Initial things to consider when building a house in Thailand - ideas?

[BritManToo]

Just now, Mister Fixit said:

Hmm, excellent information.  So, build for about 1.5 million nowadays?  I can do 10 grand-ish a month.  

What was the spec?  How many bedrooms, bathrooms, overall area of plot and of house?

3 bed, 3 shower (1 ensuite), living room and kitchen downstairs.

55TW plot (I hate gardening).

[ThaiFelix]

1 hour ago, Mister Fixit said:

Who says we'll divorce?  She's almost 52 and I'm 72 - she relies on me to survive, so she'd be shooting herself in the foot. 

Oh, wait, that's their forte ...

 

It isn't going to happen though, she's been as straight as a die for 14 years 

 

If you are going to build a house in Thailand you have a good chance of divorcing especially if you dont speak Thai....believe me I have been there!

[Mister Fixit]

11 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

3 bed, 3 shower (1 ensuite), living room and kitchen downstairs.

55TW plot (I hate gardening).

Excellent!  Just about what I want but an extra room for my escape room so could forget a bathroom and pinch some space from somewhere.

 

So downstairs would be a living room (doesn't have to be large and could be combined with kitchen), a bedroom for us, an 'escape from the family' room, a bathroom (ie shower, wash basin and loo) and a kitchen, but see earlier.

 

The wife was hoping to get 100 tarang wah or 1 ngan but thinks she may have to reduce it. 

 

Shame, because I used to love gardening and I want a garden if I possibly can.  I used to have a plot and a half private allotment in the UK in the 80s and it fed us (family of 5 at the time) very comfortably all year round.

Edited April 24, 2021 by Mister Fixit

[Mister Fixit]

2 minutes ago, ThaiFelix said:

If you are going to build a house in Thailand you have a good chance of divorcing especially if you dont speak Thai....believe me I have been there!

Who said I don't speak Thai?  I probably speak it better that at least 80% of other farangs.

 

Really, can the TV Dreary Dans and Moaning Martins do a bunk to another thread?

 

Your lack of ability does not necessarily spread to other people.  There's a bigger world out there than just you!  ????

[kingofthemountain]

2 hours ago, Mister Fixit said:

 

Apologies if I was a bit testy in my response, but this forum and other social media sites have a lot of posters who don't read discriminately and put their own interpretation on what they think they read.  

 

I did actually indicate my family size in my OP - I said 'Is the house area I mention above about right for two people and the daughter visiting at weekends?'

 

And I also said 'I suppose 3 bedrooms, plus a room of about 3.5 x 5 metres for a man-cave/study/hide from the family room, 2 bathrooms, 1 decent sized living room and a biggish kitchen.  A carport is OK because I don’t run a car (just a couple of motorbikes) and also we'd need a laundry/utility area at the back.'

 

I have given absolutely no thought to construction materials etc because that is way down the line - the first priority is to try to establish an approximate cost and then add 50% or so to cover the usual errors and down pricing to get the job.

 

The land aspect I leave to the family to sort out because it's their land.  However, if I am expected to fund the repayments I need to get an idea of the principal sum borrowed and term of years so we can make a stab at monthly repayment figures.

 

The wife just told me her daughter thought she would borrow 1.5 million - I think that's way too low.  I estimate we'd need about 2.5 million to cover decent fittings, a proper Western kitchen and a bit more up-market materials and a chunk for the usual contingencies.

 

Does that sound about right?  Ball park figure, of course.

 

And yes, I know that if a family REALLY want you out, all the usufructs in the world won't stop them.

However, I have known them 14 years, they are a decent salt of the earth family and they like me & we get on well. 

The older children don't have much higher education, but the younger ones do - one sister has a PhD in biochemistry and travels around Asia and Europe regularly, another has a Master's in Business Admin and a brother seems to be some sort of senior nurse in charge of a local health clinic.

I very much doubt I'll be kicked out because who would then make the monthly repayments?  But of course, TiT ...

 

No problem

and i apologize also to not have read with enough attention your first post indeed quite all the informations were already here.

 

imo a 120 sqm should be enough for 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms

if i was you i will go for a single storey, you are over 72, probably in good shape but if in the future having to go up and down stairs can becoming an insurmountable deal

when it comes to build a house, you need to think to your situation in the 10-20 next years

edit: i just read your post about your knees problems and the idea

of a room upstairs for the daughter, so it make sense.

 

Be sure the house is build at a level far above the level of the last flood in the area, use all the backfill necessary for it with a security margin, the climate is changing years after years and few areas which were safe since ages are now sometimes under water.

 

Don't go for a ''thai design'' for the plan, usualy from my experience the Thais have a lot of ''free space'' unused in theirs houses, they want the house the biggest possible from the outside and a station hall as a salon to receive and impress the visitors, all for the face thing

then they live in a tiny kitchen and a bedroom where you can hardly go around the bed.

 

Do yourself a plan that meets your goals, later you will have to it validated by an architect anyway.

 

Also do ont put the house directly on the ground, the advantage of the pillars (Even the short one) is less insects and others animals in the house, plus a better thermal  insulation with the air free to run under the floor and again you limit the risk of flood

 

The amount of 1M5 for a 120 sqm is imo in the high range of the prices

but you should have all included in this price (Furnitures, overcosts and bad surprises)

the ''normal'' price is around 10 000\sqm

 

Here the photo of the house i build for 800 000 bhts

6 years ago, 80 sqm,2 rooms 1 bathroom) but

it was few years ago and with a lot of bargains

Edited April 24, 2021 by kingofthemountain

[Crossy]

Take a wander down to your local ampur office. They should have books of pre-approved house plans which you can copy and use to apply for your building permit.

 

Find one that's roughly want you want and tweek as wish, so long as you don't change the general outline of the house or the structural elements you can modify as you wish.

 

We used a local contractor who was the only one willing to take on Madam's desired roof style. Fixed price contract.

 

Our construction thread is here, rather bigger than what you are considering but the pitfalls are the same.

 

 

 

[kingofthemountain]

The use of a local contractor is imo the best way to go

you can see the houses he has already build in the area

and he usualy has his own team of local workers

they also know where to find the best quality\cost materials in the area

and they are usualy well aware of the locals administrative requirements

It really can save you a lot of headaches and problems

 

 

Edited April 24, 2021 by kingofthemountain

[edgarfriendly]

17 minutes ago, Crossy said:

Take a wander down to your local ampur office. They should have books of pre-approved house plans which you can copy and use to apply for your building permit.

 

Find one that's roughly want you want and tweek as wish, so long as you don't change the general outline of the house or the structural elements you can modify as you wish.

 

We used a local contractor who was the only one willing to take on Madam's desired roof style. Fixed price contract.

 

Our construction thread is here, rather bigger than what you are considering but the pitfalls are the same.

 

 

 

is that the GOM TEE DIN Office?

 

[Crossy]

19 minutes ago, edgarfriendly said:

is that the GOM TEE DIN Office?

 

Not sure about the transliteration.

 

This is the sign for ours (top one), they will point you in the right direction ???? 

 

[Mister Fixit]

16 hours ago, gunderhill said:

wrong ,standard  sizes are max 4  metres for  column  placement

So why are the rooms in my current house all 4.75 m wide?

 

[soi3eddie]

2 hours ago, Mister Fixit said:

The wife was sent this photo by her daughter last night.  I don't know if that's the sort of thing she has in mind or just an example.

 

What would that cost ready-built on a housing estate and what would it cost to have built a a one-off?

 

I have no idea of how many bed or other rooms it might have.

 

In provincial areas about 2-3.5 million Baht built with land. Typical moo-baan style though they are mostly single storey. Expect 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms in that 2 storey. 

 

[Crossy]

46 minutes ago, Mister Fixit said:

So why are the rooms in my current house all 4.75 m wide?

 

There's always an exception.

 

Thai builders do like the 4m x 4m grid, the sums and sizes are well known so no thought is needed.

 

Meanwhile we have a couple of 7m spans (I had plans for a snooker table) ???? 

 

EDIT Re-bar detail for one of our long beams (6.8m), some pretty big steel in there.

[Excel]

17 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

There's always an exception.

 

Thai builders do like the 4m x 4m grid, the sums and sizes are well known so no thought is needed.

 

Meanwhile we have a couple of 7m spans (I had plans for a snooker table) ???? 

 

I know what you are saying about the 4 x 4 but in my neck of the woods for sum reason it is nearly always 3.5 x 3.5, don't ask me why. My current house has  a 10 mtr clear span. Getting my truss designs welded required my 100% attention on the job to check they were doing it properly.  Luckily one of the extended family's friend, had a friend who had a dog bred by a person whose husband was a coded welded back from a stint in Kuwait so that took care of the weld quality (almost).

[Mister Fixit]

16 hours ago, kingofthemountain said:

The use of a local contractor is imo the best way to go

you can see the houses he has already build in the area

and he usualy has his own team of local workers

they also know where to find the best quality\cost materials in the area

and they are usualy well aware of the locals administrative requirements

It really can save you a lot of headaches and problems

 

 

 

Yes, I agree.  Bear in mind that the building work will be out of my hands.  This is a family thing, but the wife has explained that they have lived in the area all their lives (her father is about 84 and was born there so they go back yonks) so they know the local people to use and who does what best etc.

 

I hope I can give some input and will be listened to - I think they will, but as to plans and so on, they will be making the final decision.  

[Mister Fixit]

16 hours ago, soi3eddie said:

 

In provincial areas about 2-3.5 million Baht built with land. Typical moo-baan style though they are mostly single storey. Expect 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms in that 2 storey. 

 

 

The land for building will be free, being given by a sister who bought a larger area recently and my wife is hoping for about 400 sq metres, or 100 wa.  

At the moment it is a rice paddy, so I have no idea how stable it will be for building on.  With luck there will be some area which isn't a bog.

 

Their problem, not mine.

Edited April 25, 2021 by Mister Fixit

[kingofthemountain]

1 hour ago, Mister Fixit said:

 

Yes, I agree.  Bear in mind that the building work will be out of my hands.  This is a family thing, but the wife has explained that they have lived in the area all their lives (her father is about 84 and was born there so they go back yonks) so they know the local people to use and who does what best etc.

 

I hope I can give some input and will be listened to - I think they will, but as to plans and so on, they will be making the final decision.  

I get it

 

however iirc you explained that you were epected to do the payments on the loan

(As a monthly rent) so imo that means you are the one making this project possible

without your finance, is the sister (And his family) going to build the house?

If the answer is not, then you should be listened with your inputs and you should

make the final decision, at least for the validation of the house plan.

 

About the building work himself, if you are not involved imo it's better

as i said in my previous posts the whole process is a pain with a lot of headaches

[kingofthemountain]

1 hour ago, Mister Fixit said:

At the moment it is a rice paddy, so I have no idea how stable it will be for building on.  With luck there will be some area which isn't a bog.

It's not a problem at all

in fact in rural Thailand most of the houses are built on old rice paddy

the backfill is well know by the Thais and they also know how long they

have to wait before to start the building, to be sure that the ground is firmly packed

(Usualy 3 to 6 months)

[stephenterry]

20 hours ago, Mister Fixit said:

The wife was sent this photo by her daughter last night.  I don't know if that's the sort of thing she has in mind or just an example.

 

What would that cost ready-built on a housing estate and what would it cost to have built a a one-off?

 

I have no idea of how many bed or other rooms it might have.

On our estate in Chiang Mai, that new-built house (with minimal land) would have cost 2 million a few years ago. With Covid19 the prices have stalled rising, and should be about the same. 

 

I would suggest the labour charges to be negotiable, as supply is more than demand nowadays. 

[1FinickyOne]

you can figure 10,000 per sq m. and up from there. 

 

you might also want to consider a bedroom on ground floor for yourself, at 72, knees can get shaky, if not now, in the future.. 

 

When we built in the village a long time ago, we went around w/a few different builders and looked at houses they had completed... we saw a house that we both loved and told the builder to put that house on our property.. and he did and I was 98% pleased which is pretty good. 

 

We have been together near 20 years and never had a lease/usurfruct agreement - same age range now as you.. but, since you are contributing 'rent' equivalent, not sure what you are risking. Of course as in any business deal, never put more on the table than you can afford to lose. 

 

Good luck and my best advice is to go around w/a local builder or two... if it is similar to a house they built before, they will know the price... 

[AlQaholic]

I would recommend you make a detailed design first, It will do all the job for you when it comes to estimating the costs. I and my friend made a detailed design for his house few years back. With the detailed design, we were able to specify exactly how much rebar, concrete, steel for roof, tiling, bricks we needed for the project, and the as-built was spot on the design. No surprise extra costs. Every single rebar was designed and pre-fabricated in a workshop, delivered to site and installed without a hitch. If you have the exact details about all material needed, nobody can stiff you on the costs.

You will need a basic design anyway for the land office. And I agree with 1FinickyOne above totally.

Edited April 25, 2021 by AlQaholic

[DUNROAMIN]

2 to 3 mil, will depend how western style you want it. Also, the price will rise because your a 'Farang'. The size house you want sounds like it will be big enough for 2 Families.

[chilly07]

Don't. Plenty of good already built houses at low prices and you can see/survey what you are getting. You also get additional land if you don't build on a family plot plus you can get a Usufruct to protect your investment. Don't forget rent attracts land tax.

Edited April 25, 2021 by chilly07

[DineshR]

Here's another data point to consider. I just completed building a single storey house here in Korat using a local contractor.  2 ensuite bedrooms each 16 m2 (bathrooms each an additional 7 m2), with vinyl laminate flooring, a/c +fan, another ensuite bedroom 12.25 m2 with tile flooring  and fan (bathroom additional at 5.25 m2), an additional separate toilet 2.25m2, a tiled kitchen at 11 m2 with a/c and a sala at 54 m2. All in cost about 1.9 m. Total built up area 130 m2 which includes walkways. Not including furniture but all light fixtures, sanitary ware, two sewage tanks, external water tank with pump and filters. Deal with the contractor was that I would pay no more than 200k at a time and he had to stage each construction step so that it cost no more than 200k. The last 10% was only paid after everything was completed 100%. I had to inspect the work at the end of each step before he could go to the next. He had to show a detailed bill of material and labor for each step and on material if I could find it cheaper, then he would use my cost. Construction was completed in 4 months and did not exceed the original estimate. I estimate he made about 200k in profit as I was onsite everyday and counted the amount of people he had onsite so I could guess at his approximate labor cost. Hope this helps.

[Kurtf]

From my experience of having built a house to help my father-in-law, it is nice to own your own home and not have to make rent payments. However there is a huge downside. Someday you may decide you want to return to your home country. Be prepared to find out it is almost impossible to sell your house. Especially if it is built to farang standards which puts it out of the affordable range for most Thai people. So my advice would be...
DON'T DO IT.

[kingofthemountain]

3 minutes ago, Kurtf said:

From my experience of having built a house to help my father-in-law, it is nice to own your own home and not have to make rent payments. However there is a huge downside. Someday you may decide you want to return to your home country. Be prepared to find out it is almost impossible to sell your house. Especially if it is built to farang standards which puts it out of the affordable range for most Thai people. So my advice would be...
DON'T DO IT.

i agree with you

 

however in the OP case it's not a problem at all

the house will be in his Thai sister in law name

 

the OP is suposed to only pay a rent to her, and she will

use this money to pay the monthly due to the bank for the loan

the OP will never be the owner of the house (He doesn't want it and

anyway he can not afford it) then he will never had to sell the house

if he decides to return to his home country.

[natway09]

If it cannt be arranged that your wife legally owns the land, don't take it any further.

As to building, I have just finished a 157 m2 SS house.

All good, make sure you check with owners that have built already.

Price variations can be huge, make an addenda as to tiles choice,(full height or not) ceiling heights, doors, architraves,ceiling treatments, hot water systems, kitchen cupboards,

sink, basins,extract fans, bath, cook top, rangehood, built in robes, etc, the list goes on before any idea of pricing.

The shell even with good piles is the cheap part.

Good Luck with your chosen path

[Foghorn]

My advice would be keep it simple and think about the possibility of adding rooms easily when the time is right , use the heat resistant blocks that are glued together because at the end of the day it doesn’t cost more but is more pleasant . Buy materials alone ,not let builder decide

Edited April 25, 2021 by Foghorn

[soi3eddie]

Just now, Mister Fixit said:

 

The land for building will be free, being given by a sister who bought a larger area recently and my wife is hoping for about 400 sq metres, or 100 wa.  

At the moment it is a rice paddy, so I have no idea how stable it will be for building on.  With luck there will be some area which isn't a bog.

 

Their problem, not mine.

 

We bought 10 rai of rice field in 2004 at Nakhon Si Thammarat. Spent a fair amount of Baht filling it with rock and dirt to make a platform with a height of about 1.5 metres above original. Appparently it has to settle for a couple of years before building on it. We left it for over 10 years as busy elsewhere. Then divorced so never got to build.

 

2-3 million Baht will build you a decent size and house depending on specifications. 

 

 

 

[thasoss]

1 level house good construction work on 10,000-11,000 baht per square metre.find a reputable builder,do a contract with payments as you go.

[whaleboneman]

On 4/24/2021 at 2:10 AM, Mister Fixit said:

So why are the rooms in my current house all 4.75 m wide?

 

Because you can make rooms any size you want.