Part time expat

[Bulgakov]

Hi,

Is it possible to rent an apartment at a reasonanble price for only four months or do they rent only for a whole year. As I am a Canadian, I do not want to lose free medical insurance (I am in good health but I may get sick) and in order not to lose it I have to stay in Canada more than six months every year. So my plan is to stay in Thailand from November to the end of February, then spend a month in Australia where I have at a friend house and return home in April in Canada.

Thanks,

Bulgakov

[frogblogger]

No problem, some apartments/condos can be rented by the month. It might be slightly more difficult arriving in November, when things are starting to get 'busy' again, but I doubt you'll have too much difficulty finding somewhere suitable.

Some guesthouses will do a good rate if you press them, I was staying in a 600 baht a night room for a few days the first time I came to Thailand. When I was sure I was going to stay for at least a month, they gave me a price of 10,000 baht which represented almost a 50% discount.

[Serendipity2]

Originally Posted by frogblogger

No problem, some apartments/condos can be rented by the month. It might be slightly more difficult arriving in November, when things are starting to get 'busy' again, but I doubt you'll have too much difficulty finding somewhere suitable.

Some guesthouses will do a good rate if you press them, I was staying in a 600 baht a night room for a few days the first time I came to Thailand. When I was sure I was going to stay for at least a month, they gave me a price of 10,000 baht which represented almost a 50% discount.

frogblogger,

For THB600 per night you should have had a nice room in a pretty nice guest house. I know they're primarily geared for short term stays and that there are some very nice guest houses but for THB 10,000 you could find a pretty good furnished apartment too. Now probably even cheaper as I see a lot of vacancies on the Internet. Some guest houses are more per night but many are THB 100-200 per night. I'm sure they're pretty basic and no AC.

I'm a long ways from Chiang Mai right now but it seems the housing market is continuing to soften just like here. What was THB 10,000 is now perhaps THB 8,000 or even cheaper. Now if the dollar will just strengthen a bit....

[frogblogger]

Yes it was a good room, some time ago now before the recession began to bite. Very big, quiet, nice balcony, central, aircon, cable tv, good value then at little over 300 bt, today even in tough times you won't get a very good room much under that rate.

There's a limit to how low landlords can/will drop prices, some have even raised them in line with the peculiar logic that because their income has dropped from having fewer guests they need to raise prices to recover their losses. Some restaurants, bars and other businesses have done the same too...

[Serendipity2]

Originally Posted by frogblogger

Yes it was a good room, some time ago now before the recession began to bite. Very big, quiet, nice balcony, central, aircon, cable tv, good value then at little over 300 bt, today even in tough times you won't get a very good room much under that rate.

There's a limit to how low landlords can/will drop prices, some have even raised them in line with the peculiar logic that because their income has dropped from having fewer guests they need to raise prices to recover their losses. Some restaurants, bars and other businesses have done the same too...

frogblogger,

Their idiot cousins must run our US government. The politicians and bankers have crashed the economy due to greed and speculation by the huge mega-banks and Wall Street, the market tanks and THEY are bailed out by our corrupt government. Guess who pays the bill for their greed and stupidity [or cunning] Yep, the good old taxpayers get to make THEM whole again. Guess who owns the USofA. So much for "We the people...." anymore they are just words on an old piece of paper. They don't believe in our constitution or this country. It's about money and power - regardless of how its gained. What this country needs is not a good $0.05 cigar but a 'new' revolution - like the French revolution - complete with Madam Guillotine.

[KhwaamLap]

FB is right about the Thai logic as to recouping loss - I stayed in Lai Thai a few weeks ago and, though I got two rooms for 1100 Baht, it was not as good a deal as I have been able to make previously. Actually its also what the British Govt did with the Millenium Dome, not enough people were turning up (due to bad press), so they put the price up!

As to renting for 4 months, its doable I guess, but most want at least 6 months. As FB suggests, you may be able to make a deal with a guest house hat works out as cheap for easier (and have the benefit of room service!). Do you have any Thai friends here that can help make a deal for you before you arrive?

[Bulgakov]

Originally Posted by KhwaamLap

FB is right about the Thai logic as to recouping loss - I stayed in Lai Thai a few weeks ago and, though I got two rooms for 1100 Baht, it was not as good a deal as I have been able to make previously. Actually its also what the British Govt did with the Millenium Dome, not enough people were turning up (due to bad press), so they put the price up!

As to renting for 4 months, its doable I guess, but most want at least 6 months. As FB suggests, you may be able to make a deal with a guest house hat works out as cheap for easier (and have the benefit of room service!). Do you have any Thai friends here that can help make a deal for you before you arrive?

I don't have any friends yet who can help me make a deal but I am not in hurry. I will be in Thailand for a month to explore as I have not yet decided where I want to stay.

Thanks everybody for your answer.

Bulgakov