How to Buy Land Title Deed (Chanote) in Thailand
Do you dream of owning land? A lot of people have that fantasy. Maybe you want to build your dream home surrounded by natural beauty and away from the hustle and bustle of the city and not to mention those nosy neighbors.
Maybe you’ve always wanted to try farming, and now is the time to jump right in and grow some tuber trees. Or you could be looking to invest in undeveloped area just outside of a Bangkok area.
Whatever the reason, a lot of people are interested in land ownership.
Only Thai Nationality can buy Land in Thailand.
But how do you buy land?
Make Sure You Have the Money as Bank won’t give you loan for this Purchase The smartest way to Buy Land is to buy with cash. If you’re also going to build a house and plan to finance the house and the construction, there may be some complications.
Search for the Right Piece of Land
You want to be sure you get your money’s worth, so when it comes to real estate, always buy property that will grow in value over time. That can be really tricky. Remember: No matter how good the deal looks, don’t buy a bad piece of land in a bad location just to get a bargain. Quality Land counts.
If you’re buying a predevelop plot in a new area, the decisions are relatively simple. But when you buy land outside of main city or land with no road access, you must investigate all the things a developer or builder would normally look at. Do your homework before dropping that dough.
Here’s what you need to know before you buy land.
Land Title Deed - Chanote Land Title
Make sure what type of Land title deed - chanote title you have
Freehold Land Title Deed - Chanote or Nor Sor 4
* This type of title grants you a full ownerships rights over the land, to deal with or to use it as you the zoning allow you.
* This type of title deed gives you the full and most right over the land.
* This type of land can be sold, Leas, transferred, or mortgaged
Freehold Land Title Deed - Nor Sor 3 Gor
* This type of title deed is on the process to be upgraded to full Chanote.
* Similar to Chanote This type of land can be sold, Leas, transferred, or mortgaged
* The owner of the land can file a petition to the land Office in order to upgrade this title deed to Chanote.
* The land is already GPS measured by the Land Department therefore, it has its exact boundaries.
Freehold Land Title Deed - Nor Sor 3
* The difference between this type of land title deed and the Nor Sor 3 Gor is that a land with Nor Sor 3 title has yet to be measured by the Land Department and doesn’t have the exact boundaries.
* This type od land title deed Nor Sor 3 may able to upgrade later to be Nor Sor 3 Gor and then to a Chanote.
Location
The three most important things in real estate are location, Road Access and Electric & Water. While you may enjoy living completely off the grid, remember this is still a Business investment. If it takes more than an hour to reach the nearest signs of civilization like 7/eleven or gas stations, then future buyers might never have any interest in buying your land.
Figure out which schools you’re zoned for, the property’s proximity to highways and stores, and distance from emergency services.
Land Zoning
Check with your Municipal City Hall, for the zoning ordinances to see if it’s even possible to build a home on the land you’re looking at. Examine any future plans the government may have that could impact the land value like new highways, roads or powerline. It’s common for problems like this to pop up, so watch for red flags.
Flood Area
Specially in Thailand floods can happen almost everywhere This is very important factor to look in too! The elevation of the house vs the road. Main water drains, Water pump and the amount of soil that you may need to add. Those are all things that will affect where you can build a home and how much it’ll cost. It may end up to be very expensive.
Road Access to your land
When you buy land, you need to be able to get in to it easily, right? That means you need to know if the roads leading to your land are someone else's private property. If so, you’ll have to obtain legal permission to use them.
Legal permission to get road access must be registered in the title deed and may come with a fee and agreement that you’ll share road maintenance costs. Yes, it’s a hassle. But it’s incredibly important to think about before you commit. If you don’t have a registered road or access, then you can’t get to your property. So you may as well not even buy it.
Electric and Water Services
The land that you are planning to buy may not yet connected water line, electricity, cable lines and District sewage systems. Check the district limits to see if you’ll have to invest time and money into building your own septic system, water well or electricity access. you also want to check your mobile connection service when you visit your potential Land.
Information written on Land Title Deed
The Original Land Title Deed (Chanote) contains the following information:
On the Top: Type of Title Deed
Name & Surname, Address of the owner, Location of Land, Land Area, Unit number
On The Top right: Title Deed Number, code area , District
In the Center of the Deed: The Land Size Rai, Ngan, Wha. A diagram map of the plot of land showing boundaries on all four sides and will includes the index of registration.
On the bottom of the title deed forms signed by the land official, Province Governor with their seals of office. The Title Deed Chanote will be made in duplicate Copies, one copy given to the owner and another copy kept at the Land Office.
Note: Always keep yor Chanote Land Title in a safe place
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Can Foreigners have an Ownership of Land in Thailand?
In general, Thai laws prohibit foreigners from owning land, BUT there are some ways for foreigners to secure their interest in a property.
There are some exceptions to this law but it never come in to practice yet.
Here are some ways to secure your interest in the property:
- Thai Registered Company
- Board of Investment (BOI)
- Inheritance
Thai Registered Company – If a foreigner owns a Thai Company that holds a majority of 51% of Thai National, the Thai company can legally own Land in Thailand.
Since 2005 The Thai government is restricting the use of Thai companies for the sole purpose of property ownership by foreigners
BOI - With substantial investments foreign companies may granted land ownership. Foreigners can own land up to 1600 SQM or 1 Rai in specified areas for residential purposes through a Board of Investment (BOI) regulation which requires in addition to the land purchase a 40 million baht investment into Thailand in specified assets or government bonds beneficial to the Thai economy.
Inheritance - Foreigner who inheritance land in Thailand as statutory heir may have ownership on the land upon a permission of the Minister of Interior. If such permission where not granted the Foreigner must transfer within one year from the date of acquisition to other Thai National.
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