Condo, villa rental market booming in Phuket amid high demand
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Rental accommodation in Phuket is seeing strong demand from both Thais and foreigners, resulting in the launch of budget condominiums, Knight Frank Phuket director Nattha Kapapana said.
Condos are springing up in many parts of the island, and most of them offer rental guarantees of 6 per cent, for three years in some projects in Patong and nine years for another project in Karon. Prices of studio units range from Bt3 million to Bt5 million. The projects have estimated daily rental rates around Bt3,800-Bt4,800 for the high season from November to April, whereas the rate during the low season is forecast at Bt1,500 per day.
Despite the sluggish European economy, Phuket attracts people from around the world and has always been a popular choice for holidaymakers, and more of them are choosing to rent private villas instead of staying in hotels. There was a big improvement in rental demand for Phuket villas and condominiums during the high season last year, Nattha said.
He added that this time around, lessees are coming from a greater variety of places, with Hong Kong and Singapore expatriates, Russians, Koreans and Indians joining Europeans as key arrivals. Rental periods range from three days to one or two months depending on nationality. Europeans prefer to stay longer, for at least a month, whereas Asians choose to stay on a weekly basis.
Last year, there was a significant increase in inquiries for rental accommodation on the Andaman island. This coincided with the growth of tourist arrivals in Phuket. There were about 4.2 million passenger arrivals at Phuket International Airport in 2011.
The Russian influx has picked up momentum every year. With competitive destinations like Egypt and Turkey becoming political unfeasible, it seems that Thailand resort destinations such as Phuket will continue to attract visitors and investors from Russia.
The average length of stay by Russian tourists is about two weeks. Koreans generally stay for four to seven days and mostly prefer Bangtao.
The rental rate varies by unit size, unit type, facilities and amenities of the project as well as the location. A three-bedroom villa with usable area of 242 square metres in the Laguna area costs about US$1,000-$1,250 (Bt31,000-Bt38,600) per night during the peak season. The rental rate of a project in Kamala is $2,000 per night for a four-bedroom villa with usable area of 950sqm on a land plot of about 1 rai (1,600sqm).
