A regular instalment plan in Phuket ends on the day you get the keys: by completion the property is paid in full. But the market has a more interesting scheme — the post-handover payment plan, where a substantial share of the price is paid after the unit is built, and in rental projects while it is already earning. Internationally it is known as the PHPP, a term borrowed from the Dubai market. We have gathered every catalogue project with such terms into a dedicated collection — here is how the scheme works, how it compares to a mortgage, a single table with all 14 projects’ terms, and a worked example on a real unit.
How it works
The classic mechanics: you pay 45–60% of the price before key handover — reservation, contract, construction stages. The rest comes after completion, in equal instalments over one to ten years, usually at a modest rate. By that point the unit can already be lived in or rented out.
For the buyer this changes three things at once:
- Less money locked in construction. In regular off-plan you have paid 100% by completion; here — about half. The difference keeps working in your other assets right up to handover.
- Rent services the instalments. In projects with a rental pool, the unit’s income partly or fully covers the payments — the unit pays for itself.
- No bank required. A mortgage in Thailand for foreigners is rare and expensive: banks seldom lend to non-residents, and the few accessible programmes demand heavy paperwork at rates above a developer plan. A post-handover plan needs no credit history and no income statements — in that sense it is Phuket’s substitute for the mortgage.
There is a fourth, less obvious consequence: the scheme disciplines the developer. A developer you still owe half the price after completion has every incentive to deliver on time and to standard — otherwise their money hangs in limbo together with your keys. In regular off-plan, where everything is paid by handover, the buyer holds no such lever.
All 14 projects and their terms in one table
Terms are recorded on the catalogue cards with a source and a date — and that is where they get updated. Where the data comes from a mid-2025 market survey, the table says so; before any deal we confirm the current schedule with the developer.
| Project | District | From | Stage | Post-handover terms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laguna Lakeside | Bang Tao | $206,688 | off-plan | Banyan plan up to 5 yrs, per unit |
| Laguna Bayside | Bang Tao | $895,234 | off-plan | Banyan plan up to 5 yrs, per unit |
| Laguna Seashore | Bang Tao | $295,945 | off-plan | Banyan plan up to 5 yrs, per unit |
| Laguna Beachside | Bang Tao | $374,436 | completed | Banyan plan up to 5 yrs, per unit |
| Laguna Lakelands | Bang Tao | $253,000 | off-plan | Banyan plan up to 5 yrs, per unit |
| Skypark Elara | Bang Tao | $273,216 | off-plan | Banyan plan up to 5 yrs, per unit |
| Garrya Residences | Bang Tao | $484,166 | off-plan | Banyan plan up to 5 yrs, per unit |
| Gardens of Eden | Layan | $370,000 | off-plan | 50% during construction + 50% up to 3 yrs after handover |
| Rise Villas | Bang Tao | $311,526 | off-plan | 30% in instalments over 3 yrs after handover |
| Fantasea Rawai | Rawai | $105,652 | off-plan | ~50% over 3 yrs after move-in |
| The One Nai Harn | Nai Harn | $119,313 | off-plan | ~50% up to 5 yrs at ~8% (2025 data) |
| Dominion Rawai | Rawai | $154,310 | off-plan | ~50% over 5 or 10 yrs at 1–2.5% (2025 data) |
| Essence Residence | Rawai | $158,335 | off-plan | ~45–50% over about 3 yrs (2025 data) |
| Erawana Grand | Bang Tao | $1,464,974 | completed | ~50% up to 5 yrs at ~6.5% (2025 data) |
Three things stand out. First, half the list is Banyan Group: for the island’s largest developer, deferred revenue is a sales tool, not a risk, and every active project carries a plan. Second, the longest terms sit in the south: Dominion Rawai’s 5 or 10 years at 1–2.5% has no equal anywhere on the island. Third, two rows say “completed” — the cleanest version of the scheme: Erawana Grand and Laguna Beachside carry no construction risk at all; you pay in parts for something you can already walk through and move into.
💬 The table shows reference terms as of this article’s date. We will send the current schedule for any project with a calculation for your budget — leave a request on the collection page or message us on WhatsApp: +66 80 942 22 30.
A worked example on a real unit: the monthly number
Take a Laguna Lakeside studio at the entry price of $206,688 and a typical “50% before handover, 50% over 5 years” plan. Everything below is a rounded illustration of the mechanics, not an offer: Banyan prices the exact schedule per unit.
- Before key handover: about $103,300 — the reservation, the contract and construction-stage payments spread across the build period.
- After handover: the remaining ~$103,300 over 5 years is $1,722 a month before interest; at ~5% on the outstanding balance the average payment is around $1,950.
- What the rent covers: the developer’s yield forecast is ~8% a year — roughly $16,500 a year, or $1,375 a month. A forecast, not a guarantee — but even at a third below it, the rent covers more than half the payment.
The net effect: the buyer enters a Laguna project having locked up half the price by completion, and the unit itself largely services the second half. The price of that convenience is interest on the balance and five years of payment discipline.
Instalments, mortgage or 100% payment: an honest comparison
| Criterion | Post-handover plan | Thai mortgage | 100% payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Available to foreigners | 14 catalogue projects | barely, as a non-resident | always |
| Rate | 1–8% on the deferred share | above local market rates | — |
| Paperwork | passport and contract | full pack: income, history, status | passport and contract |
| Unit price | sometimes carries the cost of money | market | best: outright-payment discount |
| Capital locked up | ~half by completion | the down payment | 100% at once |
| Resale before settlement | harder: debt on the unit | harder: bank lien | free |
The main takeaway: the mortgage is effectively not a contender — for a non-resident it is either unavailable or costlier than a developer plan with far more friction. The real choice is between instalments and paying outright, and it is decided not by the rate but by what is worth more to you: a discount for 100% now, or half the price staying free to work in your other assets for five years.
Who pays for the party
A post-handover plan is not charity: the developer shifts part of its revenue years into the future and charges for it. Understanding exactly where that charge sits is half the deal.
The rate. Interest-free long plans barely exist. The typical range on the deferred share runs from 1–3% (Dominion) to 7–8% (The One Nai Harn) a year. For a foreigner that is usually cheaper and simpler than any accessible loan — but read the rate together with how it accrues: on the outstanding balance or on the whole deferred amount, the overpayment between the two can differ nearly twofold.
The unit price. Some developers price the cost of money straight into the list price. So the correct comparison is the full unit price at 100% payment versus the full price on the plan: the discount for paying outright is sometimes bigger than the convenience is worth. We request both quotes from the developer and put the difference in absolute money.
Title. The key legal question of the scheme is what you actually hold before full settlement. In some projects title transfers at handover and the balance is secured by contract; in others registration happens only after the final payment. Both structures work, but the risks differ — and this must be checked before the deposit, not after.
The rental question. If the unit works in a pool, find out whether the income offsets the instalments automatically or lives as a separate stream. The first is more convenient and protects against arrears; in the second, payment discipline is entirely on you — even when the pool pays out late.
How the deal runs: five steps
- Reservation. Locks the unit and the price; the typical ticket is 100–200 thousand baht. Before any deposit we check the reservation agreement: refundability, validity period, what exactly is being locked.
- The sale and purchase agreement. This is where every instalment term lives: the schedule, the rate, how it accrues, the fate of the title and the penalties for arrears. The single most important document of the scheme — read before the first large payment.
- Payments before completion. By construction stage or by calendar — each project has its own schedule. In completed projects (Erawana Grand, Laguna Beachside) this step collapses into the first instalment.
- Key handover. The unit is accepted against a checklist; defects are recorded before the act is signed. From this moment you can live in it or rent it out — and the post-handover part of the schedule begins.
- Post-handover payments and registration. Equal instalments per schedule; final title registration per the contract — at handover or after the last payment.
Every step has its traps — from non-refundable reservations to soft wording about “schedule revisions”. As an agency we walk all five together with the buyer, free of charge: the developer pays our commission, and your prices match its own sales office.
Where the term PHPP comes from — and how Phuket differs from Dubai
The PHPP abbreviation took hold in Dubai, where post-handover plans became a mass instrument back in the 2010s: for large Emirati developers, “60/40 over 3 years after handover” is the norm, not the exception. Phuket’s market works differently, and the differences are worth understanding before a deal.
First, scale: hundreds of Dubai projects offer PHPP, versus 14 of 349 in our Phuket catalogue — one in twenty-five. Here the plan is a specific developer’s competitive edge, not an industry standard, which also makes it easier to negotiate. Second, regulation: Emirati plans sit on top of RERA-mandated escrow accounts, while the Thai market barely uses escrow — the buyer’s protection is the contract itself, hence our emphasis on legal review. Third, economics: Dubai plans are usually interest-free but priced into the unit; Thai plans more often carry an explicit modest rate on a more honest list price. Compare the full cost of ownership — and in that comparison Phuket holds up well.
The mistakes we see most often
Reading the plan as a discount. It is not a discount but a paid deferral. If the developer offers 5–7% off for 100% payment while the plan charges 5% a year on half the price, paying outright can win — run both scenarios in absolute money.
Budgeting the instalments entirely from rental income. Yield forecasts are forecasts; first-year occupancy almost always runs below cruise level. The healthy plan is to be able to carry the payments with no rent at all, and treat the income as an accelerator.
Skipping the arrears clause. Penalties differ radically: from a token late fee to termination with forfeiture of what was paid. That paragraph of the contract matters more than the rate section.
Ignoring currency. Schedules are denominated in baht; over 5–10 years the exchange rate between your income currency and the baht becomes a real risk factor — at minimum accept it consciously, better still reduce it with early payments if the contract allows them without penalty.
Terms are a perishable product
The most important thing we learned building this collection: instalment schedules change faster than any other market condition. Developers revise them as phases sell out — a fresh example from our own catalogue: Layan Green Park offered a long post-handover plan on Phase 2 and withdrew it once the phase sold down.
That is why every term in our collection carries a source and a date, and before a deal we request the current schedule from the developer and lock it as of that day. A term from a year-old article is a question to ask the developer — not a line in your financial plan.
🔗 Related reads: The full cost of buying in Phuket · Deposits and reservations: how not to lose your booking · Construction timelines in Phuket
Nine questions for the developer before any deposit
We run this list on every post-handover deal — it saves weeks of correspondence and a couple of unpleasant surprises.
- What is the full unit price at 100% payment versus on the plan — in absolute figures, not “the same”?
- Does interest accrue on the outstanding balance or on the whole deferred amount?
- When is title registered — at key handover or after the final payment?
- Are early payments allowed, and is there a penalty for them?
- What counts as arrears, and what are the sanctions: a late fee, suspension of use, termination?
- If the unit sits in a rental pool — does the income offset the instalments automatically?
- Does the plan transfer to a new owner on resale before full settlement?
- What currency is the schedule denominated in, and at what rate are payments accepted?
- What happens to money already paid if the developer delays completion or fails to deliver?
The answers to all nine must sit in the contract, not in chat with a sales manager. We check every point against the contract text before any deposit — part of the free verification we run as an agency.
Who the scheme fits — and who it does not
It fits if you want into a rental project with minimal capital locked up and can hold payment discipline for years; if a Thai mortgage is out of reach and you want to spread the payment; if you are buying a finished property and value moving in before full settlement.
It does not fit if the budget is stretched thin — the post-handover payments will not go away, while rental income is never guaranteed; if you plan a quick resale — a unit with an outstanding plan is harder to sell; and if the lowest possible price matters most — developers almost always price 100% payment best.
If you are not sure which group you fall into — that is a fair question for a fifteen-minute conversation, not for solo spreadsheet work off blog articles. Write to us with your budget and goal: we will send the current terms for the matching projects, a payment calculation on a specific unit, and an honest answer on whether a plan makes sense for you at all — leave a request on the collection page, or go straight to WhatsApp: +66 80 942 22 30.
