Build your dream house near the beach in a tropical paradise: Within the Realm of Possibilities or Not?
For all the horror stories, Thailand is a great place to do it. Not only is Thailand just a really neat place, skilled labor is also readily available and very inexpensive, and basic materials are much cheaper than overseas. You can get the whole thing done for maybe $25,000 USD or so, depending of course on the size, choice of materials and other factors.
Wouldn't it be nice to leverage off others who have been down that road? That is what coolthaihouse.com is all about. Not only is it a full pictorial history of the step by step build out of the coolthaihouse project house, there is also a web log with plenty of my personal insigh ts and also many stories, commen ts and pointers from contributors. It is a non commercial no strings attached information sharing site for anyone who has built or intends to build in the LOS.
Some basic recommendations to get the job done right:
* Make sure to get a reputable contractor. Check out references. Go talk to the owners of houses that the general contractor has built.
* Structure your contract (with the general) for labor only. That puts you in charge of buying the materials which ensures top quality throughout. It also eliminates any motivation for the contractor to cut corners to save on material costs (ie. ultra thin concrete pour).
* Research: observe some houses being built around where you are. Ask questions. Get educated. Read coolthaihouse.com.
* Be on site every day, if only to inspect. Sure it isn't convenient, but believe me you will thank me for this later. It also eliminates any motivaton for the contractor to cut corners to save on material costs (ie. ultra thin concerte pour).
* Since foreigners cannot own land directly, you'll need to make sure that you secure righ ts to your property with many of the legal means as discussed on the coolthaihouse site.
* In any real estate dealings, stay away from those one stop does it all shops. You need to work with unassociated real estate agents, lawyers, contractors etc. If language is a problem, get a translator. It will be the best money you ever spent.
Thanks to Dozer at coolthaihouse.com for this article
