Cha am / Hua hin to settle ?

[nigelandjan]

Hi having looked at some of the available property in this region , it seems reasonably priced / near the coast etc but I know nothing of this area ,,, not looking for bars/ nightlife just a reasonably quiet area to possibly settle in , is it reccomended ? what are the plus / minus pitfalls ?

[Ratchaburi]

I would say Cha Am would be thye better beach or south of Hua Hin

[sabaii sabaii]

Very quiet, don't know about the peak season yet

2 hours from Bangkok, 15 mins from Hua Hin

Clean air, seafood, no KFC or Maccy D's or Burger King, they're in Hua Hin, Villa Market there too

Quite a few old farangs here, mostly spotted on a Wednesday night at the Market

A lot of Bangkok Thais come here for the weekend

Lots of Scandinavians here, especially Norwegian

Can eat Farang food cheap here

Here's this mornings sunrise

[nigelandjan]

Sounds good so far ,, you livin down there Sab ?

[sabaii sabaii]

Sure am, I like it, nice to have the clean air after Bangkok,

My Missus loves it here, pretty sure yours will too mate.

[natalie8]

Where is that, sabaii?

[sabaii sabaii]

^ Cha Am

[natalie8]

Doh! I should have clued in. Not enough caffeine yet. I've also heard about the area south of HH which is pretty much untouched (or undestroyed if that's a word). I can never remember the name of it.

[baldrick]

it seems it is smart to steer clear of falang real estate developers in that area - or any area

[BaitongBoy]

^ Why is that, baldrick?

[Happy As Larry]

I lived in Hua Hin for 2.5 years and would echo previous comments. Certainly more developed (Over developed it could be argued) in HH than Chaam. Lots of foreign residents and many who come for the winter months only, if that is your thing. Inundated with Bkk Thais every weekend and a diverse selection of foreign eateries. 5 star hotels and lots of guest houses.
Farang oriented nightlife exists but Bangkok/Pattaya it isn't
Bangkok is within easy reach for the day.
Lots of golf courses around a couple of national parks within easy reach.
I miss the easy access to the beach but if I were to do it all over again I would look further south but that would put Bangkok out as regards day trips.

As with anything it depends upon what you are looking for.
I would be happy to answer any specific questions.

Personally I find the house prices in HH to be over priced but thee is a wide range of alternatives

[Ratchaburi]

it seems it is smart to steer clear of falang real estate developers in that area - or any area

Why do you leave your own country,you are sick of the over pricing.
So why go through a farang estare agent to be ripped off

[BaitongBoy]

^ Is this true? Are you speaking from experience? Just interested...How to buy in Cha-Am, then?...I've seen some nice places there...good swimming pools, etc., brand new, 6 million baht...would I get it cheaper by banging on doors or trying to talk turkey with Somchai himself?...

[taxexile]

would I get it cheaper by banging on doors or trying to talk turkey with Somchai himself?...

cutting out the middleman always works out cheaper.

best to rent for a while first, see if you like the area and then look to buy.

both towns are good places to live, good restaurants, cafes, nightspots.
the area fills up at the weekends with thais, and there is an influx of falang renters during the winter months.

nightlife is either the falang bars with girls or the pubs, or the thai bars, most of which are falang friendly and have music, sports screens and food. being resort towns they are always busy at night, hua hin more so than cha am

outside the towns the countryside is good with no shortage of affordable houses to buy. both gated ghetto developments and good thai houses on their own plots.

western food is readily available, some cheap, some ridiculously expensive. good thai food at thai prices, good seafood, again the price varies depending on where you eat. lots of golf, lots of good county trekking, cycling etc. if you like the outdoors.

traditional thai food markets and western style supermarkets in both towns, hua hin has a tesco (terrible place), a villa supermarket and a makro.

2 hours from bangkok on a good road, 200baht minivans and a slower train service.

cha am is much more laid back than hua hin, and it has a great beach. the beach in central hua hin is not so great, but away from the town centre its mostly deserted.

a good local government hospital and a new bangkok hospital in hua hin, and an old hospital in cha am with limited facilities.

[sabaii sabaii]

You are only 15 mins from Hua Hin airport too, where it flies I don't know though.

I looked for flights internally via Air Asia and Bangkok Airways yesterday, albeit a tad tipsy and couldn't find nothing.

[Satonic]

Hua Hin IMO is overpriced and boring. I can't wait to leave.

Beaches are shit too.

[sabaii sabaii]

Hua Hin IMO is overpriced and boring. I can't wait to leave. Beaches are shit too.

Where you going next ?

[nigelandjan]

Cha am is beginning to sound the better bet

[nevets]

Don't tell everyone they will all want to come shshsh

[taxexile]

Hua Hin IMO is overpriced and boring. I can't wait to leave.

Beaches are shit too.

not at all.

stick to the tourist centre and yes, it is pricey and the beaches are nothing special. the water isnt clear blue like samui, and the beach isnt pristine, its used a lot by fishermen, their boats are often parked up. but it does mean if you live on the beach you can buy fresh every morning.

but apart from tourists on their first or second day out, who stays around the central areas. gotta get out a bit a look around. may be wrong but sounds like you didnt get away from the tourist centre and find places where the prices are normal, the food better and the people easier and less grasping.

suburban hua hin is full of good characterful eating places and social drinking places, thai prices. and i'm not talking about sitting on the steps of a 7-11 either.

as for boring, depends on what you enjoy doing, hua hin has 2 libraries, a newly built flourishing arts centre with regular concerts and theatrical performances, a yearly 3 day jazz festival, many rock concerts, the pubs in town have some better than average rock an blues bands, there are many sleazoid establishments offering massage and minge to those looking for it, presented in a refreshingly low key manner, the town is surrounded by golf courses, there is horse riding (and i'm not talking about the beach ponies) there are trekking and cycling trails all around in the hills that back the city, there are fishing lakes and sea fishing, there is windsurfing, there are shooting ranges and driving ranges, pranburi river, 30 minutes south, is a natural wonderland, 45 minutes further down the coast is sam roi yordt national park, 45 minutes north of the city is kaeng krachan national park, thailands largest. there are colleges and schools offering all kinds of classes and courses for anybody wanting to learn some extra skills or languages, weekend and evening classes too.

some of the countrys finest seafood is available around pak nam pranburi, at a third of the cost compared to the flashy town centre places in hua hin.

hill and cave temples dot the hinterland.

apart from the golf and maybe the sea fishing, nothing mentioned is at all expensive.

both hua hin and cha am have a lot to offer, but you need to spend some time here and find your way around. it is not boring, there is plenty to do, but like i said, for so many of the expats here, they cant be bothered to get off their arses and go further than the nearest 7-11, or the nearest bar, sit around looking miserable talking to other miseries. rarely see an expat here without a bottle or cig in their hands. now thats boring.

[BaitongBoy]

cutting out the middleman always works out cheaper.

Yeah, that goes without saying...but, there is a risk that one might get fcked when he/she isn't knowledgable in purchasing a capital asset in a foreign land...

[taxexile]

if you have a thai wife, then any land you buy must be in her name, best let her do all the negotiating anyway. keep a low profile.

if you are buying a condo, then it can legally be in your name ( so long as it is within the 49% of the units total foreign ownership quota for condos) and its best to go directly to the condo office to enquire about condos for sale. the office will take a commission if a sale results from your enquiry, but the office will put you in touch with the owner and so you will be dealing direct with the owner and not through a real estate agent, who, thai or falang, will take a bigger cut, sometimes a huge cut, out of the purchase cost. you can negotiate your own deal and tax liability.

if you want to buy land or land and house in your name, then you have to do it via some convoluted company or usufruct set up, of uncertain legality anyway,and for that you need a lawyer and all the bullshit that that entails. if i was doing it i would go to a recommended bangkok lawyer and avoid any local shyster with connections to the local even more of a shyster falang real estate agent. the lowest form of humanity on the planet is the falang real estate agent working in thailand.

you really need a knowledgeable thai that you can trust implicitly to see you through that process. there are so many ways of getting screwed on that route, and you might not even know your being screwed until years down the line.

[BaitongBoy]

you need a knowledgeable thai that you can trust implicitly to see you through that process.

Yeah...that may be easier said than done...555

But I hear what you are saying...thanks for some good info, taxexile...

[sabaii sabaii]

Nigel, you should meet up with Taxexile by the sound of it, and Satonic too to see the other side.

I think the moral of this story is to come look and rent for a while, then see

[sabaii sabaii]

Hua Hin IMO is overpriced and boring. I can't wait to leave. Beaches are shit too.

How can you distinguish one beach from another, sand and saltwater they all have, life is what you make it my friend