Retiree seeks dream home

CHIANG RAI A single earthquake of magnitude 6.2 and 1,000 after shocks that followed rocked the real estate landscape in this far north tourist destination.
Real estate agents who deal with the once thriving retiree expatriate market claim the 5 May earthquake knocked the bottom out of what was a buoyant and expanding market.
Prior to the earthquake, wealthy Chinese from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan were taking a serious interest in buying vacation homes in and around Chiang Rai. Not today. There is a cautious note. Real estate agents are feeling the pinch.
inside no 1.2
A browse of the two most popular real estate websites focusing on Chiang Rai, Lanna Realty and Chiang Rai Estate, reveals an impressive line-up of housing for sale. Prices range from THB24 million for luxury properties to around THB3 million for a three-bedroom residence.
See: http://www.chiangraiestate.com/; and http://www.lannarealty.com/.
But nothing is moving and experts blame it on the earthquake and subsequent media spotlight . It unnerved the market and dented tourism.
Leisure travel declined dramatically although as the town readies for the peak season months, that are famed for cool temperatures, there are indicators tourism could make a fast recovery from now until February 2014.
Last year, Chiang Rai welcomed 2.9 million tourists, up 5.74% on the previous year. Of that there were just 526,000 foreign visitors who stayed on average 3.14 days, giving the 14,900 rooms in the province an average occupancy rate of just 38.7% for the entire year.
Just a small percentage of the 500,000 plus tourists are long-stay, or retirees looking to settle in a second home. Until the earthquake struck it was a market that was growing and fuelling a mini-boom in luxury or mid-scale housing.
Commenting on the decline in real estate sales, Lanna Realty managing director, Worranart Imkiet, comments: “Since the earthquake sales of Chiang Rai property have been down over 70%.
“Prices are still dropping as demand has waned…There is a general perception of widespread destruction…although damage was concentrated in a very small area 25 km south of the city.”
“There are fantastic opportunities available for those willing to invest in Chiang Rai, which still has the coolest weather in the country…It is also soon be the northern hub of investment and transportation from China, Burma and Laos when Thailand joins the ASEAN community in 2015.”
One promising sign that the worst is over is the substantial increase in airline seat capacity between Bangkok and Chiang Rai. Four airlines serve the town’s airport; Bangkok Airways, THAI Smile, THAI, Nok Air and Thai AirAsia. All of them fly 160 to 180-seat Airbus A320s with cabin factors exceeding 80%. Positive booking trends prompted airlines to add frequencies for the peak season starting 26 October.
Another small, but interesting indicator, was the high turnout at a recent Chiang Rai Expatriate Club’s presentation that focused on building your own dream house. The club presentation shared practical tips and insights; the pros and cons of building a holiday home from scratch. There are still people out there who figure a second home is more doable in Chiang Rai than in Pattaya, Hua Hin and Phuket.inside no 1
Speaking at the club’s meeting, veteran project manager, Peter Brierley, who runs a successful business supervising holiday home builds in Chiang Rai for expatriates, presented a roadmap to secure land and build a dream home, while avoiding the pitfalls.
He touched on how to secure a reliable contractor, design your dream home and create a practical roadmap from foundations to finally taking up residence with minimal hassle.
Having amassed 30 years experience as a construction project manager in Thailand he passed on tips on how to avoid a minefield of obstacles that have the potential to mar or destroy a dream, perhaps even exhaust a lifetime’s savings.
Brierley, who cut his teeth on high-rise mega buildings in Asia and the Middle East before concentrating on residential properties in Chiang Rai, explained the various land title deeds and what foreigners can own and what they cannot before the concrete pours.
He touched on three kinds of land ownership – ‘Nittibukon’, Leasehold and “Wifehold” and outlined some of the horror stories in his pros and cons presentation when the latter has complete control of a project.
Arguing the advantages of hiring a professional project manager, he said it delivers to the table a “referee to carefully negotiate the wasteland between what the husband wants and what the wife intends to get.”
A project manager ensures what is built can be resold and prevents mistakes that could knock off 100,000’s in resale value of a brand new house, he added.
The fact that the club generated a big turn out for a presentation on building a dream home could indicate the town’s property market will recover despite the threat of earthquakes.
Chiang Rai Expatriate Club has 60 members with around 120 expatriate residents in Chiang Rai on its newsletter mailing list. It was formed in 2010.
Owners of real estate websites packed with luxury homes for up to THB24 million are hoping it will not be too long before potential home buyers are once more calling to book site inspections.
A sign of the times in the house sales pitches, is the hurried addition of “earthquake proof” in the hope that retirees keen to fast track their way to a second holiday home dream will nibble at the bait.
If there was ever a time to buy a property it is probably now. Prices are falling, foreign exchange rates are rising compared to the Thai baht and that alone can save as much as 15% on the quoted price.
There is also the fact that land prices are climbing throughout the province as the ASEAN Economic Community era approaches with its free trade promises. There was no dip in land prices even after the earthquake and a miliary coup 22 May.
Chiang Rai shares borders with Laos and Myanmar, while the Lao PDR shares a border with China just 250 km north on the R3A that links Chiang Khong and Huay Xai to Luang Namtha and then to Yunnan province in China.
These gateway links probably ensure that Chiang Rai’s ultimate destiny as a second home destination is secure even if there are the occasional rumbles in the rock bed.

sourced:ttrweely.com