The purchase process

First, a reservation agreement and fee - commonly in the region of THB 100,000 for a condo as of this guide's review - takes the unit off the market. Second, a due diligence window: title, encumbrances, foreign quota, developer record, zoning. Third, the sale and purchase agreement (SPA), typically with a 10-20% down payment, or staged payments for off-plan. Fourth, the money: funds remitted from abroad in foreign currency with the bank's FET paperwork - covered in detail in our money transfer guide. Fifth, closing at the Land Office: taxes and fees are paid, the transfer is registered, and a foreign condo buyer receives the unit title deed.

For off-plan purchases a sixth stage matters as much as the rest: handover inspection with a written snag list before final payment - see off-plan risks. For a standalone house the closing itself is slower, because the Land Office posts a 30-day public notice before the transfer completes; budget around two months.

If you simply change your mind, generally no - Thai law treats a deposit as security for performance, and a buyer who withdraws without legal grounds forfeits it. The seller, conversely, must return it (often with damages) if the default is theirs: refusing to transfer, selling to someone else, or delivering a property that is not what was promised.

The practical protection is drafting, done before you pay. A reservation agreement should state in writing what the payment is for, and make the deal conditional on the things that can legitimately kill it: clean title, available foreign quota, financing if you need it. If a purchase fails because the unit could never have been registered to a foreigner and the seller hid that, your refund claim is strong. Two habits prevent most disputes: pay deposits only by traceable bank transfer, never cash, and never treat a “non-refundable” label as the final word - under Thailand's unfair-contract-terms rules, blanket forfeiture clauses can be cut down by a court to the seller's real loss.

At minimum: the seller's identity, an exact description of the property and its area, the price and payment schedule, construction and handover deadlines with late-delivery penalties, the developer's defect warranty, and the conditions under which you can terminate and recover your money. For sales by licensed condominium developers this is not a wish list - Thai consumer-protection rules prescribe mandatory contract content, and clauses that contradict the mandatory rules are void even if you signed them. Our contracts guide covers the protection regime and its limits.

Two structural points. The Thai-language version of the contract prevails over any translation, so the review must cover the Thai text, by an independent lawyer who does not work for the seller. And for off-plan condos, insist on a symmetric area-adjustment clause: final measured area larger - you pay the difference at the contract rate; smaller - you are refunded; deviation beyond an agreed tolerance - you may rescind. One-way versions of that clause are a red flag.

Ownership in Thailand changes hands in exactly one place: the provincial Land Office. Both parties, or their authorised representatives, attend in person; every transfer tax and fee is paid on the spot - registration will not proceed otherwise - and the transfer is endorsed on the title. Land Offices accept cashier's cheques or cash, not personal cheques. Who pays which tax is whatever the contract says, so itemise it there; the breakdown is in our taxes and fees guide.

For a foreign condo buyer, two documents gate the registration: the bank's FET paperwork proving the funds arrived from abroad, and the building's confirmation that the unit fits within the foreign quota. Missing either, the deal stops at the counter. A standalone house transfer adds a 30-day public notice period posted by the Land Office before the contract is stamped - payment and keys alone transfer nothing, and a “sale” that skips the Land Office leaves the house with its previous owner.

Yes. Land Office transactions can be executed by a representative under a power of attorney, and remote purchases are routine. But the Land Department accepts only its own standard PoA forms, completed in Thai and naming the specific act - buy this unit, register this lease. Vague “handle all my affairs” drafting is rejected, as are general notarial powers of attorney from your home country. Signed abroad, the form must be certified at a Thai embassy or consulate, or notarised and legalised for Thailand.

Treat the PoA itself as a risk surface. Never sign a blank or incomplete form; limit the mandate to one act and one property; and be wary of granting both the power to sell and the power to receive money, especially to anyone connected with the other side of the deal. A PoA changes who stands at the counter - it changes nothing about the quota, the FET requirement or the land-ownership rules.