Here’s an example of a most recent handyman bill and the story behind it:

The mounting of my sliding carport gate came adrift and needed three welds and my guest bedroom sink was leaking water because its drain and stopper had never been correctly installed and needed replacing.

Our Concierge tech team, two guys, showed up unannounced (everyone in Thailand shows up unannounced) welded the gate and took the sink away. They returned it with a handsome new chrome drain and stopper correctly installed and hooked it up to the plumbing and the problems were solved. Then they handed me the bill, which I read as 7,365 baht (US$225) fair, thought, for such repairs, especially since it included better quality plumbing hardware than the original. I handed the guys 8,000 baht and was about to tell them to keep the change when they burst out laughing and pointed to the numeral I had read was ‘7’. It’s the locals’ way of writing ‘1’.

Typical Expat Monthly Budgets. Our most recent survey shows that twenty-three percent of expats in Thailand have monthly budgets of 25K-45K baht a month. Forty-eight percent have budgets over 65k baht and ten percent with over 145K baht to spend.

When I wanted to create a Budget for Living in Thailand in 2018 I turned to an expert on Thai budgeting, Nancy Lindley. With years of bookkeeping experience, she makes personal budgets and also keeps to them. Better still, she keeps careful note of unexpected expenses and keeps her finger on the pulse of Thailand’s cost of living. Happily, a cost of living budget in Thailand is pretty easy to figure out. It’s been predictable since the Asian Financial Crisis (you’ve probably forgotten; Thais haven’t).

Significantly, Nancy has a second calling: she cares for expatriates who fall on hard times. She visits them in hospital, contacts their relatives, talks to the consulate and spends countless hours repatriating very sick people who cannot afford long-term or major medical care in Thailand and must go home for treatment. She has seen a side of expatriate life that few of us even think about, so my Thai budgeting conversations with her are always sobering.

I asked Nancy to draw up two budgets for living in Thailand , one for the average Thai and one for five times the average Thai’s cost of living budget, and to comment on each. I’ve added my own comments after hers. Both budgets are for living in Chiang Mai (learn more). For Bangkok add 15%; for the countryside subtract 15%. These figures are current as of 2014. E-mail me, godfree@trh.superfasttests.com if you have questions. I lived on this budget for 12 months:

Budget for Average Thai Salary of $500/mo

Nancy’s Comments on the $600 Budget for living in Thailand: “I’ve seen single people lead nice, pleasant lives on this budget. Here’s how they do it”:

• They have a fan (no a/c) room on the lower, east side (cooler) floor in the old city,
• They walk or bicycle just about everywhere,
• They use the AUA library for books,
• They breakfast at the Pub where they watch American, Australian and British sports.
• They take Thai lessons at a wat (temple), etc.
• There’s no room for a steady girlfriend or regular beer-drinking habit.
• You must have savings/insurance for medical costs which are not reflected in this budget.
• I’ve known several guys who have a pension of 30,000 – 40,000 baht/month who live on a 15,000 baht budget and save the rest for medical emergencies and to build a bank account to justify a retirement visa. This takes discipline, which disappears if they acquire a Thai girlfriend who learns about the existence of a savings account!”

Cost of Living in Thailand Examples:

Medical: Two farang friends have just delivered babies – girls – in Chiang Mai hospitals. Each had a private room, one for four days. Their total was pre-agreed: 60,000 Bt (US$1700) each. Both were delighted by the care they received which, in one case, included an autographed photo of the entire delivery team gathered around the bed of the exhausted mother holding her baby for the first time. Another friend got bad food poisoning and went to the hospital. She needed intensive care but every bed in the hospital was full, so the doctor, not wanting to put her back in an ambulance, had his desk removed from his office and a bed installed for her. The bill next day was 1400 Bt (US$40). When she protested that this was too low, staff told her it was because she did  not have a ‘proper room’. A nurse called her at home that night to check her progress.
Automotive: I’ve been doing a lot of fast driving through mountainous roads lately and can assure you that even remote roads are well maintained in the Kingdom. But taking thousands of curves stresses wheel bearings, apparently, because one of mine went out. I discovered this when I went to have the Toyota’s front alignment checked after I hit a pothole (in the middle of town!) and the steering went weird. The shop fixed the affected wheel and moved it to the rear, then balanced and aligned the front wheels. They refused payment because I’d bought the Michelins (3000 Bt each) from them and the work was covered by their lifetime warranty – a pleasant  surprise. There was no denying the wheel bearing problem (the grinding noise was obvious once they pointe it out) so the next day they came and picked up the car. It was back a few hours later along with a bill for 2,000 Bt. and the old bearing in the factory box that held the new bearing. Don’t worry too much about the cost of owning a car in Chiang Mai: it’s far less than you’re accustomed to at home.

Rick, Who Lives on $600 Budget in Thailand

Budget for Living in Thailand on Five Times the Average Thai Salary

 Nancy’s Comments on the $2,400 Budget for Thailand

There is much more room to play with this budget. In it I assume:

• The couple is renting a condo in town.
• Housing is cheaper further out but transportation costs are higher–making a car a necessity.
• No sane retiree is going to rely solely on a motor scooter [see the note below].
• The couple is fairly healthy,
• They eat local cuisine. They don’t have to eat expensive imported food for every meal.
• Drinks wine/beer very moderately [wine here is imported and expensive]

My Observations and Nancy’s Responses

• I lived on $1240/mo. during my first year in Thailand. I made lots of mistakes and wasted lots of money but, after 6 months, found I could live quite comfortably on $600. For example,
• I rented a long-term studio in town for $80/mo. [see photo below] Utilities added $10.
• My long-term scooter rental, $100/mo. includes registration and insurance, servicing, new tires as needed, and a new scooter every 12 months. I’ve had no scooter problems. But see Nancy’s observations about scooter danger, below.
• I stay within the $200 food budget and have never eaten a better diet in my life.
• All my regular medical and dental expenses are out-of-pocket because I’m over 70. Thai health care is excellent and cheap. I just paid $600 for a root canal and crown.
• Toiletries are cheap. An organic skin cream costs $4 a good haircut $7.
• ‘Entertainment’ is up to you. I like wandering around observing Thai culture.
• The Internet provides plenty of information and entertainment, and I went to the pub to watch major sporting events since I don’t like having TV at home.
• Cel phones are cheap; overseas calls are not. Skype or use Google Hangouts to call home.
• Nancy is not kidding about Thai girls and savings accounts. They’re not mercenary, it’s just part of Thai culture. You are a rich farang whether you think so or not.
• There are decent restaurants where you can have three bottles of ice-cold beer served at your table for a total of $5.33, and good meals for $3
• You’ll notice the absence of a clothing budget. Clothes are so cheap here and you wear so few of them – shorts, tee-shirt, flip flops – that it’s not an issue.
• So budget! Thailand’s cost of living is still a steal! Work out how you want to live, then just do it!

Budget for Living in Thailand Costs vs. Scooter Danger

When I shared my observations about scooters with Nancy her response was, as usual, grounded in a reality that I’ve never experienced. Here’s what she said: “I stand by my original observation the elderly shouldn’t use motor scooters. It isn’t a matter of “if” they’ll have an accident, but rather “when” and “how bad”. Just come with me to the orthopedic wards at Suan Dok hospital to see what a motor scooter accident can do. These aren’t the guys with the head injuries – they’re in another part of the hospital”. See my web page on scooter dangers in Thailand.

Video: Budget for Living in Thailand

More about Thai Budgets and Cost of Living

• Cost of Living in Chiang Mai, Thailand – A Little Adrift – A full break down of the cost of living in Thailand, specifically as an expat living in Chiang Mai–includes specific food, rents, internet costs and what those expenses buy you on the road. … **Alternatively, before you get too far into what this buys, consider that my friends also living here shared their Chiang Mai cost of living for two people living a bit more luxuriously than my budget. They spent under $1500 per month (jointly) and had a beautiful apartment and full kitchen, and also …
• How To Live Like a VIP in Bangkok for $285.06 Per Month – This budget cost of living in Bangkok, Thailand, is just a taste of living possibilities. I understand that we all have differing priorities, lifestyle comforts, wants and needs – but if you really want to make something happen, …
• Cost of living Thailand: Living in Chiang Mai for $505 a month – Cost of living in Thailand: Living in Chiang Mai for $505 a month. A break down of expenses … I have become accustomed to not eating large amounts of meat, which keeps my food budget low. Still, the steak is cheap if you …
• Thailand Cost of Living | Expats in Thailand | Expats in … – The most wonderful spot on the planet can only be the place to live if you can afford it. The most essential part of a family’s budget is food. We cannot live without it and, in the Western world, the cost of food has skyrocketed …
• If beachside living is your thing, read The Best places in Koh Samui.

So there’s food for thought for your budget for living in Thailand. Do you think you can make it?

Chiang Mai Cost of Living

The post Budget for Living in Thailand appeared first on Thai Retirement Helpers: Retiring in Thailand Made Easy.

Thailand runs on relationships, prestige, loyalty, money and the law – in that order, which often makes Thai property investment scams successful.Unless you’re a member of the Thai ‘club’ it’s wise to have a prestigious friend who is, because Thai Property Investment Scams are common.  The (current) experience of farang friend who owns a restaurant shows why: his restaurant has been a great success in its first year and, last month, the landlord announced he was doubling the rent. “But we have a 5-year lease agreement,” stammered my friend, caught off guard. The socially prominent owner made it clear that the increase was non-negotiable, and my friend realized that he was vulnerable to extra-legal actions (like cutting off the electricity) and recourse to the courts was hopeless since the case would take months to reach a magistrate and the landlord’s prestige would make it difficult to win a judgement.

My friend had fallen in love with the restaurant property – it was an abandoned karaoke bar when he found it – that he had brushed aside my suggestion of involving a third party to oversee the deal. After all, wha could go wrong? The owner is one of the most socially prominent women in northern Thailand, after all (and my friend is an upper-class Brit). He and his wife signed a standard lease agreement and proceeded to invest their life savings fitting out the building and grounds. Realizing that the landlord could redouble their rent whenever she chooses they’re now raising money from friends and relations to move the restaurant into town.

My friend’s mistake was imagining that (a) the law protected him and (b) his social status would make him the landlord’s peer. He was wrong on both counts. If you’re not a member of the Thai ‘club’ and you’re involved in a Thai transaction, third parties can save the day.

Thai society is intensely nationalistic and clannish (so are most: American society’s acceptance of foreigners is an outlier). It’s a club that you’re born into and your birth determines your status within it. So if you’re going to do any serious business – even a long-term lease – in Thailand it’s wise to have a third party present and on your side. That way, if the other party to your agreement attempts to abrogate it, your friend can approach them as a peer or, better still, a social superior and straighten things out for you. In reality, their presence at the consummation of the agreement will prevent such shenanigans – and that’s what you really want. Third parties’ participation is preventive.

How do you find such people? In Thailand it’s usually accomplished through gift-giving. Forced to give up driving after a heart attack, a friend recently donated his new BMW motorbike to the local Chief of Police, who bestowed it on an outstanding young officer. The officer, thrilled to own such a prestigious thing, showed it off to his fellows and praised his chief’s generosity. His chief repaid my client by handing him his business card: “Just show this to anyone who bothers you and tell them to call my personal number at the bottom”.  The friend was subsequently in a fender bender  and the other driver, who was drunk, demanded to be compensated despite being clearly in the wrong. Following the Chief’s instructions my friend flashed the card and the angry man vanished.

Property Law in Thailand isn’t what we’re used to at home so, instead of complaining, I recommend always using a third party when you’re transacting business. Sounds funny, I know, but that’s how Thailand works.

We can’t all give pistols to police chiefs, of course. But we can be on the lookout for opportunities to prove our good heart (jai ren) to influential members of Thai society. And we’ve now started issuing such get-out-of-jail cards to all our clients, just as a precaution.

Thai property investment scams are like property investment scams in Australia, China, or the USA. The thing to remember is that they exist and you can take precautions to prevent being ripped off.

Property investment is supposed to be a safe investment but, in Thailand today, pensioners are being cheated out of their life savings through investing in real estate. These unfortunate individuals are used to there being a substantial amount of rules and laws under which financial advisors and the like must operate, along with a substantial amount of education being required to become such a professional. Outside Europe, these laws are far from being a given, and (if they exist) they are frequently “overlooked” without there being real consequence. Companies in Thailand, for example, can operate without proper registration with the Thai authorities, and seldom do they face real persecution for doing so, despite this quite obviously being completely illegal.

The Harlequin company, for example, which has operated in both Thailand and the Caribbean, took in a huge amount of cash for several developments which were never built. Under the direction of Richard Haughton (President of the Pattaya – Jomtien Rotary Club) the land meant for development was put into a company called Headland Holdings. Thereafter, the already-sold properties were mortgaged to the Kasikorn Bank.

Subsequent involvement by lawyers from an embassy-recommended legal firm saw a plan created that would require the buyers to also buy out the debt with the Kasikorn Bank, or else risk losing their entire investment.  Fearful, many paid. Only now are Thai courts finally ruling that the condos actually belong to the buyers, and that they should not be held accountable for a massive debt that is not theirs.

More Thai Property Investment Scams: Many of the supposed “financial advisors” who get unsuspecting elderly to invest in such fraudulent schemes, such as the the British founder of the Chiang Mai Expats Club, simply flee back to Britain (or elsewhere) themselves, after having conned many people out of their pension.

Other elderly persons have been victimized by the failed Australian LM Managed Performance Fund, their funds deposited there by the same sort of “Independent Financial Advisors” mentioned above. These IFA invariable work on very high commission, and are not always registered with anyone at all. The Australian Securities and Investment Commission has been ineffective in rectifying the damage done by this scheme.

Asia Pacific Pensions claimed that LM’s debt instruments were secured against Australian properties, but this turned out to be an almost complete falsehood. The only property the LM Managed Performance Fund had was a worthless property on the Gold Coast, for which LM had already taken out mortgages.

Finally, here are some tips for avoiding property investment scams in Thailand…or anywhere:

The post Thai Property Investment Scams appeared first on Thai Retirement Helpers: Retiring in Thailand Made Easy.

An Aussie, Michelle Hammond, writes that living in Chiang Mai saves her $23,994 a year:

Medical: Dermatologist visit without an appointment: vital signs, 10-minute wait, evaluation, CO2 removal of two pre-cancerous lesions: 996 Baht. (You didn’t think Chiang Mai’s cost of living was so low, did you?)

Two farang friends have just delivered baby girls in Chiang Mai hospitals. Each had a private room, one for four days. Their total was pre-agreed: 60,000 Bt (US$1700) each. Both were delighted by the care they received which, in one case, included an autographed photo of the entire delivery team gathered around the bed of the exhausted mother holding her baby for the first time. Another friend got bad food poisoning and went to the hospital in early July. She needed intensive care but every bed in the hospital was full so the doctor, not wanting to put her back in an ambulance, had his desk removed from his office and a bed installed for her. The bill next day was 1400 Bt (US$40). When she protested that this was too low, staff told her it was because she did  not have a ‘proper room’. A nurse called her at home that night to check her progress.

Automotive: I’ve been doing a lot of fast driving through mountainous roads lately and can assure you that even remote roads are well maintained in the Kingdom. But taking thousands of curves stresses wheel bearings, apparently, because one of mine went out. I discovered this when I went to have the Toyota’s front alignment checked after I hit a pothole (in the middle of town!) and the steering went weird. The shop fixed the affected wheel and moved it to the rear, then balanced and aligned the front wheels. They refused payment because I’d bought the Michelins (3,000 Bt each) from them and the work was covered by their lifetime warranty – a pleasant  surprise. There was no denying the wheel bearing problem (the grinding noise was obvious once they pointe it out) so the next day they came and picked up the car. It was back a few hours later along with a bill for 2,000 Bt. and the old bearing in the factory box that held the new bearing. Don’t worry too much about the cost of owning a car in Chiang Mai: it’s far less than you’re accustomed to at home.

Bathroom Installer: I consider Thai bathrooms more dangerous than Thai roads so decided to install three grab bars in case I slip. Home Pro, the hardware store that sold the bars quoted me 1,100 baht (Aimie was shocked at the price but this was too important to haggle) and sent around a man with the experience and equipment to drill tiles (a tricky business) and I showed him where and at what height I wanted each bar to go then left him to get on with his work.  Thais don’t give up any freedom just because you’re paying them and one of those freedoms is deciding how things should be done. This means you don’t always get what you expect – or want. He installed the bars neatly and professionally in 30 minutes but so far up the wall that I have little chance of grabbing them if I slip, as you can see from the height the door handle.

The garden installer came to put in some shrubs outside my front fence. All my neighbors have hedges and my fence looked naked without one. I told the crew where to break up the thin concrete outside the fence and left them to it. They had other ideas, as it turns out. Their idea is what you see in the photograph: a raised garden surrounded by bricks. It doesn’t match the rest of the street and, worse still, it gets 12 hours of direct sun in summer and the soil gets so hot that it broils the roots of anything but the hardiest weeds.

My hairdresser is an artist. He finds my ultra-short hair style an affront to his aesthetic sensibility. Every time I go for a cut – 220 Baht – he gives me the style that pleases him. Then follows a ‘yes but’ discussion during which I make excuses for the hairstyle I need (“I go swimming every day and cannot spend time drying it”, etc.). He shakes his head in disbelief and, eventually, complies.

I mention these three people not in any negative way, but to contrast Thai culture with our own: Thais feel freer to be themselves, express their own opinions, and ignore the master-slave relationship that Western employees are encouraged to embrace. And now to a different adventure:

The Plumber: I heard water running outside the house day and night for weeks, then came home to find a a water bill pinned to my gate for 9,761 baht – 30x times normal. A water inspector then showed up and located the leak in a water junction box (no the West does not have such things, and I’m not sure why Thailand does) in the yard behind the house. It was clear that someone in the past had attempted to repair it with what looked like black electrical tape, which had finally given way. The inspector sent a repairman who quickly set things right, but I was now in a tricky position: under Thai law I am responsible for everything in and around the house, but this strange box had water pipes entering it from other properties and the damage was done before I signed the lease. “Did you take a photograph of the old repair?” was Aimie’s first question. Damn! It hadn’t occurred to me that I’d need evidence. However, after some back and forth, the owner offered to split the bill.

Picked up cushions for the two Yang chairs (like the one in the picture). Total for two big cushions, cover and zipped outer covers was 3,180 baht. When I tried to pay, the lady behind the counter became concerned and explained that I had paid when I ordered the cushions. I find this kind of honesty typical in Chiang Mai. Cheating is quite rare.

Internet Bills: I dumped my unreliable Internet carrier, 3BB, and put in a direct fiber connection from AIS, whose equipment is much newer and more reliable. I’m paying 1300 Bhat per month for 30Mb fiber. Twice the speed for little more money and less down time. When you’re figuring your Thailand cost of living, you can usually get Internt free via WiFi in condos and apartments – so that’s a potential savings.

More Chiang Mai Cost of Living

Town gas is unknown in this part of the world, as is cooking with gas indoors. Most domestic kitchens are outdoors, with charcoal braziers. My house has a small Western kitchen with a two-burner stovetop with a small (15 kg) tank underneath. When it ran out last week I took it down to the local gas merchant and swapped it for a full one – enough to last me 6 months using it once a day.

Reading Glasses. After cataract surgery (below) I need reading glasses and, since I only use them at home, did not want fancy (2,000 baht) frames. Bought four pairs of reading glasses for 100 baht each and had the prescription lenses made up and inserted into them for 2,100 baht. Total for four pairs of prescription readers: 2,500 baht ($85).

Furniture: Took delivery of two yang chairs to match the big yang chair/bed/lounge (4,000 Baht each, above) I bought last month (12,000 Baht, below). These are popular locally since the sofa-style yangs double as occasional beds for unexpected guests – and unexpected guests are the most common kind here. They’re (very) solid teak and weigh a ton. I’m planning to upholster them with some fabulous silk from our local silk merchants, Shinawatra, who make beautiful stuff. Very expensive, though.

Refrigerators: This month’s shopping has been educational and fun, as usual. When we’re shopping together sales staff assume Aimie and I are married. She cracks up and tells me, “They call me ‘madam’ instead of ‘sister’ and congratulate me on having such a rich husband”. Their congratulations came when I went to buy a good quality(!) $200 mattress for the guest room (visitors have been lining up since friends learned about the spare bedroom). I was tired of defrosting the Panasonic refrigerator that came with the house and I fell for a tall silver Samsung with a separate freezer on sale at HomePro for 9,999 Baht, $330. Two guys delivered and installed it that afternoon and stayed to explain the controls – which was rather sweet.

Utility Bills: One advantage of condos is that the landlord pays the utility bills. The disadvantage is that she then charges you double what she paid. I was looking forward to saving a few bucks when my first round of bills arrived for the house but I discovered that, like so many aspects of Thai life, bill-paying is more complicated than it appears. For one thing, the bills are in Thai. For another, most companies – including the biggest – have hit-or-miss billing software. Why? I suspect it’s a combination of the facts that

1. Thais hate being told how to do things (especially by farangs)
2. They always assume that the Thai way is best, and
3. They can figure it out themselves.

One result is that my cellular carrier, True, does not bill me at all. Despite my pleas (and complaints, when my service is discontinued for non-payment) they simply tell me that their billing department is ‘having problems” and that I should ‘just remember next time’. The lady says it with the sweetest smile so I apologize and pay meekly. The water bill comes monthly on a cash-register printout slip. It’s about $5 a month and I can pay it – like most bills in Thailand – at any 7-11 store. Reassured by this knowledge, I waited a few weeks before paying the first bill  because there’s no convenient 7-11 near my house. Then I found to my dismay that I was ‘too late’ and would have to visit the Water Department on the other side of town. Bummer. The Water Department building is clearly signed – in Thai – so it took me a while to find it. I finally figured out that the building with the huge, shiny blue pipe and valve in front of it must be the right place. (Pipes and valves are beautiful, from the Water Department’s point of view, of course). Living in Thailand teaches you to look for contextual clues, that’s for sure!

Trash Bills: The trash bill is a bit of a mystery. There’s no regular trash pickup so, if I want it picked up, I must leave the bin outside the gate, in the narrow laneway, permanently. The big yellow truck roars by several times a week, but I’ve taken to carrying my trash to a local drop-off bin (a recycled blue plastic barrel) when I go out for my early morning walk. The standard trash bag in Thailand is a recycled plastic shopping bag, so that’s what I use, too. And since I started hauling  my own garbage, the bills (30 Baht/mo) have stopped. Trash collection is not going to figure heavily in your Thailand cost of living – as you see!

Rent: The least problematic aspect of Thailand’s cost of living is my rent (10,000 Bt/mo): I just transfer it from my online bank account directly to my landlady’s account with a few mouse clicks). On line bank payments are as easy here as they are there, thank God! More here..

So there you have it: bill paying is a curse that we must all endure since Adam and Eve made their rash decision to leave Paradise, and in Thailand it’s a mixed curse. But Chiang Mai’s cost of living is pretty hard to beat!

The post Chiang Mai Cost of Living appeared first on Thai Retirement Helpers: Retiring in Thailand Made Easy.

Most of Asia does business in cash and Thailand’s no exception. You’ll need to carry cash with you at all times in Thailand unless you want to use a local debit card. Using foreign cards is very, very expensive and only a last resort. So bring cash to Thailand! Lots of cash!!

Shortly after I moved to Thailand I experienced card skimming and bank blocks on my US account. Those painful memories, though now distant, were reawakened this week when 3 of our relocation clients found their home bank accounts suddenly inaccessible and had to ask semi-strangers to lend them money. I experienced exactly the same humiliation a few months after I moved here and, as you can imagine, it’s stressful and embarrassing.
The moral of the story is:

1. Bring enough cash to cover ALL your expenses – including rent – for your first month.
2. Deposit all of it in your new Thai Bank account and don’t touch it. Instead,
3. Draw money for all your needs from your home bank account.
4. Leave that cash in your Thai account. Your bank manager will think highly of you and you’ll have a rainy day fund.

To recap: avoid frustration, humiliation and embarrassment. Bring cash when you come to Thailand. Deposit it. Don’t touch it unless you have to. Paying cash for everything is normal in Thailand. Thais expect cash and large amounts of it are commonly used for things like buying cars. Get used to cash again!

The post Bring Cash to Thailand appeared first on Thai Retirement Helpers: Retiring in Thailand Made Easy.

Here are the Thai Festivals for 2016–2017

JANUARY

  Handmade Umbrella Festival

#Chinese New Year

FEBRUARY

  Chiang Mai Flower Festival: The beautiful Chiang Mai Flower Festival will be held from February 3-5, 2017 at Chiang Mai, Thailand. Hosted by the Chiang Mai town in Thailand, the Festival is one of the colourful celebrations across the globe. The festival is known for the emphasis on of the Damask Rose, a variety of rose native to the city, but also features numerous species of orchids, marigolds, chrysanthemums and other flowers. The Flower Parade consisting of floats, traditional dance and music is the highlight of the festival.The flower festival will run through February 3-5, 2017 at Suan Buak Hat Park, Mueang District, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
*Makha Bucha Day

MARCH

  Thailand Int. Balloon Festival
  Pattaya Int. Music Festival

APRIL

  Poi Sang Long Festival
*Chakri Memorial Day
*Songkran Festival

The post Thai Festivals 2016–2017 appeared first on Thai Retirement Helpers: Retiring in Thailand Made Easy.

Yet despite all that, the streets are safe, clean and well lit, the roads well maintained, infrastructure is always being upgraded, and people are in a good mood 24×7.

Making money in Thailand is surprisingly easy because Thailand’s unemployment rate is 1%, everyone’s in a good mood,and the economy is growing at a steady 5-6%. Gross domestic product grew an impressive 19% last year. Much of that can be credited to the tremendous floods and the consequent rebuilding boom. But even so, the rate of growth surprised everyone. Experts had predicted growth to come in at 12–15% for the last quarter, but the resilient Thais blew that away. Here in Chiang Mai the signs are everywhere: building is booming and almost all of our hundreds of temples is on a major building or renovating tear. Exports are up, and so is domestic consumption. The ‘surprise’ part is probably attributable to the unofficial economy. Most Thai transactions are for cash, and almost all Thais have unreported income. When I rented a car last week, for example, the rental company refused my credit card and insisted on a cash deposit (only $170, on a brand new Toyota!).

After the USA, it’s fun to walk around in a booming economy. Normally happy Thais are now ecstatic. Everyone’s got a job, and everyone’s expecting bonuses. Friends who are hiring complain that most of the Thais who accept positions fail to show up on their scheduled first day – or ever! They’ve found better offers. Strangely, inflation has stayed low. I had an iced coffee, beef with noodles, and a large bottle of cold Singha beer yesterday for 134 Baht–$4.50. So… as the Aussies say, no worries! Here’s an Aussie video talking about exchanging money in Thailand:

And here’s more reading about money in Thailand:

• 7 Ways to Save Money Traveling in Thailand >> – Paper Planes – So we’ve covered the basic monthly expenses for living in the Land of Smiles and some surprising money sucks, now we’re on to how to save money in Thailand. While most things are very cheap, there are a few little ways to …
• Make Money while Living in Thailand for Expats | Thailand Expat … – Therefore, you will look for ways to make extra money in Thailand. This is especially true if you need to make money in your home country’s currency so that you can pay bills outside of Thailand. Thus, methods for earning …
• In Thailand Money comes first! – News from an Asia traveler – Read also: Credit card poker game in Thailand. Tags: ATM, ATM’s in Thailand, Money, Money in Thailand, Thailand · *. Home In Bangkok is an independent website that helps you find your perfect new “Home” in Bangkok.
• Cost of Living in Thailand: 1. Food | Understanding Thailand – Thailand’s culture, history, and present reality (by Godfree Roberts)
• 3 Simple Ways to Earn Money and make a living in Thailand … – Three easy ways for Foreigners to Earn an Income whilst Living in Thailand. With the western world deep in recession, lots of people losing their jobs and homes, there tends to be an air of doom and gloom amongst the …
• Travel in Thailand advice and information | TTN – Thailand Travel … – Before choosing the right time of year for a trip to Thailand, beginning with choosing the right airline that will offer the best prices. Use search engines and travel agency available on the website Thebestofthailand. The number …
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When clients ask about apartments in Chiang Mai I recommend visiting Hillside 3 as a reference. It’s affordable and in a handy location.

Once you’ve done that, here are some helpful apartment renting sites:

• Chiang Mai Open Realty
• Perfect Homes
• Buy Rent Chiang Mai
• Realtor Chiang Mai
• Parker’s
• Chiang Mai Properties

Keith Allen found an apartment he likes and here’s what he has to say about it:

“Godfree, I wanted to write you about my new apartment. I imagine you have people asking you about possible living quarters. I want to suggest they look at and seriously  consider Ping View Apts.  www.pingview.com    I have a 900 sq ft apartment with dual views. I have an unbelievable 4th floor view, through the huge smoked glass windows, of Doi Suthep (I’ll attach some pictures also). Through the front panel of windows I have a view of the flood control lock on the Ping River. At night the lights are absolutely beautiful as they reflect off of the shimmering water. I am also only about 10 minutes away from Old Town and even closer to the Hang dong Big C if I take the first inner ring Hwy. – the exit being about a mile away. Being about 1 mile from the inner ring Hwy puts me in striking distance of almost anywhere in Chiang Mai in very short order.  As they say; Location, location, location. Read more…

More than location are the amenities here at Ping View. Daniel and his wife live on site so everything is constantly maintained. There is a swimming pool and a small exercise room.  Daniel has designed this to be retirement friendly if you so desire. The door fob opener I received has my  floor pre-programmed in it for the elevator service. I just pop in the elevator and put the fob against the receiver and I’m whisked to my floor. I have twice a week maid service and free internet included. I thought by looking at the building that I would never be able to afford an apt here. It is about the same cost as a lower cost house in Old Town.

The reason I wanted to let you know about this place is not because I’ll receive some money or rent for promoting Ping View. I just think a job well done deserves to be praised and promoted.

– Keith

PS:  You can also say that I spend less than 15,000 Bt a month. My apartment is also in the middle range of square footage. I know there is an apartment that is on the same floor as mine and about 1500 less. I also know on the sixth floor there some apartments are much larger. I can’t say enough good things about the owner and his wife. there was a knock on my door about 930 this morning. There stood the owner and his daughter with a couple of hot scones for me. I’m sitting here at my desk looking down at the lock on the Ping River and then turn my head 45° to the left and I have a beautiful view of Doi Suthep. I’m also about equal distance between the clouds and the Earth which makes for a spectacular view of storm clouds.  All this, and the other amenities I noted, for less than $500 a month.

Here’s a typical Hillside 3 apartment:

The post Keith’s Chiang Mai Apartment appeared first on Thai Retirement Helpers: Retiring in Thailand Made Easy.

What Happens When Thai Immigration Visits Me?

The USA and the UK are relaxed about foreigners but, when Thai Immigration visits me I find that’s not true in Thailand.  Your registered Thai address turns out to be more important than some people think.

Chonburi immigration is the first province to start insisting that resident farangs stay where they’ve registered and finding offenders 4,000 baht. Officers there have been checking their records against foreigners residing in the area then fining people for being in the wrong location. In September seven people were each fined 4,000 baht for not being where they registered. Last Tuesday Canadian Luc Lafreniere had to post up 4,000 baht for not living at his registered address. This is not arbitrary: the fines are in accordance with regulations issued in 1998. Chonburi immigration are also fining people offering accommodation to foreigners who fail to report guests to them within 24 hours, so AirBnB hosts might want to pay attention. Yesterday a manageress at the local Pratumnak Inn was fined 1,600 baht for failing to report that a Russian guest  was staying in the building. Chonburi Immigration calls the program “Good Guys In, Bad Guys Out”. Expats call it a nuisance

Thais know that their country is the most wonderful, beautiful place on earth (since that’s what they’re taught at school and on TV) and everyone would like to live here. There’s a lot of truth to that belief. Thailand is a kind of tropical paradise. The beaches really are wonderful, the girls really are friendly (really, really friendly) and the food really is quote wonderful. Why go abroad, since foreign visas are so difficult for Thais to obtain? So Thais stay home and add their weight to the 25,000,000 foreign visitors who tour the country every year. Thais are their own best customers for tourism.

But what about those foreigners who want to stay? The law requires them to be self-supporting and law abiding. Problem is, millions of them are penniless refugees and migrants who sleep on a floor with a dozen others and do the hard, dirty work that Thai men and women disdain.  Given Thailand’s long, unmarked borders, tracking those millions would be a herculean task. So Immigration officers wisely devote most of their attention to farangs (white Europeans). If farangs’ papers are not in order, their reasoning goes, it’s likely that they’ll either be offered a bribe or get a commendation from the Bureau for catching the offender. It’s a win-win.

Two polite, smartly-uniformed (and very cute). English-speaking Thai Immigration officers came calling this week. They were doing house checks at farangs‘ registered addresses and my Swiss neighbor made it worth their while to ride down to my street (doubling up on one scooter, but both can claim mileage reimbursement, of course). They found my papers were in order and we got to chatting. They were clearly curious about my standard of living, “How much do you pay for your house?”.

“Ten thousand Baht”, I responded.

They shook their heads in amazement. A single man, living alone in a 3-bedroom house. Why a dozen Thais could live there in air-conditioned comfort! And he  pays more rent than Immigration officers’ salary! Farangs really are rich.

Chonburi immigration is the first province to start insisting that resident farangs stay where they’ve registered and finding offenders 4,000 baht. Officers there have been checking their records against foreigners residing in the area then fining people for being in the wrong location. In September seven people were each fined 4,000 baht for not being where they registered. Last Tuesday Canadian Luc Lafreniere had to post up 4,000 baht for not living at his registered address. This is not arbitrary: the fines are in accordance with regulations issued in 1998. Chonburi immigration are also fining people offering accommodation to foreigners who fail to report guests to them within 24 hours, so AirBnB hosts might want to pay attention. Yesterday a manageress at the local Pratumnak Inn was fined 1,600 baht for failing to report that a Russian guest  was staying in the building. Chonburi Immigration calls the program “Good Guys In, Bad Guys Out”. Expats call it a nuisance.

Here’s a video to prove how rich I am:

My Chiang Mai House #2: Plants and Flowers Arrive.

Coincidentally, the next day I discovered that my US passport had expired, so I went down to the Consulate for the first time. You can read my suggestions for visiting the US Consulate in Chiang Mai here.

The post Thai Immigration Visits Me appeared first on Thai Retirement Helpers: Retiring in Thailand Made Easy.