Thai giants, foreigners vie for piece of pattaya

Prespective of the Reflection Jomtien beach by Major Development Plc

Thailand's leading tycoons who are investing in developing residential projects in Pattaya include the Chearavanont family, who own Thailand's leading conglomerate , the Charoen Pokphand Group, and the Sirivadhanabhakdi family, who are beverage giants.

Meanwhile, many foreign investors are also setting up joint-venture companies with Thai residents to increase their investment in Pattaya.

Somkiat Reunthongdee, vice managing director of CP Land, a property arm of CP Group, said demand for residential projects in Pattaya had seen aggressive growth, especially demand from foreign buyers who want to buy a second home and retirement homes. This is because Pattaya is located close to Bangkok - about 90 minutes' drive away.

The main customers in the Pattaya market are likely to be buyers from Scandinavia, the UK, United States, Russia and Australia, who wish to own a second home by the beach.

About 5 million tourists visit Pattaya every year, proving that it is still a popular tourist destination in Thailand. As a result, CP Land has set up a joint venture with Magnolia Quality Development Corp (MQDC), called CP Magnolia Corp, to develop a condominium project worth Bt2 billion at Jomtien Beach. The project is called The Chur Pattaya.

Somkiat said 49 per cent of CP Land's target customers would be foreign buyers.

MQDC, in which Dhanin Chearavanont's daughter holds a majority stake, also plans to introduce six new condominium projects worth about Bt10 billion in Pattaya.

TCC Land, a property arm of Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi, has also bought about 100 rai of land on Jomtien Beach. The company plans to develop condominiums and a hotel worth several billion baht next year.

"We cannot estimate our investment in Pattaya because we have to take some time to design the project. It has to be unique and match our target customers' preferences. However, we plan to start construction next year," TCC Land director Soammaphat Traisorat said.

Meanwhile, many foreign investors from Asian countries such as South Korea, Japan and China are also investing in Pattaya.

A source who develops guest houses in Pattaya said many investors from South Korea, Japan and China are investing in guest houses, focusing on budget travellers.

Many property developers from Bangkok such as Raimon Land and Major Development are also investing in Pattaya.

Major Development managing director Suriya Poolvoralaks, who launched a luxury-condominium project worth Bt3 billion in Pattaya called The Reflection Jomtien Beach in the first half of this year, said the company is increasing its investment in tourist destinations like Pattaya because it sees strong demand from foreign buyers. 

Up to 49 per cent of customers for the luxury condominium projects in Pattaya will be foreigners, he said.

According to research by the Agency for Real Estate Affairs, demand for residential projects such as condominiums, villas and resorts wouldl see strong growth in the tourist destinations of Phuket, Pattaya, Koh Samui and Hua Hin-Cha-am.

The agency said the main focus of residential projects in the four locations would be on foreign investors and buyers who come from outside the province.

Residential projects in Phuket have seen high prices. The average offer price in Phuket was Bt22.4 million per unit, followed by Koh Samui at an average price of Bt19.2 million per unit, Pattaya recorded an average price of Bt8.38 million and Hua Hin and Cha-am fetched an average of Bt5.64 million. That is higher than prices in Bangkok, which recorded an average of Bt2.2 million per unit.

Meanwhile, Colliers International Thailand said condominiums are a popular form of investment for foreign investors because they can buy up to a 49-per-cent stake in a project. The remaining 51 per cent has to be owned by a Thai national.