By Andrew Batt:
On the face of it a 10 percent boost in tourism arrivals for Thailand which is predicted for 2013 is a good thing for the real estate and property sectors,
Think again!
Many of these new arrivals will likely part of package deals from the less financially salubrious locations of Russia, South Korea and the like. Not exactly the people who are likely to spend much outside of their pre-packaged, pre-paid stay in the sun – let alone splash some cash on holiday homes in the Kingdom.
Thailand’s resorts are increasingly dominated by Eastern Europeans, Koreans and Japanese – all of whom are seeking their own slice of Southeast Asian paradise on the cheap. Even if these holidaymakers venture off the beach there are still many agents who are incapable of assisting them with house purchase enquiries in their own languages.
My own completely unscientific poll suggested that less than half of Phuket’s high street real estate agents are completely incapable an answering simple non-English enquiries – yet it will be the majority of those same agent who will also be bemoaning the lack of sales activity at this traditional high season.
Agents must remain in touch with changing demographics in the own domain. Go to the airport, see the arrivals boards and you’ll see for yourself where your possible new clients are coming from. If you’re not ready for them, you’re missing out on a lot of potential business.
Andrew Batt, International Group Editor of PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories email andrew@allproperty.com.sg
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