Completing Mortgage finance to both Foreigners & Thai’s for almost 10 years; lenders are often on the lookout for new condo projects which offer something different in the market place and add onto their lending books. Some kind of unique selling point with a great location which in turn gives the unit & lender better liquidity in terms of default makes for good solid Mortgage finance.
Since late 2014, early 2015, the Blue Sky Groups first project in Pattaya was completed under the name Atlantis Condo Resort on second road in Jomtien and being just a short walk away from the beach offers a great location. I remember going to the off-plan launch party at the Centara Grand Mirage Ballroom thinking “wow, this kind of resort hotel style concept could really turn out as a great addition to the Pattaya condo market”.
Once the project finished, many were pleasantly surprised at how well the plans came to fruition. A massive winding lagoon pool set amongst lush green tropical trees with a waterfall, imitation beach, multiple Jacuzzi areas, waterpark and waterslides for children and of course a pirate ship with water cannons, set new standards for resort condominiums. It was also to set new benchmarks and standards for condo finance pre-approvals on the eastern seaboard.
Mortgage finance with one particular lender is predominantly focused on the collateral (rather than client) and would often through their own boards appetite to lend on a project, grant pre-approved loan amounts based on the unit view, size, floor and location. Atlantis condo resort finance was therefore split into the following category loan sizes with a cap of maximum loan to value 60% valuation.
Pool Access from Unit
Floors 01 – 01 up to 35,000 sq.m.
Pool View
Floors 04 – 08 up to 30,000 Sq.m.
Floors 02 – 03 up to 30,000 Sq.m.
Floors 01 – 01 up to 30,000 Sq.m.
Normal View
Floors 04 – 08 up to 30,000 Sq.m.
Floors 02 – 03 up to 28,000 Sq.m.
Floors 01 – 01 up to 25,000 Sq.m.
The lenders preference to lend on units in this project was given a firm approval and with pool access units the main preference to lend on.
An owner in this project would now easily know how much they could borrow by simply multiplying the corresponding amount above, with their unit size. A 35 Sq.m. Pool Access Unit for example, would see a loan approval of up to THB 1,200,000 (35 x 35,000) and cash available within around 3-4 weeks. For a good time after, any low rise (8 storey) resort project in Pattaya & Jomtien would therefore have seen some comparison when conducting internal reviews of what new projects to add to their pre-approved list. Almost all low rise projects were in the THB 25,000 – 35,000 lending per sq.m. bracket for quite some time.
The second of Blue Sky’s 5 eastern seaboard projects was the Grand Caribbean Resort on Theppraya Road. This project came once again with their signature massive resort style pool, waterslides, pirate ship etc. only this time also featured a wave machine in the pool & 1 high rise tower including an indoor air conditioned cinema room and children’s play area.
The location being central to both Pattaya & Jomtien on the main connecting road between central areas was a big thumbs up to finance also, especially with increased facilities. This time, finance could more easily be arranged in the following ranges:
Low Rise Buildings – THB 35,000 – THB 43,000 Sq.m.
High Rise Building – THB 35,000 – THB 55,000 Sq.m.
Again, the lender would have taken Atlantis Condo Resort as the benchmark and then on this occasion increased finance availability due to increased facilities and preference to high rise towers.
The third project which came to completion around 2015 was the Venetian Signature Resort a little further away in the upcoming area of Na Jomtien which is now also home to Café Del Mar, same name as the Ibiza legendary brand.
Once again Blue Sky Group came up trumps with new concepts and this time included a more winding pool set amongst a European building network and gondola style waterways with a roman style bathing area. Sitting within their courtyard on a fresh morning underneath the clock tower and with birds chirping away, is also a pleasant way to write a good article, I can assure you!
Finance on The Venetian saw increased loan availability pre-approval in 2016 and would now be possible to loan THB 35,000 – THB 45,000 Sq.m. again a step up on the total loan size for low rise comparable projects.
The Espana Condo Resort is Blue Sky’s fourth project in the area and is situated again on second road, Jomtien, almost central to both Atlantis & the Venetian.
Finishing stages are now under way and many are asking what finance is likely to be made available. The likelihood is that the Venetian would be a good benchmark to use and therefore, could expect loan sizes of around THB 35,000 – THB 45,000 Sq.m. however, I would not be surprised IF there were increased loan sizes available since as each project has progressed and Pattaya markets have changed prices often increased slightly.
A special mention to Foreigners looking to finance here, is that the unit must be transferred fully into their name before finance can be arranged.
Equity Release finance can be available and baht cheques can be made out in client names within around 3-4 weeks of application.
Finally, Blue Sky’s eagerly anticipated fifth project Grand Florida, is based a little further down the coast in Na Jomtien and also scheduled to complete later this year. One of my favourite projects on paper, Grand Florida, combines the existing signature style massive pool and play area only this time, is directly connected to the beach! Equity Release finance is sure to be available on this project and as a benchmark, the only other low rise project pre-approved in that area is Pine Shores, (which overlooks Café Del Mar on one side and Bacco Restaurant the other).
Pine Shores was pre-approved back in 2014 for easy baht finance between THB 35,000 – THB 45,000 Sq.m. My best guesstimate at this stage is that Grand Florida should see a higher loan approval for prime units which are often pool access or beach facing.
To summarise, low rise projects in and around both Pattaya & Jomtien and certainly less than 10 years old often command loan sizes of between THB 25,000 – THB 45,000 Sq.m. on Equity Release terms to Foreigners OR under Thai name, Mortgage finance can be used to purchase.
For further information on how to “Finance Property & Condos in Thailand”, or a link to the Thailand Condo Finance Map providing easy Equity Release guidelines,
please feel free to email [email protected] OR, call 66 (0) 81278 5382 OR, Line ID stuartmaxwellfoulkes, I shall than be happy to assist.
Note 1 – This article is to be used as a guide only and any reference to any project, condo or business is to be used for reference only based on existing loan sizes and not to be construed any other way.
