Buying Completed or Off plan – The Pros and Cons

Koh Samui is no different from any other property market in that you can choose to buy a new property already completed or off the plan. Let's look at these two options in a bit more detail.

Completed Properties

Completed refers to properties that are ready to be rented out or owner occupied. They may be stand alone homes, or part of a complex and may be new or newly renovated or redeveloped. There are several advantages to completed properties.

• they are ready to move in to or to rent out and so, immediately generate a rental income
• you can see the actual spaces, design, quality of fixtures and finishes, and not have to rely on plans and CGI projections alone

What about the disadvantages of buying a completed property?

• There is less flexibility in the design, fixtures, fittings, colours and the like
• If completed property is still new and it was built in the project matching all market trends in the right way then it will often be higher priced giving the seller additional margins on investment
• It is often a one time payment and in Koh Samui most of the sellers would be foreign individuals who will unlikely take payments over a long period of time. It is a rare case to find individual resale with financing options unless completed property is a sale from original developer.

An Off the Plan or under construction property purchase.

Off plan purchase means the property is under construction or soon to be started. Here you can find Pros of buying property at this stage.

• you can make changes to floor plans and interior finishes
• if you get in early low initial price offerings can kick start capital growth on your purchase
• payment is spread over the period of construction

Are there disadvantages to buying off the plan?

• in the case of investment properties, you must wait for completion before earning a rental cash flow
• there is a risk of expectations not being met and a lower than promised quality – though this can be mitigated by buying from a reputable developer with a proven track records and in the projects with show units available
• risk of delay of the completion date – though this can be mitigated by penalty clauses and minimised by buying from a reputable developer with a proven track record

It is always very important to do your research on a developer before committing to purchase. As is all over the world the best is to see completed projects and find out about developer’s reputation.

Ready made available now – ready made but not for a while – or go it alone from start to finish. Each method has pluses and minuses – which is right for you? Best to talk it over with the real estate professionals at Sunway Samui. We will be glad to help YOU make the best decision for YOU. Contact us today.