Terms & definitions

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Different terms to describe a property vary from country to country, even within english speaking countries. Do you live in a flat or an apartment? Or is it a condo, a unit, a room or a studio? It can all get very confusing! You will find below a list of most common definitions which may help avoid any confusion.

Houses – Very simple, it's a house. It refers to a stand alone house, usually has a garden or courtyard/terrace and is separated from neighbouring houses by a wall or fence. You will find the house numbers to start with the area "plot" number, followed by the house number itself, for example 559/35 for house 35.

Townhouses – Similar to houses but the difference is that townhouses are built together in a row of other houses wall to wall or semi-detached. They will usually be 3 to 4 floors in height as they are usually narrower than detached or stand alone houses. The numbering is the same as for houses.

Condomimiums – Are a block of units in a tower building, that are each individually owned. Each owner have their unit and contribute to yearly "common fees" for the maintenance of the building and all of its public facilities (pool, gym, security etc). These fees are normally covered by the owner. When renting a condo, the contract is made directly between the owner and the tenant. The tenant is responsible for paying the utilities bills (electricity and water) directly to the government suppliers (billed for what they use). 

Apartments – Are a block of units in a tower building, that are all owned by a single owner. The common fees are usually included in the rent. When renting a unit in an apartment building, the contract is made directly between the building owner or manager and the tenant. Usually water and electricity are billed by the owner/manager to the tenant, water is usually a flat monthly fee and electricity based on consumption. The unit number is usually shown without the plot number 

Room (Unit) – You are often asked what room you live in in Thailand even if it is a 400 sqm duplex penthouse with 5 bedrooms! It simply refers to the unit number.

Moo Baan (Gated compounds or communities) – You may hear a lot of people talking about their moo baan (or spelt Moo ban or muu ban etc) which simply means village in Thai. Moo baans are in fact gated, to different degrees, and generally have a 24/7 security team. They control traffic coming in and out of the village. A moo baan may be as small as handful of houses or as vast as 800 or more houses. They are referred to as either gated compounds or communities. Some may have completely different style of individual houses, while others will have similar houses built be one developer. The advantage of moo baans are the safety aspect especially for families with children, as there is usually no traffic passing through.

Contracts & lease agreements - These can be managed by your real estate contact person or by the owner directly. The legal term used for the owner is "The Lessor" and the tenant is referred to as "The Lessee".