At the heart of Indo-China, Thailand offers an enormous range of attractions which draw visitors back year after year, including high mountains, dense forests and stunning beaches, a tropical climate and cities teeming with culture and colour. Today, the country is by far the most popular holiday destination for westerners in South East Asia, and is widely considered to be the ‘Spain of the East’.

Known as Siam until 1939, Thailand has attracted significant foreign investment and has become one of the Asian Economic Tigers and one of the fastest-growing economies in the region. Only Malaysia enjoys a greater GDP per capita, and Thailand equals most and surpasses some of the Eastern European markets in those terms. The country has strong business links with China and has an excellent infrastructure and world-class facilities in many resort towns.

The two key drivers behind the Thai property market are the domestic economic growth and tourism, and the expectation is that developments in both areas will contribute to a continuing upward trend in property prices. People buy in Thailand for a number of reasons, from capital investments, to holiday rentals (with a long-term view of capital appreciation), to personal use as a holiday or retirement home.

The relatively undiscovered nature of Thailand means that property prices here remain far below those in the more established European markets, although they are growing quickly and strongly (around 10-15% a year). There is great rental potential, due to the ever-expanding tourist market, and demand is growing, supported by increased government spending on marketing, the attractions of the people, the climate and the geography of the country. On top of this, there is no capital gains tax for private investors and very low ongoing costs.