Mortgages for foreigners in Thailand: how they work and who actually gets one

A mortgage for a foreigner in Thailand is a loan secured on a unit registered in the buyer's own name: you own the apartment, and until the loan is repaid it is pledged to the lender. From Thai banks, non-residents rarely get one. In practice there are two routes for someone who does not live and work here: UOB, lending on freehold condos through UOB Singapore, and on Phuket a non-bank lender, Capital Link Credit Foncier, which finances up to 50% of the price for up to 15 years at about 9% a year. As of my post of 20 August 2026, those Phuket terms exist in practically one project.

I am not listing offers here. Every rate below is dated, and I say where each number comes from.

In August I opened my post on this loan with this line:

A mortgage for a foreigner in Thailand is a bit like a white elephant: formally it exists, but almost nobody has seen one alive. (from my post of 20 August 2026)

The short answer: three routes, and who each one is for

The first route is for people who already live in Thailand. The UOB terms come from one agency summary, and other sources describe them differently, so confirm with the bank before you plan around them. The third route is the one I have covered on Phuket. It is real but narrow: it is tied to one building.

If none of this fits, the usual alternative is a developer payment plan, which is not a loan at all. I compare the two further down and in detail in developer payment plans in Phuket.

The bank route: who Thai banks actually lend to

In March 2026 I described the bank route for a foreigner as a long shot: banks granted such loans rarely. The people who had a chance were:

• residents who have lived in Thailand officially for more than 5 years;
• foreigners with a Thai work permit and at least 2 years of work behind them;
• people with steady income confirmed by bank statements and income certificates;
• people officially married to a Thai citizen;
• owners of a registered business in Thailand.

Age up to 65 at the time of the last payment. A down payment of 30-50%, a rate of 10-12% a year, a term of up to 15 years.

That was the bank picture as I saw it last spring. Almost everyone on that list is tied to Thailand by residence, work, marriage or business. If you live abroad and buy to let, you are not on it.

UOB is the exception that comes up most often. According to a Keller Henson summary updated in February 2026, UOB lends to foreigners on freehold condos in Bangkok and some other areas through UOB Singapore, with the rate linked to SORA, the Singapore benchmark. Up to 70% of the value with a work permit in Thailand or Singapore, 60% without, borrowers aged 21 to 65, a term of up to 30 years. I have not covered UOB in my channel, and the sources disagree on details. Treat it as a lead to check with the bank, not as a term sheet.

The non-bank route on Phuket: how the 15-year loan works

The lender is a licensed Thai financial company, neither the developer nor a broker, working since 1972 and regulated by the Bank of Thailand. In my July post I named it: Capital Link Credit Foncier, part of Capital Link Financial Group and a partner of the developer Capstone Asset. The project is managed by Marriott. I have not found an independent profile of the lender, so these details are from my posts, not from a third party.

The terms as I published them on 20 August 2026:

• up to 50% of the price, for up to 15 years;
• annuity payments, about 9% a year, linked to the Thai MLR;
• interest on the declining balance;
• no arrangement fee, early repayment without penalty;
• a mortgage registration fee of 1% of the loan, paid by the buyer.

The loan applies to the balance you owe at handover. You pay half by the construction schedule, and the other half goes into the loan and you pay it from a finished apartment. The unit is registered in your name at the Land Office, and the mortgage is registered on it at the same time. That is the difference from a payment plan: a plan is a deal with the developer, with no lender and no pledge.

Who gets approved. Age 20 to 65, documented legal income, documents translated into English. The lender looks well beyond salary: business income and dividends, rental and investment income, freelance and consulting fees, a pension, royalties, payments from trusts. Income can be earned in any country. Your credit history at home is not requested. A preliminary decision comes in 3 working days, and two co-borrowers can apply together.

What 10 million baht costs a month

This is the example from my post of 20 August 2026. A loan of 10,000,000 baht, about $303,000, over 15 years at 9%. The calculation is approximate and assumes the rate does not change for 15 years.

In the first month about 74% of the payment is interest. By the last payment the interest is 755 baht.

The total interest line is my own arithmetic on the post's numbers, 180 payments minus the loan. It is the ceiling. Because you can repay at any time without penalty, the real figure is almost always lower. When a bonus or a sale comes in, putting it into the loan cuts the interest on everything that follows.

About the 9%: compared with a mortgage at home it may look high or low, and the comparison does not tell you much. This is a loan in baht, to a foreigner, without Thai citizenship or a residence permit. For a loan like that, I consider 9% a fair price. Keep in mind it is one lender's rate in one project, not a market average, and it sits below the 10-12% banks quoted foreigners in spring.

Mortgage or payment plan: the same flat both ways

This is the question I get most at consultations. On 26 August 2026 I compared both on one flat. I published it in roubles; here it is in baht, at 2.5 roubles per baht, the rate I used in the post above. The figures are approximate and serve as an illustration: what carries over is the proportion between the two schemes.

The rent line comes from the same post. At 8-9% gross the flat earns 624,000-702,000 baht a year. After costs and the management company, about 390,000 baht a year reaches the owner, 32,500 baht a month (about $985). How gross becomes net I show in gross vs net rental yield, and the running costs in the cost of owning a condo in Phuket.

The loan costs 2,164,656 baht more in interest. It also leaves you paying about 3,101 baht a month instead of 44,725, and leaves the rest of your capital free. Add the 1% registration fee on the loan, 35,100 baht here; the comparison in my post did not include it.

Rates in October 2026: the MLR, the policy rate and 28 October

The loan I cover is linked to the Thai MLR, the minimum loan rate Thai banks set for their best customers. Each bank sets its own. Bangkok Bank's MLR is 6.35% since 26 February 2026, after the Bank of Thailand cut its policy rate to 1.00% on 25 February.

On 26 August 2026 the Bank of Thailand's Monetary Policy Committee held the rate at 1.00%, unanimously, the third meeting in a row without a change. The next meeting is on 28 October 2026.

I do not forecast what the committee will do. I would ask the lender instead, in writing, since the rate is linked to the MLR: which MLR, how the rate is reset when it moves, and how often. Then decide whether you can carry the payment if it goes up, not only at today's 9%.

Fees, paperwork and the money trail

The mortgage registration fee is 1% of the loan amount, and on this loan the buyer pays it. You may read about a reduced fee of 0.01% to 30 June 2027. It applies only to Thai individuals, and only where the price, the appraised value and the loan are each not more than 7 million baht. A foreign buyer pays the standard 1%.

Freehold has its own rules. A foreigner can own a condo unit freehold only within the foreign quota of 49% of the building's floor area. The money for a foreign freehold purchase must come into Thailand from abroad in foreign currency, and for a single transfer from USD 50,000 the Thai bank issues a Foreign Exchange Transaction form. How the part paid by the lender is documented for the Land Office, ask your lawyer before the first transfer. If you are still choosing the form of ownership, read freehold vs leasehold in Phuket, and for the whole process, how to buy property in Thailand as a foreigner.

If residence is part of the plan, read Thailand property and visas before you choose the unit.

Who should take the loan, and who should not

In my August post I sorted it by goal.

1. You plan to resell before the keys. You do not need the loan at all: it starts at handover. Look at how much you freeze until then and at the assignment terms. The developer's consent is needed almost always. I cover this in assignments and below-market resales.
2. You buy to let, and your money works elsewhere. The loan. The rent covers most of the payment, and the capital stays in your business or portfolio.
3. You buy to let and have the spare capital. The payment plan. You pay far less interest.
4. You buy to live in and have the money. The payment plan.
5. You buy to live in, but your capital is tied up. The loan, with early repayment when money frees up.

My rule from that post:

A mortgage is a tool for people whose money knows how to work. A payment plan is for those who want to pay less and not think about interest. (from my post of 26 August 2026)

A warning. If a seller tells you a Thai bank will finance a non-resident on any unit you like, ask for the bank's name and the terms in writing. The only loan for non-residents I have covered on Phuket is the one above, and I would not book on a spoken promise of any other.

What to check before you book

1. The preliminary decision, in writing, before you pay the booking.
2. The rate, which MLR it is linked to, and how and how often it is reset.
3. Early repayment: allowed at any time, without penalty, and how the interest is recalculated.
4. Who pays the 1% registration fee, and any other fees at handover.
5. What happens to the booking and the construction payments if the loan is not approved at handover.
6. The payment route for your own share, and the FET form in your name if you buy freehold.
7. The construction risks of the project itself. The loan only starts once the building is handed over; everything before that is the developer's risk and yours. I go through it in the risks of buying off-plan.

To see what a unit can earn before you look at any loan, use the yield calculator. It counts rental yield, not loan payments. For the payment on your own unit and budget, write to me and I will lay it out with the lender's current terms. Take the checklist of questions before you sign to your December viewings.