Chinese owners turning condos into ‘hotels’
Local residents are getting sick of the parade of travellers using their condominiums as de facto hotels by renting rooms out from Chinese owners.
Tenants at Condo C Ekkamai (Sukhumvit Soi 63), for instance, are at the end of their tether, complaining that Chinese owners are renting their rooms out to their compatriots. Many of the rentals are on a daily basis – which is illegal under Thai law.
“The condo was like Beijing during Songkran,” one of the tenants complained. “The owners had set up check-in, check-out facilities and even offered space to store baggage. There was also a team of maids on hand to do the cleaning.”
This problem has been the subject of many complaints to the condo’s management, who incorrectly claim they are powerless to stop it.
Property owners without appropriate business and hotel licences can rent their rooms out for no less than 30 days.
The “room sharing” system used by Airbnb, however, is a different matter and skates along the grey line in current Thai laws.
Source: Thethaiger.com