Buying house in Thailand with a strong Baht

When buying properties in Thailand currency exchange rate plays an  important role. Choosing the right moment in time  to buy or sell can make a  big difference.

When to buy

Postponing your investment through the mental process of waiting for the right moment to buy may  not be as wise as it seems. Let’s imagine that  in your opinion the present exchange rate is  unacceptable, compared to the ones in recent months or years. You should be aware that these rates may get much worse in the the near future. Or maybe not. Who knows. The point is that far from being an easy game to play, foreign exchange rates work as many other financial markets.  Their behaviour is sometimes volatile, often confusing and always unpredictable.

The historical data

During the first 6 months of 2010 the baht currency strengthened against the Euro, Pound and Aussie Dollar.   At that time while many occasional tourists  were  reconsidering their budgets regular visitors were feeling the real pain.   Not to mention expatriate community  members whose  pensions or  regular incomes come  through “weak  currency” flows.

Making up your mind

Let’s assume you are willing to invest in a house, condo or apartment in Thailand. Let’s suppose your currency has lost about 20 per cent against the Baht during the last 6 months, as happened  from January to June 2010 with the Euro. What should be a wise decision? wait for a weakening of the Baht against your currency or just go ahead with the investment now.

Nowadays, despite living in a globalized and interconnected world cycles in the economy are not always the same  in distinct countries. In fact this is one of the primary factors  that induces changes in foreign exchange rates. While some economies grow at a strong pace others are in decline. Since timing these cycles can be really hard, predicting the recovery of your own currency against the Baht is extremely difficult. Some Asian countries are growing at a  remarkable fast pace and may continue doing so  for long time ahead. Let me put it this way, what today seems a strong Baht six months later might be considered an extremely cheap opportunity.