sawadee1947 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 I agree with you. I made the same mistake to leave my country when getting retired. I should stay longer even working part time or as a locum. I'm at present in Spain and this already since more than 6 months. I enjoy the mild winter weather, the Mediterranean food, the Tapas and yes the wines. We met a lot of people from UK and mainland Europe. Also some came back from Panama or Costa Rica. All not granting safety as Spain. So we decided to spend at least 6-7 months in Europe travelling in our motorhome through Europe. Thailand is nice though the biased Buddha culture is at least confusing. And it's not easy to find clean beaches knowing that a few miles outside huge clusters of garbage is waiting to come. Our house in CM is wonderful when coming back from travelling. However with all the soi dogs around and loud music sometimes and wreckless driving and scooters from all sides.... we are planning our next trip overseas. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete1980 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 50 minutes ago, Pilotman said: I live in the countryside, in Rayong Province, just on the border with Chon Buri Province, a good choice I think. close enough to everything, but far enough away to avoid the crowds. I have been visiting Thailand for around 35 years. My Thai wife and I married some 21 years ago and so she is delighted after so many years living outside the country, to be back home. Interestingly, she misses the UK a lot more than I ever do, curios that. The air quality is poisonous in rayong, what made you move there? You say it is close to everything? What is there? Where are you? Bowin? Congrats on your long marriage. Where and how did you meet her? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skallywag Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) 58 minutes ago, Pilotman said: Its not the 'run of the mill' issues that worry me, the hospitals are fine for them, if a tad expensive. its the possibility of a big hit, cancer, heart issues etc. The medical services are good, if you can afford them. I can, but I would hate to 'waste' the kid's inheritance on a major issue here that would have been free in the UK, but that is the choice you make when you move here. . Glad you are planning on saving for your kids inheritance. Edited January 19, 2019 by Skallywag contradiction 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post whaleboneman Posted January 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted January 19, 2019 “My move here coincided with my retirement from a very full and intense career, in retrospect, amistake I think.“ haha. I thought it was your career that was the mistake at first read. 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcusarelus Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) 6 minutes ago, Pete1980 said: The air quality is poisonous in rayong, what made you move there? You say it is close to everything? What is there? Where are you? Bowin? Congrats on your long marriage. Where and how did you meet her? https://aqicn.org/city/rayong/ http://aqicn.org/city/bangkok/ http://aqicn.org/city/chiang-mai/ Looks to me like the air quality is about the same as Chiang Mai and a whole lot better than Bangkok. Edited January 19, 2019 by marcusarelus 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dap Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 22 hours ago, KhunProletariat said: Thailand is such a great place to live, full of friendly, vibrant people always willing to lend a helping hand. The junta are great guys too, always conjuring up new policies to help us foreigners out with staying here long term In short, it is a truly wonderful place to live and has something for everybody. I am so, so happy. KP. My heartiest laugh of the day. keep em' coming KhunPro... 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lacessit Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 23 hours ago, KhunProletariat said: Thailand is such a great place to live, full of friendly, vibrant people always willing to lend a helping hand. The junta are great guys too, always conjuring up new policies to help us foreigners out with staying here long term In short, it is a truly wonderful place to live and has something for everybody. I am so, so happy. KP. I've always thought sarcasm should be used like a rapier. Not often it's applied with a trowel. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilotman Posted January 19, 2019 Author Share Posted January 19, 2019 17 minutes ago, Pete1980 said: The air quality is poisonous in rayong, what made you move there? You say it is close to everything? What is there? Where are you? Bowin? Congrats on your long marriage. Where and how did you meet her? I don't live in or particularly near Rayong City itself, but out in the country west of Ban Chang. it's 35k from Pattaya and about the same to Rayong City. Met when I did some business for my company with the company she worked for. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Solinvictus Posted January 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted January 19, 2019 Thanks for your thoughts. Appreciate them. For me, I find myself saying here is... Bitter sweet and more sweet than bitter!!!! But I have no regrets! 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete1980 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 20 minutes ago, marcusarelus said: https://aqicn.org/city/rayong/ http://aqicn.org/city/bangkok/ http://aqicn.org/city/chiang-mai/ Looks to me like the air quality is about the same as Chiang Mai and a whole lot better than Bangkok. bangkok is deadly, chiangmai is usually filthy. It is sunday, once all those factories fire up tomorrow it will be worse. Also it depends where the pollution reader is located. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcusarelus Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) 3 minutes ago, Pete1980 said: bangkok is deadly, chiangmai is usually filthy. It is sunday, once all those factories fire up tomorrow it will be worse. Also it depends where the pollution reader is located. No it's not Sunday in Thailand where are you posting from? Makes little difference anyway. Do you think refineries take Sunday off? Saturday 1500 air quality good. https://aqicn.org/city/rayong/ Edited January 19, 2019 by marcusarelus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Lacessit Posted January 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted January 19, 2019 In hindsight, i was probably lucky I had worked in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand as a consultant, so I had some idea what to expect. Thailand won out for a number of reasons, not least of which were the women. My jaw still drops occasionally when I see a stunner in a shopping mall. Many people who come here find the first year or so confronting, because the rules are so complex and strange to our logic system. Once you can get through that and roll with the punches, so to speak, life can get to be quite comfortable. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJ54 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 90 reporting not a big deal to me..... get into the city maybe pick up groceries at one of the import stores..... No need to complain 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xylophone Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) 2 hours ago, melvinmelvin said: That is not quite correct. Thailand is one of the very few countries in SEA where foreigners can actually own land in their own name, legally. But it is a lengthy and costly process. (Houses they can buy) There are also ways in which a foreigner legally can control land and house. ---- to op, good you are comfortable agree with you, would probably have been wise to be retired at home for a year or two before moving, would have helped you to put things in perspective Thai law states that foreigners cannot own land in Thailand (apart from the 40 million baht investment route)...............this is Thai law and although lawyers try to find ways to navigate around this by various share/company chicanery, the bottom line is that foreigners cannot own land in Thailand, and if these dubious methods of "ownership" are discovered, then the foreigner stands to lose the lot! Been covered many times here and despite howls of protest from supposed land "owners" this applies:- The Thailand Alien Business act is quite specific, and there is a blanket offence of circumventing land ownership laws that means anything that appears to allow foreigners to own land is actually illegal. Anyway just about everybody knows that as it has been covered extensively on TV, and the law is the law.............so back on topic about the "first two years living in Thailand". Edited January 19, 2019 by xylophone 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoshowJones Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 2 hours ago, rwill said: Well the 90 day reporting may be going away sometime this year. That will make things a little easier. Yes of course it will, the pigs have just started their flying lessons.????????????️ 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post JAFO Posted January 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted January 19, 2019 1 hour ago, Lacessit said: In hindsight, i was probably lucky I had worked in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand as a consultant, so I had some idea what to expect. Thailand won out for a number of reasons, not least of which were the women. My jaw still drops occasionally when I see a stunner in a shopping mall. Many people who come here find the first year or so confronting, because the rules are so complex and strange to our logic system. Once you can get through that and roll with the punches, so to speak, life can get to be quite comfortable. Same with me for the most part. I was traveling all over SEAsia as US manufacturing companies were sourcing operations off shore. The luxury I was afforded I got to frequently see and stay in various countries. Some never ever appealed to me, a few did. In the end Thailand seemed like a good balance. Centrally located in the region and flying out to surrounding countries is a cake walk. By the time I decided to stay here full time I was well acclimated to the ins and outs. I also moved around Thailand a bit, some when I was single, some later after I met my now wife. I think one thing that is challenging for many western folks is their initial premise that they move here to scale down, live small, out in the country etc but prior to living here they had never done that. It all starts out OK but for many it eats away them. I was sort of in that boat after I was asked to reside full time in Thailand to oversee operations at a CM factory outside BKK. Living in a full serviced condo with a van driver allocated to me full time made life easy but living small after a while was not so fun and to be driven everywhere got real boring, real fast. The gal I met (my wife now) thought it was funny when I picked her up at her condo in the van and I had a driver. Anyway having grown up as a very active type with numerous hobbies I soon started to miss them and finding suitable replacements here became a bit challenging. Sure some of the things I liked to do were here but they do come with a steep price tag. Later after I got married I knew that for me to find a balance here in Thailand it was going to take a fusion of the things I like to do and my wife's Thai lifestyle. I knew that I was never going to hang with condo life. I need some land to mess around on and stay busy. So together we designed and had our home built. Its funny in that its not on her "Original" property so to speak as we bought up a few lots surrounding her land and built on them. Of course she owns it all but that never bothered me much. I mean in the states the bank owns everything so I just said my wife is the bank. Now we paid for it in full so we have no debt. After our house was built, we had been back to the states and while I worked we amassed items we wanted and loaded up a 40 ft cargo container. I brought everything I could think of with me. Honestly the best thing I did. Its a slice of the things I liked to do but in a new place. The point in my post is that one really needs to be honest with oneself about why they are moving and have to have a bit of forward thinking as to what they will want or need. Moving and not giving it thought is a recipe for disaster and paradigm shifts in lifestyles are not easy and most revert back to their comfort zone but if you are now stuck, it manifests itself into resentment (I think we see quite a bit of that on this site). We like what we like and it is part of you, turning it off like a light switch is likely not going to work I live life here like I did in the states without all the government nonsense, taxes and policing. I just do my thing. There are not many things that bother me and in fact there are some things that are quite refreshing. The 90 day reporting is noise, takes 5 minutes and I use it as a reason for the wife and I to go have lunch. 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melvinmelvin Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 18 minutes ago, xylophone said: Thai law states that foreigners cannot own land in Thailand (apart from the 40 million baht investment route)...............this is Thai law and although lawyers try to find ways to navigate around this by various share/company chicanery, the bottom line is that foreigners cannot own land in Thailand, and if these dubious methods of "ownership" are discovered, then the foreigner stands to lose the lot! Been covered many times here and despite howls of protest from supposed land "owners" this applies:- The Thailand Alien Business act is quite specific, and there is a blanket offence of circumventing land ownership laws that means anything that appears to allow foreigners to own land is actually illegal. Anyway just about everybody knows that as it has been covered extensively on TV, and the law is the law.............so back on topic about the "first two years living in Thailand". Thai law does NOT state that foreigners can not own land in Thailand. Go read it! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaggg88 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 3 hours ago, Skallywag said: I have been flying here for holiday and using the medical and dental services since 2004, never had a worry or problem and saved myself enough to pay for much of the travel expenses. Medical services are completely free in the UK and dental is subsidised so the OP is not saving any money in Thailand in that respect, although just about everything else is cheaper here than in the UK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xylophone Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) 39 minutes ago, melvinmelvin said: Thai law does NOT state that foreigners can not own land in Thailand. Go read it! Done that, and apart from a specific instance which may not be applicable to most here, it and the vast majority of legal sites agree with the following................. Land ownership by foreigners in Thailand Foreigners are not allowed to own land in Thailand. According to section 86 Land Code Act foreigners may acquire land in Thailand only by virtue of the provision of a treaty providing him with the right to own immovable property. Since 1970 Thailand has no longer any treaty with any country allowing any foreigner to acquire land pursuant to section 86. PS. rather than taking over this thread with that which is off topic, why not send me a PM with info as to where I can find it written that foreigners can own land in Thailand, apart from the VERY odd exception. Edited January 19, 2019 by xylophone 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post villagefarang Posted January 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted January 19, 2019 If one stays here long enough it is possible to go through many phases of adjustment. I am not very interested in the whole visa, food, shelter, transportation phase. That is just too basic and boring to me. It can be interesting to hear how a first time visitor sees Thailand, I guess, but I prefer talking with someone who is well past the introduction to Thailand 101 phase. Just try to remember everything changes, like your expectations, you, Thailand, the people you know and how much you know and understand. Moving to Thailand is just the beginning, not the end. Every step you take, every corner you turn will present you with obstacles or opportunities depending on how you choose to look at it. I sometimes equate the euphoria to the wannabe expat to the teenage girl who fantasizes about her wedding day and what she will wear but never gives a thought to what comes after. Moving here is just a starting point for what could be a very good or a very bad trip. Trying to assuage ones insecurities by making longterm commitments is a recipe for disaster in my opinion. Take it slow and don’t over commit at the beginning. Try not to commit the same errors from your past life and give yourself a chance at a new life by getting rid of some of that old baggage. If you give it a fair shot and find that it is not for you, then don’t be afraid to move on and try something else. It is not a failure if you have learned something along the way. 9 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post GinBoy2 Posted January 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted January 19, 2019 40 minutes ago, villagefarang said: If one stays here long enough it is possible to go through many phases of adjustment. I am not very interested in the whole visa, food, shelter, transportation phase. That is just too basic and boring to me. It can be interesting to hear how a first time visitor sees Thailand, I guess, but I prefer talking with someone who is well past the introduction to Thailand 101 phase. Just try to remember everything changes, like your expectations, you, Thailand, the people you know and how much you know and understand. Moving to Thailand is just the beginning, not the end. Every step you take, every corner you turn will present you with obstacles or opportunities depending on how you choose to look at it. I sometimes equate the euphoria to the wannabe expat to the teenage girl who fantasizes about her wedding day and what she will wear but never gives a thought to what comes after. Moving here is just a starting point for what could be a very good or a very bad trip. Trying to assuage ones insecurities by making longterm commitments is a recipe for disaster in my opinion. Take it slow and don’t over commit at the beginning. Try not to commit the same errors from your past life and give yourself a chance at a new life by getting rid of some of that old baggage. If you give it a fair shot and find that it is not for you, then don’t be afraid to move on and try something else. It is not a failure if you have learned something along the way. Good post, and all so very true. How many have we all seen, go 'All In' when they get to Suvarnabhumi? Sell up everything at home then 'invest' everything in their new adopted home? We all know, or at least should know, things can go South in a heartbeat. That might be OK if you are back in your home country and some family assistance. But you are in Thailand, a foreign culture, often with no language ability, recipe for disaster. So time is everything. Since most guys arriving tend to be older, think of it this way. When you are 30, you can survive a stock market crash, because you have the time to recover. There is a reason you move from stocks into cash when you get to 60. Those years ahead of you you don't give the time to recover. Thailand can be much like investing in stocks! 4 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champers Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) 5 hours ago, Pilotman said: Its not the 'run of the mill' issues that worry me, the hospitals are fine for them, if a tad expensive. its the possibility of a big hit, cancer, heart issues etc. The medical services are good, if you can afford them. I can, but I would hate to 'waste' the kid's inheritance on a major issue here that would have been free in the UK, but that is the choice you make when you move here. . You say the health service was free in the UK but compare how much income tax, council tax and national insurance you paid in the UK to how much of these you pay now in Thailand - zero if I am not mistaken. Were your prescriptions free and your dental work? Yer don't get owt fer nowt! Even VAT is considerably less here. Edited January 19, 2019 by champers 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilotman Posted January 19, 2019 Author Share Posted January 19, 2019 22 minutes ago, champers said: You say the health service was free in the UK but compare how much income tax, council tax and national insurance you paid in the UK to how much of these you pay now in Thailand - zero if I am not mistaken. Were your prescriptions free and your dental work? Yer don't get owt fer nowt! Even VAT is considerably less here. wrong I'm afraid. The vast majority of my income derives from/in the UK, so I pay tax on it. Yes, dental and prescriptions free. I weaned myself of all my medication before I came here, proving the old adage, that if a Doctor can't find anything actually wrong with you they still prescribe something anyway. Never been or felt healthier for years! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champers Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 6 minutes ago, Pilotman said: wrong I'm afraid. The vast majority of my income derives from/in the UK, so I pay tax on it. Yes, dental and prescriptions free. I weaned myself of all my medication before I came here, proving the old adage, that if a Doctor can't find anything actually wrong with you they still prescribe something anyway. Never been or felt healthier for years! Sorry. I meant how many Thai taxes do you pay? My argument is that in the UK you paid for NHS treatment indirectly via all those taxes you paid. I presume you only pay UK Income Tax now. In Thailand you just pay for health treatment directly to your provider, as and when required. Be aware that Thai hospitals are very keen on prescribing drugs, the more the merrier it seems. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAWNEESE Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) One of plus points of living in Thailand (or similar) as opposed to UK is there is no local tax here (that applies to me anyway) .. back home its based on the property you live in ( not own ). In the UK I would be paying the equivalent of 13,500 baht a month just in "council tax". So Im that amount up monthly. My tenent has to pay it not me. £336.09 a month in pounds. I know there is "free" health care etc etc. I had just not thought of that plus point till today when I researched the tax sum now for a new tenent. Gave me a warm glow .. mmmm how many "free" beers does that money give me.???????????? Maths not my strong point but 13,500 divided by 0.90 baht is only 15000 beers a month. Jeez. Gonna have to try and make do I suppose. Or find cheaper beer. Edited January 19, 2019 by PAWNEESE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puukao Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 On 1/18/2019 at 4:13 PM, Pilotman said: but I am at least as happy in LOS as I would be anywhere else, and, on balance, probably this is the best place for me. probably, to me, isn't good enough. You need to be 100%, in-your-gut positive...... I was 90% sure I could retire here a few years ago, now i'm 90% sure I won't. The last time I was 100%, I stayed there for 20-years. Maybe this makes no sense to anyone...... anyhow, wish you the best when you leave LOS. lol. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post puukao Posted January 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted January 19, 2019 2 hours ago, villagefarang said: If you give it a fair shot and find that it is not for you, then don’t be afraid to move on and try something else. It is not a failure if you have learned something along the way. I'm too old for the word 'failure,' but I think this will resonate with many young people. When you get older, it's more like laziness. It takes energy, money, time, stress, more energy, you actually have to do something, and then maybe the grass isn't greener (it is, but you are lazy). Also, when you have a house-full of stuff, it gets exhausting when thinking about that next step. I tell a few friends, "hey, i'm moving to Z country." Nobody says, "you failure!!". LOL. I'm definitely not afraid to try something else. IF only I had one backpack..... lol 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedemon Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 3 hours ago, xylophone said: Thai law states that foreigners cannot own land in Thailand (apart from the 40 million baht investment route)...............this is Thai law and although lawyers try to find ways to navigate around this by various share/company chicanery, the bottom line is that foreigners cannot own land in Thailand, and if these dubious methods of "ownership" are discovered, then the foreigner stands to lose the lot! Been covered many times here and despite howls of protest from supposed land "owners" this applies:- The Thailand Alien Business act is quite specific, and there is a blanket offence of circumventing land ownership laws that means anything that appears to allow foreigners to own land is actually illegal. Anyway just about everybody knows that as it has been covered extensively on TV, and the law is the law.............so back on topic about the "first two years living in Thailand". Yawn. In 25 years of buying and selling land in Thailand I have never heard of a single case where a foreigner was prosecuted for circumventing land ownership laws. Certainly hasn't happened to me. Read hundreds of know-it-all posts like yours though. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HuskerDo Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 6 hours ago, rwill said: Well the 90 day reporting may be going away sometime this year. That will make things a little easier. Please expand on that. Where did you hear/read it? Was there some sort of official announcement that it's under review? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madmen Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 Please expand on that. Where did you hear/read it? Was there some sort of official announcement that it's under review?Here on TV from the big joke. Untill it's official I would regard it as a big joke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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