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In short, unless you are willing to invest $1 million (exclusive of the purchase price) for a minimum period of 5 years in Thai Government authorized investments (such as Government bonds), foreigners cannot own land in Thailand. As a result, most foreigners elect to rent.

However, the restrictions on buying property in Thailand relate to the purchase of "land" only, so it is possible for foreigners to purchase condominiums in Thailand - and many do: especially in the tourist areas of Phuket and Phataya. That said, two restrictions are imposed on the purchase of any condominiums in Thailand, as follows:

1. the funds to purchase the condominium must come from overseas and cannot be paid for from money that you have earned in Thailand (unless you are a Permanent Resident, in which case this does not apply); and

2. in aggregate, foreigners cannot own more than 49% of the total space of a condominium building (this does not apply to Permanent Residents). As such, if you like a condominium, but there are already a large number of foreigners living there and your purchase would mean foreigners would own more than 49% of the total floor space, your purchase will be blocked.