger Koh Yao Yai. But the existing bungalow resorts are owned by the local Muslims. do you think they will welcome competition from a couple of foreigners? No way.

    You talk about buying land, and you must be aware that foreigners cannot legally own land in Thailand. also, I suspect that on these islands, land ownership is not even clearly defined for Thai nationals, (like Koh Chang). The Chanote/NS3G land papers maybe do not exist and you have to rely on the village headman to confirm your (illegal) land ownership. Don't even think of going doen that route of illegal land papers etc.

    Schools? Are your kids Muslim? 'Cos that's about the only government school you'll find on the islands. you would have to board your kids on Phuket at somewhere like PIADS, which is a great private school, but has astronomical fees to match....

    Work permits? To do what? Run your guesthouse? You'll need to register your Thai company and employ 4 Thai nationals for each foreign WP. additionally, Koh Yao Noi falls under Krabi jurisdiction. If the Labor office is anything like Phuket, they will demand hefty bribes to issue you with a work permit.

    Right, so how can you have a resort without those problems? You could do as I did with 4 different small hotels on Phuket ==> rent the bare land at a fixed rent for say 15 years, paying the rent every month with nothing in advance, and no obligation to pay the balance of the term if you walk away from the business. I rented land at 10,000 baht a month, fixed for 15 years.

    This seems the safest way to 'own' a resort. But beware! I thought I had covered all possibilities with my 4th little resort, with me as the sole renter and no business partners or wife. After a couple of successful seasons, my resort was 'invaded' by drug dealers, I was thrown out of my business and the local police supported the drug dealers ('cos they were their main customers..). I had to walk (run) away from that great little business, but happy to be alive. I lost $100,000

    So please be careful if you want to start a business like this. Trust absolutely no-one, especially lawyers, police, village heads and anyone bearing a stupid smile and waiing you...

  21. #171
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    Yes. sure, listen and follow simon43 advices, he is a master in business, his current life is an evidence !

  22. #172
    Excommunicated baldrick's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Simon43 View Post
    I was thrown out of my business
    I hope you have fcuked them over on the booking sites

    have you seen any basic designs for a 20 room hotel that look like they are easy managed and maintainable ? I am not thinking for Thailand but Madagascar

  23. #173
    Hangin' Around cyrille's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by JournalistsAreLiars View Post
    Yes. sure, listen and follow simon43 advices, he is a master in business, his current life is an evidence !
    The whole point of Simon's story is that he's learned the hard way.

    How are your building plans going, JAL?

    Weren't you planning to build a nice place for you and your wife, plus one for the MiL, both on your MiL's land?

    I remember thinking that had great (comic) potential for a thread. What happened?

  24. #174
    The Fool on the Hill bowie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by cyrille View Post
    The whole point of Simon's story is that he's learned the hard way.
    It takes a smart man to garner wisdom from another, learning from others mistakes - there are a few lessons you must learn for yourself, but, an intelligent person will not repeat mistakes made by others. Do your due diligence, learn from others mistakes, it's called stacking the deck...

    Startup businesses are very risky ventures and the risk is increased logarithmically in a foreign business, different culture, different language, different laws, and different types of cons to sidestep.

    I'd listen to Simon's advice and take it as gospel.
    Last edited by bowie; 14-01-2019 at 09:01 PM. Reason: add comment

  25. #175
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    DaisyS don't even think about it, you are on a loser from the start.

    I will give you free land, no rent for 5 years, in Issan, build your hotel and when you go broke, I'll get a load of Lao girls in, short time, no tell motel.

    Works for me.

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