Rental yields for luxurious condominiums in Bangkok range from 7.2% to 8.9%. The exception is 300-square metre (sq. m) units yielding only around 6.84%.

In Hua Hin, mountain-side villas are cheapest with prices only reaching up to around US$649 per sq. m. While top luxurious properties can cost almost twice that, 150-sq. m beachfront villas are most expensive at US$4,333 per sq. m.

To see chart comparison, go to www.globalpropertyguide.com

For the world’s discerning travellers, nothing carries quite the same prestige as spending a holiday in a luxurious private villa somewhere exotic.

And who can blame them? With such added perks as personal chefs, butlers and drivers at your beck and call as you relax by a private infinity pool in your five-bedroom retreat, that 5-star resort down the beach suddenly pales in comparison.

Villa owners in Europe, the Caribbean and the US have been capitalizing on this mindset for decades, but it is a trend that has only really started to catch on in Thailand in recent years, partially because the country’s high-end villa sales market itself is still in its infancy compared to other global resort markets.

Thailand’s villa rental market is for the most part limited to two areas: Koh Samui and Phuket. Hundreds of travel agencies and rental firms specializing in villas around the world are beginning to take an interest in these two destinations, which has translated into an increase in the number of local firms turning to villa management as a way to offset the recent sales slump that has enveloped the country.

“It’s a trendy market. It’s the next best thing to having a private house,” says Marc Ribail, chief operating officer of villa management firm Samui Villas & Homes (SVH), noting that in the last six months, property sales on the island have been down, so quite a few firms are going into property management. Hence, there are now three or four decent companies that have begun offering villa management among their services, he says.

But unlike most firms, which expanded their services to include rental management under their umbrellas as a means of diversifying, Samui Villas & Homes (SVH) initially set out in 2001 solely as a villa management company, only later entering the sales market to cater to the growing number of clients that wished to purchase a holiday home there. The firm recently announced it’s expanding with a branch in Phuket that will focus on villa management there as well.

Ribail says when the company was created in 2001, it managed only three properties, but things quickly grew from there.

“At the beginning of 2006 we had 25 and now we have nearly 50 so it’s definitely an emerging market,” he says. “In some respects we’re still kind of creating history and track records in Samui. If you look at Phuket, they’ve been doing this for a much longer time, so they have a bench mark they can rely on. We’ve just started making a bench mark now.”

Ribail says when the tsunami hit in 2004, SVH received a dramatic increase in business as holiday-makers shied away from Andaman destinations, however competition and Phuket’s resurgence has caused the market to take a breather.

“There’s a bit of a slow-down this year, because of the recovery of Phuket. The first quarter has been difficult but the rest of the year looks much better,” he says. “The offerings are increasing but demand is the same. So basically the competition is increasing,” says Ribail.

A similar trend is emerging in Phuket, where there are now dozens of firms offering villa management services. Allan Mossop, managing director of Phuket Island Property Services (PIPS), says they’ve definitely seen an upswing in the property rental market in the last year, but it’s been a long time coming.

“The last five years has been a challenge for most folks because Thailand is not a traditional holiday home destination like say the Mediterranean or the Caribbean. But we’ve been making serious inroads. If you go online and look at the international rental sites, the number of properties featured for Thailand has increased dramatically as has the number of inquiries.”

Mossop feels that more people are travelling to Thailand as repeat visitors and are starting to feel more comfortable and don’t’ feel that they have to go stay in a more protected environment of a hotel.

“Holiday rentals are very popular with families, knowing that they’re going to be in a property that’s got a private pool and a kitchen, which means they’re able to take care of their kid’s requirements better. If you’re travelling with your family, it’s a little inconvenient to have the young ones on the fold-out couch.”

PIPS deals with the mid-to upper segment of the rental market. Mossop says that in the low season villa rates range from US$250-500 a night for a three-bedroom villa, but in the high season rates can go for between $600 to $2500 a night, depending on the size of the villa. With rates like these, it’s not surprising villa owners are jumping to put their properties on the rental market when they’re not in use.

But half the battle is attracting interest. According to Mossop, the most important thing for villa owners to consider before putting their property on the rental market is whether their agent able to make their property available to a wide selection of other agents.

“For a long time PIPS was the only company in Phuket actively marketing the full-service rental projects we represent with 50 other agents locally nationally and internationally,” he says. “A lot of the property management companies or rental management companies are only able to take their straight 10% and they are not able to market a home to other rental companies which is a major factor.”

Indeed villa owners have a lot to consider before renting out their property, and this includes whether or not they’re even in a position to do so. SVH’s Ribail says before they’ll even take a villa into their portfolio they consider several factors.

“The first is location. It has to be situated either on the beach or inland with absolutely stunning views. If you look at Phuket, Bali, The Phillippines or Malaysia, there are not as many properties directly on the beach as there are here. So the guests want to pay a bit more to be on the beach rather than sitting in the hills. So because of that location is very important for us,” he says. “We try to keep the level of standards equal among all houses in our portfolio. So even though they’re all individual, if one house doesn’t have a range of amenities or facilities that matches our portfolio we recommend the owners upgrade.”

SVH offers clients two brands to choose from – the Signature Collection or the Boutique Collection. The higher end villas in their portfolio on average go from US$700-900 per night for a 4-5 bedroom villa, which includes 5-star facilities and amenities, however rates can go as high as US$2,000 a night.

Most agents agree that while these prices may sound a bit lofty for your average traveler, when you consider the rates being charged in 5-star hotels for a single room with no privacy and added costs tacked onto nearly everything, it’s no surprise people are looking for new alternatives.

By Kala Cripps at www.property-report.com

Hong Kong has the world’s highest average rents for expatriate workers, well above Tokyo, New York and London, according to a study released Wednesday.

Altogether, Asia accounted for half of the top 10 most expensive cities for rental apartments for expatriates, while Nairobi was the world’s cheapest.

The survey was carried out by international human resources consultancy ECA among relocation companies, real estate agents and foreign workers, and took unfurnished three-bedroom apartments as a base as they were the most commonly rented by expatriates.

In Hong Kong, such a flat in an area popular with expatriates would fetch nearly 8,600 US dollars a month.

That is by some distance more expensive than the average rental price for foreigners in Tokyo, which ranked the world’s second on a little under 7,360 dollars a month.

“Comparing the cost of renting an unfurnished three bedroom apartment, the data shows that Hong Kong is by far the most expensive city,” said Lee Quane, ECA’s general manager in Hong Kong.

The high rental prices in Hong Kong are due to lack of space as well as an increasing demand for luxury developments as many financial firms strengthen their presence within the city, ECA said.

After Hong Kong and Tokyo, the third most expensive city was New York where a three-bedroom flat for an expatriate costs an average 7,250 dollars to rent, then Moscow, Seoul, London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Caracas and Paris.

Further down the scale, large increases were noticed in rental prices over the past decade in Doha and Dubai, up 130 and 100 percent respectively.

Nevertheless, Hong Kong’s rental prices have fallen.

Quane said the residential rental market here boomed in 1996, a year before the territory was returned to Chinese rule, but has since dropped steadily due to government policies cooling the market and the Asian financial crisis.

Nairobi is the world’s cheapest city for foreigners to rent a three-bedroom apartment at around 1,090 dollars a month, nearly eight times cheaper than in Hong Kong.

Source: Channel News Asia

Hong Kong’s high-end apartments are the world’s most expensive to rent, followed by  those in Tokyo and New York, according to a survey on expatriate accommodation released Tuesday.

The survey, conducted by UK-based human resources consultancy ECA International, noted that an executive three-bedroom apartment in Hong Kong costs more than $8,500 a month to rent.

Rents for typical expatriate apartments in Hong Kong rose an average 10% last year and 15% in 2005, due to the Chinese territory´s strong economic growth, said Lee Quane, general manager of ECA International Hong Kong.

The gap between Hong Kong and other cities was widening, he added.

The survey compared rental prices in 92 locations worldwide. Tokyo rents for expatriates averaged $7,358 while in New York, they were $7,249. Moscow was ranked fourth most expensive at $6,526, followed by Seoul, London, Mumbai and Shanghai, the survey found.

The Venezuelan capital of Caracas was ranked ninth as expatriates there need to live in high-security compounds for safety reasons, Quane said. Paris was 10th.

The cheapest location of the 92 cities was Nairobi, Kenya, where a three-bedroom apartment cost about $1,000 a month, the survey said.

Source: www.property-report.com

Source: www.property-report.com

With housing allowances in the range of  Bt70,000 to Bt100,000 a month, Bangkok’s  high-paid expatriates have money to burn - and they want homes with all the Western-ammenities they’re accustomed to.

For condominium and apartment owners, this segment of the market is a potential gold mine, particularly given most of these expats are here on a short-term basis. The statistics certainly are promising, but as competition grows, it’s not an easy market to enter.

CB Richard Ellis Thailand executive director James Pitchon told Property Report Thailand that demand for high-end rentals increased in 2006 and the number of expatriates in bangkok with work permits grew to 67,412 in 2006, a 12.5% increase year on year according to statistics by the Alien Occupational Control division of the Department of Employment. The largest segment of this market is Japanese - 22% - as the so-called “land of the rising sun” is the largest foreign direct investor in Thailand.

Pitchon noted that the rental market is in actuality even higher, as those numbers excude diplomats and agencies such as the United Nations. They also exclude foreigners without work permits, but Pitchon says they consider most of these to be part of the retiree market, who traditionally buy their units.

“The good news is that demand increased. Last year there was only a limited amount of new supply in apartments, and there were only about 330 units completed last year. But the number of condominium units grew by over 4,000 units. That will continue to be the case in the next two to three years,” he said, but added this figure excluded serviced apartments, which are considered a very different product – somewhere in between a hotel and an apartment. Many now have a hotel license, so they’re operating on a more short-term basis.

“From a supply point of view, the big question is, how many of these apartments are expat quality, and how many owners of these new condominiums will want to lease them out?” asks Pitchon. “Recently a new supply has appeared in the downtown area, and there’s been a greater focus on small sized units, many of them aimed at the Thai market, so not all the new condo supply will be of a standard that appeals to expats, but there are a lot of condo units.”

Pitchon says the proportion of owner occupation and units purchased by people on a buy-to-lease basis varies from building to building: “Of the developments that are just coming up to completion, the number that will be available for rent ranges between 30-50% at the moment. So, although demand has risen, there will be quite a lot of condominium supply coming on.”

This means that competition is going to be tight in the coming year. Generally, expats given the choice would prefer a single ownership apartment, says Pitchon, because the owner is able to service all their requirements whereas in a condo the owner might not even be in Thailand. And in many cases the owner has not put in place a local manager to look after his apartment. So the challenge for condominium owners who have bought to lease out is how to manage their units because tenants will have questions.

“So if the air conditioner breaks down, who’s going to fix it? It will not be the staff looking after the common areas of the condominium, because their responsibility is not private property. So owners must think about how they will manage and maintain the units.”

This includes implementing pest control contracts, regular A/C maintenance contracts, and, most importantly, there has to be a clear understanding between the owner and the tenant of who’s responsible for doing what.

The most popular area for expats is still Sukhumvit, followed by Central Lumpini and the Sathorn area. There are two satellites, one being around the International School of Bangkok and there is also a smaller cluster around Bangkok Pattana School. As for the up-and-coming riverside, currently there is limited demand from expatriate tenants, generally because of access issues. A small segment of expats are heading to other areas, such as Thonglor. “Again you’ve got access to the skytrain but in a slightly lower density environment,” said Pitchon.

The expat rental market is driven generally by housing allowances granted to employees and employees generally spend all of their allowances, but not put their own money in. “The biggest change in the market has been that Japanese with families now receive higher allowances than they did previously,” says Pitchon. “Some will give Bt70,000 or Bt75,000 for a three-bedroom apartment. The Japanese tend to be at the lower end of the market but they are a significant level of demand.

“What’s happened is that much of the existing stock is over 10 years old. We’ve seen very few apartments built since the financial crisis over the last 10 years, more condominiums, and what has been happening is that new supply, with smaller units, is actually getting higher rents because it looks better. Modern design.”

As for housing rentals, Pitchon says the market is small because there a limited supply of homes in central areas, including in the Sukhumvit area. “Sansiri on 67 had rented well, but there is a limited market for people with over Bt100,000 a month to spend,” he said. “There are few companies that pay that kind of housing allowance.”

As for two-tiered pricing for Thais and Foreigners, there really isn’t a Thai rental market. Given that Thais have the freedom to buy and sell what they choose, unlike foreigners, those with high salaries and incomes just won’t go out and rent 75,000 a month apartments. So there is no Thai market above Bt15,000 a month.

“The rental market is efficient in terms of transparent pricing, information on products and a regular turnover,” said Pitchon. “So if a building doesn’t maintain its standards, then new expats will not move in.”

Bangkok’s high-paid expats keep rental market flush.

Here’s a site recommended by my Thai friends.  http://www.bask1.com/

Apparently, they have a shop in Pantip as well as MBK. You can check prices online and they are said to be the lowest in Thailand. I need a brand new digital camera so that’s where I”ll be heading to compare prices.

Before that, don’t forget to check out the best review site for digital cameras to help you decide on a brand and model. www.dpreview.com

Where: @ The Core, 31/1 Sukhumvit Soi 53, 02.6226222, info@thecore.co.th, www.thecore.co.th

When: Saturday, May 19th 14.30 – 16.00

Fee: 1200 Baht

Pilates for Back Pain

Back pain is a growing epidemic which will affect many people during their life time. Much of this is associated with poor posture, improper lifting and bending techniques. The Pilates Studio is offering an educational workshop aimed at preventing the cycle of low back pain which causes misery and suffering.

•          To improve understanding of the lumbar spine and the common conditions which affect it.

•          To teach a Pilates exercise regime that can help to cope with persistent pain.

•          To increase the quality and level of daily activity by addressing poor postural habits which contribute to low back pain.

• Note this workshop is not intended to replace the medical advice of your doctor or health care provider. Please consult your health care provider for advice about a specific medical condition •

Elizabeth Hockin MSc OT, Dip COT

Elizabeth holds a diploma and Master’s degree in Occupational Therapy UK and is a member of the Health Professional Council UK and British Association of Occupational Therapists. Most of her working life has been in the NHS UK where she worked with a wide range of medical conditions. A convert to the Pilates method of exercise, having undertaken training with Stott Pilates and Polestar Pilates; Elizabeth has a firm belief that regular practice in Pilates can significantly enhance the quality of life for most people. The Pilates method of exercise fits well with the philosophy of Occupational Therapy, which involves empowering people to achieve their full potential. This is especially relevant to people suffering from chronic low back pain.

The core

The Core is the first wellness center in Bangkok completely devoted to family fitness

At our unique, new studio we offer a variety of classes and activities for women and their families. Women who want to get fit or improve their existing health can choose from a wide range of classes; Pilates, fit ball, yoga or Gyrotonic. For women are expecting or who have recently given birth, they may join in a prenatal yoga or a postnatal support class. Children are also welcome to the Core to join their parents in the aim for better health. For kids we will have a playroom filled fun and educational toys and books. Children who want or need more organized activities can benefit from one or more of the following; music, dance, drama and yoga. Our philosophy for getting children interested in fitness and culture can become a concept they can experience throughout their life. By influencing children in a positive, nurturing manner we are also developing a culture more in tuned with health and the arts. Another aspect of our wellness center is the support we offer parents and their children. For the many stag of childhood development we will offer consulting for pregnancy, postnatal, infants and children. Through a variety of lectures and courses, parents can find encouragement and support. Some courses we suggest are infant massage and family yoga as a fun and relaxing way to bond with your children. We will also offer the services of trained doulas which can help ease the stress and discomfort of pregnancy and childbirth. Our innovative studio is set in a charming, old Thai house surrounded by a peaceful garden and pond in the center of the bustling city. Join us for a wonderful experience for the whole family.

Oriental wood furniture
Landmark Plaza, ground floor
Sukhumvit Road
Daily 10am-6pm,

Gold Bell Furniture is putting on show and sale home decorations made from rosewood and teakwood including dining tables, dressing tables, swivel desk chairs, sideboards, sleigh beds, step chests and high poster beds. Call 02-254-0404 ext 4849.

Home decor
River City shopping complex, Yota Road
Daily 10am-9pm, until June 23

The “Private Collection” exhibition and sale features a range of Indian home decor products. The highlight is a jewel carpet studded with precious stones. Also on display are hand-knotted carpets from Kashmir, marble inlaid with precious stones, furniture sets, silk brocade and household utensils. Free admission. Call 02-237-0077/8.

Mattress road show
Living Gallery, 3rd floor
Siam Paragon, Rama I Road

May 18-27, daily 10:30am-9pm

Kingsdown by Chanintr Group is holding a road show featuring the latest innovation mattresses from the US with its latest mattress product lines such as BodyBlend, BodySystem, PartnerPerfect.

Call 02-129-4477.

AUDITIONS

SEMINARS/WORKSHOPS

Just moved to Bangkok?

Looking for a network or new outlet?

Culture shock, home sick & need to talk?

Married with kids & outgoing?

Single & professional, not a professional single?

Share the experience and make the most of it while you’re in Bangkok.

Foreigners & Locals are welcome

BNOW is a weekly e-mail network distributed to subscribers with a monthly get together that supports women. Sign up here  http://bnow.org/

Here’s something for the pilates enthusiast. Wish I had some time to get there myself! Have not personally tried this place but heard many good things about it. It also happens to be the first Pilates studio in Bangkok (now there several) with properly trained staff. Conveniently located at Manhatun Plaza near Ploenchit BTS station.

Website http://pilates.co.th/