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Buying a Thai condo comes with two types of ongoing or one-time property charges. Understanding these before you buy helps you budget accurately and evaluate the building's long-term financial health.
The common area maintenance fee (also called the juristic person fee or management fee) is a monthly or annual charge paid by every unit owner in the building. It covers:
Typical rates in Thailand: ฿35–80 per sqm per month. A 50 sqm unit in a mid-range building might pay ฿1,750–4,000/month (฿21,000–48,000/year).
Premium buildings in central Bangkok, Phuket resorts, or branded residences can charge ฿100–200/sqm/month.
The juristic person committee (elected by unit owners) sets the fee at the AGM. Increases require approval by a majority of unit owners.
Typically collected annually in advance. Unpaid CAM fees result in the juristic person cutting services (access cards, parking, utilities in some cases) and can be registered as a lien on the chanote.
The sinking fund is a one-time payment made by the purchaser at the time of transfer, collected to fund major capital expenditures for the building over its lifetime. These include:
Typical rate: ฿300–700 per sqm (one-time on purchase). For a 50 sqm unit: ฿15,000–35,000.
The sinking fund is held in a separate account managed by the juristic person and can only be spent on approved capital projects, not routine maintenance.
When you sell, the sinking fund does not transfer back to you. It stays with the building. The new buyer does not typically pay sinking fund on a resale—it was already paid on the original purchase—though this can vary by building rules.
Ask the juristic person office for:
A building with a low sinking fund balance, high delinquency rates, and aging infrastructure is a warning sign—future special assessments (one-off additional charges) may be required.
Electricity in Thai condos is often resold by the juristic person at the regulated MRF rate (approximately ฿3.5–4.5/unit). Water is separate. For a 1-bedroom unit used as a primary residence, expect ฿1,000–2,500/month in utilities.
Total monthly ownership cost for a Thai condo = CAM fee + utilities + any mortgage payment. For a ฿3M condo of 35 sqm in a standard Bangkok building: CAM ≈ ฿1,400/month, utilities ≈ ฿1,500/month = ฿2,900/month all-in before any mortgage. Factor this into your investment yield calculations.