Some say that size doesn't matter....

[Shilo 371]

I just ran across this little item in the Bangkok Post:

 

As more people live in city condominiums, units will likely become smaller in line with consumer budgets, according to Associate Prof Manop Bhongsadadt of Chulalongkorn University. Land prices are now significantly higher, he said, so residential units offered to consumers may shrink from the current smallest room size of 20-21 square metres. The Building Control Act allows residential units as small as nine sq m.

 

(the full piece: http://www.bangkokpost.com/Business/29Jun2007_biz46.php )

 

And it got me to wondering. I currently live in a 3 bedroom house all by myself. I had bought it back when the kids were with me but they are up and grown. Once I get to Pattaya next year I will start to look for a place to live and have it in mind to rent a condo. It seems like there are a lot of studios in the 20-25 square metres range but somehow that seems to small. I'm thinking more along the lines of a double room or something with a seperate bedroom.

 

For those who know... how much does size matter?

 

9 sq m.... that has to be the size of a closet

 

.

[js007 795]

For one person I'd think 70 sq. meters would be adequate. Of course, more would be better, but you'll pay for it. Actually, many of the small condos seem to be in the 40-60 sq.m. range.

 

J

[Gary 4,119]

Before I bought, my main requirement was that it have a separate bedroom. Mine is 60 square meters and I find it plenty large enough. I think the bedroom is as big or bigger than the rest of the unit. I have a very efficient air con unit in the bedroom and have plenty of storage. I have a king size bed and plenty of room for my computer and computer desk. I looked at two side by side units. Both were 28 square meters and by the time I would have altered them to make one unit I would have had more invested than buying a bigger one to start with. Even then I would still have a cobbled up unit. Having a separate bedroom also means that you can have two televisions. Not important? What stations do you think the girls want to watch?

[MrMango 672]

I rented a Condo in Jomtiem that was 29 Mtr Sq.

 

For one person, it was big enough, but with my TW, it was too small.

[Eneukman 1]

I rent a double room in View Talay 2A, which is 74 square metres in size. It's a good size and I like having the bedroom seperate.

 

Rather than a connecting door, the original owner created a wide arch, which means it is just possible to lie in bed and watch the television in the living room.

 

The bedroom doesn't have an aircon unit but instead has a large ceiling fan. The fan is great and costs a lot less to run than an aircon unit. Having the arch, I could run the aircon in the living room if really required, but I try to use it as little as possible.

 

Alan

[wacmedia 277]

Hi,

 

I think living in LOS would be different than living in falangland. The weather is better and there is more life lived on the street than say Norway. I would very rarely cook anything with the multitude of Thai places all around that provide excellent and inexpensive food. I would spend lots of time in bars and by the swimming pool as well, so my condo would be a place for resting up sometimes and of course sleeping. Some people in falangland hardly ever leave their house other than to work and do their weekly shop at the local shopping centre. In those circumstances you would need more room in your home but that is a completely different way of life.

[marleyboy 140]

Hi,

 

I think living in LOS would be different than living in falangland. The weather is better and there is more life lived on the street than say Norway. I would very rarely cook anything with the multitude of Thai places all around that provide excellent and inexpensive food. I would spend lots of time in bars and by the swimming pool as well, so my condo would be a place for resting up sometimes and of course sleeping. Some people in falangland hardly ever leave their house other than to work and do their weekly shop at the local shopping centre. In those circumstances you would need more room in your home but that is a completely different way of life.

I agree with the above! As stated, in Thailand you would (I presume anyway!), have a more "outdoors life!", spending less time in your home. Also, some condos, have communal pools, and little restaurants shops etc etc. I have a 2 bedroomed house in Pattaya (I only stay in for 1 month of the year though!) , and unless Im staying with the family, just use it for sleeping and getting a showere etc!

Having said all the above though! If I were living alone ,Id have no qualms about buying a condo. "Personally! I would have a balcony (and not all condos have one!) and obviously if it had 2 bedrooms so much the better! I have friends though who have lived in a condo (about 40 sqaure metres if i recall), with a 3 year old for about 5 months, while waiting for their house to be built. They seemed to survive it! (in fact , they bought the condo after that!). The only "drawback" I can see, would be in the wet season? when you cant get out as much as youd maybe want-and only having the 1 room? Again though, thats a personal opinion! and besides plenty of people live in condos !

Good luck in whatever you choose to buy!

[torrenova 644]

What you need depends upon what you do with your life. If you want to stay at home, you'll need somewhere to cook, eat, a balcony and somehow to seperate sleeping and living quarters. If you just want to treat it like a hotel room, then a small studio is enough.

 

What would I do, I would rent a large studio, say 45 m2 or so. Then, you will find out whether you need a seperate bedroom. After that, you should be able to decide on the right size of apartment.

[Gary 4,119]

Maybe I'm different from a lot of guys in that I HATE to live alone. Sharing the condo with a girlfriend makes it get a LOT smaller quickly. I enjoy my privacy. I want to be able to sit at my computer for several hours at a time. I want to be able to watch English speaking TV or a movie once in a while. I want to be able to cook and have a washing machine. It's hard to have that in one room. Condo living has advantages and disadvantages. I loved the Olympic size swimming pool, beautiful grounds, a mini mart and a small restaurant within a couple of minutes walk. My condo has a large balcony for the bedroom overlooking the pool and it is great to have breakfast and coffee sitting outside. The living area has a smaller balcony that was used to hang laundry.

 

I still have that condo and have no desire to sell it. I rent it to a friend of mine. Living up country in a house also has advantages and disadvantages. I have no swimming pool and must drive somewhere to buy everything. I have a dog and a garden. We have a lot of fruit trees. I have a workshop and a lot of toys including a small tractor. We also have some farmland where I can play gentleman farmer with my tractor. I can live either place happily but I really did miss having a dog, a garden and a workshop.

 

Different strokes for different folks. I didn't rent out the condo for a year after we moved up country. I wanted my own place to stay when I needed a break from country living. My trips got fewer and farther between so I decided to rent out the condo. Fortunately money was not an issue as to whether I rented it out or not.