BigTopMe

LOL some of you guys are so harsh for no reason.
 
I don't have to live in Silom I could live close by the Lumpini area is nice
and I am very serious that why I am here asking for advise
 
I do think I am going to come and stay for 80 days before I make the big jump just to be sure
I have saved 150k (not including the Elite Visa cost)  and i don't want to stay in BKK forever just for 2 or 3 years
but I would like to still have 100k when I decide to come home.
 
I appreciate all the non bitchy input 
 
I wanted to respond to you guys individually but I don't see a button that would allow me to do so
 
Thx

I suggest you have made a wise decision. It will be far less expensive on your savings. You will not be tied down to anyone in particular but can still form a longer term relationship if you like. You can also opt for a considerably cheaper studio or small condo unit where you can do your own thing and not be bothered with live in Thai guys wanting their local TV all the time! Have a great stay.

I am literally waiting for plaster to dry, and this is a topic very near and dear, so here’s my stab at bare bones  2 year budget that fits under a rough $65,500  total.  It's just to show that it might be possible in Bangkok.  The OP or others might find some compromises unworkable, so it may be doable in theory but too bleak in practice.  And that's fine.  Or it might be that someone could decide by saving some money here or there it could stretch that out to 2.5 years, or by adding a bit to the budget it’s more liveable, or…whatever.  And definitely Pattaya is cheaper.  But at the least the decision to eliminate BKK as an alternative can be a bit more of an informed one.
 
Off the top take $10K for health ins.  Just as a sanity check, an expat plan from GeoBlue for a hypothetical U.S. gent in his late 50s is a tad bit under 5,000.  I am sure cheaper plans can be found shopping around, and more expensive plans can definitely be found.
 
Next take about $5,000 for visa-related costs.  Assorted visa fees, extensions obtained at Immigration, visa runs to inexpensive neighboring countries.  Not much glamour.
 
Another 2K for long-haul flight from NYC (hypothetically) and misc. costs of being an expat (e.g., mail forwarding services).  Obviously this is not biz class.  
 
Leaves us about $48K (65-10-5-2) for two years = $2,000 per month.
 
Convert to baht @30 baht/$ = 60,000 per month.   Of course it’s possible to get better conversion rate than that, but this builds in a little cushion.  
 
15,000 rent - let’s pretend and use the studio on Suan Plu
  1,500 electricity (should end up less)
     800 home internet 
     800 phone with internet pkg (can easily pay less)
     100 water (should end up less)
18,200 
 
leaves us 41,800/month for living or about 10,000 baht/week.  Not great, but livable.  
 
You could enjoy a visit from an entrepreneurial young gentleman via Hornet 3x/week at @2,000 a visit (6,000 a week)  Is that enough?  Up to you.  
 
That would leave about 4,000 per week for food and everything else, which is possible if you eat like a local.  (It's also possible to spend that on just one meal..  I think it's possible to spend 300 a day on good street food and from time to time at the inexpensive restaurants around Suan Plu (for example), and then once or twice a week go to a restaurant/bar for a nicer meal.   So the 4,000 could break down to, for example, 3,000 baht a week for food and 1,000 baht for exploring Bangkok.   (haircuts, BTS, Museum fees, occasional lectures, motosai, etc.)  Personally  I'ld probably skip the nice restaurants and spend more on exploration/fun.   It doesn't leave a lot of money to splurge on fancy visa runs instead of the basic number already built-in.  It also doesn't leave any money for falling in or out of love, or meeting someone who is far far better at separating you from your money than you are at resisting his charms.
 
All these examples are at a 30:1 exchange rate.  Even just 31:1 on $48K obviously adds 48,000 baht to the playground.   But if you're not the kind of person who really really enjoys the adventure of living in BKK, being on a tight budget might really make you miserable and that negativity can become quite toxic.  (The scarcity effect)
 
PERSONALLY, I think if the budget goes up $10K to $75,000, that extra money could flow directly to food/fun entertainment by adding another 2,500 baht a week for food/drinks/exploration and make the whole thing less strict and more fun.
 
Or go to Pattaya.

If anyone cares ??? DThump has been banned!

As an example, right now there is a studio available for 15,000 at the Seed Mingle on Suan Plu Soi 8 on what looks to be a middle-to-high(ish) floor. A modern building with pool and gym.  It turns out to be slightly less than 15 minute walk to Lumpini or to Chong Nonsi or Sala Daeng BTS, or of course a very quick motosai ride.  Personally, I think it's as near to a perfect location as possible (and not just because it backs up to The Prince).  Not that it's important, but it is also a very gay building.    And the street food scene there is great.  So it's possible to get housing all-in (utils. etc.) for around 17,500/month (actually a bit less).   I have no idea, of course, if the OP is the kind of person who would be comfortable in a studio apt.  
 
Older less fabulous buildings or even the newer buildings down near Surasak BTS have lots of offerings as well.  So it's possible, it will just invariably involve a compromise.  The price (among many) of living in BKK.

I hope DivineMadman is right about studios available in the Silom/Surwong area. I doubt it but will be happy to be proved wrong. The OPs total monthly preferred budget remember is only about 40,000 baht inclusive of everything. Added to the negative column, I dont think anyone has mentioned medical and personal accident insurance. Since the OP is from the USA, does his insurance cover him in Thailand? Depending ion his age, thats could be another cost factor to put into the mix.

I don't think we need to be overly-discouraging.  If we the OP's original question to "For about US$65K can I have 2-3 years based in Bangkok in a nice neighborhood near the action? and still have some money for fun?"  Yes.  There are plenty of one bedroom and studios available.   Always have "what if I hate it" escape plan.  But if you're an adventurous type looking to get away, I say go for it.  

You can get a sense of condo rents in Bangkok on https://www.thailand-property.com/properties-for-rent.  https://www.thebkkresidence.com/ResultProperty?for=rent is another site.  
 
I don't think your budget (roughly $50K to live on over 2-3 years or $2K per month (or less)) will let you live where you want to live and do what you want in central Bangkok.   I think you'll be lucky to get a nice 2 bedroom in the Silom/Sathorn or similar neighborhoods for 24,000 baht, and then budget another 2,000-3,000 for utilities (electric, water and internet).  For a sunny 1 bedroom my electric bill probably averaged around 1,200 baht and I'm pretty cheap on the a/c.  water is nominal.  High speed internet around 800 baht/month.   Easily US$900-1,000 for housing in Bangkok.  That's before your first Pad Thai or massage or whatever.   You can find lower rents in different neighborhoods.  It depends on how comfortable you will be away and how good your Thai is.
 
Also, personally, I think it will be time consuming and a challenge (and an expensive challenge) to find 2 sex worker house boys who you actually want to live in close quarters with for 500 per person per day.  And as others have noted, it will be much more than that in fact because of the food and shopping and new phones and all that.  Also not sure where you intend to find them.  But that can be your adventure.  
 
Thaivisa.com is of course the place for all current thai visa questions, but I think you should be able to get a couple of years in Thailand on tourist visas obtained first in your home country and then from neighboring countries.  Vientiane I think is still fairly easy to get two TV's.  Ho Chi Minh or Hanoi (I forget which) and Bali are supposed to be pretty easy as well.  You will have to play the game with showing outbound tickets and finances to get the tourist visas.  Doing visa runs or side trips to get your visas would be a lot less expensive than the $15K Thai Elite 5 year visa, for someone who is realistically looking at more like 2 possibly 3 years.  And you might find that you want to get out of Thailand and visit neighboring countries anyway.

it looks that you learned something  from all comments above

If you want to live comfortably with thai boy in Thailand you do need at least $25K per year, your saving will allowed you to be in Thailand not more than 6 years and after that what you'll do once the money finished?
If you don't have steady pension I think it's not a good idea what you're planning to do .

The most important advice I can give is ti try out the arrangement for 6/12 months in a rented apartment before selling-up.  Our experiences on holidays- mindset, interests, finance- are very different to those of an ex-pat. And if you were to make a mistake, how easy would it be to pick up the pieces back home?

OP wrote he is going to get an Elite Visa.It costs 500,000 Baht for 5 years - 2 Million Bahts for 20 years.
So I assume he is under 50 years old since Elite Visa is only a realistic option for people under 50yo and want to retire in Thailand.
 
http://www.thai-elite.com/programs.html
 
If anyone interested, there is an Elite Visa programme office in Suvernabhumi airport after immigration & baggage, before you go through custom.

I love the Silom/Surawong area. I wouldn’t stay anywhere else. But it is true you will be hard pressed to find a decent two bedroom apartment along with all your other expenses within your budget. Maybe other side of river on BTS line.
But if your going to get Thai retirement visa, your going to need to meet income requirements. About $2000 per month or $25000 in a bank account. So you have a lot of research to do.

It all depends on the lifestyle you envisage.
It sounds like you know Thailand so you should spend a few hours researching on the internet.
Some ideas to start you off:
Condo rent
Services for Condo
Do you want a car
Running costs for car
Salary for 2 beautiful Thai guys (hope they are not jealous) - remember they will probably also expect gifts if they are providing extra services.
Medical policy
Other regular medication
Food - how often do you want to eat Western food
Holidays
Restaurant meals and entertainment - high end or on the street
etc etc
When you have your list, if you will be transferring money monthly, add 25% for potential adverse currency fluctuations.

2 bottom Thai houseboys
living with you at the same time isn't a good idea the jealousy between them will probaly kill the fun ,it's better to keep one boy as open relationship 'boyfreind' and have short time fun with other boys .

Jealousy usually based on treating the boys different financially.  If that is fair, both both can be happy with the situation. 

Hero really is a great place in Bangkok.  The whole experience is great and I when I go thee I am a pig I went once and fucked two guy one after the other. lol

I am very interested to hear every detail of your trip.  I want to go to Brazil this year too.

Human sexuality is very complex.  
 
While I identify as gay I will have sex with a woman once in a while and still say Im gay.  
If a straight guy has sex with a man he has to go through some internal hell because he thinks he may be gay.  
 
What really is the difference?
 
Just enjoy whatever gender you want when you want it.
 
Live your life for you, not any rules set by anyone else.

Human sexuality is very complex.  
 
While I identify as gay I will have sex with a woman once in a while and still say Im gay.  
If a straight guy has sex with a man he has to go through some internal hell because he thinks he may be gay.  
 
What really is the difference?
 
Just enjoy whatever gender you want when you want it.
 
Live your life for you, not any rules set by anyone else.

i could fuck a woman, and i have a few but sex with men is so much better and i feel really satisfied afterward.  to put in in numbers for every 1 girl i have fucked, i have fucked 100 men

The use of the term butterfly has been criticised on this Forum before. I don't like it either. I suggested pterodactyl but that term, hardly surprisingly, never took off!

WIth a little reflection on this situation,
I am not going to let him distort my good feelings concerning Thailand (I really love the country)
I am coming back in April for sure
It will be my third trip
I have not been to Pattaya and I wanna see it and Id like to just go out to the bars a meet people too
 
The last time I spent all my time with him alone
No bars no clubs, just restaurants and my hotel room
 
I know there is a cute boy in walking around Thailand right now that is gonna be mine in about 6 weeks
And when I come home that's where he will stay in every sense of the word

Darn, I have to start all over again as Fountainhall said many of the things I wanted to say.  Yes, we have all been there and done that, and some of us more then once.  I see nothing wrong with caring a lot for a beautiful boy, especially when you first come to this country, I see nothing wrong with trying to believe he cares for you as much as you care for him, I see nothing wrong with trying to help him when he asks for help, but---and there is always a but---you must learn to keep part of yourself detached and able to evaluate reality without getting slapped in the face.  Easy to say, but hard to do.  Unfortunately I think all but a select few have to learn this lesson through getting hurt by being too willing to believe that the one you love, loves you as strongly as you love him.  I wish I could have learned without the pain of finding out that my love was not returned, but I am not one of those select few that could do this.  However, I am also glad to have, more then once,  made the trip and felt the pain, and learned to grow from the experience.  I know of many who have come to this country and believed so strongly that they could not take the pain and grow, and instead jumped from their balconies or some other self-destructive act.  Savor the pain you may be feeling now as it is a valuable tool to helping you deal with a fickle younger lover.  Do come back, and try again, and work on getting that necessary separation.  You will have no trouble finding your next love, the danger only lies in caring so deeply that you lose that-- all to necessary--detachment.  Concentrate on learning how to do that and you will be fine.

WIth a little reflection on this situation,
I am not going to let him distort my good feelings concerning Thailand (I really love the country)
I am coming back in April for sure
It will be my third trip
I have not been to Pattaya and I wanna see it and Id like to just go out to the bars a meet people too
 
The last time I spent all my time with him alone
No bars no clubs, just restaurants and my hotel room
 
I know there is a cute boy in walking around Thailand right now that is gonna be mine in about 6 weeks
And when I come home that's where he will stay in every sense of the word