Knight Frank was established in London in 1896, and now boasts 165 offices in more than 36 countries around the world. The company follows the policy of its head office in London and, unlike several other international players in the Thai market, the company is not a franchise, according to Frank Khan, director of Knight Frank Chartered (Thailand)'s Residential Department.

In the second of a two-part series of articles, ThaiAsiaToday.com talks with Khan and associate director Kijkan Tibkaeo about the current state of the Thai property sector, 'beyond Bangkok'.

ThaiAsiaToday.com (TAT): While we're mainly going to look at the market outside of Bangkok right now, firstly, I'd just like to ask how things are going in the second-hand housing market in general in Bangkok?

Frank Khan (FK): The second-hand (used) housing market is in big trouble because there are plenty of new products coming to market that aren't much more expensive. It's not all bad, but it presents new challenges.

TAT: I always rather get the impression that property in Phuket is 'oversold' to the consumer. The property sector obviously seems to think otherwise – what's your opinion?

FK: Phuket remains a very, very interesting location for foreigners due to its luxury lifestyle, as well as its beautiful scenery and environment.

It's worth thinking about what the alternatives are – China? Not really. Bali, okay, but I might be rather concerned about security. The Gold Coast in Australia? Probably too expensive.

Phuket offers this luxury lifestyle at a reasonable price when compared with where these wealthier consumers live for most of the year – Hongkong, Europe – places where individuals are being paid in dollars (US) or pounds, or euros.

Phuket is not for 'regular' Bangkok residents like us, it's for people who are working in England, India, Hongkong. Really, Phuket property is attracting Americans, Honkongers, Russians, or Scandinavians. And it's still a great place when it comes to luxury and lifestyle.

TAT: In terms of attracting retirees to the Thai property market, is the country losing out somewhat to Malaysia's (very liberal) program?

FK: Well the answer is 'yes and no'. Thailand has the Elite Card membership program, which is a great program. It costs 1.5 million baht (about US$43,000) and features a five-year visa with unlimited extensions.

It's fair to say that up until now the marketing could be better. The government needs to be more liberal in general with its visa system for people who want to invest, including for property. The should offer something better, or market the Elite Card better. There could be more effort on the government side, on the part of the TAT (Tourism Authority of Thailand), and from us, too. It's really everybody's responsibility to get the message out that we're a retirement-friendly country.

TAT: Is it fair to say that local buyers are becoming more discerning?

FK: Well, if I think back to when we were selling properties five years ago, yes, I think Thai people had fairly low expectations when buying property back then. Some people said Thai people weren't very educated when it came to buying property, but now things have changed. Most Thais are well educated, while most publications have a column about real estate.

There are also so many specialist magazines around at the moment, and I'd guess that about 10-15% of those focus on property (or property-related matters). New projects are constantly being launched, there are lots of promotions, strong media, and, of course, property shows.

I would say that these days, most Thais are highly sophisticated property buyers. They are becoming more like foreign buyers in the sense that they are looking out for value and quality and are, in general, becoming more demanding. “Where is the license?” they ask, “where's the construction permit?” So, in this sense, the developer needs to do his or her homework 100%.