Glossary, ownership

Branded residence in Thai property

A branded residence is a home sold under the name of a hotel or luxury brand, which sets the design and service standards and usually manages the property under a licence and management agreement with the developer.

The brand is rarely the developer. A Thai developer builds and sells the homes and pays the brand for its name, design review and operating team. Buyers typically pay a premium over comparable unbranded property, and higher common-area fees for hotel-level services.

What you are buying depends on the documents, so ask about:

The length of the brand agreement, and what happens to the name, the services and the fees if it ends or is terminated.
Whether the residences share a site and a hotel licence with an operating hotel, which decides whether nightly letting is lawful.
The terms of any rental programme: revenue split, owner usage and exit rights.
A full schedule of running costs, including brand and reserve charges.

The ownership rules are the same as for any Thai property. Condominium-format residences can be bought freehold within the foreign quota. Villas are normally sold on a registered lease of up to 30 years. See branded residences in Thailand and hotel-managed and rental pool schemes.

General guidance, not legal or tax advice. Take independent legal advice before you commit to a purchase.

Terms related to branded residence

Rental pool: A rental pool is a scheme in which owners place their units with a single operator, and the revenue earned by all participating units is pooled and shared between the owners and the operator under a set formula.
Hotel licence: A hotel licence is the permit required under the Hotel Act B.E. 2547 (2004) to offer paid accommodation for stays of less than one month. Without one, letting a condominium or villa by the night or week is unlawful.
Common-area fee (CAM fee): The common-area fee, or CAM fee, is the recurring charge each condominium owner pays towards running the building: staff, security, lifts, pool, insurance and cleaning. It is set in baht per square metre of unit area per month and is often billed a year in advance.
Leasehold: Leasehold is the right to occupy and use property for a fixed term under a lease. In Thailand the longest term that can be registered is 30 years, and a lease of more than three years is enforceable beyond three years only if registered at the land office.