Purchasing Land in Sihanoukville

You should know that the Otres beach coastal land is ALWAYS going to be grabbed up by the government at any time. All coastal land is like that. Big companies come in, pay off the locals, and have the property condemned, and then turn it over to the company, who may do nothing with it. I would consider renting a place, or renting the land, so you can't lose too much. Several of the places down there have mysteriously burned down (Cantina Bar)...

Thanks for the heads up madmax, I was/am considering purchasing some vacant land back from the beach (over the dirt road) at Otres 2 (not far from the river) which is not in the Govt development catchment. 

Whilst I have research Cambodian property law (Im an Australian Lawyer) which is relatively straight forward, the actual application and corruption issues are still concerning.

The CDC and CID appear to be trying to make investing in Cambodian safer, but it still appears risky.

If anybody eles has any insight I would be greatful to hear it...

If you're a small investor, best to be wary of making long term plans. If you want professional advice, ask a real estate group that serves big investors. Bonna Realty and CBRE Cambodia are the two I know of.

Thanks Rob.

I am aware of Bonna Realty and will reach out to them in due course. It is a shame that only 'giant' corporations have security of investment here, as they are generally the organisations that focus on profit only and dont give a rats about making a contribution to the community....

One other thought: If you want to continue your law biz, look into getting a Notary Public license. It may not require a Cambodia degree. As I found out, there is only ONE in Sihanoukville at this time. He gets $50 to notarize a signature. He speaks English, and doesn't care what the doc is. Didn't even ask.

Hey Max, perhaps thats why the Cambodian legal system is still developing when public notaries will just authenticate anything without bother... but it would be a good little earner....Dont think it would be challenging enough to keep my mind occupied, but i appreciate the heads up.

After extensive research and consideration, my business partner and I have now abandon our goal of purchasing property at Ortes Beach.... Its just to risky....Its a shame because some greedy corporation will now (in time) just milk the city for everything its worth and give little to no consideration to supporting the community.... guess i will have to slug it out here in Melbourne for a few more years yet...

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Absolutely the best decision.
I have lived in SV for almost 12 years and seen too too too many foreigners lose huge amounts of money buying property with zero legal protection. Understand even legal doc's are almost worthless when someone wants your land and will bribe all officials to make it happen, have 3 friends who lost hotels because the judges took bribes and ruled against them and ignored all paperwork.  Until the corrupt government is changed it will never change.