Demand from affluent Myanmar nationals pushes up condo sales
Condominiums in the Bangkok metropolitan area that usually go for between 2 million and 4 million baht have more than doubled in sales from the previous year as affluent Myanmar nationals snap up units in prime locations, property management company Sen X, said this week
The civil war in Myanmar and geopolitical tension have driven wealthy Myanmar nationals to seek refuge in Thailand, Suphin Mechuchep, Sen X’s chief executive officer, said on Wednesday (March 27).
He said several Myanmar nationals are buying condos in the Ramkhamhaeng and Bang Na areas for their children who are attending college in these zones, such as Ramkhamhaeng University and Assumption University (ABAC).
“Before and during Covid-19, the top foreign buyers of condo units in Thailand were from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. But since last year, there has been greater demand from Myanmar nationals and that has pushed them into the top 3,” he said.
Suphin pointed out that the rising demand is a boon for Thai developers who are having a hard time selling units to Thai customers, whose purchasing power has been diminished amid rising household debts and a stagnating economy.
He believes that the trend of Myanmar nationals migrating to Thailand will not end any time soon.
Last month, dozens of young Myanmar nationals were arrested in Thailand’s border province of Tak, apparently fleeing compulsory military conscription that now also includes women.
To increase the number of troops fighting armed opposition groups, Myanmar’s junta is enforcing a law that allows the military to summon all men aged 18-35 and women aged 18-27 to serve for at least two years. The junta is facing growing opposition as pro-democracy protests have turned into widespread armed resistance.
