What Thailand land titles mean?

Foreign investors are targeting Thailand for long term investment in real estate and tourism as the Kingdom is one of the more secure countries in Asia with still a lot of potential for growth. With large economies like India , China and Russia around the corner and a reliable government, steady economic growth is generally expected and demand in the tourism real estate is likely to increase further.

There are actually three major avenues available to foreign investors.

• 30 Year Lease
• 50 Year Non-renewable Lease
• Freehold

Buyers must be aware of the various title deeds existing under Thai law when buying land in Thailand. The lowest form of Thai land titles are those that only provide the right of possession. These titles are for instance given to families that benefit from the land for generations and they have possession rights of the land under the civil and commercial code. Such titles are Sor Kor 1, Tor Bor 5, Sor Por Gor 4 and are only possession rights in order for the families to use it for farming. These titles can not be bought or sold and no building rights or legal acts can be applied to the land. In some cases it is possible for the possessor to upgrade his right to one of the regular title deeds. Usually this is not the case and therefore serious investors will not be interested in these type of titles.

The land title deeds needed to have right of ownership are the so-called Channote, Nor Sor 3 and Nor Sor 3 Gor.

As a foreigner buying land in Thailand, you should only consider land that comes with a Chanote, Nor Sor 3 or Nor Sor 3 Gor. These can be sold, leased and used as mortgage collateral and are the only titles over which registered right of ownership or lease can exist. More importantly, you cannot apply for or obtain approval to build on such land without one of the aforementioned titles. In any event, make sure you have a good lawyer look over the paperwork before you commit to anything.

CHANOTE or Nor Sor 4 Jor is the best type of land title for foreign investors. Land with a Chanote title have been accurately GPS surveyed and are linked to the national survey grid.. They are also staked out by unique numbered posts set in the ground. Chanote titles are the most sought after. The transfer of the land title can be transferred within a matter of hours.

Nor. Sor. 3      
This is an instrument certifying the use of land issued by the government to the proprietor of land not a possession title, i.e. it is confirmed by law that a person holding Nor. Sor. 3 has the legal right to possess the land. This land title can be used as a legal document or to use the benefit of the land as an owner. Nor. Sor. 3 is a floating map with no parcel points. It is issued for a specific plot of land and it is not connected to other land plots. This causes problems in verifying the land area. Any legal acts must be publicized for 30 days.

Nor. Sor. 3 Gor
This is a legal land title with the same legal basis as Nor. Sor. 3. The difference being that Nor. Sor. 3 Gor has parcel points on the map, and is set by using an aerial survey to set the points and the land area. It is possible to verify a nearby land area. It always uses the same scale of 1:5000. There is no need to publicize any legal acts, and it is possible to partition (divide) the land into smaller plots.

Condominium Title

A condominium title is a title to a part of a building or buildings with multiple owners, a fractional interest in the land, other common assets (such as a swimming pool) and common parts of the building (such as the stairwell or lobby). The title will state the floor area of the private apartment, the ground area of the common land and the percentage interest, in which that apartment has in the common property. This percentage also represents the voting interest in the condominium company or owners association.

Author: by Nelly Wallace
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