When buying freehold
A foreign-quota condominium is registered in the buyer’s name. Purchase funds must enter Thailand with the correct purpose so the receiving bank can issue the foreign-exchange evidence used at the Land Office.
Oceanfront villas on the private island of Koh Maphrao — managed by hotel group Burasari
Villa Escape Residences — villa project, Ko Kaew: entry from ~$7,948,275, from $5,031 per sqm. Beach: Koh Maphrao, direct sea access (island, boat access only). Both freehold and leasehold available. Yield: 7% guaranteed for the first 3 years, then a 60/40 rental pool (per the developer). Completion: exact date not disclosed — construction timeline by unit type is 10–24 months from contract.
Villa Escape Residences is a line-up of 8 private oceanfront villas on the island of Koh Maphrao (Coconut Island) off Phuket’s east coast, reachable only by private boat. The project’s architect is David John Barclay, whose portfolio includes Aman and Banyan Tree. Management is handled by Burasari Group — a Thai hospitality operator known for Burasari Resort Patong — and this is one of those rare cases in the catalog where a villa is sold not as a standalone asset, but as part of a managed island with a full service package: butler, personal chef, concierge.
Formally, Koh Maphrao island belongs to the Koh Kaew sub-district, but the actual location is a separate private island off the east coast, not a mainland plot. It is reachable only by boat: the transfer to Royal Phuket Marina takes about 10 minutes and is included in the owner’s package, Phuket Town is about 20 minutes away, and the airport is around half an hour including the crossing. This is a fundamentally different lifestyle format compared with a mainland villa: the island’s privacy is paid for with a logistical inconvenience that is worth weighing soberly before buying.
The starting price for a 4-bedroom villa is from ~$7,948,275 (260,000,000 THB) on a 1,580–1,680 sqm plot, dramatically above typical villas in the neighboring mainland district: Canopy Hills starts from ~$1,708,827, and Botanica Majestia from ~$1,141,721. A direct comparison is not quite fair: Villa Escape Residences is not selling land in the Koh Kaew area but a gated island with hotel-grade service under a known operator. There is also a pricier 5-bedroom oceanfront unit type whose price is not disclosed. The developer states a yield of 7% per year guaranteed for the first 3 years, then a rental pool split 60/40 in the owner’s favor; this is a seller’s claim, not independently verified.
The project is at the off-plan stage, and the exact handover date is not published — by unit type, the stated construction timeline is 10–24 months from contract. The key due-diligence point is the ownership structure: despite the “freehold/leasehold” wording in the listing, per the developer itself this is a long-term leasehold of 30+30+30 years, not unconditional freehold — this is worth clarifying explicitly before signing. Burasari Group is an operating hospitality group with running properties in Phuket and Laos, which lowers the operational risk of management compared with a developer with no operating experience, but the company has little public track record of developer (as opposed to hotel) projects. For a buyer who values a gated island with full service and is prepared for boat-based logistics, this is a rare format for Phuket — but at this price point, we recommend separately verifying the legal leasehold structure and the actual rental pool terms before wiring a deposit.
Prices and availability change; data is accurate as of the page update date. Request a fresh price list — we send it the same day. Updated: August 2026.
Our catalog currently tracks 10 projects in Ko Kaew; new-build entry level here: from ~$372,040. Villa Escape Residences’s entry price is about 784% above the district median — the project sits in the upper segment of the location.
The median is calculated from the “from” prices of all catalog projects in the district and refreshes with every update.
Neighbours are picked by the same property type and the closest entry price in the same area — the projects our buyers actually shortlist against each other. Figures recalculate with every catalogue update.
| Villa Escape ResidencesThis project | The Sky Series | The Cape Residences | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price from | from ~$7,948,275 | from ~$7,498,501 | from ~$9,015,351 |
| $/sqm | $5,031 | $6,121 | $3,728 |
| Beach | Koh Maphrao, direct sea access (island, boat access only) | Panwa, ~250 m | Cape Yamu, ~50 m |
| Completion | Under constructionexact date not disclosed — construction timeline by unit type is 10–24 months from contract | Under constructionestimated 2026, exact timing to be confirmed | completed December 2015 |
| Ownership | freehold / leasehold (per the developer — long-term leasehold 30+30+30 years) | freehold / leasehold | freehold / leasehold |
| Rental program | yes | yes | yes |
The developer information in this listing states: freehold / leasehold (per the developer — long-term leasehold 30+30+30 years). This is the project-level starting point, not a legal opinion on a particular unit. The contract, title, foreign quota and seller authority must be verified before reservation.
A foreign-quota condominium is registered in the buyer’s name. Purchase funds must enter Thailand with the correct purpose so the receiving bank can issue the foreign-exchange evidence used at the Land Office.
A foreign buyer may own the structure but cannot directly own Thai land. The land element is normally held through a registered long lease or another lawful structure. Term, renewals, inheritance and resale rights must be explicit in the contract.
Verify the receiving legal entity, construction milestone, payment trigger, delay remedies and the documents the seller must deliver for registration.
This is general information. Structure and taxes depend on the unit, seller and contract; an independent Thai lawyer should complete the final review.
Indicative estimate: yield and the rental model depend on the project, unit and management program. Request an exact projection for a specific unit.
Completed Sansiri villas in the quiet Koh Kaew area — no off-plan risk, ready since 2013
A British-style villa community next to British International School Phuket
22 villas in Ko Kaew from a local developer with 30 years on the island
The “12 developer checks in Phuket” checklist plus a personal yield projection for your budget — sent via Telegram or e-mail.
Availability changes weekly and isn’t published here. We’ll send the list of free units, an honest read on the negotiating room, and a net-yield calculation for your unit with every cost included.
From ~$7,948,275 (260,000,000 THB) for a 4-bedroom villa on a 1,580–1,680 sqm plot. There is also a pricier 5-bedroom oceanfront unit type, whose exact price is not disclosed.
Burasari Group — a Thai boutique hospitality management company that also runs Burasari Resort Patong in Phuket, Twin Lotus on Koh Lanta, and Shanghai Mansion in Bangkok.
The listing states “freehold/leasehold,” but per the developer the ownership structure is a long-term leasehold of 30+30+30 years with transfer rights.
By private boat only — the transfer to Royal Phuket Marina takes about 10 minutes and is included in the package.
The developer states a guaranteed 7% per year for the first 3 years, then a rental pool split 60/40 in the owner’s favor. This is a seller’s claim, not independently verified.
The exact date is not disclosed. By unit type, the developer states a construction timeline of 10–24 months from contract signing.
This is not a mainland villa but a separate private island: the entry price from ~$7.9M is an order of magnitude above its district neighbors — for example, Canopy Hills (from ~$1,708,827) or Botanica Majestia (from ~$1,141,721) — and buys not land in the area, but a gated island with hotel-grade service.
Take the PDF: developer prices, one-off fees, owner costs and net yield — on the current price list. Or message us on WhatsApp, we reply within 15 minutes.