Communal pool with panoramic sea views within gated community resort estate

Pensioners need to consider exchange rates, and there’s no doubt they are a factor to consider when retiring abroad and living off such income, and although it’s possible, it’s unlikely that exchange rates for the British pound, Euro and US dollar will fall very much further against the Thai baht, and it’s arguably more likely that as these western economies begin to recover from their economic misfortunes, so their currencies will slowly start to return towards their former strength, and therefore the exchange rate against the Thai baht will strengthen, making Thailand even more affordable in the future. To a minor degree this has already started to happen in recent months, as the US dollar and British pound have strengthened slightly against the Thai baht, reflecting the green shoots of recovery and the anticipation of future interest rate rises in these countries once the economic situation is strong enough to tolerate them. But for the moment due to problems in Europe the Euro is still suffering somewhat in respect of it’s former value.

Yet which ever way you look at it, Thailand really does have the best of both worlds those looking to retire abroad : high standards and good infrastructure, but with a low cost of living.

Lux 5 bed house

Foreigners can retire here in Thailand and live a very comfortable life with a high standard of living and western standards of shopping and comfort on a fraction of what it would cost in their home country for the same standard of living. House and condo apartments in Thailand are still far cheaper than in western countries, or indeed many other popular retirement locations overseas, and a major factor in the decision of why to choose Thailand as your retirement destination of choice. Affordable housing makes it possible to leave sufficient spare funds to be able to afford a new car or boat, or to enjoy taking more holidays to travel to other exotic destinations around the world and thereby have some new and exciting adventures during your retirement.

3 bed with views

With labour still being very cheap compared to western countries private healthcare is much more affordable here in Thailand too, and some expats employ a maid for convenience and/or nurse to assist them in their retirement years if they are disabled or finding it more difficult in their later years to get around and do the things they used to. Even on a moderate income it’s possible to afford the luxury of a maid to do the cleaning, cooking and washing, and several properties here in Thailand have their own maids quarters for this purpose so that the maid and/or nurse can live on site, but not within the main house so that you can retain your privacy if you wish.

2 bed bungalow

2 bedroom properties start from a price as low as only 1.5 million Thai baht,

which is about 30,000GBP | 45,000USD | 40,000EUR | 350,000SEK | 290,000NOK

But take a look at our Sales and Rentals page for a summary of the properties listed on our website, and click any of the properties for full information.

For more advice and information about Thailand’s Golden Coast from Rayong to Klaeng, and the choice of properties in the area to meet your requirements, please contact us.

But you might be fooled by some attractive looking website offering a selection of properties for sale or rent, but once again, look more carefully, and look to see if the website proudly displays their company name, office address, telephone and fax numbers, contact names, etc, because if such details are absent then it’s a sure thing that the website has been set up by a foreigner who is masquerading as a real estate agent, and who is working illegally here in Thailand without a Thai work permit.

Such people are working from home and/or from a website, with only one agenda : to line their greedy pockets with backhand commission payments from the seller. They are knowingly breaking the law and committing a crime by working illegally in this country and paying no taxes to Thailand and to the local community, and can be fined, imprisoned or deported for their dishonesty and criminal behaviour. They are not professionals and have very little knowledge of Thai law, nor may they possess much business experience, and may even be ignorant of the proper proceedings of a property sale which are necessary to ensure you a safe purchase.

Their friendly, generous and helpful behaviour is the means by which they manipulate their victims towards their hidden agenda, because if they were really serious about providing a proper and honest service to their customers then they would operate legitimately within the bounds of the law.

So, if you are looking to buy or rent a property, do yourself and everyone else here in Thailand a favour and steer clear of such sharks, and if you have a property for sale or for rent, be careful not to solicit the help of a foreigner who has no Thai work permit to assist with the promotion and sale or rental management of your property, and who does not have the knowledge to offer you any sensible advice which could prevent you from inadvertently breaking the law too.

Resorts along the Rayong coastline have long been popular with the Thais, especially the resort area of Mae Phim beach, but not just for it’s beautiful beach, but also because of the popular beach side Thai seafood restaurants which serve a wide variety of delicious seafood at value for money prices, and the lack of over-development in the area and the fact that it still retains much of it’s countryside charm.

At just under 2 hours from the international airport, just over 2 hours to the city of Bangkok, and just over an hour to Pattaya for those who want to party once in a while it’s the perfect central Thailand location to settle down for your retirement. But apart from the handy location, natural beauty and great food, it’s also renowned for it’s friendliness and low crime rate, making it one of the safest and friendliest areas of Thailand to retire and for families to visit.

For these reasons Thailand’s Golden Coast is becoming increasingly popular with foreigners and somewhat of a real estate hotspot. Large and small developments are springing up along the coast, but choosing safely between them is a minefield which our experience and local knowledge of the developers can help you through.

There have been several successful housing and condo development projects along the coastline in recent years, but, as with other areas of Thailand, there have also been a number of other developments which have failed to complete anywhere near on time, and some which are still struggling, and some which may never finish having run into financial difficulties because they lacked the proper funding and relied too much upon off plan sales. The latter is the worst case scenario because it leaves the customer having paid a substantial amount of money to the developer, yet they are left with an incomplete property on an abandoned construction site.

We have been asked by several new construction development projects to help them promote and sell their houses and condo units for top dollar prices, offering tempting commission payments which other agents and so called agents (those foreigners selling real estate without a work Thai permit to do so) would be happy to accept disregarding any integrity or professional responsibility in respect of the risk on behalf of their customers. But we, on the other hand, make a careful and professional assessment of the developer in terms of their finances for the development and experience in construction and sales and marketing of such developments, and if they do not come up to par, or are not forthcoming with any information that we request, then we will not promote their construction project until it reaches a point when we can be sure that it will be a success and will reach completion.

Alternatively, for a safer bet, there are some real bargains to be found amongst the more spacious mature developments, which have already reached completion and have a proven track record of management and maintenance. Not only that, but some of the mature developments were the luxury developments at some point in the past, with spacious plot sizes and communal areas and extensive communal facilities, and they occupy prime ocean front real estate locations along the coastline, leaving second best to the newer luxury developments which nowadays have a tendency to cram as many houses and condo apartment blocks into the available land area as possible.

For those who are looking to buy, we have a wide range of houses and condo apartments for sale, and you will find that the prices are still very good value in comparison with the more well known tourist areas such as Phuket, Koh Samui, Hua Hin and Pattaya, and because of the low crime rate you don’t have to live in a walled off fortress. At present we have houses for sale from around 1.5 million to around 30 million baht, and condo apartments for sale from around 1 million baht to around 12 million baht.

A visit to the area is essential before you buy, to ascertain whether or not the area and properties therein meet your needs, dreams and budget, but for those who are a little more cautious, or who might wish to wait a while before they sell their house or apartment in their home country in order to help fund their retirement, then renting a house or apartment in the area is a sensible first step and may place you in a position which will allow you to grasp any new property coming onto the market which is right for you.

We have a number of short term holiday let properties as well as medium to long term rental properties available, so please with your requirements if you are looking for somewhere to stay in the area and we will do our best to meet your needs.

The Mae Phim beach and surrounding area has long been popular with the Thais as a coastal resort area, but bypassed by foreigners and not really on the foreign tourist map as it lies between the more popular areas of Pattaya, Koh Samet and Koh Chang. Hence real estate prices have traditionally been well below those of the more popular foreign tourist destinations.

About 4 years ago now the Thai government started ploughing a significant amount of money into the area, to encourage tourism to this coastline region. One large project is the new coastal highway with cycleway which starts at Mae Phim and will eventually go all the way to Trat…. at present much of the road is completed between Mae Phim and Chantaburi with the last bridge link across the river on the coast at Laem Son to Prasere near Klaeng being constructed at present. The charming and beautiful Rock Garden Beach resort estate with several acres of ocean side tropical gardens and waterways dividing the houses on the estate lies just a few kilometers away from this last bridge link.

Oceanside Swimming Pool and Tropical Gardens at Rock Garden Beach Resort Estate

The new Bangkok International Airport to the east of Bangkok also gave a boost to this area, since it takes around 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours to commute from the airport by taxi…. a reasonably short onward link for tourists.

Avatara Condominium Mae Phim Beach

Phuphatara Residence and Marriott Hotel and Spa development

There are further developments planned to happen over the next few years too, with plans for new hotels, further condominium developments, and no doubt some more housing developments too.

Obviously these new developments have started to have a significant effect on the price of land near the ocean, and new developments which have been promoted have sold out for top dollar. However, the knock on effect on the price of land and houses on the mature developments is lagging behind somewhat, and as a result these holiday villas and vacation homes on generous sized plots are still significantly undervalued, still reflecting the fall in prices from earlier years after the 97 crash, rather than the current land prices. There are several mature developments along the coast, with Rock Garden Beach being in my opinion one of the most charming, and indeed the best value for money amongst them.

1/3 Rai 3 bed 3 bath 2.15M baht

Most houses need little more than a new coat of paint to restore them to their former beauty, but bit by bit, house by house, the houses on the estate are transferring to new owners who refurbish and perhaps extend the houses and restore them to a beautiful “as new” condition. This transformation is being encouraged by everyone involved in the project, and thus, the estate is looking better and better with each passing year, which makes it more and more attractive to new prospective buyers, and eventually this has to be reflected in an increase in price beyond those prices which we have here at present.

Houses on the Rock Garden Beach resort estate are without doubt excellent value for money, and as further new developments in the area take place over the next few years, in particular those in close proximity to Rock Garden Beach resort estate itself, then the house prices are bound to see a significant increase, especially those in the prime locations on the estate. So, whether you purchase one which has been extended and refurbished already, or whether you take on a property which is in need of a facelift, you’ll be buying in a coastal area which is Thailand’s latest coastal real estate HOTSPOT, and you’ll be buying on one of the best value for money mature real estate developments in the area too.

Mae Phim Beach at Sunset

Whilst other areas are struggling in these difficult economic times, the Mae Phim area continues to thrive and grow, and the real estate market remains relatively buoyant, with prices continuing to rise, catching up with land prices and also with the prices of real estate in the more popular tourist destinations. Obviously any property with a sea view is in more demand than those without, so this is something to bear in mind when viewing properties for investment purposes.

“The early bird gets the worm” as they say, so when you’re ready to come down and take a look at the opportunities available at Rock Garden Beach and some of the other mature developments in the area, we will do our best to help advise you on the properties available. But with such a bright future ahead for this coastline area, and properties on the mature developments not yet reflecting the increase in land prices, it’s going to be pretty difficult to make a blunder so far as an investment, whatever you choose.

Please take a look at our current property listings page and contact us on 083 117 9096 or 083 119 9967 to arrange a viewing.

Here in Mae Phim, Rayong province, we are so close to the ocean that it’s impossible for the land to flood since it just drains into the sea nearby, and the sunny climate and dry land means that an increasing number of people are filling the hotels and renting any and all available holiday rental properties for accommodation of their families. We can still help people to find short term houses and apartments to rent in the area. So if you’re looking to rent a house or apartment near the ocean on a resort estate with communal swimming pool etc, then give us a call on 083 117 9096 (English) or 083 119 9967 (Thai).

Thailand has many benefits which make it an affordable, fun and relatively safe place to stay and to live, and there’s a variety of reasons why different people enjoy staying and living in Thailand, and members can comment on their reasons and they will be added to the online document “Why Live in Thailand?”. So far there’s a total of 20 reasons for living in Thailand, but please feel free to join the group and comment on your own reasons for why you like to stay/live in Thailand.

The 20 reasons so far…

1. The Thai people are friendly and non-confrontational (kreng jai).

2. All kinds of differernt people are accepted without judgement or ridicule.

3. The food is wonderful and delicious.

4. The Biker Community is friendly and offers the opportunity for a great social life.

5. Thai culture demands respect for the elderley and for people in authority, and this helps to maintain a country which is largely free from yob culture, and which is welcoming and caring for those people choosing to retire abroad here in Thailand.

6. Thailand has some of the world’s most amazing natural beauty and scenery.

7. If you like diving, then Thailand has some excellent dive sites to explore, and unlike some other places it won’t cost you a small fortune to enjoy.

8. Living costs are still relatively cheap over here, especially housing/apartment costs.

9. Nowadays the infrastructure is well developed and reasonably well maintained.

10. Private healthcare is excellent, and costs less here than in western countries.

11. The weather is warm all year round, allows you to go out in shorts and a t-shirt even at night time, and takes away the aches and pains which cold climates exacerbate.

12. There’s lots of National Holidays and long weekends to enjoy.

13. There’s many National Park areas to enjoy the nature of the wonderful rivers, waterfalls, mountains, caves, islands, etc.

14. Cinemas, Amusement Parks, Aquariums, Water Parks, Tropical Gardens, etc, etc, they are all such good value for money over here at a fraction of the price in western countries.

15. The price of fuel (gasoline / petrol price) is reasonable here in Thailand.

16. There’s lots of festivals to enjoy all year round in Thailand.

17. You don’t need to have breakdown recovery service in Thailand – there’s always someone willing to help you if your bike or car breaks down.

18. Here in Thailand you can build or renovate a property for a fraction of the price in Europe or the USA.

19. With a lower cost of living and housing you can retire overseas in Thailand in relative luxury compared to the standard of living and quality of life which the same money would afford in western countries.

20. Thailand’s main religion is Buddhism, promoting a peaceful and caring way of life, with a middle way which encourages people to remain cool and calm and not get angry about issues (jai yen yen – cool heart).