Rent a House in Bangkok

Rent a house in Bangkokreally nice ones are located way out in whoop
When I first moved to Bangkok, I rented anwhoop district.
apartment like most newcomers to Bangkok do,I don’t care as long as rent is cheap. Where
but as I became more familiar with my newdo I look?
home town, I decided to be a little moreAgain, you won’t find any agents to help you
adventurous and rented a house. Having lived inthere and finding that perfect yet cheap and nice
houses over the past five years now, I’vehouse is undoubtedly the hardest step. It usually
found that renting a house in Bangkok not onlytakes months of driving around moo baan after
offers more space and privacy, often it is alsomoo baan, which would mean having your own
much better value compared to apartment living.transport and knowing your way around.
More often than not, it is also a cheaper optionThe word “Moo Baan” translates to
(per square metre) compared to renting an“village” in Thai, but the term “housing
apartment or condo, which are getting smaller inestate” would be far more accurate. These
size these days! If you enjoy wide open spaces,usually have a guard posted at the entrance and
appreciate some green in your life - a gardenare situated all over Bangkok. These houses
perhaps, have pets, a large family or simply wantusually offer much better value than stand alone
to maximize your budget, consider renting ahouses, and are a good place for the house
house instead.hunter to start his/her search. Try areas like On
Another advantage in renting a house is,Nut between Sukhumvit 77 – 103, Bangna,
apartments tend to put a high surcharge on yourRangsit, Ramintra, Phayathai, Mo chit etc.
electricity and water bills. Many apartments have aConcerns and other issues
minimum charge of 1000 bht for water alone.1) Security
That is a significant amount considering my waterHonestly, I know of many farangs, including
bill never cost me over 500 bht living in a housemyself who have lived in single houses and
with a family of 5, and we do A LOT of washing!existed peacefully without any disturbances or
Electricity can be anything between 5 – 7 bahttrouble for years. I also do not know anyone who
per unit compared to the actual 3.75 baht chargedhas been burgled personally because they were
by the MEA. Living in a house can save you up toliving in a house. Do you?
half your utility bills compared to living in anIf you are considering renting a house and
apartment, and believe me it is A LOT ofsecurity is a main concern, rent a house in popular
difference!areas like Sukhumvit, Silom and Sathorn where
Thailand is cheap!there are many nearby apartments and condos
As you may already know, Thailand (morewith security. That way, you can benefit from
accurately, “Bangkok”) is not the cheapthe dense security in the neighbourhood.
haven many foreigners once thought it to be,Another option would be to opt for houses or
especially when it comes to housing. Propertytownhouse within a “moo baan.” There
prices and rental have gone up considerably andare plenty around and majority of them have
that’s the way it goes everywhere aroundtight 24 hour security. Common sense would also
the world. The very same 2 bedroom unit Itell me to explore the neighbourhood a little and
rented 5 years ago (in Silom) has gone up byhave a chat with shopkeepers and a neighbour
30% in rental and hardly any refurbishment haswho might be willing to share some information
been done to it since! “That’swith you. I’m sure you’ll have no
ridiculous” you say and believe it or not, Iproblems getting a friendly neighbour to spill the
agree! But hey, I don’t make the prices and ifbeans on the house, its previous tenants and
you think agents benefit from that higherprobably things you don’t need to know
commission, that’s only true when clientsabout your landlord. Welcome to Thailand!
actually think these houses are worth the price2) Air conditioners
and that isn’t always the case.Check to see how many rooms have
Renting a house in Sukhumvit, Silom or Sathorn.air-conditioning; and how old the air-conditioners
If you are looking to rent a house in the theare. If you are looking at an older house, chances
Sukhumvit, Silom or Sathorn area, then the veryare it will have those big, old blocks that rumble
minimum rental you are looking at is 30,000 bhtevery time you turn them on. These old
for a BASIC 3 bedroom house. Even then, theyair-conditioners consume a lot more energy than a
are few and far between in that range, and morenew one, and would greatly increase your
often than not are above 15 years old, with darkelectricity bills. It is also unlikely that the landlord
parquet flooring and lots of wooden built-ins whichwill install new air-conditioners for you unless they
many people find dark and depressing.are completely dead (even then they will always
Most people prefer something a little brighter andtry to revive the monster before even
contemporary. That would mean newer housesconsidering replacing it), so make sure that they
between 1 – 5 years old and these startare serviced and cleaned before you move in or
around 45,000 bht. Depending on the location, size,if you got a good deal on the rent, invest in some
décor, facilities etc. these can go up to anythingnew airconditioners!
from 150,000 – 250,000 baht per month. For3) Water Pressure
that price, please do not accept anything less thanNow this is important. Always check that there is
a spectacular, resort-like villa with a private pool!a water pump. Then check the water pressure
No, but seriously, you do get what you pay foron the upper floors to make sure the pump has
so be realistic when it comes to expectations andenough power to deliver a decent jet of shower.
budget. If you want something new and modernI’ve learnt from experience that size does
but lack the budget, then move further awaynot necessarily mean power when it comes to a
from the city centre. Which also means furtherwater pump, and sometimes a 2nd pump needs
away from the BTS line. Unfortunately, weto be installed to ensure constant deliverance of
cannot have it all and something’s gotta give.water into the house.
Generally, if you go further towards the end of4) Telephone lines
the BTS line and beyond i.e. Mo Chit, Phayathai,Again, from experience it is in your best interest
Phrakanong, On Nut, Bangna, Srinakarin, Rangsitto check the phone lines to make sure that 1)
etc. prices drop significantly and you get muchyou have one and 2) it is working, because some
better deals which are sometimes worth theareas (and this includes many areas in the
extra time commuting.Sukhumvit, Silom and Sathorn) do not have
Is it possible to find a house for 15,000 bht?anymore available numbers and you will have to
Not many agencies deal with houses below 25,000join a looong waiting list to apply for a new one.
bht. Just search the various property website inAlso, older houses above 10 years old tend to be
Thailand and you will see that the minimum rangeon the old, analog system which when faulty,
for houses are 25,000 - 30,000 bht, where thecannot be replaced unless the whole area is
search usually returns 0 - 5 results. Severalre-cabled. No telephone lines = no internet. You
reasons for that:don’t ever want to be caught in that situation!
1) There are a lot less decent and rentable5) Maintenance
houses at < 25,000 bht than there are at say,Houses within a secured compound will have what
50,000 bht.they call “moo baan fee” or
2) If there is, it is usually way out of town, far“community fee” which goes into the
from any BTS/MRT station.maintenance of the estate i.e. security, pool and
3) Most people want to live in town, close to thegarden maintenance etc. This is usually included in
city centre, CBD or near a BTS/MRT station.the asking rent. However, if you try negotiating
4) Apart from location, houses below 25,000 bhton the rent, then more often than not, the
are usually older (thus old fashioned) and not verylandlord will exclude this from the rent and make
well-maintained, which makes it very hard to rent.you pay for it, so check to see what your rent
5) If a house is nice and decent with an askingincludes when you are signing the contract. This
rent of 25,000 bht or less, some agents mark itranges between 20 - 45 bht per square metre.
up!Thus, the larger your house the more you pay! I
Thus, it’s hard to find nice, decent houses atcurrently pay 3,500 baht per month for my
25,000 bht or less…“moo baan fee” (I got a 5000 bht
Regardless, there are plenty of cheap houses asreduction in rent, so it works out) and we have
low as 12,000 bht for rent, but remember, and I24 hour security, a well-maintained common
stress again - you get what you pay for! Andgarden and a superb pool that is regularly cleaned,
most 12,000 bht houses I’ve seen are usuallyso I am happy.
in serious need of repair and maintenance, and the