In Phuket there is a certain allure to buying a new home as opposed to what’s called in the industry a “resale” home. There are several different ways to buy new. You can buy new construction in a planned community, choose a pre-built home, buy a new, already completed, home or choose a custom home builder and begin with your own blueprints. Your choice of how to buy new home will depend on a great variety of factors including your pocketbook and your style. If you decide to buy new, you’ve got many options among the builders specialized in custom homes on the island.
Build on Your Own Land
If you are building on a budget, one money-saving option is to build on land that you own. Building on your own land is definitely more complicated as it involves choosing the right land and doing a due diligence on it. Due diligence is a difficult and expensive task. When deciding to buy land you should prepare a shopping list of plots that suit your needs, then do the due diligence. Don’t forget: doing the homework is your responsibility. You should not entirely depend on the good word of the local seller, as they sometimes don’t know, don’t care or simply don’t tell you. You should not completely depend on the lawyers either; a legal due diligence will tell you if a land is free from encumbrances and if it is located on an expropriated area or a national preserved area or state property, yet it won’t tell you if the project you have in mind is feasible or not.
Before deciding to buy land in Phuket, you should be aware that the official competent office (Or Bor Tor) must consider if the landlord’s intended use of the land is permissible according to the Building Control Act. Depending on the land size, a proper due diligence can cost you anything from 45,000 to 200,000 Baht. Many people buy investment properties without a hitch, but hitches happen and you don’t want to end up with headaches. You might find agencies that skimp and make you save money in the process; we are not one of them. Many foreign buyers think that buying land is still a bit of a gamble “because that is no residential zoning, and you cannot chose your neighbors”. We agree that buying a small land parcel is a real risk; that kind of property is suitable for commercial purpose too, and in the future, you could find a long tail boat’s mechanic next to your door testing the engines, drinking and laughing all day and night. If you have to buy a small land plot, go for one where a neighborhood is already surrounding your future home and stay away from main (commercial) roads.
Buy Pre Construction Homes
Planned communities are amongst the most popular of new custom homes. Most communities are built on several basic styles with lots of room for customization. When you buy new off-the-plan homes in a pre-construction stage, you get the most out of the opportunities to customize the look and style of your new home. The earlier in the construction phase you buy into the community, the more options you have for input into the design process.
Andrea Angius – CEO Lovely Phuket Real Estate
Source: Investor’s Guide
