Longtime User
- Thread starter lncognito
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White Hat World
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- Apr 25, 2024
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Welcome aboard
- Jun 15, 2019
- 8,865
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welcome to bhw.
in thailand where?
in thailand where?
White Hat World
BANNED
- Apr 25, 2024
- 54
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Pattaya
Cloaked Gambler
BANNED
- Jan 7, 2023
- 710
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Welcome. I‘ve always wanted to live in Thailand. You enjoying it?
White Hat World
BANNED
- Apr 25, 2024
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Why dont you visited yet
lncognito
Newbie
- Apr 25, 2024
- 7
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Outside of Hua Hin, been in Thailand for over 10+ years.
You also based here? As might know each other...
Outside of Hua Hin, been in Thailand for over 10+ years.
You also based here? As might know each other...
lncognito
Newbie
- Apr 25, 2024
- 7
- 2
Are you in Pattaya?
Have you been there for 10+ years, if so might have crossed path, was to do an SEO event there but had a car crash in the parking lot of the event, so never made it but I think I connected with most attendees.
White Hat World
BANNED
- Apr 25, 2024
- 54
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Never want to be there.
lncognito
Newbie
- Apr 25, 2024
- 7
- 2
Yes I've lived here over 10 years, I'm not your typical tourist/male here. Came 1st time to Thailand when I was 21, loved it, but was to young to settle down. So went on to do the corporate thing.
Then I retired from a corporate SEO job at 34, and came back for the culture, the girls when I was single just a bonus. I did end up marrying a Thai, bought land, built my house on the beach and live in my little world. It wasn't cheaper to buy land as I bought on the beach, but you can get really cheap land, so that is a bonus. Can get a house and land for $80k in a smaller city, $120k in a bigger city, and in Bangkok not possible house wise cheap, but condo wise $50k for studio, $80-$100k for 1 bedroom. But rent is also cheap, $500-$800 a month and you have lots of options.
Cars can be cheap, if you buy something made in country, lucky if you like the Raptor from Ford/Ranger, as they made locally, and are bout 50% cheaper here then in the US/Europe, but thats a rare option, rest of the local cheap cars are hit or miss, they do sell/make BYD here, the electric car. If you want to go electric you'll love the BYD, its peanuts cheap, and super high end, makes Telsa look like something the Amish would drive.
Food and day to day can be cheap, if you live in a local area or ok with local food courts in the cities, then its cheap. Can get costly going out to the fancy local restaurants, as many are there to service the tourist crowds. While not crazy costly, it can just add up if you on a fixed income.
Internet/phone is cheap, and fast, 5G most places, 4G almost everywhere, fiber also most places, even at our house we have 2 fiber lines, as one thing you'll find is power/service breaks down once a week, but only offline for short periods, but redundancy is nice.
Visa wise, being able to stay live here there are lots of options and ever expanding. I was too young to go for retirement visa, married visa is an option since I married but paperwork each year sucks, so I bought a 20 year visa, straight cash deal here in Thailand. Paid $50k and I got 20 years, so when I'm 54, figure there be even more options. They changed the visa that I bought, same thing still available but think its $80k now, as became very popular and they saw chance to increase pricing. Other options are work visa, easy if you run a larger team, as having you added to the process of a team of ~10 doesn't really make much difference in paperwork/accounting for the accountant/HR person, but if you running a solo business it can cost an extra $1,000+ a month in taxes, paperwork and overhead.
Lots of different climates and people around Thailand here a quick overview:
Bangkok: mix of all types of expats, mild to hot weather, mix of local Thai and non-locals, but 50%+ are local. Some air quality issues, typical big city issue.
Pattaya: large # of Russians, and Eastern Europeans, with a mix of others, hot and humid weather, most Thai non-local 75%+ but the ones you'll run into 99% are not local.
Chiang Mai: oddly has a large SEO grouping, lots of Canadians with a mix of other Brits/Americans/Europeans, cooler climate as in the mountains, 80%+ are local Thai, but recent years air quality has been a big issue.
Hua Hin: Used to be a hidden gem, when I came at 21 it was 25% of the current size, last 24 years has seen a massive growth in expats. Most over priced housing in Thailand, since 99% going to expats with money, but loads of housing communities with each house having a pool and 3/4 bedrooms, cost wise $125k so when I say overprices, its not like US overpriced. Weather is hot and humid, local Thai is about 40% now since its such a small city historically, that almost all the growth/staff have to come from somewhere else. People wise, historically was lots of Scandinavians, but now its a wide mix, lots of people came to Hua Hin to get away from the girls, bars, and non-family aspects of other places, it still good for that, but with the people the girls and bars came. 20 years ago, maybe 30 bars, now easily over 100.
Phuket: Its actually a massive Island/area, talking about 1-2 hours to drive around what it called "Phuket" so its a very wide range of options. Housing here is very costly, as it was the orginal rich expat get away location, a nice house $500k+ but there are some deals around $200k but you'll not be part of the "cool" crowd. Some condos but not enough to drive costs really low, you looking at 100K+ and very few local Thai people 30% if that you'll run into. Lots of rich Americans, Asians, and Middle Easterners, with a mix of everything else.
Samui: Another popular island, not easy to access, limited and costly flights or painful fairy ride with 1/4 of the year hit or miss if it even runs. Really nice island, very close net community, but nobody from Samui, its 100% been created from jungle, so everyone is from somewhere else. No real defined set of people living here, some don't stay as its issolating and costly due to limited space/land, so lots of curn on locals and expats.
Well that is a overview, if you'd like any more info happy to help, I love Thailand very very much!
lncognito
Newbie
- Apr 25, 2024
- 7
- 2
I hear you, its almost not a place I'm too found of. I love the pricing of condos there, but thats about it, wouldn't recommend living there unless you had massive budget issues and were into a little more seedy side of life.
Cloaked Gambler
BANNED
- Jan 7, 2023
- 710
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I was in Bangkok last year. I loved it.
WanderlustWarrior
Regular Member
- Jan 9, 2024
- 201
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bro you are an all-rounder.
lncognito
Newbie
- Apr 25, 2024
- 7
- 2
Yes came with the joy/sadness of losing my parents at a young age, nothing to call "home" and nobody sofa/basement to run to when shit hits the fan.
White Hat World
BANNED
- Apr 25, 2024
- 54
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@lncognito you currenty living where ?
lncognito
Newbie
- Apr 25, 2024
- 7
- 2
Thailand, in the Hua Hin area
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