Dear Hillary,
We just bought a house with a mortgage and we had to go to the Lands Office. My wife is Thai and I am from the UK. I had to sign a whole bunch of forms, all in Thai, and I was told that if I didn’t sign, the deal would be off. As far as I could gather, I was signing to the fact that it wasn’t my money, and that in the case of something happening to my wife, I could not claim the house. Why is this, Hillary?
George
Dear George,
Thai authorities have these rules so that you as a foreigner will never be able to own Thai land, my Petal. They are worried that if foreigners can get their hands on Thai soil through ownership or succession, they will be digging huge holes and shipping the soil to their own countries in large suitcases, and Thailand will end up as a sort of open-cut mining site. Yes, I am making fun of the situation, but all countries have some rather silly rules and regulations. This land ownership is one of ours, though you should have been advised by the real estate agent on what was going to happen – and why!
