When looking at villas for sale in Koh Samui, it is obvious to any discerning investor with their finger on the pulse that over the last two years there has been a proliferation of leasehold listings brought to market. This is of course the direct result of an adjustment by Samui property developers to the strict enforcement of the law since 2024 prohibiting the use of corporate holding structures with nominees by foreign buyers to acquire freehold villas. In this article, we examine leasehold villas available in Koh Samui at different price points.
If the ownership rights are limited to 30 years, of course the property sales price and capital outlay should be discounted accordingly and substantially lower than for a project offering longer-term ownership. However, investors need to be aware that sometimes there will be ongoing rental charges to be paid on the land, often referred to as ground rent. This is in fact very common for cheaper leasehold villa projects in Koh Samui. We should note there are two options for longer-term ownership, freehold, which means the land title is actually included in the sale, or renewable lease, which means that the buyer can extend the initial 30-year term when it expires to receive one or more additional lease terms of 30 years.
Generally speaking, leasehold offerings are in developments with multiple units as opposed to private villas. The reason being, when a developer is building multiple properties, they have the ability to keep the freehold of the project and issue leases on the land. They have the economies of scale to make it worthwhile, the administration costs of managing leases and companies are worthwhile. Conversely, in the case of a single standalone villa, these will typically be for sale freehold via a holding company, unless the developer is a Thai national, which makes keeping the freehold and issuing a lease much more simple.
So, what is the starting price for single 30-year term villas in Koh Samui? There is a small amount of leasehold villa stock falling into this category, available for between 4 and 5 million baht. Variations include smaller one-bedroom offerings with high-quality finishes, to larger two-bed villas with a more basic feel. Some of these developments in fact offer two prices, one for freehold and a cheaper one for a single 30-year lease. Boho Chic Village in Bang Por, a contemporary collection of detached villas launched in 2025, is one such example offering both leasehold and freehold price structures. The project offered one-bed villas with 143 sqm of build area on a leasehold tenure for 4.3 million baht, with freehold for the same villa available for an additional 1.2 million baht.
It is worth noting that projects such as Boho Chic Village were brought to market once the clampdown on corporate structures for freehold villas was well underway, and hence they were designed with leasehold ownership in mind. However, other developments, which had been on the market for a few years, have been more reactive in their approach and started offering leasehold ownership in addition to freehold via Thai holding companies.
Looking at what’s available from 5 million baht or more, this opens the door to a large selection of new leasehold villas for sale. All of the villas for sale at these price points will naturally be garden view, but this budget does allow choices of detached homes with private pools. Between the 5–6 million mark, buyers can expect more compact units with typical build areas of 100–150 sqm. It is of course difficult to generalise, because pricing often depends on the quality of the specifications, but increasing the budget to around 7 million offers more substantial properties, with build areas as large as 250 sqm and some three-bedroom configurations available. From 7.5 to 10 million, there is a lot more choice for larger builds, with indoor and outdoor living spaces of up to 300 sqm. One striking example is Nadi Villas in Chaweng Noi, brought to market at the end of 2025 and for sale off-plan at around 9.6 million. These contemporary three-bed villas are for sale leasehold, with a 297 sqm build area and private pools, decent-sized land plots of around 550 sqm, and single-level designs laid out with two pavilions either side of a central garden pool.
Looking at prices beyond 10 million, it is common at these price points to have more villas for sale, both freehold and leasehold. This is partly because many of these projects were initially designed as freehold, but they have been adapted to also offer leasehold ownership following the crackdown on company holding structures from 2024. One example is The Hideaway, Phase 3 in Bo Phut. These high-specification contemporary two-level detached villas include fully fitted high-quality kitchens with big-brand appliances, quartz countertops, and saltwater garden pools. The project was launched as freehold, but investors now also have the choice of renewable leasehold with a tenure of 2×30 years, including the option to convert to freehold at a later date.
Looking at the price range of 10 to 15 million baht, which is generally the upper price range for leasehold villas for sale on Koh Samui, these prices offer some sea view developments and also a larger number with proximity to the beach. A notable sea view villa project is Kunkhao Vale in Ban Makham, by the north-west coast, launched at the end of 2025 and priced at 14.9 million. With panoramic sea and island views, these two-bed detached villas are all sold on renewable leasehold with terms of 3 x 30 years.
So, looking at the leasehold villa market in Koh Samui as a whole, which typically tops out around 15 million baht, we can see there is basically a hybrid of ownership types, from straightforward single 30-year leases, to renewable leases with varying extensions of 30 or more years, along with leasehold structures including an option to convert to freehold at a later date.