BANGKOK: Just hours after experiencing a powerful earthquake, Phatsakon Kaewkla returned home to find alarming cracks in the walls of his 22nd-floor apartment in Bangkok.
Feeling increasingly uneasy about the structural damage caused by the most intense tremors the capital has faced in decades, the 23-year-old decided to stay away for two days until experts declared the building safe.
Phatsakon is among numerous residents in Bangkok contemplating their housing options in a city where hundreds of residential structures were impacted by the 7.7-magnitude quake that struck Myanmar on March 28.
While the condominium’s management assured him that engineers had inspected the building and deemed it inhabitable, he remains unsettled by the cracks.
“I feel a little scared. My mom even suggested I should move out,” he stated.
Located over 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the epicenter, Bangkok — characterized by its vivid skyline filled with numerous towers and glistening skyscrapers — rarely experiences such tremors.
Owen Zhu, a 40-year-old real estate consultant based in Bangkok, informed AFP that the earthquake has significantly impacted his industry.
“People are beginning to realize that living in high-rise buildings may pose higher risks concerning earthquake safety compared to low-rise structures,” he remarked.
In the days following the quake, Zhu noted a surge in inquiries from residents looking to relocate, fueled by widespread fear and anxiety about residing at significant heights.
‘A Shift in Perception’
Yigit Buyukergun from Turkey was at home with his wife when the earthquake struck. Once the shaking stopped, they emerged from sheltering under a table to assess the damage to their 22nd-floor apartment.
“Everywhere is cracked, especially in the corridor. It’s clear that the roof is in poor condition,” said the 25-year-old.
Even with the building owners declaring it “100% safe,” Buyukergun remains doubtful.
“I don’t believe it,” he commented.
In Bangkok’s extensive residential developments, many studio apartments are offered on long-term leases that require a two-month deposit. Most condominiums do not allow short-term rentals due to safety protocols, with only hotels permitted to rent for less than 30 days.
Zhu pointed out that disagreements between tenants and landlords over the safety of earthquake-damaged apartments are becoming increasingly common, resulting from differing perceptions of habitability.
“There’s a disconnect in perception and judgment between both parties,” he observed. “Landlords see the units as safe while tenants feel unsafe and insist on moving out to reclaim their deposits.”
Raising Standards
Prior to the earthquake, Thailand’s building safety standards were not particularly stringent. This was not a concern for many property-seeking clients, according to Zhu.
Heightening this anxiety was the alarming collapse of a 30-story construction in Bangkok, which trapped dozens of workers, many of whom are still unaccounted for a week later. Authorities are currently investigating whether poor-quality materials were utilized in its construction.
As a result of the quake, more of Zhu’s clients are now leaning toward low-rise buildings.
For those still inclined towards high-rises, they often seek properties that sustained minimal or no damage in the recent earthquake, or at least were not severely impacted.
Zhu believes that, in the long run, property values will increase as the demand for safer buildings stimulates the implementation of expensive seismic resistance measures, ultimately raising the standards within Thailand’s real estate market.
However, Buyukergun feels that discussions surrounding building regulations won’t ease his worries regarding uncontrollable geological factors.
His experiences with earthquakes in Turkey had already made him cautious, but he never expected to feel the same unease while living in Thailand.
“I always thought Thailand was safe,” he recalled. “That’s why I found it hard to believe an earthquake could actually happen here.”
