If you are considering renting a house or condo in Pattaya, you shoud be aware that we are very much in a buyers market now. Recent events such as the currency rates, coup and visa controls (10,000 long term stayers had to leave on the 1st January 2007) have left a huge glut of property to rent. Many properties have been empty now for a long time and (farang) landlords can often be desperate to rent. Thai landlords, for some reason, seem happy to have empty properties and hold out for the higher rent despite the fact that they are actually losing money. Four out of the ten houses in my Soi have been empty since last MAY and prices have fallen from 30,000 to 20,000 and still not renting. These are HUGE houses too.

I would point out that condo sales remain flat (not fallen in numbers or price) but that is more due to the difficulties in buying a house now than market forces.

One agent recently contacted me to tell me that a house I had been interested in four months ago was still available and that the price had dropped from 25,000 a month to 18,000. When I went to look at the house (a lovely 3 bed with roof terrace) there was a sign on the gate with the owners telephone number. When I called that number they were prepared to go down to 14,000 for a longer term contract of at least 6 months.

For tips on what to watch out for and things to avoid read the rest of this article.

Things to bear in mind when renting in Pattaya:-

1. Remember in MOST cases you have the upper hand given the current state of the market. Always negotiate.
2. Ask to see the last electricity bill. This will show you when the house was last let. If it is a new property ask when it was registered at the land office. If the house has been empty for a long time then again you have a lot of negotiating power and it is almost certainly over-priced.
3. ALWAYS look around the area – you will often see other houses at lower prices.
4. Do NOT agree to two months deposit. Obviously a deposit is a reasonable request from a landlord but two months is excessive. ALWAYS get in WRITING that your deposit will be returned subject to certain conditions. Thai landlords in particualr rarely hand back deposits and the agents are usually powerless to help you as they are bound to act for their clients. Thais will simply say that if its not in writing they dont have to hand to back. There is little or no recourse for you in law if this is the case.
5. Given the above I would strongly advise that you try to find a “farang” landlord. Still no guarantees but the bad reports we get are more often than not about Thai landlords who think nothig of ripping off the “farang”.
6. If at all possible try and deal DIRECT with the landlord. Agents tend to add around 15% to the rent and then do little for you in return. Their fees are to the landlord for marketing his/her property. Also try and get a landlord who actaully LIVES here – otherwise getting essential repairs done can be a nightmare; agents will rarely help. If you know the area you would like to live in just take a drive around, the chances are you will see hundreds of “for rent” signs pinned to gates so using the services of an agent to find your house is really not necessary and you will save a lot of money too.
7. NEVER agree a contract term in excess of 6 months unless the 12 month price is CONSIDERABLY lower!
8. NEVER sign a contract that says “the rent WILL increase at the end of the term” – this is negotiable at the time and as recent events have proven the price could well go DOWN not up.
9. NEVER fall for the “if you dont sign today there are other people interested”. You will almost always be told this and in the vast majority of cases it is just not true. Check the electricity bills as I said before and you will know how long it has been empty so another quick rental is highly unlikely.
10. If you DO rent through an agent always get a direct contact number for the landlord. Check the owners name in the land register and if Thai, be careful.

Obviously, there are many good landlords and agents out there and if you find the property of your dreams and the terms are reasonable then you may not be able to dictate the terms, especially if the house is already reasonably priced. Some locations, priced well, WILL let quickly so you may be in a situaution where you have to accept the landlords terms or lose the house. However you should still exercise due care.

Even in these circumstances you should bear in mind that there are MANY other houses you can choose from in Pattaya.

I have seen landlords in villages in East Pattaya STILL asking 25,000 for 3 bed two bathroom houses – this is way OTT in todays market unless the house is VERY special. The same house in the same village will probably go for 15,000 from a sensible owner.

My advice would be to stay in a reasonably priced hotel for two or three months and have a GOOD look around, you will be amazed at the disparity of prices for similar properties.