I don’t advocate people moving to Thailand that need a job or have to work.
I am Thai, living in rural Isaan and also own a house and have lived in Florida for 10 years, so I like to think I can give straight advice.
Unless you can land a full international work package at one of the top 5 international schools, you won’t make enough money to survive here over the long term.
Coming to Thailand thinking you will find a job? You won’t. If you have a college degree and a TEFL certificate you can work at a Thai school for US $1,000 a month only; which is not enough money to live here.
Meals that were 30 thb 6 years ago, are already 50 thb, for example.
The VISA’s
Marriage – Need to be married to a Thai and have 400,000 thb in the Bank
Retired – Need to be 50+ years old and have 800,000 thb in the Bank
Elite Visa’s – Bronze level for 5 years starts and US $15,000 and the higher levels cost even more.
DTV – A new type of visa gives you 180 days at a time, but only good for 5 years. Easy to qualify for. Need to show evidence you have 500,000 thb (US $15,000) in an account somewhere. Read all about DTV here
LTR – If you are making more than US $80,000 each year
Annual VISA Costs – VISA’s need to be renewed every single year.
Once you have a long term VISA to stay in Thailand, you have to consider the finances.
The cost of living in Thailand can vary greatly, depending on where you live.
Bangkok – Phuket will be the highest. For 2 people I wouldn’t recommend anything less than 90,000 thb a month. With kids 120,000 thb per month plus tuition. Not including insurance as this is dependent on your personal health.
Pattaya – Chiang Mai A couple would need 75,000 thb a month (not including insurance)
Rural Isaan – For a couple 45,000 thb per month (does not include insurance)
Other Costs
Car/Truck – Expect to pay same prices for new cars as in the USA.
Gas – Gas is sold by the liter and equates to US $4 a gallon.
Tuition – International Schools in all English, you can expect to pay US $30,000 per year per kid. ISB school is a good standard.
Food – Once again, higher costs of living have higher food prices. Where a meal in Phuket may cost 120 thb, the same meal in Isaan is 40 thb. If you need western food the prices here are more expensive than the US. A gallon of milk is almost US $8. A regular jar of Peanut Butter is $6. I just paid almost US $30 for a bottle of Virgin Olive Oil. Shopping for western foods at Makro or Tesco or Big C will shock you, as western foods, what little is available, is very costly. Small jar of spaghetti sauce is $5.
Other Costs
You will have mobile phone costs. Maybe 300 thb (US $10) per phone per month.
Internet – We pay 799 thb (US $25 per month for fiber optic)
Electric Bill – Dependent on how much you run the air conditioning. I think ours running AC 24/7 is around US $200 a month
Housing
Housing once again, foreigners cannot OWN land here!
You can only buy a condo, which I do NOT advice as there is a glutton of empty condo’s and reselling is near impossible.
Rents depend on location with the beach, tourist areas, the highest
You can still find a place in Bangkok or elsewhere for between US $300 and $600 a month.
In rural Isaan you can find houses to rent for as little as US $150 a month.
Biggest Mistake I See People Make
Needing to make money in Thailand. You won’t find a job as many jobs are reserved for only Thai people. It is hard to make enough money in baht to equate to your needs in US dollars.
Underestimating things like the currency exchange rates. When it is 43 thb to US $1, things are cheap. However, the cost rises when it is 31 thb to US $1 like it is now. The exchange rate can change at any time with no warning!
Underestimating costs over the long term – Things get more expensive. Can your budget survive financial cost increases the next 20 years?
You will have insurance costs increases once you go over age 65. Insurance here does not cover preexisting conditions either. You have to save money and pay in cash at the hospital if you cannot be insured.
Bringing pets – There are 100,000’s of stray cats and dogs here. Without having a fenced yard, your pet could be in peril. Plus, the cost of dog food here is outrageous. Sorry, I know how hard it is to leave pets.
There is a lot to learn before moving to Thailand for the rest of your life.
Social Media like Facebook? There are just to many people spinning untruths for clicks.
Many people come here, decide Youtube is a way to make money and tell all kinds of outrageous stories for subscribers.
You can really get yourself messed up listening to foreigners on social media that think they have Thailand all figured out.
Many never last more than a couple years before they go home broke.
I will try to cover more details on moving from the USA in additional posts.