NovThailand News
Foreign buyers are taking a larger role in Bangkok and Phuket’s premium condo markets
CBRE Thailand’s August 19 release points to a sharp split within the residential market. International demand is prominent in selected high-end locations, but the Bangkok and Phuket percentages come from different datasets and should not be treated as national or citywide statistics.
For someone considering a premium unit, that distinction changes how the numbers should be used. They can help identify where cross-border demand is currently concentrated; they do not, on their own, establish future price growth, rental returns or resale liquidity for an individual project.
Bangkok’s prime condo segment is drawing a larger foreign share
CBRE put the buyer mix in the Downtown Bangkok condominium market at 68% Thai and 32% international in H1 2026. Its comparison point for foreign participation was an 18% average between 2021 and 2025. In the super-luxury segment, CBRE identified Japan, the United Kingdom, Taiwan and Russia among the leading international buyer nationalities.
The same release reported an average sales rate of 93% for completed Downtown projects, with luxury projects at 95%. Pipeline projects averaged 52%, while the super-luxury pipeline segment reached 85%. These are sell-through measures for the projects covered by CBRE, not a claim that 93% or 95% of units changed hands during the first six months of 2026.
The wider Bangkok backdrop is less uniform. CBRE’s Q2 market figures recorded a 265% year-on-year increase in new condominium launches, but the firm explicitly attributed much of that jump to the unusually low comparison base in Q2 2025 following the earthquake. Strong performance in prime central projects therefore should not be extrapolated to every Bangkok district or price bracket.
Phuket’s 67% figure is specific to CBRE transactions in two locations
For Phuket, CBRE was more explicit about the sample. Its H1 transaction data for condominiums in Bang Tao and Cherng Talay showed a 67% foreign buyer share and a 33% Thai share. The international buyer base included purchasers from the UK, Russia, Canada, India, the US and several European countries.
That makes the number relevant to two of the island’s most internationally oriented residential areas, but it is not an official foreign-buyer share for all Phuket property transactions. CBRE’s separate H1 market report also showed a more mixed supply picture: new condominium launches were up 44.8% from H2 2025, while only three projects totaling 1,196 units were completed, a 56.8% decline from the previous half-year.
For investors, the useful takeaway is concentration rather than a blanket Phuket growth story. A project in Bang Tao or Cherng Talay may benefit from a deeper international buyer pool, but its pricing, competing stock, completion status and exit market still need to stand on their own.
Later REIC data puts the CBRE headline in perspective
A later nationwide release from the Real Estate Information Center at Government Housing Bank adds an important comparison. Thailand recorded 6,533 condominium ownership transfers to foreign buyers in H1 2026, down 8.8% year on year.
The two datasets are not contradictory. CBRE is showing strong foreign participation in selected premium markets, while REIC is measuring completed foreign ownership transfers across the country. Read together, they suggest that demand in 2026 was becoming more location- and segment-specific rather than rising evenly across Thailand.
That is the more useful frame for a buyer or investor. The 32% and 67% figures can flag where international demand is concentrated, but they should not be used as proof that every luxury condo in Bangkok or Phuket has the same depth of demand or investment performance.
Sources
- CBRE Thailand — Strong Growth in Bangkok and Phuket Luxury Condo Markets — August 19, 2026.
- CBRE Thailand — Bangkok Overall Figures Q2 2026 — August 18, 2026.
- CBRE Thailand — Phuket Overall Figures H1 2026 — August 20, 2026.
- Real Estate Information Center (REIC), Government Housing Bank — Foreign Condominium Ownership Transfers, Q2 and H1 2026 — September 11, 2026.