PROPERTY TAX UPDATE Tax Incentive Extended 2 Months

In an unexpected move the Thai Government has extended its property tax incentive scheme for two months. The economic measures were set to expire on March 28, and had triggered a flood of transactions in the real estate market. Developers have reacted favorably to the news which is expected to spur sales volume primarily in the domestic sector.

Billionaires Lead Phuket’s Top 5 Rich and Famous Villa List

Thailand’s resort island of Phuket is fast becoming the place for the rich and famous in search of tropical island living coupled with great investment. According to the latest story by the leading hotel and real estate BLOG thephuketinsider.com, two of Forbes Magazines leading billionaires have uber luxury villas in Phuket. The Top 5 List is:

1. New Zealand’s wealthiest brothers, Richard and Christopher Chandler (one brother formerly CEO of the Sovereign Group) with a fortune valued at over US$ 2 billion according to Forbes.

2. Canadian Robert Friedland,of Ivanhoe Energy and Mines, with Forbes reporting a net worth of US$1.4 billon.

3. Hong Kong’s Allan Zeman, who is regarded as the Father of Lang Kwai Fong. While his personal worth remains undisclosed he is highly ranked amongst Asia’s most wealthy and influential businessmen.

4. Finnish Formula One star Kimi Raikkonen, is the latest addition, earning a reported US$ 44 million per year and ranked by Forbes as the 5th highest paid sports star and 26th highest paid celebrity.

5. The British Binatone Founder, Gulu Lalvani, rounds out the list with his globetrotting celebrity and multi-million dollar personal fortune.

thephuketinsider.com blog ‘The Source for All Hotel & Real Estate News’, was launched this week by Bill Barnett, the well known property columnist, hospitality consultant and Managing Director of C9 Hotelworks who is based in Phuket.

NEWS ALERT Thai Property Tax Incentive Not Renewed

One of the Thai Government’s leading economic stimulus packages, the property tax incentive will not be renewed according to the Cabinet. Expiring on March 28th SBT (specific business tax) will increase to 3.3% from 0.1%, transfer fees revert to 2% from 0.01% and mortgage fees also escalate to 1% from 0.01%. Property developers and analysts continue to closely monitor the new land and building tax which is continued to be shrouded in controversy and despite grandfathering in such a large scale which will take a number of years to implement.

Cheap, eco-friendly Nissan for Thailand

Japan’s Nissan Motor Co on Friday kicked off production of its eco-car, the Nissan March, in Thailand, targeting the domestic and regional markets. The new car is to be the first model on the market under Thailand’s eco-car program, which offers auto manufacturers tax incentives to produce energy-efficient vehicles in the Kingdom. The company is producing the March for the Thai market and for export to other Asia-Pacific countries. In Thailand, the March is to be priced at 375,000 to 537,000 baht, making it one of the cheapest cars on the local market.

Thai bank in billion dollar takeover deal

Business Week
Thanachart Bank Pcl, a Thai lender partly owned by Canada’s Bank of Nova Scotia, will pay about $2.14 billion for Siam City Bank Pcl in a two- step purchase to create Thailand’s fifth-biggest bank. The combined institution will have 660 branches and 18,000 employees, Scotiabank said.

Scotiabank has operations in about 50 countries and does business in 12 Asian markets, including Hong Kong, Taiwan and Vietnam. The Thai purchase is targetted to add about 5 cents a share to earnings in the first year and 10 cents by the third year. The second stage of the takeover will be completed by July.