Inside a Unique $595.000 Minimalistic Jungle Villa in Koh Samui, Thailand

Comments · 190

• MO

  @morealestate · 2 years ago (edited) · pinned

  Would you live at this villa?

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• SU

  @SunburnedNomad · 2 years ago (edited)

  I built a new villa in Samui (near Lamai Beach) a couple of years ago, and sold it a few months ago.<br><br>A few things jump out at me when I look at this place:<br><br>1: The lawn coming up nearly to the edge of the pool on all sides means grass clippings will inevitably end up in the pool every time the grass is cut. &nbsp;Also, keeping that grass green and healthy will be no small feat. &nbsp;It will require daily watering.<br><br>2: Pause the video at the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tapfYRZ4csk&amp;t=368">6:08</a> mark. &nbsp;See the inside of that sink? &nbsp;The residue is caused by the well water, and it&apos;s basically impossible to clean it off. &nbsp;My kitchen sink looked exactly like this within a year of living there. &nbsp;Samui well water has high sediment and mineral (iron) content. &nbsp;A big investment into well water filtration is necessary to mitigate this. &nbsp;<br><br>2a: Also note that topping off the pool water levels will come from the well, which can stain that sparkling white pool surface. &nbsp;I have first-hand experience of this happening, and had to fully drain and resurface my pool within the first year of ownership.<br><br>3: The walls on the perimeter of the property are going to crack and need periodic repairs. &nbsp;They all do because the underlying soil is prone to shifting. &nbsp;It&apos;s inevitable.<br><br>4: The cabinetry throughout the kitchen is MDF covered with melamine, and the countertops are thin and low grade. &nbsp;Unworthy of a home in this price range.<br><br>5: The land directly behind the home is sloped directly toward the foundation. &nbsp;This is a big no-no for me. &nbsp;Reason: rainy season in Samui (Nov/Dec) produces intense, relentless, prolonged downpours. &nbsp;And the runoff from that slope has high potential to inundate and erode the foundation under the structure on that side. &nbsp;Risky.<br><br>6: It&apos;s in the jungle. &nbsp;Which sounds great...until you see and experience the roads firsthand. &nbsp;You&apos;ll need a truck, preferably a 4x4<br><br>7: I&apos;m not crazy about the flat roof with no rain gutters. &nbsp;I&apos;d be very interested to see how it&apos;s draining off rainwater<br><br>8: Construction. &nbsp;Even the very best developers in Samui are basically all using the same subcontractors to build homes on the island. &nbsp;There&apos;s high demand for these subcontractors and their laborers, and they can&apos;t really afford to be overly picky. &nbsp;As a result, the difference in construction quality between a $300k home and a $600k home is actually quite small. &nbsp;The only real difference is location, plot size, home design, and furnishings.<br><br>My advice? &nbsp;<br><br>- Buy a 2nd hand home that has weathered a few years in the Samui climate &amp; check carefully for how well it&apos;s holding up<br>- When choosing a home, make sure you understand <b>*clearly*</b> how the surrounding land slopes and how water moves around the property when the downpours come (and trust me, they WILL come). &nbsp;I can&apos;t stress this enough. &nbsp;All those Thai homes you see built on concrete pylons to lift them off the ground? &nbsp;Yea, there&apos;s a good reason for that 😉<br>- Invest in solar (because power cuts are a thing on the island), and the best filtration you can afford for the well water<br>- Access roads matter, and the local government does very little to maintain the jungle roads. &nbsp;Most of their budget is used up maintaining the ring road. &nbsp;Make sure you have a decent road leading to the home you choose.

  95

• JO

  @jomontanee · 2 years ago

  Jesus!! I am Thai living in Thailand and so crazy about architecture but I never realize this exquisite house of my dream exists in my own country!!!!

  16

• EV

  @evidentfinance · 2 years ago

  This house is beautiful but it&apos;s a pity you didn&apos;t show it at all. I kept seeing more of you (no offense) instead of the house. Before your presentation, get your camera person to film the house first without you in it, and then incorporate those scenes in your video presentation. The first few intro minutes try showing the best scenes of the house in 360⁰ and then continue doing so in other spaces gradually. You gained a subbie though.

  16

• MA

  @MatthewKanwisher · 1 year ago

  Easily nicest villa I’ve seen in Thailand. Finally someone did a good design

• HO

  @HoaNguyen-tl1sy · 2 years ago

  very modern and minimalist house, i love it

  6

• KR

  @KristaR1158 · 2 years ago (edited)

  Lovely! I&apos;m just surprised that in a place this fabulous they wouldn&apos;t have the toilet separate- a water closet as they say!

  1

• 18

  @18000rpm · 2 years ago

  The owner has impeccable taste. Reminds me of Farnsworth House.

  1

• JA

  @jawad_ia · 2 years ago

  That&apos;s how it should be filmed, calm music, good plan well done

• FR

  @frederickcook87 · 2 years ago

  👌🏾❤️👌🏾

• IM

  @imagination-c5k · 1 year ago

  My dream kind of house

• NI

  @nicolasdiot7007 · 2 years ago

  Love it !