Transcript of the above video:

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing Banking and Deposits in the context of Thai Condos. We get this a lot when people first contact us regarding property matters here in Thailand specifically condo conveyancing, obtaining what is called Chanote or freehold title to a Thai condo, a question we get a lot is, well it is not so much a question but it will often be a statement where someone will say "well I will go ahead and put down a deposit and then I will get back to you guys." That may not be the best idea. I have dealt with a lot of folks and it is a really good policy, if you are concerned about due diligence and you should be with respect to conveyancing, property purchase; it is a good deal to get your lawyers in my opinion on due diligence before you pay anything. Before you start dealing with paying out any money in terms of deposits and things it is a good idea to make sure you have got some legal guidance. 

Now specifically with respect to this, the issue that comes up is one you may not be able to get your deposit back as a practical matter. It may be a situation where it is prohibitively expensive to litigate to get it back. The other thing to bear in mind specifically and particularly at issue with Thai Condos is there are formalities inherent in the Thai Condominium Act which require a certain way funds are brought into the country and are sort of earmarked if you will for purchase of that condo in order to convey freehold title to a foreign national. Bringing in a bunch of money as a deposit could have a detrimental impact on your ability to get freehold title transferred over at a later date because the formalities were not met because you weren't really thinking about it because you were just thinking about making the deposit on the overall property. 

The thing to take away from this video, it is probably a good idea to contact a legal professional before making any deposits associated with conveyancing of property title to a condo here in the Kingdom of Thailand.