Need Information on home loans from Thai Banks

A bit of internet research will get you a lot of info on this subject.

Basically you are unlikely to get a loan from a Thai bank but other types of finance may be available(at a price) depending on your circumstances and what you want to buy.


Here's what Siam Legal say about the subject:

Mortgage Bonds for Foreigners in Thailand

My opinion: Buying property here is dodgy at best and to borrow money to do it is crazy!

Alternative:
Rents are very reasonable especially outside the major tourist traps.

Thank you very much. I guess weighing the option you make a better point for why I should keep my cash and take advantage of renting cheap.

sirrobcentral wrote:

Thank you very much. I guess weighing the option you make a better point for why I should keep my cash and take advantage of renting cheap.

Up to you of course and circumstances can be different if you have a Thai partner. But renting to start with is not a bad idea. Some great prices to be had. CM can be expensive though near the town.

Recently I read something about how the only possibilities for foreigners to get home loans was thru two Thai banks with branches in Singapore. I'm sure if you look around you can find out what I'm referring to but purchase a house here with a loan is risky. If I am unwilling to leave something behind or I can't carry it with me, I don't want to buy it.

To cut a long story short, I recently bought a new house in Thailand in the name of my Thai wife. A small bank loan was required, about 25% of the value. I was not present at meetings with the bank who were not told I existed as a Thai without a foreigner gets a better interest rate. However, my wife was conned by the bank into taking out 3 insurance policies i.e. life assurance for 20 years paid in advance, an insurance savings plan which she doesn't want or need and accident insurance which she already has. Unofficially she was told that if she did not buy these insurances her application for a loan would stay in a "queue" for months without a decision. This month the bank have stolen 9,000 THB from her account. They say it's for house insurance for 3 years. We have not agreed to this, have no insurance policy or schedule of insurance. In fact we had no knowledge of it whatsoever. In UK banks cannot do this but does anyone know if it is legal in Thailand?

Hugh_2121

Firstly sorry you feel the way you do.

However take a moment to reflect on what has happened, you say you did not attend the bank and that your wife carried out the transactions, so in fact you are unaware of what actually happened in there and just how much pressure was applied to buy certain of the products.

All the insurances you mention could/would be required by a UK mortgage lender in one form or another, including the insurance for the dwelling subject to the mortgage. Indeed you might also have to fund a one off mortgage protection policy too depending on your credit status/age/job.

I suspect that the bank explained this too your wife,  albeit with a bit of Thainess thrown in and that the premium for the dwelling insurance(required for mortgaged properties in UK and Thailand)was also in the fine print of the document she signed.

Where to go with this, short of a meeting with the bank manager and trying to at least get the accident insurance premium refunded, I think its one you are going to have to live with/write off.

Not so!
1. Neither the bank nor the insurance company have an application for building insurance
2. The bank have a signed mandate to take the mortgage payments monthly but no mandate for building insurance premiums.
3.There is no requirement for PPP insurance in UK or for savings insurance or accident insurance.
I have subsequently discovered that not only is there a Consumer Protection Act in Thailand but also a Consumer Protection Board, website ocpb.go.th They conduct complaints in English. The Act outlines certain consumer rights, one of which is the right to freedom in choice of goods and services. The local bank have advised that my wife can call the insurance company and cancel the policy but refunding the money has to come from the bank's head office. This was only offered after I quoted the Act to the manager who become very subdued after initially being quite aggressive.

Good for you. I will be interested to hear how you get on with the consumer protection unit should your wife pursue a complaint.

Clearly I was wrong about insurance requirements for a UK mortgage regarding savings insurance(whatever that is)I missed it when I read your OP.

It is very difficult for foreigners to get a loan from a Thai bank. Most foreigners borrow in their Thai partner's name, using the assets or credit line of the Thai partner. There are a few banks and institutions that will lend money for foreigners to purchase a condominium Freehold, but that is based on a project by project approval, most in main cities or tourist areas, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, Pattaya etc. Thai banks will not lend to foreigners building a house on leased land.

Hello KrabiMan,

Note that this thread is inactive since 2013, you might not get any response.

You may react on more recent threads on the Thailand forum if you have have relevant infos to share.

Sorry about that,
Bhavna

it is possible but you will need to have certain Visa and a few years of work permits and some letters from high up people