Thread: Chinese nationals biggest property buyers in Thailand

Nearly 60 per cent of condominium units sold in the first nine months of 2021 were bought by Chinese nationals, Wichai Wirattaphan, acting director of the Real Estate Information Centre, said recently.

According to statistics released by REIC, nationals from five countries were the biggest buyers of property in Thailand, namely:
• China: 17.8 billion baht (59.9 per cent)
• Vanuatu: 1.01 billion baht (3.4 per cent)
• United States: 864 million baht (2.9 per cent)
• United Kingdom: 732 million baht (2.5 per cent)
• France: 711 million baht (2.4 per cent)

Wichai said Vanuatu nationals only bought 23 units, but this made a big dent in the property market because each unit was worth 44 million baht on average.


In the first nine months of 2021, the average size of units bought came in at 43 square metres at an average value of 4.9 million baht or 114,000 baht per square metre.


US nationals bought bigger units averaging at 54.8 square metres, while the most expensive units or 5.1 million baht on average were bought by Singaporeans.


The top five provinces popular among foreign buyers are:
• Bangkok
• Chonburi
• Phuket
• Chiang Mai
• Prachuap Khiri Khan

Foreigners bought 3,246 or 53 per cent of units up for sale in Bangkok, while Chonburi came in second with 1,738 units or 28.4 per cent.


The top five provinces with the highest value of units transferred to foreigners are:
• Bangkok
• Chonburi
• Phuket
• Prachuap Khiri Khan
• Nonthaburi


Units sold to foreigners brought 21.76 billion baht in Bangkok and 4.14 billion baht in Chonburi.


Chinese nationals biggest property buyers in Thailand

Wichai said Vanuatu nationals only bought 23 units, but this made a big dent in the property market because each unit was worth 44 million baht on average.

vanuatu offers citizenship with full ni-vanuatu rights (less voting rights and political involvement).

there are no restrictions on dual citizenship and there is no requirement to visit or reside to retain a passport. vanuatu has no income tax, wealth tax, capital gains or inheritance tax.

i would think that those purchasers are criminal tax dodgers of chinese or russian origin laundering their ill gotten gains, gains that the thai developers and banks are only too happy to trouser.

VANUATU CITIZENSHIP BY INVESTMENT PROGRAM
Citizenship by investment in Vanuatu is available to applicants who invest from $130,000 into a local development fund. Vanuatu, a chain of 80 islands in the south Pacific to the east of Australia is part of the Commonwealth. The official languages are English and French.

Vanuatu has the only Citizenship by investment program in the Asia-Pacific Hemisphere. The programme offers one of the fastest citizenship and second passport programmes available for investors. The investment requirement is $130,000 for a single applicant and $180,000 for a family of four plus fees.

Contact our advisors for further details

only 130K !! hmmm. note to self ............
.

Huge amount of money laundering. Most of them are empty.

Good thing they can't buy up land. (the chinks)

...who, I wonder, in Vanuatu has the cash to buy condos overseas?...

Here in PH, there are lots of condo units being bought by the Chinese. Some empty, some are used as residences for their online gaming/ casino workers. Lots of young Chinese people (mostly guys) in the Pasay/ Mall of Asia area, also in the Alabang (Avida towers) area. Saw some of them being shuttled by minivan in the morning - probably to their online casino workplace, which look like call centers. I've heard that some condo units (24 sqm, 4*6 m) house 4 to 8 people, who work on rotating shifts. I've seen/ met them in the elevator of one of the condo towers, so it's not hearsay. I also saw lots of them in the Mall of Asia vicinity. There were also adverts for condo units in some of the buildings (ground floor) - with pictures of the condos. The writing was in Chinese script & there were QR codes to access the lease/real estate company.

That was pre-covid. I don't know the situation now. I've read that many online casinos have closed since, partly due to PH govt raising taxes on their operations. (The govt needs to recoup the cash aids given during the pandemic.)

Some Chinese corporations also buy up land. Sigh.

Bit like those western boiler room operations then.

Originally Posted by sabang

Bit like those western boiler room operations then.

Oh don't worry, the chinkies run those too.

Originally Posted by katie23

Here in PH, there are lots of condo units being bought by the Chinese. Some empty, some are used as residences for their online gaming/ casino workers. Lots of young Chinese people (mostly guys) in the Pasay/ Mall of Asia area, also in the Alabang (Avida towers) area. Saw some of them being shuttled by minivan in the morning - probably to their online casino workplace, which look like call centers. I've heard that some condo units (24 sqm, 4*6 m) house 4 to 8 people, who work on rotating shifts. I've seen/ met them in the elevator of one of the condo towers, so it's not hearsay. I also saw lots of them in the Mall of Asia vicinity. There were also adverts for condo units in some of the buildings (ground floor) - with pictures of the condos. The writing was in Chinese script & there were QR codes to access the lease/real estate company.

That was pre-covid. I don't know the situation now. I've read that many online casinos have closed since, partly due to PH govt raising taxes on their operations. (The govt needs to recoup the cash aids given during the pandemic.)

Some Chinese corporations also buy up land. Sigh.

These chinkys you are seeing more and more of now Katie are the new breed of Chinese immigrant. Yep they are into the call centre bizzo. Having said that there's a huge population of Chinese folk mostly running hardware stores or construction. They used to get kidnapped a lot.

Originally Posted by misskit

Real Estate Information Centre

REAL ESTATE
INFORMATION
CENTER

https://www.reic.or.th/Upload/Annual...7199_26232.pdf

Interesting site, Thanks.

I for one like Thai law of only 49% foreign ownership, This thread gives a simple reason why.

^ It does make you realize why the land ownership rules are in place.

A bit of a hassle for the odd westerner looking to buy a place but I can't imagine if it was wide open to foreign ownership.

^ exactly.

Thailand from memory is the only non colonized Se Asia country on the planet. Correct me but China was once colonized?

Well, parts of it.

Anyway, I always though the Chinese were smart with their money- so why on earth are they investing in Thailand??

Originally Posted by sabang

Well, parts of it.

All of it if ya count the Mongols.

Originally Posted by beam8

Thailand from memory is the only non colonized Se Asia country on the planet

Yep. Not even by the Mongols.

Originally Posted by sabang

I always though the Chinese were smart with their money- so why on earth are they investing in Thailand??

...to establish influence, of course...the local fifth column is only a starter to create another Cambodia-type dependency...I don't imagine it will take too long for Thainess to evolve into Ni Haoness...

The sinoThai already own the country anyway.

The local "Chinese" already own most of Thailand already.

Originally Posted by tomcat

...to establish influence, of course...the local fifth column is only a starter to create another Cambodia-type dependency...I don't imagine it will take too long for Thainess to evolve into Ni Haoness...

I can't see that, tomcat, the Thai are too proud, give the Chinese 49% of this or that and see how it rolls, they can pay for the upkeep for 50 years or so.

Originally Posted by tomcat

...that's the propaganda...like folks elsewhere, Thais (rice farmers, bar girls, factory workers, cab drivers, etc) will eventually succumb to the drip-drip-drip of a growing Chinese presence: military and police brass of Chinese heritage, political figures with Chinese backgrounds, commercial interests tightly intertwined with Mainland exporters...the tumor has already metastasized...

Sad if true, I hope not.

Originally Posted by tomcat

the tumor has already metastasized...

Except for a short period in the 1940s during Phibun's rule the tumor as you put it has always been there. Thailand/Siam and China relations have historically been strong and will remain so in spite of western aka roundeyes attempts to change the fact.