One of the questions buyers ask me most often is: "KC, is this property overpriced?"
You would think that after more than two decades in Pattaya property I could answer that with a simple yes or no. Unfortunately, property does not work like that.
Of course, there are numbers. We look at comparable properties, land values, recent transactions, construction quality, location, age, condition and what else is currently competing for the same buyer. But there is also a fair amount of psychology involved.
Sometimes when somebody tells me a property is overpriced, what they actually mean is: "I like it, but I would really like to buy it cheaper."
Nothing wrong with that. I probably would too.
Negotiation is part of property, but before calling something expensive, cheap or good value, we first need to understand that these are three completely different things.
At Town & Country Property we are actually quite reluctant to take on properties that we believe are obviously overpriced. Why would we? Advertising costs money, viewings take time, follow-up takes effort, and if the seller’s expectation is completely disconnected from reality, everybody ends up wasting their time.
That does not mean a sensible asking price must be non-negotiable. Quite the opposite. A serious buyer should always be able to make a serious offer, and most sellers understand that some flexibility may be required.
What I do not believe in is the idea that every property in Thailand automatically needs to be a bargain simply because it is in Thailand.
We still meet buyers who arrive with that mindset. Others are natural bargain hunters. “You can always try,” they say. Fair enough. But when something is unusually cheap, I normally want to know why.
COVID distorted people’s perception of value quite badly. During that period there were genuine distress sales in Pattaya. Some owners suddenly needed liquidity, others could not travel, businesses failed and personal circumstances changed. Years before that, we saw something similar when the Russian Ruble weakened considerably and some Russian owners needed to return home.
For a while, buyers could secure properties at prices that simply would not have existed under normal market conditions.
The problem starts when somebody buys one of those distressed properties and then uses that transaction as the benchmark for the next five years.
That was not necessarily normal market value. It was distress-market value.
Markets move. Ultimately, today’s value is determined by what a willing buyer is prepared to pay and a willing seller is prepared to accept today.
Asking price and market value are not the same thing
An owner can ask whatever he or she wants. That does not automatically make it market value.
Wongamat gives us a very good example. You can have an established older condominium such as Ananya sitting close to a much newer luxury project such as Arom Wongamat, where new units entered the market at considerably higher prices per square metre.
Does that suddenly make every older unit next door worth 50% more?
Of course not.
They are different products. Age, facilities, architecture, construction specifications, maintenance, common areas, buyer profile and overall positioning all play a role.
This is where sellers sometimes get themselves into trouble. They see the glossy new development next door asking THB 200,000 per square metre and think, “Wonderful. Mine must now be worth almost the same.”
It doesn’t work like that.
And while we are talking about condominiums, I should probably admit that personally I am much more of a house person.
I like space. I like privacy. I like having friends over for dinner or a BBQ. I want somewhere to put luggage, golf bags and bicycles without tripping over them. Give me a garden and a swimming pool and I am quite happy.
Sometimes I look at what people happily pay for a relatively compact condominium and think: for the same money, you could own a substantial private home with land and your own pool.
But that is my lifestyle.
Another buyer may want nothing more than a high-floor beachfront condo with an uninterrupted sea view and happily pay a very substantial price per square metre for it. That's perfectly fine too.
Although, being slightly cheeky, I sometimes wonder how much that million-dollar sea view is worth at ten o’clock at night when you are basically staring into a black hole.
But again, that’s me.
Value is also in the eye of the beholder.
Price per square metre only tells part of the story
People love comparing condominiums by price per square metre. It is useful, but it doesn't tell you everything.
Imagine a 200 sqm condominium with a 70 sqm open terrace. Yes, those terrace metres form part of the registered area and you paid for them. But it is obviously not the same product as 200 sqm of internal air-conditioned living space.
You may also be paying common-area fees calculated over those terrace metres. In an off-plan project you may have a sinking-fund contribution as well.
So when somebody tells me Condo A is cheaper per square metre than Condo B, my next question is: what exactly are those square metres?
With houses I find price-per-square-metre comparisons even less useful.
For me, you start with the land. How big is the plot? Where is it? What is land in that particular location worth?
Then we look at the house itself, its age, construction quality, pool, landscaping, privacy, access, renovation requirements and everything else that comes with it.
A villa is a complete package. Reducing that entire package to one construction-price number creates a false sense of precision.
Foreign quota can also influence condo pricing, but again, you cannot apply one Pattaya rule everywhere in Thailand. Historically, foreign-quota units in Pattaya have sometimes attracted a premium because foreign demand was strong, while developers might stimulate Thai-quota inventory through different prices or payment terms.
That does not mean the same dynamic applies to every building, or to Bangkok.
Property is incredibly local. Sometimes two buildings standing practically next door to one another behave like completely different markets.
Sellers need advice too
People often think an estate agent’s job is to convince sellers to reduce their price.
Not necessarily.
Our job is to help sellers understand the market.
An owner may tell me, “KC, list it at THB 7 million, transfer 50/50, and I won’t discount one baht.”
My response is normally that a little flexibility is sensible. Nine out of ten buyers want to feel they achieved something during the negotiation. It does not need to be a massive discount. Sometimes a relatively small concession gives the buyer the feeling that they made a deal.
Refusing to move one baht can kill an otherwise perfectly sensible transaction.
Another thing I dislike is: “I want THB 7 million net. Just put your commission on top.”
That can become a complete mess on an open listing. One agent adds one amount, another adds something else, and suddenly the same property is advertised online at THB 7.25 million, THB 7.4 million and THB 7.5 million.
Now the buyer wonders what on earth the real asking price actually is.
My preference is very simple: give every agent the same commercial conditions and commission.
One property. One asking price. One message to the market.
And believe it or not, sometimes we actually tell sellers their property is worth more than they think.
If an owner tells us he would be happy with THB 10 million and our assessment says the property is worth substantially more, why wouldn't we tell him?
Our responsibility is not just to create a transaction. It is to help the client achieve a fair result.
Tell an owner his property is worth more than he expected, and then actually sell it accordingly?
Happy days. Friends forever.
Cheap can become expensive very quickly
I am also wary when somebody becomes completely obsessed with buying the cheapest property.
Imagine buying what appears to be a fantastic bargain, only to discover that the THB 500,000 renovation you had in mind actually costs THB 1.5 million.
Suddenly it was not such a bargain.
Or somebody sells you an investment property with a beautiful spreadsheet showing an impressive projected rental return. Then nobody rents it, or the actual rent turns out to be substantially lower.
The income disappears, but the common fees, maintenance, utilities and running costs certainly don't.
The same applies to saving money in the wrong places. Skip property insurance because you think it is unnecessary, then discover why you needed it when a serious storm arrives.
My father used to say: if something looks too good to be true, it often is.
That still works rather well in property.
And renovation itself is another interesting area. I once went to inspect what an owner proudly described as the most elaborate luxury condominium in the region.
We arrived and practically everything, from the doorknob to the carpet, was Versace-style.
The owner believed he had added around THB 2 million in value.
Our view was somewhat different.
We thought the next buyer might have to spend THB 200,000 removing it.
We did not take the listing.
That little story has stayed with me because it explains value perfectly. Money spent is not automatically value added. The seller may see a THB 2 million improvement. The buyer may see a THB 200,000 problem.
The market eventually decides who is right.
I am already thinking about resale when you buy
When I look at a property with a buyer, I am not only thinking about whether that buyer likes it today. Somewhere in the back of my mind I am already thinking about the next buyer.
Will somebody else still want this property in five years? Ten years?
Nobody can read tomorrow's newspaper. COVID proved that rather dramatically.
But I like saying that although we cannot read tomorrow’s newspaper, sometimes we can already see the headlines.
Experienced brokers watch infrastructure. We hear about new developments. We see roads improving, new retail arriving, schools, hospitals, hotels and employment centres developing. Sometimes we know changes are coming that may materially affect a location.
And that works both ways.
A new commercial centre nearby may increase a property’s appeal substantially. On the other hand, that beautiful uninterrupted sea view you are paying a premium for today may disappear if the empty plot in front of you is legally capable of accommodating another tower.
Future resale value is often influenced by what is going to happen outside your front door.
This is one reason I continue to like areas such as Bang Saray. The Eastern Economic Corridor, infrastructure development and continuing investment along the Eastern Seaboard create an interesting long-term story.
Can I guarantee what your Bang Saray property will be worth five or ten years from now?
Absolutely not.
Anybody who does should probably lend me their crystal ball.
But an experienced local broker should have a reasonable understanding of where investment, infrastructure and demand are moving.
That matters.
So how much can I negotiate?
Another favourite question.
"KC, what percentage can I get off the asking price?"
There is no Pattaya standard.
None.
It depends on the property, how realistic the asking price is, the seller’s circumstances, the buyer’s circumstances and how motivated everybody is to make the deal happen.
If somebody offers a completely unrealistic amount, we normally tell them fairly quickly that it isn't going anywhere. There is no point wasting everyone’s time.
But when an offer is serious, we work with it.
I sometimes call it massaging the deal.
We encourage the seller to come down a little. We encourage the buyer to come up a little. Somewhere in the middle, a deal often starts to make sense for everybody.
Usually we get there.
And occasionally, when buyer and seller are extremely close and our commission is genuinely the last thing standing between them, we might even contribute a little ourselves.
Why?
Because ultimately, we are matchmakers.
So, KC, is it overpriced?
Now we are back where we started.
Maybe.
But the asking price alone does not answer the question.
Look at the property itself. Look at the land. Look at the building, location, quality, condition and future competition. Understand what renovations may cost. Think about ownership and operating costs. Think about future resale. Look at what is changing in the surrounding area.
And perhaps most importantly, ask yourself whether the property actually gives you what you want.
An expensive property can still represent excellent value.
A cheap property can turn into a very expensive mistake.
If I could give a buyer one simple piece of advice, it would be to work with an experienced local broker who genuinely knows the market.
Not because an agent automatically deserves a commission. They don't.
The right broker should earn it.
They should know which asking prices are sensible, which sellers may negotiate, which developments deserve caution, which locations are improving and which apparent bargains may become expensive.
And every now and then, they should also be willing to look you in the eye and say:
"Don't buy this one."
A good broker should not make your property purchase more expensive because there is a commission involved. The opposite should be true.
They should either help you make a better deal, or help you avoid a very expensive mistake.
If they can do neither, you probably have the wrong broker.
Author Bio
KC Cuijpers is the founder and CEO of Town & Country Property, a long-established real estate agency serving Pattaya, Jomtien, Bangsaray, and the wider Eastern Seaboard. With close to 25 years of local property experience, KC has been involved in sales, rentals, land transactions, project development, and advisory work. His approach is practical, straightforward, and based on real-life experience, not theory. Through TCP News, he shares honest market insight, useful property guidance, and a little common sense for buyers, sellers, investors, and anyone considering making Thailand their home.
FAQ
Not necessarily.
The value of any property is ultimately determined by supply and demand, not simply by its age.
A well-established, highly sought-after condominium can be a much better and more valuable purchase than a brand-new development. In Pattaya, some older projects have already proved themselves through years of actual transactions, occupancy, management quality and capital appreciation.
Good examples include Saranchol, The Cove, Northpoint, Northshore, Jomtien Complex Condotel and, by now, Reflection. These developments have established a track record and a recognised position in the market.
New developments certainly have advantages. Everything is new, contemporary and usually designed around current buyer expectations, with modern facilities, finishes and often high-quality imported materials.
But there is another side to the story. Many newer Pattaya condominium projects also contain 1,000 to 1,500 units, often with comparatively small unit sizes. That creates a great deal of future resale competition within the same building.
And importantly, a new project has not yet demonstrated capital appreciation. An established project may already have done exactly that.
So I would never advise a buyer to pay more simply because a condominium is new.
The right price is ultimately the price the market can absorb and is willing to pay.
Prestige can sometimes justify an additional premium, particularly in genuinely iconic branded residential developments. Pattaya, however, has not yet really reached the level of the international “trophy residence” market associated with names such as Porsche Design and similar global luxury brands.
So compare the property, the location, the supply, the demand and its proven resale history.
Newer does not automatically mean better value.
It depends entirely on the condition of the property, the scope of the renovation and, most importantly, what you intend to do with it.
If the objective is to renovate and resell a condo or house, my advice is usually quite simple: buy as well as possible and keep the renovation commercially sensible.
Take an older, dated house with a decent garden and a fundamentally good structure. You may not need to rebuild it. Fresh paint, improved landscaping and modernised kitchens and bathrooms can completely change the first impression of a property. Those are also some of the areas buyers notice first.
A good-sized garden may almost be asking for a private swimming pool. In the right property, spending around THB 500,000 on a pool could potentially add considerably more than that to the eventual selling price.
But be careful not to overdo it.
A renovation intended for resale should not become a personal design project. You may adore purple wallpaper, but the next buyer might not. Keep colours, finishes and design choices attractive to the widest possible market.
First impressions count.
For more substantial renovations, get a realistic quotation from a trustworthy contractor before committing to the purchase. A good contractor may initially appear more expensive, but delivering the agreed quality, on time and within budget can ultimately save a great deal of money and frustration.
And don’t fall in love with a complete wreck simply because the location is fantastic.
A carefully calculated fixer-upper can represent excellent value. But the purchase price plus the genuine renovation budget still needs to make commercial sense against the property’s likely finished market value.
Renovation can create value. Over-renovation can destroy it.
Not by itself.
A rental yield calculation can be useful, but first ask a much more basic question: who is actually going to rent this property?
Take a new condominium development with 1,500 or more units, including perhaps hundreds of virtually identical 24 sqm studios and 32 sqm one-bedroom apartments. On paper, somebody may present an attractive projected rental return.
But you are competing with hundreds of owners offering essentially the same product, in exactly the same location.
That is not my favourite recipe for sustainable rental yield.
Small condominium units can certainly rent, but they are generally less attractive to the longer-term tenant market that we prefer to work with.
At Town & Country Property, our focus is much more on serious long-term rentals, generally 12 months or longer and from around THB 15,000 per month upwards. This tends to attract a much more manageable tenant profile, including corporate and professional tenants.
In my experience, well-selected properties in this market can produce approximately 4.5% to 6.5% net annual returns. That may sound less exciting than some of the percentages advertised in property brochures, but I would much rather see a realistic and sustainable return than an impressive number created on a spreadsheet.
Be particularly careful with “guaranteed rental returns.”
There is rarely such a thing as free money. Sometimes the cost of that guarantee has effectively already been included in the price you paid for the property.
Don’t get too greedy.
There is also an interesting longer-term story developing around Pattaya: the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC). The EEC Office currently identifies manpower demand of more than 500,000 positions across its clusters for 2025–2029.
Not all of those people will need Pattaya accommodation, of course. But even a relatively small percentage of professionals, managers, specialists and executives moving into the wider region creates additional housing demand.
And this is where I see an opportunity.
Good-quality executive pool villas are still relatively difficult to find in the Pattaya region. Larger, well-located condominium units can also benefit, particularly in established developments and carefully selected newer projects.
So don’t buy an investment property simply because somebody promises you a high percentage.
Look at real tenant demand, competing supply, achievable rent, operating costs, resale potential and future demand for that particular type of property.
A genuine 5% return from the right property can be a far better investment than a promised 8% from the wrong one.
Generally, no.
The word “expected” is important. It means we are talking about a prediction, not a fact.
We cannot read tomorrow’s newspaper today, but sometimes we can already see the headlines.
Infrastructure plans, major investment, new employment centres, schools, hospitals, retail, tourism development and changing residential patterns can all give us clues about where an area may be heading.
But in today’s market, I would not advise paying more simply because somebody tells you an area will become more valuable in the future.
That would be rather silly.
The real opportunity is identifying future improvement before the majority of the market has recognised it.
Only a relatively small “top of the iceberg” tends to see these changes early enough to benefit substantially. That is where good local knowledge, experience and a little vision can create a real bang for your buck.
This is also why it makes sense to work with an established local property specialist. Their job is not simply to show you what is for sale today. They should understand the history of the market, know what is genuinely changing, recognise where demand is moving and distinguish real opportunity from marketing noise.
At Town & Country Property, that local knowledge is exactly what we have built over more than two decades in Pattaya and the Eastern Seaboard.
But there is an important rule:
Never pay tomorrow’s price today.
If all of the expected future improvement has already been incorporated into the asking price, you are effectively taking the development risk while somebody else has already taken the profit.
Buy because the property represents sensible value today, with future improvement providing additional upside.
That is investing.
Paying a premium for something that may or may not happen is speculation.
The first thing that comes to mind is very simple:
Wrong location.
A property may look attractively priced, but if the location works against it, resale can become very difficult.
And “wrong location” does not necessarily mean being far away.
It can mean unpleasant immediate surroundings: tin sheds, noisy karaoke, workshops, poorly maintained neighbouring properties, agricultural activity, awkward access, a dirt track, or a road so narrow that buyers immediately start worrying about getting in and out.
It can also mean buying a beautiful sea-view condominium with a vacant plot directly in front of it.
That empty land may look harmless today, but tomorrow it could become another development that blocks your view. And even if it does not permanently damage the view, you may still live through two or three years of construction noise, dust and inconvenience.
In a condominium project, buyers should also look carefully at the management and ongoing costs.
Excessive maintenance fees, poor juristic-person management, neglected common areas or badly run facilities can all make an otherwise attractive unit harder to sell.
Another factor is the composition of the development.
Projects heavily dominated by one nationality can sometimes have a much narrower resale market. We have seen examples of developments strongly associated with Japanese tenants in Sriracha, or Russian buyers in certain Pattaya-area estates. There is nothing wrong with that, but a narrower buyer profile can reduce liquidity when you eventually want to sell.
And sometimes the problem is surprisingly human.
A seller who talks too much, interferes in every viewing, or simply makes the process unpleasant can actually make a perfectly good property harder to sell. Yes, it happens. 😊
There is also an important current consideration for properties held through Thai companies.
With the present scrutiny surrounding nominee or proxy shareholder structures, properties held through Thai companies can be much more difficult to resell, particularly where buyers or their lawyers are uncomfortable with the ownership structure. The same concern can apply to condominiums held through a Thai company rather than directly in foreign ownership.
So never look at price alone.
A cheap property with a difficult location, poor management, legal complications or a narrow future buyer market can remain cheap for a very long time.
A bargain is only a bargain if somebody else will still want to buy it from you later.
Sometimes the right decision is simply to walk away.
After 25 years in property, I could say “trust your gut feeling”, but that is perhaps a little unfair because experience plays a big part in developing that instinct.
Still, if something keeps bothering you, do not ignore it.
One obvious warning sign is when the deal structure becomes too complicated.
Unusual payment terms, offshore transfers, unclear ownership arrangements, changing conditions, multiple side agreements or explanations that become more confusing every time you ask a question should all make you slow down.
A good property transaction does not need to feel mysterious.
The seller matters too.
An “iffy” seller who repeatedly changes their mind, alters agreed terms, introduces new conditions or becomes difficult during negotiations can turn a good property into a bad deal.
And never underestimate the family factor.
If your spouse or partner does not really like the property, take that seriously. You may be able to negotiate another THB 500,000 off the price, but that does not suddenly make somebody enjoy living there.
“The missus doesn’t really like it” is, in my book, a perfectly valid reason to walk away.
Finally, be very careful with budget stretching.
There is always the temptation to think: “For just a little more, we can get this one.”
Then a little more becomes another million, plus furniture, renovation, transfer costs, maintenance and everything else that follows.
You still need to have a life after buying the property.
A good purchase should make you feel comfortable, not financially trapped.
So negotiate hard when the property is right and the deal makes sense.
But when the structure becomes too complicated, the seller becomes unreliable, the family is unconvinced or the budget starts becoming uncomfortable, walking away is often the smartest negotiation of all.
There is always another property.