Koh Samui Villas

Tropical Hills

Welcome to Tropical Hills, a magnificent villa resort located atop a hillside on the quiet side of the beautiful tropical island of Koh Samui. Immersed in the tranquility of the Thai landscape, the villas enjoy stunning sea views overlooking Bophut Beach and the picturesque Fisherman’s Village which boast a wide range of traditional Thai and international restaurants and bars. Bophut with its beautiful white sandy beach is one of Samui"s most desirable residential areas.

Tropical Hills is within easy reach of some of the island’s most beautiful beaches, the shopping and nightlife at Chaweng, the airport and the world-famous Santiburi Golf Club. Being situated on a west facing peak, Tropical Hills lets you drink in the beauty of the azure Thai coastline before offering stunning sunset views as the day turns into night.

The resort itself, providing exclusive tropical living, lavish service and luxurious facilities, immerses residents into a state of absolute tranquility. 3-bedroom villas of Thai-Bali style architectural design are gently landscaped into the jungle to provide a peaceful haven. Each has its own private infinity pool and a spacious terrace to enjoy the panoramic views. As part of the first phase of the Himmapan Beach Gardens, incredible resort service will come as standard with your villa. Amenities including airport pick-up, 24 hour management and maintenance, maid service, a health club & spa, a rackets club, various restaurants, a swimming pool, water-park and even a mini 50-seat cinema will all be available to the Tropical Hills resident.

With a very high build specification, a prime location and a global team of experts comprising constructers and project and resort managers, there is no other property on Samui of comparable quality. For further details on the villas please read on, and for an insight into the incredible investment opportunity Tropical Hills offers, please do not hesitate to contact us.

The Location

Koh Samui is one of Thailand"s most magical islands and is highly sought after among tourists and investors alike. It is the third largest of an archipelago of eighty tropical islands. Surrounded by crystal clear water, the island"s lush tropical interior is perfectly supplemented by long sandy beaches, coral reefs and is inhabited by some of the most friendly people you will find anywhere in the world. Not so long ago, Samui was purely a back packers’ destination, however today it possesses a cosmopolitan population of expatriates which has contributed to its emergence as a world class holiday destination. Tropical Hills is located in the North of Samui, alongside some of the island’s most popular beaches and resorts. Bo Phut, Chaweng and Choeng Mon are all favourite destinations and are situated within 5-10 minutes of each other and the resort.

Bo Phut, only 800m away, offers the old-world charm of Fisherman's Village and is a popular destination for visitors to the island. Its long, sandy beach is especially picturesque and although busy is never crowded. As night descends, the village comes to life with an array of high class restaurants and bars offering sumptuous waterfront dining. Whether you want a romantic meal or a relaxed night out with friends, Bo Phut is a great venue. For a broader choice of restaurants, louder bars, night clubs and dancing, jump in a cab and head for Chaweng which is just a 10 minute drive away. Here you can shop, eat, drink and party the night away until the early hours. It is much busier than Bo Phut, but with both towns in such close proximity to the resort, it is easy to satisfy all tastes.

Advantages of Thailand

• Free trade economy
• Flanked by asia's tigers - China to the east and india to the west
• Strong export trades (textiles, technology, foodstuffs, resources)
• High levels of tourism (all year round)
• Democratic, peaceful society
• GDP growth at average 6% pa (over last 5 years)
• Good relations with USA, UK and Islamic neighbours (Malaysia and Indonesia)
• Rising group of middle class nationals (car ownership, home ownership on the increase)
• Finance/ mortgages now available to nationals so housing market very fluid from bottom up
• Multinationals based in Bangkok as gateway to and from east / west / australasia
• Low taxation for individuals and corporates
• Low cost of living
• Good transport links to Asian cities and financial centres, Europe, Australia

Advantages of Koh Samui

• Bangkok Air are to triple the size of airport & increase Hong Kong flights to 5 daily per week
• Only 206km2 so small and exclusive
• Very popular as a holiday destination for expats and tourists from Europe (distance does not put them off!)
• Occupancy on Samui over 70%, national average for resorts is 72%
• Christian new year, Christmas, Easter and Chinese new year occupancy over 90%
• Beautiful beaches unspoilt by development as legislation prevents large scale real estate on the coastline
• Airport has flight links with all major Asian hubs and over 20 flights to Bangkok every day
• International school, international hospitals and good infrastructure make Samui a solid lifestyle choice for retirees and younger families seeking an alternative to city living
• Marina under construction which will encourage yachting visitors from HK and Phuket
• Plans for a new airport to enable larger jets to land
• 5 and 6 star hotels, great restaurants and nightlife
• Elephant trekking, snorkelling, scuba diving and all other watersports available
• Great as a family/honeymoon destination
• Real estate returns (in the right project) provide a healthy combination of capital growth (Samui is up and coming and is establishing itself as a high end destination so property prices are only going one way) and high yields as the season is all-year-round and occupancy is around 80%.

The Resort

The villas, offering a combined internal/external space from 318 – 500 sqm, provide spacious accommodation for up to six people. Fitted with full air conditioning, luxury European kitchens and internet capability, the properties all have stylish modern interiors. Externally, the tropical landscaping and spacious terraces provide subtle privacy, relaxing alfresco dining and allow villas to take advantage of the views over breathtaking mountain ranges and across the idyllic Bo Phut Bay. In addition, each villa’s private infinity pool adds to the exotic ambience whilst providing an exclusive way to cool off.

Tropical Hills forms the first phase of the luxury Himmapan Beach Resort which boasts a health club & spa, rackets club, water gardens, swimming pool, bars, restaurants and a private beach. It also benefits from full hotel management, booking services, a reception area and 24 hour security.

The development itself is located on a west facing hill 400 meters from the main island ring road. The new Dragon Shopping Centre with a host of boutique shops offers further diversion and is situated close by. Two kilometres towards Chaweng is TESCO"s superstore which offers a huge selection of food and goods, and is neighboured by an indoor cinema, bowling alley and restaurants. The main nightlife centre of Chaweng and the airport in Ban Rak are both within a ten minute radius of Tropical Hills, as is the world class Santiburi Golf Course in Maenam. The resort then, is in a prime location on the island; all main towns and beaches are quick to access, but far enough away to preserve the tranquility of Tropical Hills.

Construction is now underway and breaking ground is scheduled for this winter. The entire villa area is due to complete by late 2008, in line with the first phase of the Himmapan Beach Resort.

Finance structure

• Investment
• Financing Facility
• Payment Plan
• Ownership structure
• Taxation
• Resort Management
• Maintenance
• Furniture package

Investment

For an “Investment Prospectus” insight in to the financial reasons behind investing in Tropical Hills, and the rental yield potential from your Tropical Hills home, please contact us.

Financing Facility

We are now offering a non status developer’s loan facility up to 50% of the purchase price, minimizing your own cash injection in to the purchase. There is an application fee of THB35,000. The loan repayment is over 30 years and the lending rate will track the published “Average of Foreign Bank Branches Loan Rate” under their MOR category on the loan rate page, set at 0.5% above the published rate. The current live interest rates can be viewed here. A mortgage calculator here. An option for a 20 yr US$ mortgage is also currently being negotiated for Tropical Hills owners.

Payment Plan

2% holding deposit
18% payable within 30 days of dated Reservation Agreement
30% at start of villa construction
50% developer financing

Ownership Structure

Direct ownership of freehold property by foreign nationals in Thailand is not currently legally permitted. Ownership is achieved by a convertible, renewable lease which offers the lessee full control over the freehold rights, effectively equivalent to freehold ownership. Freehold title can be used for mortgage purposes to secure bank borrowing. A leasehold option is also available. Legal assistance & advice for Tropical Hills has been acquired via Asian experts Johnson Stokes & Master www.jsm.co.th.

Taxation

Thailand has an attractive taxation system. Taxation advice has been acquired via Asian experts BDO Richfield Advisory www.bdo-thai.com.

Resort Management

A full resort management and booking service will operate through Tropical Hills, ranging from Airport pick-up, through 24hr management and maintenance to maid service. Resort Manager Patrick Honey has exhaustive experience as CEO of group operations including resorts, hotels and villas in Zimbabwe, the Caribbean, Spain and Seychelles. The resort will be marketed worldwide at all major travel shows. A comprehensive, real-time, online resort booking service will be used by travel agents and tour operators worldwide, and via the resort website allowing reservations 24hr a day worldwide. Working like an airline booking system, rates adjust via sensitivity to the booking levels ie. the more bookings the higher the rates.

Maintenance

A sinking fund of THB 100,000 will be obtained from each property, a one-time payment only. The initial maintenance charge of THB 4,000 will be levied from completion.

Furniture Package

An optional bespoke furniture package will be available for all those wishing to participate in the rental scheme. This is priced at THB 750,000 plus a THB 250,000 dressing pack including everything needed to move in to your new home including TV, hi-fi, kitchenware, linen, curtains, blinds, artwork etc. The furniture pack is required if the Villa is to be entered in to the rental pool.