Is Thailand still worth it for Aussies?

[Odysseus123]

12 minutes ago, xylophone said:

I'm lucky inasmuch as I have been to many countries and lived in some for a while, but Portugal is not one of them and I have friends here who have been there and say it is quite lovely!

 

You state that you "loved Portugal" and trying not to get off track too much, what were the main attractions and would you go back again – – in a nutshell as the mods might move it otherwise.

I am not mobile now..so home is home and I love it here(OZ) anyway.

The Portuguese are a delightful people.The scenery in the north (and Galicia) is wonderful-and all Europe is just so close..

I used to refer to a small town in the mountains as "Amirante-the beautiful"

[zaZa9]

Reasons to invest in Thai baht ?

Everyone , including us mere plebs , know the baht is rising ... we also know that the Australian Government is committed to driving down the $ aud.

Thais say their books are in the black.

The country is run by confirmed capitalists - profit focussed and highly unlikely to 'Nationalise' anything.

The leaders   will not tolerate dissent - the days of blood on the streets are long gone . So political stability ...never mind how that is achieved.

A compliant and obedient public. Little chance of disruptive protests , strikes or tumultous change.

A public rapidly moving from bare self sufficiency to a consumer society willing to take on debt and therefore  generate increasing bank profits from debt generated interest.

Development costs low as land is leased cheaply.

'Troublesome' environmental protection laws and levies , and delays for studies and impact statements  on developments virtually  non existent. Dump it or pump it where you want..

Ethnic minorities often deprived of citizenship can be moved on , and have no rights over 'their' lands should an investor want to 'develop' it.  Palms can and will be greased.

 

 And every investors favourite: The country is renowned for its  long hours  and low wages . A subdued workforce.

 

I can see why the baht is doing well .

Who knows how much of its current investment is sourced from Australian banks and super funds?

I know Macquarie Bank has committed almost 1 billion aud  to just one development in Phuket.

[kevvy]

58 minutes ago, madmen said:

Damn You're place must be a palace for that price in CR

Sent from my star using Tapatalk
 

We got a team of construction workers from Bangkok as we knew their work as we build 38 homes in Rayong  to come up. I wanted a truss roof system  as I hate the concrete rendering inside .We have gypsum walls , and a home theatre , 2 big spa baths one for each bathroom .This was the last home I was going to build so I wanted what I always dreamed of . And we are on the main road with a view .There are a few homes around outside of Chiang Rai and the sellers want 13/15 million .. Dreaming ...The land prices here in Chiang Rai now are a ridiculous price.

[Stevemercer]

The financial threshold for me is 18 Baht to the dollar. At that point it would be the same cost to live in Australia. As others have noted, food and day to day living costs are comparable between the 2 countries (with one important exception).

 

Labour (and therefore anything with a high labour content) will remain much cheaper in Thailand. However, capital goods (cars, motorbikes, TVs, white goods etc) are probably cheaper in Australia.

 

The deal maker - in my view - is whether or not you own a house or otherwise have property in Australia. If yes, Australia is starting to make more financial sense as the exchange rate drops. If not, then accommodation in Thailand is better value.

 

Of course, there are non-financial reasons why Thailand may be preferable (family, ladies, culture, travelling etc).

[traveller101]

The biggest cost in monthly expenditure is usually housing.

Unless you own a property in Australia outright the cost of housing  in Thailand is approx. is around 30 to 40% of renting in Down Under if you are prepared and content to live in a 1 to 2 bedroom house as opposed to a 200m2 McMansion in outer Suburbia with all the Modcons.

From my own experience i pay around A$500 per month for said house in Phuket. The rental cost of a simple house at the Sunshine Coast is a min. of A$1600, unless you are prepared to live in a neglected unrenovated 40+ year old fibroshak.

Cost of electricity, internet connection/WiFi are also higher and speeds lower. In addition you get by in Thailand without mobile data since free wifi is available almost everywhere.

Cost of transport is also a lot less expensive in Thailand under the proviso you are not in need of a car.

 Unless you live close to the CBD of major australian cities, having your own 4 wheels is imperative. Living in Phuket or any other major Tourist hub you easily get by on a scooter/motorcycle. Driving a car you find yourself more often than not sitting in traffic gridlocks and parking can prove to be a major challenge. The major advantage of driving a car is vastly improved personal safety and protection from adverse weather conditions.

Personally i much prefer the "driving according to the conditions" as opposed to driving "looking at the speedometer and myriad of road signs" every few seconds instead of concentrating on the road ahead of me.

Food, another major cost can be much cheaper here If you are happy buying local produce. If you supplement your diet regularly with imported western food, your grocery bill might approach the level of Woolworth/Coles etc.

Eating out is definitely a lot less expensive in any case except for frequenting known tourist traps or insist on a bottle of quality red or white.

To sum it all up your cost of living in Phuket and i guess other major centers (Hua Hin, Chiang Mai, Pattaya) are still 30 to 40% less expensive comparing apples with apples as best as possible. If the exchange rate approaches 15 to the baht as suggested by others cost of living would be close or par with Australia.

[Toknarok]

       I,m very glad that the Aussie Govt. gives those pensioners living abroad the twice yearly pension increases, unlike the UK which freezes the aged pension if you move to Thailand. These increases tend to offset the deteriorating of the Oz dollar.

      Last month a friend of mine moved back to OZ, he lives in Adelaide. From what he has informed me most things are NOT cheaper in Aust. One cannot live off cheese and wine. Try $25 a kilo for lleg of lamb from Coles on special. (I can get for much less than that in Makro) $52 kilo for rack of lamb, $4-$5 dollars for a cup of coffee, $8 dollars for a midi (about half pint) of beer.

     Rental properties are exorbitant, if you can manage to find one. The number of homeless people

in the so called 'lucky' country is alarming and rising.

    No I think I'll hang on here with my family, the 'nanny state' isn't for me.

    30 years ago I was getting about 17 baht to thr dollar. Since then pensions have increased significantly to offset today's drop against the baht.

[tandor]

Section 44...all fixed in 1 week.

[Kevin mcbeath]

2 hours ago, madmen said:

traveled across oz with my marketing company and always enjoyed dining in many historic country pubs. i can almost taste the VB???? 

You lost me when u mentioned VB.... yuck so many better beers out there these days. Nice pics of your food and a great price

[Billy Bloggs]

10 hours ago, mstevens said:

If you have property in Australia, then you're probably better off there. If you're totally broke then Thailand might appeal, assuming you're ok living amongst lower middle-class Thais (eating on the street, living in a 5,000 baht / month apartment etc).

Or do like I did and move up country and have a huge 3 bedroom house for ya 5000 baht a month, grow a lot of your own food, barter for inputs, do the simple things in life or try and still play the big man.

 

[Billy Bloggs]

41 minutes ago, Stevemercer said:

The financial threshold for me is 18 Baht to the dollar. At that point it would be the same cost to live in Australia. As others have noted, food and day to day living costs are comparable between the 2 countries (with one important exception).

 

Labour (and therefore anything with a high labour content) will remain much cheaper in Thailand. However, capital goods (cars, motorbikes, TVs, white goods etc) are probably cheaper in Australia.

 

The deal maker - in my view - is whether or not you own a house or otherwise have property in Australia. If yes, Australia is starting to make more financial sense as the exchange rate drops. If not, then accommodation in Thailand is better value.

 

Of course, there are non-financial reasons why Thailand may be preferable (family, ladies, culture, travelling etc).

Motor scooters are comparable, point me to an ad for something like a honda click with at to days exchange is 2426 aud ya wont even get close

[Odysseus123]

47 minutes ago, Toknarok said:

       I,m very glad that the Aussie Govt. gives those pensioners living abroad the twice yearly pension increases, unlike the UK which freezes the aged pension if you move to Thailand. These increases tend to offset the deteriorating of the Oz dollar.

      Last month a friend of mine moved back to OZ, he lives in Adelaide. From what he has informed me most things are NOT cheaper in Aust. One cannot live off cheese and wine. Try $25 a kilo for lleg of lamb from Coles on special. (I can get for much less than that in Makro) $52 kilo for rack of lamb, $4-$5 dollars for a cup of coffee, $8 dollars for a midi (about half pint) of beer.

     Rental properties are exorbitant, if you can manage to find one. The number of homeless people

in the so called 'lucky' country is alarming and rising.

    No I think I'll hang on here with my family, the 'nanny state' isn't for me.

    30 years ago I was getting about 17 baht to thr dollar. Since then pensions have increased significantly to offset today's drop against the baht.

$8 for a middy?

Ho..ho..ho..

Yet another one trying to beat up the prices..

[Nemises]

Yeah...it’s really bad now. 

Rent in Thailand now 9 times cheaper than Oz instead of the previous 10. 

Food...same same. 

Hotties...same same. 

 

[thaibeachlovers]

Only read first page, but seems to me everyone is missing the point. Either Thailand is worth living in whatever it costs, or it isn't. I saved up for 10 years to be able to live in LOS and it was worth it at first. Then the night scene was destroyed by Thaksin, and it wasn't.

Had the night scene not been destroyed I'd still be living there whatever it cost.

All depends on what one wants as to stay or not.

When it came time to make the big decision, I left, because LOS just wasn't the place I fell in love with anymore, not because of the exchange rate.

[Odysseus123]

1 minute ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Only read first page, but seems to me everyone is missing the point. Either Thailand is worth living in whatever it costs, or it isn't. I saved up for 10 years to be able to live in LOS and it was worth it at first. Then the night scene was destroyed by Thaksin, and it wasn't.

Had the night scene not been destroyed I'd still be living there whatever it cost.

All depends on what one wants as to stay or not.

When it came time to make the big decision, I left, because LOS just wasn't the place I fell in love with anymore, not because of the exchange rate.

Well..prices are their yardstick on TVF.All the threads on such topics end up like this.

 

 

 

 

[GinBoy2]

1 hour ago, Stevemercer said:

 

 

The deal maker - in my view - is whether or not you own a house or otherwise have property in Australia. If yes, Australia is starting to make more financial sense as the exchange rate drops. If not, then accommodation in Thailand is better value.

 

I think that is true for many expats, the question of;

 

Do you still have (own) a house back home?

 

Once you take out housing, the comparison between Thailand and a basket of countries begins to become a lot more marginal.

 

Now as an American the USD bounces generally bounces between ฿30-33, so not the massive change AUD has seen.

 

But I found I was sleepwalking into the increase of living expenses in Thailand over my 10 years 

 

Sure labor is cheaper, but utilities, cars, eating like a Westerner, thats a lot different, and often more expensive in Thailand

When I finally woke up I realized, I'd actually be better off back home.

 

I've done real life side by side comparisons, which I get trolled for, but facts are facts.

 

So you are totally correct, housing is the biggie, take that out, couple it with a crashing AUD....thats a perfect storm! 

[NightSky]

23 hours ago, Kenny202 said:

But Im buggered if I know why the Thai baht has maintained its strength

 

It might have something to do with the growth that Asia is undergoing.

 

Generally speaking the Asian economies are growing at a fast rate.

 

 

[BritManToo]

4 minutes ago, NightSky said:

Generally speaking the Asian economies are growing at a fast rate.

Most of the locals are still earning less than $100/month.

Asian economies may be growing but the proletarians wages don't appear to be.

[Genmai]

Quote

Is Thailand still worth it for Aussies?

 

No. Actually it's not worth it for just about anyone.

[PerkinsCuthbert]

13 hours ago, lipflipper said:

Well there is a bright spot in the continual fall of the Aussie dollar and that's it will cull the Cheap Charlie boozing load mouth Aussies from staying here fulltime. Get a group of those Bogans together in a pub or restaurant and your pleasant quiet time goes out the window. I am hoping to see their dollar go even lower.

Sent from my CMR-AL19 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

Yeah, I agree, and I'm not even Australian.

[madmen]

29 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Most of the locals are still earning less than $100/month.

Asian economies may be growing but the proletarians wages don't appear to be.

Not in bangkok. My GF earns nearly double my pension. Take a look at the cars on Sukhumvit, not a single Klunker or rust bucket amongst them all shiny and new. When Im in OZ I see 15 year old cars all the time . The story spread by farang that Thais are poor is a myth in 2019

[Lacessit]

3 hours ago, Odysseus123 said:

A big bacon 'n eggs brekky normally costs you between 12-14 dollars (and it's big)

Lunch the other day in a great old pub in rural NSW..

 

Most of the country pubs I've been to in NSW smell of stale beer and old urine.

[BritManToo]

15 minutes ago, madmen said:

Not in bangkok. My GF earns nearly double my pension. Take a look at the cars on Sukhumvit, not a single Klunker or rust bucket amongst them all shiny and new. When Im in OZ I see 15 year old cars all the time . The story spread by farang that Thais are poor is a myth in 2019

I wasn't talking about Thais ....... Thailand isn't the Asian economy, and Bangkok even less so. 

but if you want to, my MiL lives on her farm in Petchabun with a 500bht/month pension, and I doubt anyone in her rural farming village makes more than 3k/month.

 

I've banged a few gogo girls that make double my pension, but they won't be making that money long time.

My cars a real rust-bucket 20 years old now, still goes, why waste money?

[madmen]

3 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

I wasn't talking about Thais .......

but if you want to, my MiL lives on her farm in Petchabun with a 500bht/month pension, and I doubt anyone in her village makes more than 3k/month.

I bet they never mentioned the income derived from daughters working soi 6 !

[marcusarelus]

2 minutes ago, madmen said:

I bet they never mentioned the income derived from daughters working soi 6 !

We have a hooker in my family and talk about her income all the time.  She always buys nice presents for the village children. 

[TPI]

19 hours ago, madmen said:

The only reason to live here now is if you cant get laid in oz. if you drop your living standards and rent a shoe box and live on sugar enhanced , msg meals that dont even resemble real food ( 80% boiled rice) well then its cheaper but its a huge backward step

Ah mate! I think you have not been here long enough, "drop your living standards"? While petrol is the same price as Oz you can get your old unroadworthy  gas guzzler repaired for cents on the dollar, you never really have to watch your speedo when driving and if you have 3 beers after work you're not terrified to drive home! The food is as good as you're prepared to pay likewise your accommodation!

 

Cheer up! you're a long time dead!

[madmen]

4 minutes ago, TPI said:

Ah mate! I think you have not been here long enough, "drop your living standards"? While petrol is the same price as Oz you can get your old unroadworthy  gas guzzler repaired for cents on the dollar, you never really have to watch your speedo when driving and if you have 3 beers after work you're not terrified to drive home! The food is as good as you're prepared to pay likewise your accommodation!

 

Cheer up! you're a long time dead!

me? not talking about me , I bought a big condo 12 years ago lower sukhimvit and love living here. Im talking about most people I know living in a shoe box. Who cares about cars, no farang drives a car where I live.

[Nemises]

Probably..but that's life (or death) ain't it?
 
Hmmm..$19.95.

$19.95 for a pack of cigarettes in Aus ?
You wish! Price is around $39.95

[Stevemercer]

2 hours ago, Billy Bloggs said:

Motor scooters are comparable, point me to an ad for something like a honda click with at to days exchange is 2426 aud ya wont even get close

 

Sorry, In Australia most of us would buy a motorbike as opposed to a scooter. A big bike in Thailand will, on average, cost nearly twice as much as in Australia. Certainly for $2,500 I would expect to get a reasonable 500 cc in Aus.

[Odysseus123]

47 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

Most of the country pubs I've been to in NSW smell of stale beer and old urine.

Tough...????

[GAZZPA]

16 hours ago, giddyup said:

If I was considering a move now, the answer would be no, it's not worth it. With the terrible exchange rate looking to get worse, driving the cost of living up in Thailand, plus the changes with the 800,000 baht in the bank plus possible medical insurance, Thailand is definitely losing it's appeal.

plus terrible roads, corruption, crime, xenophobia, too hot etc etc etc. in my opinion your instincts are right, dont do it. The Thais just dont want you there and that is not a welcoming place to be, I have just moved my family out of there.