There were two presenters at the regular Sunday meeting of the Pattaya City Expats Club on August 26. Oliver Franz spoke about his company which offers trained medical nursing services for those in need. The other, Shayachon (Rose) Ridhirantana spoke about how to avoid condominium problems in Thailand.
Oliver introduced his new and well thought out business “Rent a Nurse”, a service he felt was very much needed in Thailand for a multitude of differing needs and levels of home medical care. It is a service designed to operate either alongside traditional hospital care, or independently. Rent a Nurse can be tailor-made to suit one’s budget, needs and wants together with the level of medical attention required; maybe after hospitalisation through accident or illness or just a brief flu or sprained foot. All nurses are fully qualified and supervised and accountable, whilst often working as a team, a Registered Nurse (RN) may be accompanied with a Practical Nurse to take care of patients who may need moving or lifting.
The service can be a one-off or long-term and also provides supervised shopping, social activities, escorted hospital visits including escorted visits for exercise/sporting activities. It can also range from providing advice on dietary needs through to operating a mobile dialysis machine. As a further option, the rearranging of furniture around the patient’s home can be a very useful step for future care. Many people would truly welcome the option of combining the comfort of home nursing without the hassle and discomfort of a hospital visit. All Rent a Nurse documents are written in English, may be insurance approved, and much more. For information visit www.rentanurse.asia or email [email protected]. Thai, English, German and Swedish languages are covered at present.
The main speaker followed Oliver’s presentation. Rose, a previous speaker, who is multitalented by being a facilitator between Thai and English speaking foreigners as well as an accomplished Master of Ceremonies for events and dancing tournaments who also sings popular music. Rose is also very well versed in the minefield of Expats dealing with the legal and financial pitfalls of condo ownership. She understands that the language and cultural difference can cause many difficulties and sometimes very expensive mistakes. To avoid problems, she presented several things “we must know,” “things we must do,” and “things we must not do.”
In her opinion, the real estate laws are more lacking and of a debatable opinion rather than fact. Her top three pointers before purchasing. 1) Do your own due diligence before choosing to purchase a condo. Research not just the unit but also the surrounding area. 2) Avoid the “one stop shop” as often they may ask you to sign a “simple” contract, which may not be so simple. Even more so than back home, in Thailand, the Golden Rule is simple, “Never” sign anything dealing with the purchase of real property without first consulting a qualified lawyer. Another big tip is to have all the Thai documents transcribed into your native language and check the details before finalising anything. 3) Check out the Condominium’s Bylaw Book and avoid parting with large deposits; 5% should be ample to secure or move forwards with a purchase.
Along with these basic rules, people often get caught out and lose money, when dealing with matters privately too. Rose cited one instance where a buyer trusted a friend acting as agent, and paid a deposit, but after patiently waiting for the deal to be finalised, the buyer realised the deal was suspicious and reported it to authorities. Unlike English law where fraud has no time limit, the buyer was unfortunately unaware that the agent kept promising to return the money, but was really biding her time as she knew that there is a three month statute of limitation under criminal law for reporting it to police. That is three months from discovery.
People are also often confused regarding a Juristic Person. The term “person” in legal terms can mean either a sole individual or a body of people. In the case of a Juristic Person (JP) in Thailand, it refers to the “Entity” with jurisdiction over the bylaws, maintenance and accounting for the condominium common areas. The JP hires someone to manage the property, who is referred to as the Juristic Person Manager (JPM).
She pointed out there is always a two-way agreement in place, whereby each party has rights, duties, obligations and limitations. Rose advised to always be on the correct side of your contract and seek remedy for any issues legally. She advised that you should 1) make sure you have an up to date copy of the Bylaw Book, 2) as tempting as it may be, never withhold or delay due monies as a lever to solve an issue, and 3) never fall afoul of the building rules. As a condominium owner, you have the right in law to demand relevant information from the JPM. Also, be careful what you say in public that is negative about a person or business as it could violate Thai law regarding slander, libel, and defamation whether this pertains to condos or otherwise. She noted that as deserving as you think it may be, it can be a criminal offence for which the courts can and do prosecute.
Rose says she acts as a unique mediator/interpreter between client and lawyer to iron out misunderstandings or miscommunications to avoid problems and make the process of buying in Thailand a smooth trouble-free experience. She also is an authorized court interpreter.
The meeting concluded with MC Richard Silverberg bringing everyone up to date on upcoming events followed by the Open Forum where members and guests can ask questions or make comments about Expat living in Thailand. Learn more about their activities or to subscribe to their weekly newsletter, visit www.pcec.club.
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