A Thai home costs money every year whether or not anyone is in it. For a condominium the largest line is almost always the common-area fee. Land and building tax is small on most homes bought by foreigners. The rest, insurance, utilities, care and a reserve for replacements, depends on the home and on how you use it. Here is each cost and the rule behind it, so you can budget before you buy.
The common-area fee
Every registered condominium is run by a juristic person, which charges co-owners for the common property: security, cleaning, the pool and gym, lifts, gardens and the building's insurance. The charge is set per square metre of interior area each month and is due whether the unit is let, lived in or empty. See common-area fee and juristic person.
Rates differ widely by building. Across the developments we offer, the opening rate runs from THB 50 per sqm a month at The Element by Anocha in Kamala to THB 120 at PEYLAA Phuket, Autograph Collection Residences in Bang Tao. Branded residences and buildings with hotel-style service sit at the top. Some fees are set to rise after the first years: PEYLAA's goes to THB 148 from the third year, and BRISA Patong's from THB 65 to THB 75.
| Interior area | At THB 50 per sqm | At THB 80 per sqm | At THB 120 per sqm |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 sqm | THB 21,000 a year | THB 33,600 a year | THB 50,400 a year |
| 60 sqm | THB 36,000 a year | THB 57,600 a year | THB 86,400 a year |
| 120 sqm | THB 72,000 a year | THB 115,200 a year | THB 172,800 a year |
Ask for the fee in writing before you reserve, and on a resale ask for the last two years of the juristic person's accounts. Buildings often collect an initial period in advance at transfer, so ask how many months. A villa estate charges its own service fee: ask how it is set, what it covers and who can change it.
The sinking fund
The sinking fund is a one-off payment per square metre into the building's capital reserve, made at the first transfer from the developer. It is not a yearly cost, but it can become one: when the reserve runs short for lifts, roofs, facades or pools, co-owners can vote for a further contribution. Older buildings by the sea are the usual cases. Before buying a resale unit, ask for the fund's balance and the building's plan for major works. Our purchase cost calculator includes the first payment.
Land and building tax
The owner of a property on 1 January is liable for the year's land and building tax. It is charged on the official appraised value, which is usually below the price paid, and each rate applies to the slice of value within its band.
| Appraised value | Second home or let | Registered main home, building only |
|---|---|---|
| Up to THB 10 million | 0.02% | Exempt |
| THB 10 million to 50 million | 0.02% | 0.02% |
| THB 50 million to 75 million | 0.03% | 0.03% |
| THB 75 million to 100 million | 0.05% | 0.05% |
| Above THB 100 million | 0.1% | 0.1% |
On an appraised value of THB 8 million, a second home pays THB 1,600 a year. On THB 60 million, it pays THB 10,000 on the first THB 50 million and THB 3,000 on the next THB 10 million: THB 13,000. A main home whose owner holds the land as well is exempt to THB 50 million, but a foreigner cannot hold land.
The main-home exemption depends on the owner's name being on the house registration on 1 January. Foreign owners are entered on the yellow tabien baan; whether that qualifies is a question for the local authority, so do not budget on it until it is confirmed.
How you use the home can change the category. Under the 2020 classification rules, property that provides accommodation for payment falls outside residential use, with monthly lets carved back in. A home let by the month stays residential; one let by the night may be assessed at a higher rate. Lets of under 30 days also need a hotel licence: see short-term rental rules.
The local authority sends the assessment by the end of February and payment is normally due by the end of April. In 2026 the deadline moved to June, and many authorities let larger bills be paid in three instalments. If you live abroad, have the notice sent to your manager or lawyer.
Insurance, utilities and care
These depend on the home and its use, so set your own figures.
- Insurance. Ask what the building's own policy covers, and insure the rest: your contents, and your liability to tenants and neighbours. A villa owner on a lease insures the building they own.
- Utilities. Electricity, water and internet, including what runs while you are away: a fridge, dehumidifiers and a router.
- Care. A closed home in the tropics needs airing, cleaning and checks for damp, pests and leaks. Air-conditioning units need regular servicing.
- Replacements. Furniture, appliances and soft furnishings wear faster by the sea. A yearly reserve avoids a single large bill.
If you let the home
Letting adds income and costs. A manager or operator takes a share of rent: in Phuket, independent managers take 15% to 25% of rental revenue and hotel pool operators 30% to 40% of revenue after operating costs. Rent paid to a non-resident owner is subject to 15% withholding, and a tax resident pays progressive rates after a 30% deduction on rent from a building. See rental income and tax and the rental yield calculator.
Paying late, and why it matters at sale
The Condominium Act charges interest of 10% a year on overdue common charges and a further 20% a year once they are more than six months overdue, and it lets the building's regulations restrict utilities or the common facilities. Arrears also stop a sale: the Land Office registers a transfer only with the manager's certificate that nothing is owed, which the manager must issue within 15 days of a request once the debts are paid. Put the fee on automatic payment from a Thai account. See managing a Thai property from abroad.
Work out your own running costs
The home
Land and building tax
Advanced: appraised value
The tax is charged on the official appraised value, usually below the price paid. Your assessment notice gives the figure. 80% is a working assumption, not a rule.
Your own yearly costs
Letting
Yearly cost of keeping it
฿59,900
About ฿4,993 a month, let or empty.
Share of the price
0.6%
Each year, before any rent.
Per sqm a month
THB 83
All costs, on the interior area.
- Common-area fee81 THB per sqm a month on 60 sqm
- ฿58,320
- Land and building taxSecond home, from 0.02% of appraised value
- ฿1,600
- InsuranceYour figure
- ฿0
- Utilities and internetYour figure, including standing charges while empty
- ฿0
- Care and repairsYour figure: inspections, cleaning, maintenance
- ฿0
- Reserve for replacementsYour figure: furniture, appliances, sinking fund calls
- ฿0
- Running costs a year
- ฿59,920
In short
Budget ฿59,900 a year to keep the home, before any rent. Add your own insurance, utilities and upkeep for the full figure.
Land and building tax is charged on each slice of appraised value at its own rate. The local authority sends the assessment by the end of February and payment is normally due by the end of April. Common-area fees paid late carry interest of 10% a year, and 20% more once six months overdue, under the Condominium Act. An estimate from your figures, not tax advice: see running costs explained.
Sources for these figures
- Forvis Mazars Thailand, Land and Building Tax Act rates and exemptions
- Lex Bangkok, land and building tax in 2026 (bands, exemptions, payment)
- Tilleke & Gibbins, land use classification for land and building tax (monthly lets stay residential), 18 June 2020
- PwC Thailand tax summary, other taxes (assessment by February, payment by April)
- Condominium Act (No. 4) B.E. 2551, unofficial English translation (Sections 18/1, 29, 42/1, 47)
- Revenue Department, personal income tax (30% deduction on letting buildings, filing by the end of March)
- Revenue Department, Revenue Code (withholding on rent paid to non-residents)
Talk it through
Ask for a building’s actual fees, its sinking fund balance and the last two years of accounts before you commit.
Send me these running costs
Your yearly costs by email, line by line, with an adviser to check them against a building's published fees.
Email me the costs
Start from a development's published fee or your own building's, set the appraised value and how you hold the home, then add your own insurance, utilities and care. If you let it, the calculator sets the rent against the costs.
