Dream of Siam

Buying a condominium (condo) in Thailand is perfectly legal. The reason being that you own only the building, rather than the land under the building. It's illegal for foreigners to own land in Thailand. In the case of condos the land is owned by the Thai company or possibly individual responsible for the development. He then sells leases on dwellings to individuals. As with any leaseholder arrangement it's always vital to check the length of the lease you are purchasing. Whereas these can be 99 years typically in the West they may be much shorter in Thailand, sometimes only 20 years - this makes their purchase much less attractive. So basically, it is possible to legally purchase leasehold properties in Thailand.

So what's the difference between a villa, a condo and an apartment? As mentioned condos can be purchased leasehold, whereas villas would be purchased on a freehold basis, with the owner also owning the land underneath the dwelling.

The difference between a condo and an apartment is not always clear. Basically, condos are units on a specifically developed complex with shared facilities such as swimming pools and tennis courts. An apartment is basically the same thing as a condo building wise - only you rent it rather than purchasing a lease.

If you purchase a condo, you are very dependent on the maintenance company to carry out their work reliably and thoroughly, and unfortunately this doesn't always happen as it should in Thailand. This can leave you with an apartment in a badly deteriorating complex after a few years, and have difficulties selling and moving on. It's really important to get feedback from existing purchasers if you can find them.