Moving to Pattaya-Finding the Perfect Condo Deal

[duke007]

Lucas from Rides 4 Kickz looking for a new Condo 

 

[Pdoggg]

The above video and the upcoming series is quite interesting and worth watching if you're thinking of renting/buying a condo.

He kicked of the series with the Centric Sea which to me is not a great location unless you're s Soi 6 bar manager.  Centric Sea is easy to return to yet it's not convenient to get to either Beach Road or Soi Buakhao if you want to get on a baht bus headed south.

Units at Centric Sea are smallish which appeals to Chinese. There is a recent condo trend with smaller units but more elaborate common areas.

In today's Covid market that unit won't rent at the asking price of 17K. It seems that the selling point for that unit is that there is a garden area right outside his room.  I looked at a few Centric Sea units two years ago and found them smallish, and problematic that there were no curtains in most units by the sliding glass door that separates thriving room and bedroom.

I've looked at quite a few condos in the last few months and have found that rental prices have dropped dramatically but that asking sales prices have not so I decided to rent for another year.

I started out looking just like Lucas, for the "best deal".  After looking around I narrowed my search to specific areas.  For example the condos behind Jomty 2nd Road offer great value, lagoon style pools at 6500 baht a month but are best suited to guys who ride bikes everywhere, therefore not for me.  

I gave Centric Sea a pass and Lucas did not seem crazy about it either. Looking forward to the rest of the series.  Thanks for posting Dukey!  

 

[Taleung2]

I couldn't tell from the video where exactly the eating place was.

Since I am a lover of good food and Pad Thai in particular, who recognized the location and can help me to find it?

[BigTel]

3 minutes ago, Taleung2 said:

who recognized the location and can help me to find it?

I have eaten there once, from the top junction of Buddha hill which has the small police box with the Muay Thai outdoor ring behind it, head along Pratumnak to soi 4 turn right into soi 4 walk down till you see a Family mart turn left at the family mart walk along the soi and the restaurant will be about 30 metres on the right.

[duke007]

1 hour ago, BigTel said:

I have eaten there once, from the top junction of Buddha hill which has the small police box with the Muay Thai outdoor ring behind it, head along Pratumnak to soi 4 turn right into soi 4 walk down till you see a Family mart turn left at the family mart walk along the soi and the restaurant will be about 30 metres on the right.

BigTel, the Soi Atlas of Pattaya and Jomtien , is there anywhere you don't know amogo? , love it 

[BigTel]

1 hour ago, duke007 said:

BigTel, the Soi Atlas of Pattaya and Jomtien , is there anywhere you don't know amogo? , love it 

There's a couple of Soi's but I shall work on them    

[duke007]

 

[Pdoggg]

So far I've looked at all 3 condos that are in Lucas' two videos.   Like Lucas I'm not a fan of the Base, very small rooms, the main thing going for it is a separate kitchen.

I've looked at a few units at Grand Avenue.  I like the Soi 15 location but prefer the quieter side of this L shaped soi where the Mercure and Urban are located.  I don't believe that the Grand has studios, the 35 sq meter units are small one bedrooms.  Lucas was looking at a more spacious 47 sq meter 1 bedroom.   But whether 35 or 47 neither have built in wardrobes so are not as spacious as they look.  Many condos have saunas but Grand is one of the few with a steam room. Brand new, so hard to tell how the building will hold up in a few years if buying.  Also if buying, the developer still has control of the condo committee.   

Of the three, I prefer the Grand but 47 sq meter @ 16K but one bedrooms are available for as low as 8K elsewhere (although 10K might be more typical) albeit in a less convenient location for Bua Cowboys.  

[duke007]

 

[duke007]

 

[Pdoggg]

More interesting condo videos.    In the series he has looked at lots of giant towers and not too many low rise condos which are typically eight stories.  In the last two videos he looks at the Eunuch and the Suplamai.   I'm not thrilled with towers and I'm not a big fan of the Eunuch's location but others may feel differently.  The Suplamai is geographically undesirable unless you don't mind taking Grabs or ride a motobike as Lucas does.  

[ozzie]

5 hours ago, Pdoggg said:

More interesting condo videos.    In the series he has looked at lots of giant towers and not too many low rise condos which are typically eight stories.  In the last two videos he looks at the Eunuch and the Suplamai.   I'm not thrilled with towers and I'm not a big fan of the Eunuch's location but others may feel differently.  The Suplamai is geographically undesirable unless you don't mind taking Grabs or ride a motobike as Lucas does.  

Hey mate are you just having a laugh at his pronunciation? Anyway for everyone else they are called Unixx and Supalai Mare

[duke007]

 

[Pdoggg]

I'm not a fan of City Garden Tower.    It's on the wrong side of 3rd Road and seems over priced based on the rental range Lucas was talking about.   To me it's a too small space in a poor location.

The second place he looked at is City Garden Olympus, even smaller and in a worse location.   In today's market,  one can be choosy and these two condos would not be on my recommended list at these prices.

[duke007]

 

[Pdoggg]

Just a note about The Point in the above video.....it is in an extremely inconvenient location.  When you go into town you need to either ride your motorbike/car, take a motobike taxi to the baht bus, or take a Bolt.   

[duke007]

 

[Pdoggg]

In the episode above, Lucas looks at the Arcadia Continental.  I believe that I looked at the slightly older sister property Arcadia Beach.   He says he thinks the units he looked at were 66 sqm and the living room felt spacious.  I believe that unit I looked at was 58 sqm and it felt small.  

Some of the negatives are a lack of closet space, an extremely small sofa and really nowhere to add additional storage space.

When I first saw pics of the Acadia Continental's and Arcadia's Beach lagoon style pools I was wowed but when I went there the pool didn't seem as great as the pics.  I think a lagoon style pool is a great selling point for a hotel but for a condo, a functional pool is more important.  The gyms in both places are impressive.  

The actual neighborhood outside the complex didn't do too much for me and the walk up the hill to the baht bus isn't too far but a bit of a pain and the walk down at night feels a bit barren.  But 17K for a two bedroom isn't bad.

There has never been a better time to rent a condo in Pattaya.   Eventually sales prices will start falling significantly.  Right now the price drops are modest, maybe 20% from pre-covid times. There is a complete mismatch of supply and demand.  

Lastly, I'm lusting after his real estate agent!   

[duke007]

 

[Pdoggg]

Can't argue to much with his selection of Grand Ave at 13K, not far from the Hideaway.  He seemed to have no love for the Centara Avenue not liking the idea that he would share the pool with tourists.

The Centara unit looked quite similar to the unit Dukey rented at the Centara, which looks like one of the units with the terrace facing diagonally which I think is a real plus.  I stayed at the Centara Condo for two nights and felt that the quality of the fixtures was superior to the Grand.  My impression of the Grand is once they made their off plan sales they went cheap on the fixtures. 

As I said can't argue with renting at the Grand for 13K.  You can stumble home even if mao mak, lagoon pool, nice gym, sauna, and one of the rare condos that has a steam room. Before Covid, that unit would probably rent for 18K with asking prices even higher.

Excellent series, the most any series  for me put together by any Vlogger but I have a special interest in Pattaya condos. 

[duke007]

 

[Pdoggg]

In the above video, Lucas advises that guys moving to Thailand should book a hotel for the first few nights and then leasing monthly but not locking yourself into a long term lease.  I strongly agree.

For the first few nights one good option is the Neta @ 500 baht a night for a very nice room and a swimming pool.  It doesn't say that on their website but there is a big sign out front. You can confirm by talking with them.   It's easy walking distance to many ladyboy bars.

http://www.netaresortpattaya.com/

Many realtors have a 6 month minimum but with Pattaya Sunny Rentals you can rent by the month at a good price.  They probably own these units themselves so are anxious to rent them while with most estate agents it doesn't make sense because the standard commission on a yearly rental is that the agent's commission is equal to a month's rent.

https://www.holiday-rentals-pattaya.com/apartmens

[duke007]

 

[Pdoggg]

The cut through that he didn't know about is what some here call the Hershey Highway, a partially dirt road that goes from Soi 15 to Buakhao.  The green netting on the dirt road is the casino. 

Another trick he will discover soon enough which DC showed me is cutting through the Centara on Soi 15 and you can exit either on Diana by LK Metro or on Buakhao near Cheap Charlies where you can get a 99 baht roast chicken dinner.

All in all a great neighborhood  if one wants to live in Central Pattaya.  If mao, easy enough to stumble home from the Ass.

[duke007]