Seems very strange that immigration said you should have a visa given you are from USA and presumably don't have a history of entering Thailand without a visa, but this is Thailand as they say.

You do not state which IO you will use, but your wife should have no problem applying for the non O.

Good luck.

@Tony *******

apologies for joining this conversation, but your response is very clear, concise and well informed, so I wanted to ask a silly question as I am unclear.

I receive a work pension from the UK and I pay tax on it, so I believe the DTA applies.

Do I need to do anything in Thailand to show that I already paid tax?

Apologies if it's a silly question.

You can get a 60 day tourist visa before you come, that can be extended by 30 days in Thailand and then open your bank account and transfer the 800,000 Baht.

This is the most difficult part of the visa process, so once you have this in place you will be ready to apply for the retirement visa when you hit 50.

@Larry *********

you are welcome sir.

I am not a real estate agent, sorry if I confused you. I have rented a few times here that's my reason for explaining.

I presume you mean 25 to 35,000 Baht per month, and that should be enough to get what you require.

You have got some very specific requirements, things like beach view and in particular bath/soaking tub should reduce the number of responses and help you choose.

I would make a post in a Pattaya condo rental Facebook page. I take your point about not stating a budget, but that will limit your responses to the lower end of the market, so maybe state an approximate budget and say it is negotiable. Good luck, I am sure you will find a nice place.

I like Bangkok, but could not live there because of the traffic and pollution. It is just as bad in the suburbs, so I prefer to go for a few days now and again.

I think the other major cities would get boring very quickly, other than Chiang Mai (which has horrendous pollution levels several months a year). You could look at Bangsaen or Si Racha in Chonburi as they are just over an hour from Bkk. Bangsaen has quite a nice beach area, with restaurants, bars, shopping mall and hospitals etc. The type of housing you want is in abundance and you can go further down the coast to Pattaya for boat trips etc.

I think the real estate system is different in Thailand to the USA.

You could use one agent, but you will only see the properties they have on their books.

I think you would be better spending some time looking around areas and deciding a location/condo block you like first and then seeing which agents have a condo there.

Alternatively post what your requirements are (be specific and provide a budget) on a Pattaya Facebook page and agents will contact you.

Remember it is a buyers market, so offer less than the asking price.

The non o retirement visa is much easier to obtain than marriage visa( if you are over 50).

Getting married in Thailand is difficult enough without making things more complicated with a marriage visa.

Before you come to Thailand get an online 60 day tourist visa, you can then extend it for a further 30 days in Thailand. This should be plenty of time to open a bank account here, deposit the money and get the non o visa.

Opening a bank account is the most difficult part of the visa process and these days it seems you need to pay an agent to help, it costs 4 to 5,000 baht, but you can do this on the 60 day tourist visa.

I used Wise.

@Sue *********

I did my first one online.