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Based on my own experience of living and operating an Real Estate Agency in Hua Hin for nearly 5 years; and having built my own house and many others for our clients, if I had to do it all over again, I would most likely recommend my clients to buy a condo over a house. Why you may ask?

For one, over 90% of projects I've heard about encounter some sort of building issues somewhere along the line i.e. low building standards, untrained contractors, delay in work and therefore late delivery of finished product, lack of guarantee on construction quality, and many more.

But before I present my obviously biased opinion, let's look at the Pros and Cons of buying a house vs condo.

House:

Pros:
- Larger Living space
- Private Garden
- Pets allowed
- Easier to do Renovations

Cons:
- More remote location
- Can feel less spacious
- Difficulties in transportation
- Slower Re-sale

Condominium:

Pros:
- Likely to be more centrally located
- Can be more spacious even with smaller total area
- Better Security
- Easier Re-sale

Cons:
- No private land or garden
- No private car port
- Possibly noisier
- Actual living space smaller
- No pets
- Restrictions in Renovations

The main obstacle for many foreign buyers is the language barrier. When you buy a house you are really on your own unless you have a Thai wife or girlfriend who can do some translation for you and even then it can be a hurdle to be understood. Most condo buildings have office staff who speak adequate English and help attend to tenants, home owners and guests.

If you are planning to buy a house and only live in Thailand part of the year, you will need to find a property management company to take care of your garden, pool, pay bills, cleaning and possibly to rent it out. This is a higher cost vs maintaining a condo.

If you want a quick return in investment, I'd say that condominiums are a better option since they rent easier due to better location, facilities, security and in-house maintenance.

Lastly and most importantly, the main reason why I advise foreigners to buy a freehold condo in Hua Hin is simply because, a foreigner cannot own land legally. Basically, you can only lease the land on which your house is built for 30 years with an option to renew the lease for another 30 years. I don't know about you but when I spend a couple of million baht on a property, I want it to be mine for a much longer time than 60 years!

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If you are thinking of buying, selling or renting Hua Hin property, be sure to log onto this Hua Hin real estate agency site for updated listings, invaluable information and advise.

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