Rent or Buy?

[Cruisemonkey]

I'm 60 now and retirement is fast approaching (as soon as the Chinese decide they won't renew my Residence Permit anymore).

I'm a Cambodian 'rookie' having visited Siem Reap & PP eleven years ago, and spent 3 weeks in Kep with 4 nights in PP last February. Starting in June (next month) I'm spending 6 weeks in Sihanoukville (Otres - Sok Sabay resort), 2 weeks in Kampot, then 3 weeks on Phu Quoc. While in SKV, one of my objectives (other than lounging around the pool drinking beer & eating ) is to check out the 'condo situation'.

Everything I've read indicates there is a 'bubble' in PP. What about SKV? There is a very 'seductive-looking' development on Independence Beach (but i'm not naive enough to believe it will, in reality, turn out like the artist's pictures). Ideally, I like to have a 1-bedroom waterfront unit - no one can build in front of you. However, I don't think I would want to buy 'off plan' and risk everything collapses and the development is never completed... or it is - with shoddy construction using cheap material & fixtures - and starts to fall apart in 3 months... becoming an almost worthless slum with algae-filled pools.

I don't have to be 'waterfront' (I just figure that's the only way to go if I buy). If I rented, the only 'must' is having a nice pool and a BBQ area.

Would you:
- buy
- rent a condo
- rent a bungalow (perhaps in a 'boutique' with shared pool)?

Why?

[Duncan]

I would advise to rent for the first year,,, as next year not only will there be many apartments and condo's be completed and on the market, but there will be elections and who knows whats going to happen. For many other reasons it may be a good time then to buy then.

[Cruisemonkey]

January 2018 will be the very earliest I would be moving to Cambodia. In China, I'm on one-year contracts expiring Jan. 31 each year. I will stay until I'm 65 (if they will have me).

[Jamie_Lambo]

I would advise to rent for the first year,,, as next year not only will there be many apartments and condo's be completed and on the market, but there will be elections and who knows whats going to happen. For many other reasons it may be a good time then to buy then.

^^ this

[phuketrichard]

RENT
unless u have a local wife or kid to leave it to
buying makes ZERO sense as a single expat make

I have seen some very nice riverfront homes for rent in Kampot for around $300/month. To many backpackers an such for me in town but living a quiet life 2-3 kms outside town would be ideal. Kampot has enough restaurants/markets so u dont need travel further.

For me, i hate condos and apts, always prefer stand alone homes

[Bitte_Kein_Lexus]

Phuket, stop being always negative about Cambodia. I bought two units as a single guy in my mid 20s years ago and everything is still dandy. I sold one almost two years ago but kept the one I currently live in. Condos can be in one's name so the risk is much lower. I also have land in someone else's name (not even my wife/girlfriend) but hey, I like to have a bit of risk in my life . Now that I have a steady girlfriend, I'm thinking of getting more. You only live once right?

Anyways, I agree with Duncan. Don't buy after arriving here. Wait a year at least because you might not even like it here. Also, I'm not sure if it'll end up cheaper or not in the long-run to buy if you can invest the bulk of your money somewhere that yields good returns. If after having lived in shnv full-time a year you decide you do like the idea of retiring here, you can buy a condo. Many are still off plan or under construction in Sihanoukville, so you'll have way more options than in Jan 2018 anyways.

[phuketrichard]

Phuket, stop being always negative about Cambodia. I bought two units as a single guy in my mid 20s years ago and everything is still dandy. I sold one almost two years ago but kept the one I currently live in. Condos can be in one's name so the risk is much lower. I also have land in someone else's name (not even my wife/girlfriend) but hey, I like to have a bit of risk in my life . Now that I have a steady girlfriend, I'm thinking of getting more. You only live once right?

Anyways, I agree with Duncan. Don't buy after arriving here. Wait a year at least because you might not even like it here. Also, I'm not sure if it'll end up cheaper or not in the long-run to buy if you can invest the bulk of your money somewhere that yields good returns. If after having lived in shnv full-time a year you decide you do like the idea of retiring here, you can buy a condo. Many are still off plan or under construction in Sihanoukville, so you'll have way more options than in Jan 2018 anyways.

Good for u, but perhaps i should have stated, a single expat in his 60's should not buy
Not being negative about Cambodia, does not just apply to there but Thailand as well

Always suggest stay somewhere at least 6 months before even consider buying ( if that is ur wish) , I lived in Thailand over 15 years till i finally brought ( and to be truthful, kick myself i didn't buy in the 80's LOL)

THis is a interesting read from thai visa; https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/98 ... g-jomtien/
AH .... I'VE MADE IT TO PARADISE ......... CAN ANYONE HERE RELATE TO THIS

[obelisks]

January 2018 will be the very earliest I would be moving to Cambodia. In China, I'm on one-year contracts expiring Jan. 31 each year. I will stay until I'm 65 (if they will have me).

If you are currently in China you must know yourself how serious the situation is there. Global Research claims there are 64 million empty apartments in China (http://www.globalresearch.ca/china-ghost-cities/5421229 )

And closer to home in Cambodia the first question I would be asking myself if I were a potential buyer is why similar economic forces will not prevail in the end in Phnom Penh and other places?

Most owners instead have to turn to foreigners who can afford to pay upwards of $1,000 a month in rent. Prices, however, are predicted to drop as the supply explodes from now until 2020 as thousands of new condos are slated for completion.
“It will be great for people looking to rent, there will be a lot of options and it will be cheaper. Condos that don’t adjust their prices will stay empty,” says Fitzgerald. “If you look at 20,000 units coming online, there’s not going to be 20,000 new expats looking to rent these things. There might be 3,000 or 4,000.”
Phnom Penh’s real estate market is heading for a shakeup as the period of mass-speculation ends with the completion of apartments and boreys that are move-in ready. As a frontier market, it can be difficult to predict how the economy will fare in the next few years.

https://www.asialifemagazine.com/cambod ... ty-bubble/

[beaker]

do the math
ie: the home I rent would
cost $50,000 USD
rent $ 100 USD
50000/100=500 so I could rent for 500 months .
so could pay rent for over 41 years and don't have all the additional fee/taxes etc

put the money in the bank for 41 years and pay rent is what I would do (if I had the cash to buy) in my case

[LionsLeftTesticle]

Anyone with a shred of common sense would tell you to rent.

You're 60 have nobody to leave home to and it's Cambodia where you can't guarantee you own what you own.