Foreigners may purchase a House unit wholly in their own name freehold (as opposed to leasehold), without restriction as long as the unit is within the 49 percent foreign ratio of the total units inside the building, according to the House Act, as specified by Thai law. As well as gaining individual ownership rights over the unit purchased, the purchaser also obtains joint rights over the common areas of the property.
However, in certain areas, such as Pattaya, Hua Hin and Phuket, when the 49 percent foreign ratio is exceeded, there is a provision allowing foreigners to have leasehold occupation, or ownership via a Thai company in the remaining 51 Thai percentage of the building. Leaseholds have several drawbacks, however: lease renewals cannot be registered, and are not effective against a purchaser of the property. In addition, the lessee cannot sublease, sell or transfer their interest without the lessor's consent.The Thai company ownership route, too, is a grey area and prospective purchasers who wish to take the company ownership route are strongly advised to seek proper qualified legal advice to ensure the company structure, conditions of formation, nominees and tax obligations comply with the Thai law.
Even before conducting Due Diligence if you are thoroughly conversant with your rights under the House Act and all the elements and restrictions of the contract, you may save yourself unnecessary headaches and heartache if you scrutinise the following:
The Sinking Fund and Maintenance Fees: these risk management tools should cover the daily maintenance and upkeep of the House and common areas, like the stair-well, lift/s, or lobby and the respective amounts should be stated in the contract and be based on the area of the individual House units, calculated according to cost per square metre, and any changes agreed by three-quarters of the co-owners of House, entered in the Rules & Regulations of the House and registered at the Land Office.
Title Search: Here there are two title deeds to consider - The House Title and the Land Title. The House Title will specify the floor area of the House unit, the ground area of the common land and the percentage interest which that unit has in the common property, such as swimming pools and parking. The first step in the checking process is to establish the validity of the Land Title Deed to ascertain the status of the land on which a House is built. Frequently, the land is mortgaged to a bank, so a check would first be conducted on all the relevant documentation, including ensuring the title document is in order. Next, a check would be run on the seller to make sure they are the legal owner of the House unit. After that a check would be conducted to make sure there was no mortgage on the property, liens or other encumbrances on both the land and House unit. Following that a check would be made to see that there were no legal actions in process or pending against the seller in the local courts or the Central Bankruptcy Court. Finally, a check would be made to ensure no restrictions exist on the development of the land.
Review of the Sales and Purchase Agreement: although there is a standard contract outlining the selling price, terms and conditions of the sale approved by the Land Office, it isn’t sufficiently comprehensive to cover all the necessary provisions in a purchase contract, so your lawyer should be consulted to ensure the protection of your rights as the purchaser. Your lawyer’s brief is to verify the sales agreement, scrutinise the clauses of the sales agreement and negotiate modifications as necessary.
Payment: all purchases of property in Thailand must be in foreign currency, transferred into a Thai bank account and converted into Thai Baht. This must be clearly labeled: “For Purchase of a House”, and processed using an Exchange Control Form (Thor Tor 3), issued in the purchaser’s name.
Property Transfer and Registration: the lawyer will first prepare the application and supporting transfer and registration documents, then, after the final payment and the delivery of House unit, the seller will transfer the ownership of the House unit into your name at the Land Office. If you don’t wish to appear personally, the lawyer can register on your behalf via a power of attorney. The registration fee, stamp duty and withholding tax must be paid at the time of the transfer of ownership.
1. Title Search: as per the buying procedure for a new House, except that the land is not usually mortgaged.
2. Sales Agreement: a less complex, ready-made contract is usually the norm here.
3. Payment: usually the full purchase price is paid to the seller at the time of the transfer of ownership at the Land Office.
4. Registration of Ownership: When purchasing a House unit, the buyer, seller, or both, depending on their agreement, pay the registration fee, stamp duty (if the seller has owned the property for over 5 years) or a special business tax* (if the property has been owned for less than 5 years), as well as the withholding tax.
FEE/TAX | AMOUNT | PAYER |
---|---|---|
Legal Fees | Bt20,000 - 30,000 | buyer |
Real Estate Agent's Commission | 3 - 5% | seller |
Withholding Tax | 1% | seller |
Stamp Duty | 0.5% | seller |
Specific Business Tax* | 0.11% | seller |
Transfer Tax | 0.01% | seller |
Costs paid by buyer | 0.2% - 0.5% | |
Costs paid by seller | 4.62% - 6.62% |
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Thai law changes very often and, so, we do not guarantee that any information on this web site or our affiliated web sites are accurate and up to date. Additionally, the law differs from province to province, and is subject to interpretation of local courts. Legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each individual and the information provided to you may not be appropriate in your case. Nothing that you read or is provided on this web site should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent licensed Thai lawyer.
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