How to rent a condo in Bangkok as a foreigner
Deposits, contracts, TM30 registration and what fair prices look like in 2026.
Most foreigners rent condos directly or through free-to-tenant agents. Expect a two-month deposit plus one month up front, one-year contracts as standard, and prices from roughly ฿15,000 for a modern studio near the BTS to ฿45,000+ for two bedrooms in Thonglor. Check the actual unit (not showroom photos), confirm who pays common fees, and ensure your landlord files your TM30 residence notification — you will need it for visa extensions. Negotiation is normal, especially on longer contracts.
Short stays under 30 days are a different question from a lease. A residential condo unit may be let for a calendar month or longer; anything shorter is a hotel under section 4 of the Hotel Act B.E. 2547 (2004) and needs a licence under section 15, which residential condominiums do not hold. Section 59 sets up to one year of imprisonment, a fine of up to 20,000 baht, or both, plus up to 10,000 baht for every day the letting continues. Section 17/1 of the Condominium Act separately bans trade inside a unit, with a fine of up to 50,000 baht plus 5,000 baht a day under section 65. This has been prosecuted: the Hua Hin Provincial Court convicted two condominium hosts who listed units for nightly stays in January 2018, fining them 5,000 baht plus 500 and 100 baht per day of violation.
As the guest you are not the offender, but you carry the consequences. The juristic office issues the lift, pool and gym cards, not your host. Buildings do act, and an August 2026 thread describes one re-issuing its service-lift cards and clearing out its short-stay guests inside a day. Booking platforms do not treat an unlicensed listing as grounds for a refund, and a host who is keeping you away from the juristic office is not filing your TM30 either. For a stay under a month, book a licensed hotel or serviced apartment. From one month up a normal lease is lawful, and cheaper per night than either. The rent check at bestofthailand.org/rent-check carries the district rent bands, the deposit and utility rules, and the sources for all of the above, verified 7 September 2026.