Renting and condo life

Rent before you buy, and rent somewhere near a station. In Bangkok the BTS or MRT stop decides your day more than the floor plan does.

The usual deal is a one-year lease, two months' deposit and one month in advance. Longer leases are your best bargaining chip: tenants regularly trade a two-year signature for a lower monthly rent. Ask whether water and electricity are billed at the government rate or marked up by the building, and test the air-con before you sign, because a failing unit can double the power bill.

Your landlord must report where you're living to immigration within 24 hours of your arrival, on form TM30. Make sure it's done; you'll need it for visa extensions.

Foreigners can buy a condo in their own name, but only within the building's foreign quota (no more than 49% of the saleable floor area), and the purchase money has to come in from abroad in foreign currency. Foreigners can't own land; a lease on a house is capped at 30 years.

The catch: deposits are the most common dispute. Photograph every scratch on move-in day, keep the inventory, and agree in writing how many days after move-out the deposit comes back.