Buying property in the tropics often turns into buying a “pig in a poke”. Behind the glossy renders in catalogs hide engineering time bombs: from mould beneath expensive finishes to filtration systems that “die” within a month. Most agents on the market are “sellers of pictures”. They’ve never held a blueprint and don’t know how a quality concrete pour differs from a botched one.
My name is Andrey, I’m the founder of Montmari. My expertise is based not on developers’ brochures but on 14 years of living in Pattaya and the “circles of hell” of real construction. I look at properties through the eyes of an engineer and a developer, because I’ve walked the path myself — from the first stake in the ground to the final finish.
Case study: a 12-level villa as a personal technological challenge
The best way to test an expert’s professionalism is to see where he lives. My personal residence is an extremely complex property of 12 levels. When the Thai builders saw the design, they couldn’t understand how to build it.
I acted not just as the client, but as full-fledged technical supervision. In Thailand speed matters, but without control it kills quality. For example, here it’s normal practice to remove the formwork from a pool the morning after an evening pour. To respect the technology and still move in just 18 months after work began, I had to supervise the site daily. I live in a house I built myself, and that’s my main argument: I know every joint and every pipe in my properties.
Technical background: what’s hidden behind the walls
Before founding the agency I worked at major development companies (including Dusit Groups), where I oversaw the handover of more than 2,500 apartments. I’m proficient in AutoCAD and use it not as a designer but as an auditor: I check projects at the blueprint stage, finding errors in the electrics or plumbing before they’re cast in concrete.
Montmari’s “technical X-ray”: what I look at during an audit:
- Engineering systems: I personally check the electrical wiring and the logic of pool filtration systems — the “heart” of the house, which in Thailand is often done as an afterthought.
- Finish quality: for a Thai worker “the tile just lies on the floor”. For me, seam alignment and tone matching matter. If the tile “wanders” in colour or size, it’s a sign of total cost-cutting on materials.
- Structure: I know how the tropical climate affects concrete, and I check that the pauses between pouring stages are respected.
I had to figure all this out so that my clients wouldn’t pay for someone else’s negligence.
A “compensator” between mentality and result
Building in Thailand isn’t only about blueprints — it’s also psychology. My role is to be the “compensator” between your expectations and Thai execution.
There’s an important nuance here: you absolutely must not shout at the builders. In Thai culture, public humiliation leads to “vengefulness” (something local media sometimes compare to a “Zorro” mentality). An offended worker may not just walk off but sabotage the property in a way you’ll only discover a year later. I achieve European quality while keeping the team’s loyalty. I know how to get them to re-lay that very tile without becoming an enemy.
Investor insights: why land is the foundation of security
My strategic advice as a consultant: “Buy land”. It’s the only asset that isn’t produced any more. Over my 12 years of real-estate practice, land investments have proven the most resilient. Even in a fire sale you come out at least at “zero”, and more often at a good profit.
Why Pattaya? It’s not only beaches — it’s a powerful infrastructure cluster:
- Location: just 1 hour (120 km) to Bangkok.
- Global projects: the development of U-Tapao airport and the construction of high-speed trains make this region a goldmine.
- Security: I recommend investing only in guarded communities. A standalone house is a risk if you don’t live in it permanently. In a community your liquidity and the safety of your property are always higher.
A personal angle: family and education. My choice of Pattaya is backed by personal experience too. My daughter graduated from a British branch school here, which let her enrol at the University of Vienna with a 50% tuition discount — a Thai international-standard diploma is recognised worldwide.
The Montmari service: transparency and confidentiality
We’ve built a service for those who value their time and privacy:
- Remote deals and payment: we run turnkey deals without you flying in. Payment can be made in cash in Moscow or via personal accounts in Russia. We use a counter-flow system that lets you exchange rubles for baht at the market rate.
- Principled confidentiality: we don’t keep “databases” for spam. I’m against intrusive marketing. After the deal we physically destroy copies of the client’s documents. Your name shouldn’t appear in registers if you don’t want it to — for that we use registration through a Thai company.
- “Live” content: forget old photos. We go to the property with a drone and a camera, showing the condition of the house “minute by minute” on your request.
Conclusion: a home you want to live in
In Thailand a realtor’s services are free for the buyer — the seller pays the commission. But with me you get not just a middleman, but a technical auditor.
I don’t show other people’s houses as a theorist; I live in a house I built myself. That’s my main filter. If you don’t want to “throw money around” and are looking for a safe entry into the Thai market, I invite you for a consultation. We’ll find a property I won’t be ashamed of and you won’t be anxious about.
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