New Condo Handover in Thailand: Inspection, Snag List and Title Transfer

The short version: read the handover clause in your contract before you book a flight, inspect the unit with someone who knows what to look for, put every defect in writing, and do not hand over your last payment or your signature on a clean acceptance form until you are satisfied — or until your lawyer says otherwise. Ownership is transferred at the Land Office, not at the door of the flat.

This guide is general information, not legal or engineering advice. Handover terms and developer warranties are set by each project's contract, and Thai law and practice change. An independent Thai lawyer should review your contract, and a qualified inspector should assess the unit.

It picks up where our step-by-step buying guide leaves off: the building is finished and the developer has written to say your unit is ready.

What handover actually decides

Handover settles whether what was built matches what you were sold — the layout, the specification, the furniture package, the area. It also settles which defects the developer has acknowledged in writing before you lose your strongest lever, the unpaid balance. And it leads into title transfer, after which the unit is legally yours and any further problems become warranty claims rather than conditions of completion.

Whether inspection and transfer happen on the same trip or with a gap between them depends on your contract. Either way, the principle holds: anything you can find before transfer is better found before transfer.

Before you fly: what to ask the developer for

The developer's completion notice will invite you to inspect and to transfer. Your contract says how long you have to respond and what happens if you are late with the balance, so read that clause first. Then ask, in writing, for a final statement showing the balance due, common fees charged in advance, the first sinking-fund contribution, transfer fees and taxes, and which party pays each item under the contract. Send it to your lawyer.

Ask too for the as-built floor plan with the final area — if it differs from the contract, the contract should say how the price changes — and for the furniture and appliance list that forms part of your specification. It is reasonable to ask whether the building has been registered as a condominium and has the required occupancy approvals. If someone else will sign for you, ask what form of power of attorney the Land Office will accept. Ownership fees at transfer are explained in our guide to taxes and fees.

Hiring an independent inspector

A professional inspector arrives with a moisture meter, a thermal camera, a socket tester and a level, and finds what an untrained eye misses: damp inside walls, hollow tiles, missing earthing, balconies that drain towards the door. The report — photographs, locations, descriptions — can go straight to the developer.

Choose someone with no link to the developer or the building's managing agent, who reports in English and will return to check the repairs. Confirm with the developer that the inspector will be let in on the agreed date. Fees and availability are a matter between you and the inspector.

On the day: walking the unit

Inspect in daylight, with water and power connected, and bring the contract, the specification, the floor plan, a charged phone, a small phone charger or socket tester, a tape measure and masking tape to mark faults. Photograph each defect close up and from a distance so its location is obvious.

Start with water, because in a tropical climate it is where problems hide. Run every tap and shower, flush, fill and drain the basins. Look for low pressure, slow drains, sewer smells and drips under sinks; for stains on ceilings, around window frames and in corners; for standing water in the shower and on the balcony. Check the water heater works.

Then electrics and air conditioning: every socket, switch and light; a labelled consumer unit; each air conditioner cooling, with condensate draining away rather than into the wall or onto a neighbour's balcony. Open, close and lock every window and door, check the seals, and make sure the balcony sliding door runs freely and the railing is solid.

Finally the finish and the furniture: tap the floor tiles for hollow sounds, look for cracks, paint runs and poorly fitted cabinets, and tick off every item on the furniture list. If the area looks smaller than promised, measure the main rooms and compare with the as-built plan.

Do not skip the common areas — lifts, pool, gym, parking, access control, fire equipment. Defects there belong to every owner, so report them to both the developer and the condominium's juristic person, the body that manages the building after registration.

A snag list that gets things fixed

• One line per defect: a number, the location, a description and a photo.
• Delivered to the developer in writing — email or their own form — with confirmation of receipt.
• A written commitment to repair, with a date for re-inspection.
• At re-inspection, the same list, with each item marked fixed or open.
• Open items attached to the handover record.

Should you sign the acceptance form while defects remain? Not as accepted without remarks if the defects are significant. Yet refusing to take handover or to attend transfer can have consequences under the contract, for example on when the balance falls due. When and in what wording to sign is a decision to make with your lawyer.

When the unit is not ready

If you arrive to find no water, unfinished floors or a closed pool, document everything, tell the developer in writing what is missing and ask for a new date in writing. What you are entitled to for late completion, if anything, depends mainly on the delay clause in your contract — a conversation for your lawyer, not an argument on site. The wider risks of buying before completion are covered in off-plan or ready-built.

Transfer at the Land Office

The balance is paid before or on transfer day. For a foreigner to register freehold title, every payment — not just the last — must arrive from abroad in foreign currency with a Thai bank's confirmation; if one instalment lacks it, find out before the appointment. Our guide to sending money to Thailand lists what to ask your banks for. International transfers take time, so send the final one well ahead.

At the Land Office for the district where the building stands, the developer's representative and you or your attorney sign, fees and taxes are paid in the split your contract sets, and you receive the unit title deed. Before leaving, check that your name matches your passport exactly, that the unit number, floor and area match the contract, and that the unit is registered as foreign freehold if that is what you bought. Our guide to foreign ownership explains the quota and how freehold differs from leasehold.

Warranty: questions to ask before you sign

Some defects only show up in the first rainy season or once the unit is lived in. What the developer must repair after handover, for how long and how you claim are governed by the contract and Thai law. Get written answers to these questions before signing the acceptance form: what the warranty covers — structure, waterproofing, building systems, finishes, appliances; when it starts — handover, transfer or building completion; where claims go and how quickly the developer commits to respond; whether appliances are covered by the developer or by the manufacturer; and how common-area defects are handled. When a defect appears later, record it with dates and photos, claim in writing and keep the correspondence.

If you cannot be there

Handover without travelling is possible if the work is shared out: an independent inspector walks the unit and writes the report, a lawyer checks the final statement and documents, and an attorney signs at the Land Office. A power of attorney signed outside Thailand has form and certification requirements — check them with your lawyer before you see a notary. A video call from the unit on inspection day lets you see for yourself what the report describes. More in our guide to buying remotely.

Your first weeks as an owner

Collect keys, access cards, remotes, manuals and appliance warranties, and photograph the meter readings. Register with the juristic person and read the house rules, which say what the building allows — renovations, pets, short or long lets. Move the electricity and water accounts into your name if this has not happened automatically, and insure your contents and liability: building insurance, where it exists, does not necessarily cover what is inside your unit. Keep the contract, title deed, transfer confirmations, final statement and handover record together, on paper and in the cloud — you will need them for letting, tax reporting and eventual sale. Planning to let? Start with our guide to rental and property management, and budget with the help of ongoing ownership costs.

How ROMA ThaiProperty helps

We help coordinate handover on the developer's side: requesting the final statement, the as-built plan and inspection and transfer dates, explaining in English what the handover and warranty clauses say, passing your snag list to the developer and following up on repairs. If needed, we can recommend an independent Thai lawyer and an inspector. Whether and when to sign remains your decision, made with your lawyer.

Where to go next

Still choosing? On each project page in our project catalogue you can see construction status and the planned completion date where those fields are filled in. Or start with a destination: Pattaya, Phuket or Hua Hin.