This is a convenient way to view the region as those three areas have different features and pricing. Note that the Eastern area is often referred to locally as “Phu Khao Sethi” or “Millionare Mountain”. The Colliers report confirms the reason for that local tag – it is by far the most expensive area in the region with the average price of a house or villa at around 12 million baht. Luxury developments such as Kirimaya and Toscana have a lot to do with that average price level.

The Western area has a lower average price with the Central area pricing somewhere between the Western and Eastern. Overall averages mentioned in the report for the entire region are 9.79 million baht per unit for house or villa, 9,160 baht per square wah for plots, and 62,600 baht per square meter for condominium units.

The outlook for the area looks quite strong based on the observations in the report. Colliers points at that some major developers have begun projects in the area, including Magnolia, Vilailux and Sansiri, which will drive demand and pricing even further.

With the heavy influx to the area most inexpensive bungalows and guest houses are already booked. Khao Yai Property’s rentals are fully booked for at least one month, including the large 4 bedroom 4 bath plus servant’s quarters house at Khao Yai Land View. The rental market for larger homes in Khao Yai is rather small so those families seeking an escape from the floods are usually resorting to renting several bungalows. However, since they are mostly booked those families are having issues with their group being split between more than one resort. Also the lack of kitchen and laundry facilities at most bungalows makes a long stay difficult and expensive.

First are the underlying fundamentals of the area. Because of the elevation (about 400 meters above sea level), it has much better weather all year than low lying areas. So although many people think of the beach when they think of a vacation destination or location for a weekend or retirement home, the beaches are hot and humid almost the entire year while Khao Yai is cooler and dryer making it much more comfortable. In fact, air conditioning isn’t needed much of the year. Most residents use it only during hot season. The proximity to Khao Yai National Park and the nearby areas make for clean air and expansive natural surroundings, something not to be found in developed areas and most beach resorts. And location, only two hours drive from Bangkok, make it a convenient destination for weekend get-aways or even for residents who work in Bangkok.

Those fundamentals have made Khao Yai a popular destination for many years. In the 1990’s there was a great deal of development of homes and resorts in the area. Then the financial crisis hit in 1997 and many projects were put on hold. There followed a long sleepy spell as it seemed that Khao Yai was forgotten and new development started to go where foreigners were buying. Two destinations within two hours of Bangkok saw a rapid expansion – Hua Hin and Pattaya. That continued at a hectic pace until the 2008 world wide financial crisis pulled the rug from under the foreign buying demand. That was about the time Thais began to remember Khao Yai and investment starting flowing back into the area. A few new destinations became very popular, like Primo Posto and Palio, and suddenly there was a booming new interest by a new generation of buyers who discovered the attractiveness of the area.

So the popularity of the Khao Yai area is based on the fundamentals of great weather, clean and natural surroundings, and close proximity to Bangkok. Taken together with rediscovered interest in the area and unique new developments the demand for property continues to be strong.

The owner of Khao Yai Property was recently interviewed by Thai TV channel 9 for a story about the rapid increase of land prices in the Khao Yai area.

The story here is how rapidly land prices have increased in the areas along Thanarat Road and Kutkhlaa-Phaansuek Road. Khao Yai Property owner Ms. Urailak told channel 9 that a year or two ago land prices in that area were in the range of two million to three million baht per rai but that now they are five million to six million baht per rai.

When asked if she thought that prices would continue to increase she said that nobody can be predict that with certainty but it seems clear that the run up in prices is not finished because there are still many buyers looking for property in the area.

For example, we have a beautiful one rai plot available in a resort development. The plot was purchased years ago when the development was under different ownership and it fell into disrepair. That development has recently changed hands and the new developer is renovating and upgrading it. The new developer is selling plots at 4.8 million baht per rai. However, owners who purchased before the development changed hands are selling at a much lower price. For details on just how much lower, or for information about other properties not yet listed on the website please call.

The starting price for most properties in the area is 2.5 million baht per rai and prices go up from there depending on area and amenities. Land along Thanon Kut Khlaa (ถนนกุดคล้า) is 3 to 4 million baht per rai unless it is well off the main road. Khlong Sai 2 (คลองทราย 2) for example is 4 million baht per rai for a beautiful 2 rai plot with water just a couple hundred meters off the main road. Prices for land along Thanarat Road are higher, of course. Available land next to the Phet Nam Nueng market is 5.5 million baht per rai.

Although those prices are significantly higher than a year ago, they will be considered a bargain another year or two as prices continue to increase driven by continued and growing demand in the area plus more development. Palio is drawing huge crowds this season and they will soon open another development next door comprised of boutique shops. Moon Dance Bistro is open and Vino just opened bringing a couple more fine dining options to the area. Closer to Pak Chong is the huge new Smoke House restaurant that is nearing completion. And there are numerous other mystery projects underway in the area that are certain to boost property prices. So although low season bargaining opportunities have passed there are still plenty of great values at this time.

Well, the Fed injected $600 billion, so the onslaught of the twin bubbles is about to begin if Supavud is correct. All that extra cash wants to be invested where there is some decent growth, which would not be the U.S. So instead of pumping up the U.S. economy a lot of the liquidity will go to places like Thailand where the forecast is for 7% or more GDP growth next year.

We have already seen a property bubble of sorts in Thailand in places like Phuket, Hua Hin and Pattaya, places where foreigners pay several times the Thai price for property they cannot even own.
Those prices retracted strongly during the global financial crisis but perhaps they will be re-inflated, at least temporarily, with the new flood of dollars. However, it would seem that the steady decline in the dollar against the baht might have a dampening effect, making properties substantially more expensive even though the baht prices have not increased.

Contrasting the bubble/burst/bubble action of those locations popular with foreign investors, property in the Khao Yai area has seen a steady strong upward trend in price for the past five years and more. There are no indications of a bubble or speculative buying, just a steady strong demand from Thais, not foreigners, for vacation homes, retirement homes, and refuge from Bangkok.

Add to that the even greater appeal of Khao Yai’s golden triangle region that suffered no flooding even as 50 year floods affected vast areas of the Korat plateau as well as all the cities along the Chao Phraya river. The fundamentals for the area look stronger than ever and as high season is now beginning buyers are appearing in greater numbers.

Actually, that’s a big question for all of the merchants in the first phase of Palio. We see lots of visitors on weekends but few buyers. How many of the current businesses will still be there next year is a big question. We are hopeful to see lots of variety at Palio with more unique restaurants and boutique shops. It also seems like a natural as a location for clubs and gatherings. We asked at one of the wine shops if there was a wine club in the area and drew a blank stare from the kid minding the (empty) store. That’s a missed opportunity. We can only hope the owner will or has thought of it as a way to get people together and, of course, sell more wine. What a great location to have tasting parties.

This is another good reason to buy land in this area because even after a “50 year storm” there was no flooding.

Demand for Khao Yai residences is different from that at other tourist destinations in Thailand because most of the home-buyers are local people who want to buy second homes that are not far from Bangkok. As a result, residential projects in Khao Yai don’t feel any negative impact when demand from foreign investors falls because of the global economic crisis.

That is the key point about property values in Khao Yai, that it is wealthy Thais purchasing Khao Yai land. And we have seen what that means. When the world wide financial mess hit so many western countries the property markets in areas popular with foreigners like Phuket, Pattaya and Hua Hin took a dive. But wealthy Thais have been more interested in buying in Khao Yai so prices actually accelerated upward during the last two years.

Kwanchai Mordpradit, managing director of Art the Hill Khao Yai, another luxury Khao Yai real estate, said demand for resort residences at Khao Yai had not suffered any negative impact from global economic problems. Indeed, the ultra wealth Thais have been snapping up land and resort homes like crazy. A few big names include Charoen Pokphand Group chairman and chief executive Dhanin Chearavanont, Amata Corporation managing director Vikrom Kromadit, King Power International’s chairman Vichai Raksriaksorn and Workpoint Entertainment’s chairman Phanya Nirunkul. Those are some of the larger land owners in the area, some holding rather extensive pieces of prime land.

มอบความสุขให้คุณแม่ของคุณได้ทุกวันด้วยความรัก  ให้ความสบายใจช่วยให้ท่านมีสุขภาพที่ดีแข็งแรง  และหาที่พักที่อยู่อาศัยที่อากาศดีๆ สิ่งแวดล้อมดีๆ ให้ท่าน  เพื่อความสุขในอนาคตของทุกคนในครอบครัว

ดิฉันและสามีเคยอาศัยอยู่ที่รัฐแคลิฟอร์เนีย  ในประเทศอเมริกาหลายปี  และเมื่อกลับมาประเทศไทย  เราเพลนกันว่าจะหาซื้อที่ดินสักแห่งนอกเมือง  เพื่อปลูกบ้านไว้ไปพักผ่อน  จึงเริ่มสำรวจไปเที่ยวพักตามสถานที่ต่างๆ  เริ่มต้นจากเมืองที่มีหาด-ทราย-ทะเลสวย  ไปที่มีภูเขา  แม่น้ำ  น้ำตกและแหล่งท่องเที่ยวตามธรรมชาติหลายแห่ง  ขึ้นไปทางเหนือบนภู  บนดอยสูงป่าเขาสวยๆ อากาศหนาวเย็น  เกือบทั่วเมืองไทย  แล้วก็กลับมาตั้งหลักใหม่ที่กรุงเทพฯ เพราะเรายังมีบ้านอยู่ในเมือง  ทุกที่ที่ไปเที่ยวก็น่าสนใจชอบทุกที่เลยนะ  แต่เมื่อพูดคุยกันถึงความเป็นไปได้ที่สุด  สำหรับครอบครัวและบ้านอีกหลังหนึ่ง  ก็ควรอยู่ไม่ไกลกรุงเทพฯ เดินทางต้องสะดวกปลอดภัย  อากาศต้องดีกว่าในเมืองหลวง

เมื่อมาเทียบดูแล้วนะ  บ้านริมทะเลก็ชอบมากฝันมานานแล้ว  แต่ถ้าต้องอยู่ทุกวันอาจพบกับปัญหาเรื่องของอากาศค่อนข้างจะเค็ม  ซึ่งอาจก่อให้เกิดสนิมในส่วนที่เป็นเหล็กได้ง่าย  โดยเฉพาะตัวบ้านหรือแม้แต่รถยนตร์ที่ใช้โครงสร้างของเหล็กมักจะผุกร่อนง่าย  ก็เลยต้องตัดออกไป ถ้าจะไปเที่ยวทะเลก็คงไปพักที่โรงแรมจะสะดวกกว่า  ส่วนทางเหนือเราก็ชอบที่อากาศเย็น  วิวสวยภูเขามากมาย  แต่ถ้าต้องไปอยู่อาจจะต้องเสียค่าเครื่องบินทุกเที่ยว  หรือต้องขับรถหลายชั่วโมง  ญาติพี่น้อง-เพื่อนฝูงคงจะไปเยี่ยมลำบากหน่อย

สุดท้ายก็มาตกหลุมรักเกิดประทับใจที่เขาใหญ่  อ.ปากช่อง  มาเที่ยวครั้งแรกช่วงฤดูหนาว  ได้สัมผัสอากาศที่สดชื่นเย็นสบาย  ไม่แพ้ที่แคลิฟอร์เนียความรู้สึกของสภาพอากาศใกล้เคียงกันมาก  แต่อากาศของบ้านเราจะเย็นชื้น  ไม่แห้งเหมือนที่อเมริกา  นอกจากอากกาศที่ดี  สิ่งแวดล้อมก็ยังดี  มีความเป็นธรรมชาติให้ชื่นชมมีลำน้ำ  มีน้ำตกในป่าเขา  วิวภูเขาที่สวยงาม  และเดินทางจากกรุงเทพฯ ไม่เกิน 2 ช.ม. ต้องเป็นที่เขาใหญ่แน่นอน!

เมื่อเราได้ที่ดินที่เขาใหญ่ลงตัว  พวกเราก็มาช่วยกันปลูกต้นไม้ใหญ่  สร้างเป็นสวนป่ากลับคืนธรรมชาติ  แล้วเราก็ปลูกบ้านในป่าของเราเอง  ดิฉันและครอบครัวดีใจที่มีโอกาสได้เลือกอยู่สถานที่ดีๆ ได้สัมผัสกับธรรมชาติที่ใกล้ป่าใหญ่ในอุทยานแห่งชาติเขาใหญ่  ที่ยังมีการช่วยกันดูแลอนุรักษ์ป่าให้สมบูรณ์อยู่ในประเทศไทยของเรา

บ้านหลังใหม่ตั้งใจมอบให้คุณแม่ได้ชื่นใจ    ตอนนี้คุณแม่อายุ 82 ปี  สุขภาพยังแข็งแรงดีมาก  พวกเราจึงใช้เวลาส่วนใหญ่อยู่ที่นี่  ลูกหลานก็พากันแวะมาเยี่ยมอย่างสม่ำเสมอเพราะไม่ไกลกรุงเทพฯ  สามีของดิฉันเคยเป็นโรคภูมิแพ้  เมื่อมาอยู่เขาใหญ่อาการก็ดีขึ้นมากไม่ค่อยจะแพ้เหมือนแต่ก่อน  หลังจากย้ายมาอยู่สักพักใหญ่ได้รับอากาศดีที่บริสุทธิ์  เวลาที่กลับเข้าไปในเมืองหลวงพวกเราจึงรู้สึกถึงความแตกต่างได้ทันที  ทั้งอากาศเป็นพิษ  ทั้งรถติดทำให้อารมณ์เสียสุขภาพจิตก็เสีย  ทุกวันนี้ดิฉันเลือกที่จะเข้ากรุงเทพฯ เฉพาะเรื่องที่จำเป็นจริงๆ เท่านั้น

The outing was no doubt a fun field trip for Raimon employees and the benefits of planting trees are obvious. The exact location wasn’t mentioned, but a logical question is who is going to protect those trees? Thai villagers cut and burn anything that they consider an obstacle to their interests. Yearly burning during dry season sets off fires that often burn up into the national park – flames are visible from throughout the area racing up the mountains. Young trees stand no chance of surviving if caught in one of those burn-offs, and there is no effrt by Thai authorities in stopping the burning. We hope the efforts of Raimon group aren’t lost.

A recent example is a 31 rai plot with frontage on Thanarat Road that is located very close to the entrance to Khao Yai National Park sold two weeks ago for two million baht per rai. It is already back on the market at three million baht per rai. Thousands of potential buyers will pass the new for sale sign this high season and it will probably sell quickly, making a quick and substantial profit for the flipper.

You don’t have to be a property flipper to make a deal on Khao Yai land during rainy season. Just summon the courage to get out of the house and make the short drive up. Be sure to contact Ms. Raila first so she can show you properties in the size and price range that interest you. Telephone 087-251-6076.

More details of the plan have leaked out as the debate has ensued, including the fact that they plan to widen the road its entire 24 km length from Pak Chong to the entrance to Khao Yai National Park. People who live in the area and visit consider that a travesty which will destroy much of the atmosphere of the drive toward the park. Already 128 large trees have been felled in the first 8 km stretch, including the stretch along the first curve that goes up the hill where the trees used to reach across the road forming a tree tunnel.

Today we visited the area and saw that all the heavy equipment has now been withdrawn to a camp area. The biggest question now is what kind of remediation is going to be done for the area. Many are calling for the money to be spent to replant large trees along the road so that in a few years some of the atmosphere of the area can be restored. There are also calls to investigate where those old trees went because some of them are worth a lot of money on the black market.

The first eight kilometers of Thanarat Road beginning at the Mittraphap intersection are being widened from two lanes to four. This required removal of many trees along the road, many of them beautiful flowering trees over 50 years old. Initial news reports had mistakenly said that the road would be made eight lanes wide.

One of the directors of the national park service made a statement that he wanted the natural atmosphere to be maintained around the park and that such a large road did not need to come all the way to the park entrance anyway. After all, there is no place for that many cars to go once they reach the park. There is a narrow winding two lane road that goes up the mountain and there are limits on the number of vehicles they allow in the park.

The local governor was interviewed and he said that the existing road is dangerous when there is heavy traffic on holiday weekends or when events are held in the area, so he approved the 69 million baht expansion project. It is true that there is heavy traffic along that stretch of road when, for example, Bonanza Ranch has a concert.

Hopefully the expansion project is kept to that first 10 km of Thanarat and the rest of the trip into Khao Yai and surrounding areas keeps its current feeling and canopy of trees along the road. The pace of development is brisk in the area so some road improvement is no doubt needed. You may also notice a new power substation under construction just past where the current road expansion ends; another sign of big things happening in the area is the need to bring in more power.

ราคาที่ดินเขาใหญ่

These are actual average selling prices in millions of Thai baht per rai for all years except 2010. At the present time the asking price for land near Khao Yai Land View is in the range of 2.0 to 2.5 million baht per rai. We expect that 2.5 million baht will become the baseline price this year.

Property adjacent to Kirimaya and Khao Yai National Park is going for substantially more, not just in the housing developments but also bare land. 3 million baht and up is the current asking price for some parcels.

For years Thailand has been a popular overseas retirement destination for westerners. The typical locales have been the tourist destinations of Phuket and Pattaya. They are popular beach destinations with large expat populations and lots of the services expats demand. They are also hugely overbuilt and inflated in price. It is a common practice in Thailand to charge foreigners substantially higher prices than Thai people would pay and that goes for real estate as well. This is particularly true in tourist areas. Hence, many foreigners in Phuket and Pattaya who have purchased homes for their retirement have paid double or triple the “Thai price” without even knowing it.

Retirees who are a little more savy have looked to places like Hua Hin as alternatives. Hua Hin is another beach resort area but it is primarily Thai-owned real estate so it doesn’t suffer as much from the rampant dual pricing effect. Hua Hin has undergone dramatic development in recent years, prices have risen steadily, and quite a few foreigners have been purchasing in the area. Thai property experts are saying it is nearing full build-out so in the next couple of years it is likely to plateau. There are still good values in Hua Hin but they are becoming rarer all the time.

With Phuket and Pattaya hugely overbuilt and price inflated, Hua Hin reaching a plateau of development, where is the next hot destination in Thailand? It is no secret; it has been written about in the Thai press and has even called “the next Hua Hin” by Thai property developers. It is the area they call Khao Yai. Khao Yai is actually the name of the national park that lies two hours drive from Bangkok. It is a World Heritage site with an impressive array of flora and fauna. The name Khao Yai is also used to refer to the surrounding area on the Pak Chong side of the park.

Many westerners think of the beach when they dream about a retirement destination. The truth is, however, that the heat and humidity at the beaches in Thailand is oppressive most of the year. When you drive up to Khao Yai, however, the change in elevation makes a dramatic difference. Cooler temperatures and lower humidity year round mean you can even get away without air conditioning. That’s impossible anywhere else in Thailand other than the mountains. In the cool season, in fact, the temperatures drop to 10 to 12 degrees C at night. You might forget you are actually in Thailand when you spend time in Khao Yai, except of course for all the other nice things like friendly Thai people and low prices.

Low prices include land prices. Compared to Phuket land prices starting around 12 million Thai baht per rai and Pattaya not far behind, Khao Yai area prices for developed land near major resorts and golf courses start at one-tenth that price. As recently as 2006 prices were even lower, around 400,000 Thai baht per rai. Prices have been rising steadily and now are accelerating upward. So purchases made now will benefit from rapid price appreciation that is likely to last for years due to the steady development in the area.

Khao Yai’s convenient distance from Bangkok, excellent weather, beautiful surroundings, and affordable property values with excellent prospects for appreciation, make it the next great place to retire in Thailand.

Hua Hin has really built up and although there is still some room for more it is reaching the point that not many great pieces of property are left, at least not any than can be purchased. Khao Yai is looking like the next hot destination where there are still plenty of nice pieces of affordable property.

While some people prefer the beach over the mountains, the Khao Yai secret is that the weather is vastly better at the higher elevation, cooler and less humid all year round than the lower elevations. Cleaner air, too. It seems that a scientific study found that the air quality in the Khao Yai area is some of the best in the world. That might have something to do with the natural surroundings.

Even if rains are very heavy there is definitely no flooding danger here because the land is a gentle slope with elevation higher than surrounding areas. But even local drainage issues are of only minor concern because of the more moderate rainfall. There are a few homes nearby that even have basements – no flooding problems here. A basement is a nice cool place to relax on a hot afternoon, no air conditioning required. And it’s a handy place for your wine cellar – don’t forget about the great wineries in this area (see Local Attractions for more about that).