Dear Hillary,
I have been in Pattaya for a few months now and am currently seeing a really nice pleasant girl that I met at Big C. I have been getting quite fed up so to speak with hotels. They are OK for a couple of weeks but a few months wear a little thin. This leads me to the next thing. I have been looking to rent long-term a condo or house and obviously have been shopping around. I was quite surprised to find that you have to give two months security deposit and a month in advance. Now I am a little worried about getting my two months security deposit back as I do not speak a word of Thai and my girl is as timid as a mouse when it comes to haggling or asking questions with the local business people. She has since said that her cousin has a house and we would be safe renting through him. Upon meeting the cousin at a bar he produced a contract in Thai that my girl read through and was quite happy with and relayed most of it back to me, and better still the cousin would only want 1 month’s security deposit but for me this is all going too fast. It seems like a bargain but I would like some independent advice. Should I go with the cousin or am I risking too much? What would you suggest Hillary?
Patrick
Dear Patrick,
What you need is a minder! Answer me this – would you blindly sign a contract for a Studio in Spain if you couldn’t read the language? Or for a pension in Portugal? Or a condo in Kosovo? Come on Petal, what are you doing? Go to a reputable real estate agency that speaks your language and employs reputable English speaking lawyers to advise you. You are right when you say it is all going a little too fast. You’ve gone from the Checkout at Big C to checking in to Heartbreak House in no time flat. You are setting yourself up for a fall, Petal. Do not do it. Get the correct advice before going another step. By the way, the two month’s deposit and one month in advance is standard real estate practice in Pattaya.
