The more money I have the less I like it here

[KneeDeep]

14 minutes ago, totally thaied up said:

I will agree with this. I have been back home in Australia for five days and after the polluted air I was sucking in Chiang Mai, I thought I must be crazy living in such conditions. Crystal clear sea waters, fresh air and no crazy drivers. If I had loads of money, I would do it different and later in life, I hope I can.

 

I will agree. I get sick of Thai food after a while, just about all my stomach/allergy’s to food have already started to clear up and with the drop in the Australian dollar, it is just about the same price to live. If you are eating shit street foods, of course it will be cheaper but my produce here at home on all levels is far superior.

 

If it was not for the fact I have a Thai wife and her aged parents in Thailand, it would be much simpler living in Australia. In all honesty, six months in Thailand and six months in Australia yearly, would suit me fine. That may be my home goal.

 

A lot of the 'western foods' I see for sale in Thailand, are actually Australian. What say you?

 

I agree with you. If you have pleasant surrounds in Australia, that should be your choice. But many here come from countries with real winters.

[totally thaied up]

1 minute ago, KneeDeep said:

A lot of the 'western foods' I see for sale in Thailand, are actually Australian. What say you

It’s poor quality selection and you are paying a premium price in Thailand for subpar food to what is really available here. 

 

7 minutes ago, KneeDeep said:

agree with you. If you have pleasant surrounds in Australia, that should be your choice. But many here come from countries with real winters

There I understand. I have spent 10 years in Thailand and do love the place but I think if I had real money, I would do something different.

[KneeDeep]

2 minutes ago, totally thaied up said:

It’s poor quality selection and you are paying a premium price in Thailand for subpar food to what is really available here. 

 

There I understand. I have spent 10 years in Thailand and do love the place but I think if I had real money, I would do something different.

 

Agreed.

 

It definitely helps to have a choice. Which is why I choose to be a tourist. 

 

[55Jay]

Yeah, OP, I had the same idea.  Overlook the grit, grunge and dysfunction for some cheap livin'.  But it started to wear thin after about 3-4 years here.  Is it still "worth it"? 

 

But every now and then, I'm reminded of the things that are still amazingly less expensive here still - although sure, the quality can sometimes be hit or miss to varying degrees.

 

Rent and/or buying the wife a standard 3bed/2bath box of bricks is petty cash.  Did some fairly significant upgrades/reno to a small house we bought last year.  100,000 Baht, used better than average materials, 2 weeks of work, guy did a nice job on everything, really good value IMO.  I did a full built in kitchen years ago at another house, my Mom in California spit her coffee out when I told her how much.  Just her granite counter tops cost as much as our whole kitchen did.... with granite counter tops.

 

Dentists.  Veterinarians.  Internet/phones.  The big 5 gallon jugs of drinking water delivered to my door, 30 Baht.  20 if I drive up to the mom&pop and get myself.

 

I see an American Doc in BKK for the normal 300 Baht consultation fee.  Full annual physical for over 50 male is a few hundred dollars. 

 

For as much electric as we use/running air cons, etc., the bills are quite reasonable in comparison.  I still chuckle at the water and trash collection bills. 

 

Repairs for our motorbikes and cars is uber reasonable.  I keep thinking every quirk with my old pick up truck is going to be the big one.  Guy plays around under the dash or the hood, puts in a new whatchamacallit, 80 Baht, and I'm driving away in 15 minutes.  Incredible. 

 

I would like to get out of here too, it's "time" for a change.  But I still feel like I don't want to throw the baby out with the bathwater, so likely keep our little portfolio here as an aw shit escape plan, and see how things go.

[beautifulthailand99]

50 minutes ago, from the home of CC said:

it's funny, the less money I have the more I like it here..

Not having choices makes choosing the choice much easier. 

[BritManToo]

5 minutes ago, beautifulthailand99 said:

Not having choices makes choosing the choice much easier. 

With no money the choices are Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines.

That's still too many choices for me.

[Pravda]

2 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

no "visa" issues for me. retired, single and 800k in the bank in Thailand. 

 

No visa issues for retirees? Kinda hard to swallow that one (forgive the pun) as there is a whinging thread every day about retirement visa hassles. You have 800k? You are hassled every year. You want to stay? Report your behind every 3 months. You want to use your friends toilet in another city? Please report yourself to the nearest police station.

 

Of course it's a hassle. Even the Elite visa doesn't spare you from this.

 

EDIT:

 

Let's not forget the income verification fiasco which saw half of Thai Visa posters move to Cambodia.????

[Golden Triangle]

So, let me get this straight, you currently have the equivalent of £379 k, you are not happy ? I live with considerably less but with a goodly sum in the bank here and at home with monthly income from pensions, I rent a very nice house, have a lovely Mrs who takes care of me, I eat out well 3 or 4 times a week on quality food, I have many friends who live the same as me, stop bragging and get your backside off to another country that you can be rich but unhappy in and stop bugging us you Muppet. 

[Pravda]

1 minute ago, Golden Triangle said:

So, let me get this straight, you currently have the equivalent of £379 k, you are not happy ? I live with considerably less but with a goodly sum in the bank here and at home with monthly income from pensions, I rent a very nice house, have a lovely Mrs who takes care of me, I eat out well 3 or 4 times a week on quality food, I have many friends who live the same as me, stop bragging and get your backside off to another country that you can be rich but unhappy in and stop bugging us you Muppet. 

 

 

Look who's bragging

 

 

 

 

 

[from the home of CC]

41 minutes ago, beautifulthailand99 said:

Not having choices makes choosing the choice much easier. 

I chose in '03 and that choice hasn't wavered. I've traveled plenty in my lifetime and being here was an informed decision. Getting married to a Thai was unanticipated but still the best thing I ever did as she turned out to be my best friend (and I was very lucky if even 10% of the stories on TV are true). I don't have the income I once had but other than utilities and condo fees we don't owe a dime and we don't have to deal with vampire relatives. My overhead is a lot lower than home and being debt free makes living simple. Just not interested in living elsewhere. 

[brokenbone]

i foresaw the issue so i spent it all on go-go bars

[totally thaied up]

1 hour ago, KneeDeep said:

It definitely helps to have a choice. Which is why I choose to be a tourist. 

My wife’s family is very close and they are elderly. I really have little choice in many regards. Living in Thailand is cheap in most ways but most the people I know that do live in Thailand stay as they do not have real money to stay either in Australia or to be able to venture to higher value destinations. 

 

As as I am finding out as the years pass and the higher amounts I need to pay to insure in Thailand, the falling Aussie dollar, the gloss is falling off one of my favorite countries. If I was getting 30 to the dollar again, it would be worthwhile staying in Thailand but when my weekly shopping bill is similar to now in Australia if I shop around, the only thing I am missing out on is cheap coffee shops and cheapish Thai foods and the fact I don’t need to cook it. The rest is near similar IF you own your own place of residence in your home country and do NOT need to rent. If you need to rent here in your Golden Years, forget it.

 

Both Thailand and other farang countries all have their advantages but I do think it comes down to the coin you make and the fact, many are hiding the fact they are sexpats (or ex-sexpats who found someone and married) and you are not going to find it any different between the Philippines and Cambodia. Originally the nightlife and the bars brought me to Thailand but over time, that gets awfully boring and you change.

 

It is still at this stage somewhat marginally cheaper in Thailand but if I had the coin, I would do things differently.

[GinBoy2]

1 hour ago, totally thaied up said:

My wife’s family is very close and they are elderly. I really have little choice in many regards. Living in Thailand is cheap in most ways but most the people I know that do live in Thailand stay as they do not have real money to stay either in Australia or to be able to venture to higher value destinations. 

 

As as I am finding out as the years pass and the higher amounts I need to pay to insure in Thailand, the falling Aussie dollar, the gloss is falling off one of my favorite countries. If I was getting 30 to the dollar again, it would be worthwhile staying in Thailand but when my weekly shopping bill is similar to now in Australia if I shop around, the only thing I am missing out on is cheap coffee shops and cheapish Thai foods and the fact I don’t need to cook it. The rest is near similar IF you own your own place of residence in your home country and do NOT need to rent. If you need to rent here in your Golden Years, forget it.

 

Both Thailand and other farang countries all have their advantages but I do think it comes down to the coin you make and the fact, many are hiding the fact they are sexpats (or ex-sexpats who found someone and married) and you are not going to find it any different between the Philippines and Cambodia. Originally the nightlife and the bars brought me to Thailand but over time, that gets awfully boring and you change.

 

It is still at this stage somewhat marginally cheaper in Thailand but if I had the coin, I would do things differently.

It's a bit of a toss up, always depending on how you want to live. 

I always kept a fully paid up house in the US, so I don't have rent or anything.

So we usually spend 2-4 months in our Thai house every year. and honestly there's not a lot in it.

Now we don't live in Manhattan or San Francisco or the like, but day to day expenses, food, utilities, gas, I'd be pushed to say what we spend in Thailand is much different at this point.

10 years ago, that comparison wouldn't even have been close, but things have changed

[moontang]

What are the tax rates where good healthcare is cheap?  A Dane told me they go to poland for dental work....yet Denmark has "free healthcare."  

[Number 6]

I don't disagree with anything you've posted but I'd leave my wife in a heartbeat if she didn't support my visa. It's not like Thais actually have principles.

[NCC1701A]

5 hours ago, Pravda said:

No visa issues for retirees? Kinda hard to swallow that one

immigration takes about 3 hours a year. that is retirement extension of stay, one trip to the bank, and 90 days reporting, 10-15 minutes x 4.

 

5 hours ago, Pravda said:

You have 800k? You are hassled every year.

go to the bank and get one letter? go to immigration for one hour a year for extension of stay? maybe 1hour total a year for 90 day reporting? you call that a hassle? open a bank account, one time, deposit 800,000 once. nothing else to do. that's a hassle?

5 hours ago, Pravda said:

You want to use your friends toilet in another city? Please report yourself to the nearest police station.

i have traveled all over Thailand 32,000 kilometers on my motorcycle. plus train everywhere. never reported to anyone, anywhere.

5 hours ago, Pravda said:

Of course it's a hassle. Even the Elite visa doesn't spare you from this.

i get more hassle from the USA SS office than Thai immigration.

5 hours ago, Pravda said:

Let's not forget the income verification fiasco which saw half of Thai Visa posters move to Cambodia.????

again, just put the money in the bank, and forget about it.

[marcusarelus]

11 hours ago, GinBoy2 said:

It's a bit of a toss up, always depending on how you want to live. 

I always kept a fully paid up house in the US, so I don't have rent or anything.

So we usually spend 2-4 months in our Thai house every year. and honestly there's not a lot in it.

Now we don't live in Manhattan or San Francisco or the like, but day to day expenses, food, utilities, gas, I'd be pushed to say what we spend in Thailand is much different at this point.

10 years ago, that comparison wouldn't even have been close, but things have changed

How long did you spend in Thailand in 2018?

[GinBoy2]

11 minutes ago, marcusarelus said:

How long did you spend in Thailand in 2018?

3 months

 

Jan-March if you're that interested!

[findlay13]

15 hours ago, totally thaied up said:

I will agree with this. I have been back home in Australia for five days and after the polluted air I was sucking in Chiang Mai, I thought I must be crazy living in such conditions. Crystal clear sea waters, fresh air and no crazy drivers. If I had loads of money, I would do it different and later in life, I hope I can.

 

I will agree. I get sick of Thai food after a while, just about all my stomach/allergy’s to food have already started to clear up and with the drop in the Australian dollar, it is just about the same price to live. If you are eating shit street foods, of course it will be cheaper but my produce here at home on all levels is far superior.

 

If it was not for the fact I have a Thai wife and her aged parents in Thailand, it would be much simpler living in Australia. In all honesty, six months in Thailand and six months in Australia yearly, would suit me fine. That may be my home goal.

I now do the 3 month/3month Australia-Thailand and it will be a bit more flexible in the future 4-8,5-7 0r 6-6 etc.It suits me fine .

 

[GinBoy2]

15 hours ago, totally thaied up said:

I will agree with this. I have been back home in Australia for five days and after the polluted air I was sucking in Chiang Mai, I thought I must be crazy living in such conditions. Crystal clear sea waters, fresh air and no crazy drivers. If I had loads of money, I would do it different and later in life, I hope I can.

 

I will agree. I get sick of Thai food after a while, just about all my stomach/allergy’s to food have already started to clear up and with the drop in the Australian dollar, it is just about the same price to live. If you are eating shit street foods, of course it will be cheaper but my produce here at home on all levels is far superior.

 

If it was not for the fact I have a Thai wife and her aged parents in Thailand, it would be much simpler living in Australia. In all honesty, six months in Thailand and six months in Australia yearly, would suit me fine. That may be my home goal.

I think that's where many of us are ending up.

Few months in Thailand, then back home.

For you antipodeans obviously it's the other way around, but for us in the Northern hemisphere it's good to escape the winter for a few months, but that's it, can't live there full time any more

 

 

[thrilled]

Pravda,I'm like you about the food.No matter what it is my stomach feels uneasy.Back in 71 Bangkok was crowded but nothing like it is now.I stay a month every year in Thailand.I have it so much better in the state of Virginia.

If not for shopping malls I would go crazy.The tv programs are sad.

In the future I will still come to Thailand but visit the other countries near it.

As far as money I can live good anywhere.

[justin case]

17 hours ago, KneeDeep said:

To what major city do you refer? Certainly not mine. London.

Private healthcare is also cheap compared to my city.

Don't choose Bangkok if you feel it's too dirty.

Learn to cook for yourself if you are not happy with what is produced for you. I do just this with high quality ingredients I import for myself. The quality of the food in the USA is often not much better. Lax standards there too.

Can't argue about the visa issue as it doesn't yet apply to me.

Safety net? I have friends that went for and have Permanent Residency. No need to apply for extensions after that.

There is always a solution and since you claim to be not short of funds, it should be relatively easy.

but why is PR not automatically?  thais sure get it after a few years, my wife got FULL citizenship for doing absolutely nothing after just 3 years

[ThaiBunny]

5 minutes ago, justin case said:

but why is PR not automatically?  thais sure get it after a few years, my wife got FULL citizenship for doing absolutely nothing after just 3 years

For which country?

[justin case]

17 hours ago, Skallywag said:

I want to know how you turned 100K into 500K in 5 years.  That is the TV post I want to read about.  ????????????

 

 

I look forward to that post...hope it is not BITCOIN

[thailand49]

From reading your post nothing is going to make you happy?  Why?  Expectation you have too much of it and is unwilling to bend enough to make yourself happy.  First, the grass is never greener anywhere even if you move to an Island by yourself you still would be complaining.  Don't get me wrong I fully understand what you are going through but get real and get your head out of the sand.

 

The best you can do for yourself and I don't know if it would help even with your 500K is get an anal retentive operation even then you be complaining about the hospital bed sheets having too much starch.  Better yet get a ladyboy for a test drive before you lay out the big bucks so if it doesn't work you won't be whining about it back here.????????

[justin case]

11 hours ago, Number 6 said:

I don't disagree with anything you've posted but I'd leave my wife in a heartbeat if she didn't support my visa. It's not like Thais actually have principles.

the wife will sue you for half you have... many people think here that she needs your approval ..if she does petition in court and you don't show up, you lose your right to have your say / defence ...  contact me if you ever get to this point

[justin case]

21 minutes ago, ThaiBunny said:

For which country?

any EUROPEAN country

[GinBoy2]

1 hour ago, justin case said:

but why is PR not automatically?  thais sure get it after a few years, my wife got FULL citizenship for doing absolutely nothing after just 3 years

Well at least for us, a US permanent resident, married to a US citizen, it's three years, and your spouse is eligible to become a US citizen.

 

A tad different to a farang married to a Thai citizen living in Thailand, don't ya think

[soistalker]

18 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

yeah driving my Porsche in Malibu was the pits.

I used to drive my 944 to Malibu all the time. Good memories.

Add to what the OP wrote is that Thais get greedier, more aggressive, and unkind every year constantly since 2000 when I first stating coming. 

I live in Pattaya. I used to go up to Bangkok for a few days, but now, everyone is overcharging, hotels in the upper mid-range have rude staff and poor facilities, and taking a tuktuk means that you have to negotiate hard, and then you get the driver talking shit to you in thai the whole trip.

It's not really the Land of Smiles anymore, is it?

 

[Pravda]

Lol at comparing London with some hellhole shack in isaan