Condo size vs. house plot size: two different figures

A condo unit's size in square metres, as listed in a brochure or sale contract, refers to the usable interior floor area — measured from the wall centreline or interior face (depending on the developer's convention) — and excludes shared building areas like the lobby, corridors, pool, or parking.

This is the figure that represents the exclusive ownership area under the Condominium Act. All common areas remain jointly owned by every unit owner in the project and are never counted inside an individual unit's square-metre figure.

For a detached house or townhouse, the square-wah figure in a brochure refers to the entire land plot sold together with the house — not the house's own usable floor area. The house's floor area (all storeys combined) is usually listed separately, in square metres.

So a single house listing often carries two figures at once — for example, "50 square wah of land, 150 m² usable area" — meaning the plot itself covers 200 m² (50 × 4), while the house's total floor area across every level is 150 m². A 50-square-wah plot sits well within the typical range for a subdivided house lot — see other standard ranges in Standard plot sizes in Thai housing estates, explained.

A 60 m² condo and a 60-square-wah house plot are not the same size — 60 square wah equals 240 m² (60 × 4), four times larger than a 60 m² condo unit. The confusion comes from using two different unit systems (square metres for floor area, square wah for land) in different contexts. Try it with your own land size at the square wah to square metres converter.

When comparing two housing options, always separate the two numbers: the land size (if any) and the actual usable floor area. Don't take a figure from one context and compare it directly against a figure from the other.

For a condo, treat the square-metre figure in the sale-and-purchase contract and the unit title as authoritative, since those are legally binding. Marketing material may round the figure or, in some cases, include balcony area — worth checking closely.

For a housing estate plot, check both the land size from the title deed and the floor area from the construction permit drawings. Both figures affect the sale price and land-and-building tax in different ways.

Registration of both condo units and land titles falls under the Department of Lands (dol.go.th), which issues the legally binding unit title and land title deed. The figures on those documents are the official ones — not whatever appears in marketing material.

If a brochure figure and the title figure don't match, the title deed or unit title always takes precedence. Ask the developer or the local Land Office directly if anything looks inconsistent.

• A condo's square metres = interior floor area only, excluding common areas.
• A house's square wah = the entire land plot, not the house's floor area.
• 60 square wah equals 240 m² — not 60 m² like a condo unit of the same number.
• Treat the sale contract and title figures as authoritative, not marketing material.
• Check whether balcony or common area is folded into the advertised square-metre figure.