How to Rent a Condo in Chiang Mai

Types

Condo rooms are sold to individuals, while apartments and residences are run by a single owner. So usually, if you want to get a monthly room and walk in to an office of a condo, you will hardly get a good news.

Because you have to contact each owner to find out his/her room is rented or vacant. In general, you need to contact real estate agent first. Whereas, apartments or residences have price list of their rooms and the office will do everything.

I personally prefer condos to apartments because it is more like local experience. But it's quite hard to get a condo with less than 6-month contract. So, I usually search an airBnB room or book an apartment.

Facilities

Decide on the facilities that are essential to you. If you go to a gym everyday but your condo doesn't have one, you'll end up paying for a nearby gym everyday.

The same applies to rooms. If you need to work at home for long hours and your condo room has only a small dining table, you'll end up paying for a coworking space everyday.

In my case, I don't use a laptop, I use a desktop. So a desk and a comfortable chair are the most important for me. It's actually not easy to find a condo with a desk and an office chair.

Budget

Transportation costs must be considered along with the monthly rent. If you get a condo in suburb area, such as Treasure Condo, you'll definately need a motorbike which costs at least ฿3,000 for a month. Plus grab car to Nimman area to drink would cost 250 baht round trip. If you have no problem paying ฿20,000 for a condo and you want to stay in the city center, Nimman is the best place. Thanks to the high price in Nimman, people staying in this area tend to be richer. 

If you don't want to spend more than ฿10,000 for a condo but you still want to stay close to city center, Santitham is the right area for you. Just across the street to north from Nimman, it's Santitham. 

There's another option to choose a place that operates co-working space and co-living. Some coworking spaces have rental rooms altogher in the same building area. If you want to feel more like a "typical" digital nomad and your staying period is shorter than 3 months, it's not too bad. Because monthly rent of a condo can get 1.5 ~ 2 times more expensive if you need a 1-month or 3-month contract. Here's an example coworking place.

How much is the rent?

Studio type or 1-bedroom condos are the most preferred type here as these are found very close to the best spots of Chiang Mai.

Monthly rent of a condo is ranging from ฿5,000 to ฿20,000 for a long-term rental. Long-term, meaning minimum 1 year. 

Fortunately, there are many condos that offer monthly or 3-month rents in Chiang Mai. 

How to contact agents

If you stay shorter than 1 month, you don't need an agent. Just go to airbnb or something similar.

There are many real estate agencies here in Chiang Mai and many can speak English. You can contact them with Line messenger first. Chiang Mai Master will list some trustworthy agents in the near future.

This article was updated on 2024-03-09.