Hotel Residence Management Agreement: A Phuket Buyer Checklist

A hotel residence management agreement sets out how an operator runs your residence, what it charges and what you may do with your unit. In Phuket it can matter as much as the purchase contract, because it decides how the property is operated for as long as you own it.

This checklist shows what to read, what to ask and which answers to get in writing. It gives no “typical” fee rates. Fees differ by project, and only the contract in front of you counts.

Why Read the Agreement Before You Sign the Purchase Contract

The management agreement is a separate document from the sale and purchase contract. The purchase contract transfers the unit. The management agreement governs what happens to it afterwards. Our guide to hotel-managed residences explains the model, and this article turns its advice to review the agreement into a clause-by-clause list.

Ask the seller for these documents before you pay more than a reservation deposit:

• The full draft management agreement, including every schedule.
• The house rules and any owner handbook.
• The current budget and fee schedule.
• Written evidence of the licence that allows the rental operation.

Read them alongside the purchase contract. If any document refers to another document you have not seen, ask for that one too.

Parties, Operator and Licence

Start with who is who. Savills describes branded schemes as a partnership between a brand, often a hotel operator, and a developer. Not every project has a brand, so identify each party yourself.

Ask:

• Who is the operator, and which legal entity signs the agreement?
• Is the operator the developer, a related company or an independent party?
• Is a hotel brand involved, and does the agreement depend on it? Our guide to branded and hotel-managed residences explains the difference.
• Who holds the hotel licence, and does it cover the rental programme you are buying into?

The Hotel Act provides that no person shall operate a hotel business without a licence. It defines the hotel business operator as the person granted that licence. That makes the licence holder a central name in your documents. For the licence checks, use our guide to daily rental rules for Phuket condos.

Term, Renewal and Termination

The length of the agreement tells you how long you are tied to one operator. Read these points carefully:

• How long the initial term runs, and when it starts: at signing, at handover or at opening.
• Whether renewal is automatic, by agreement or at the operator’s option.
• Whether you can terminate early, and for what reasons.
• What notice each side must give, and what each side pays on termination.
• Whether the agreement ends if the hotel brand or licence ends.
• Who can replace the operator, and whether owners vote on it.

Compare the agreement’s term with the term of your title or lease. Our own guide lists the relationship between a lease and the management agreement as something to understand before you buy.

Fees and Charges

Money is where agreements differ most. Ask for every charge in one schedule, then match it to the table below.

Charge	What to ask	Where to look
Management fee	How it is calculated, and what it covers	Fee schedule
Income share or revenue share	What is split, between whom, and by what formula	Income clause
Booking and distribution costs	Which channels and commissions are deducted	Operating costs clause
Service charge	What common-area costs it covers and how it is set	Budget
Furniture replacement	Who pays, and who chooses the items	FF&E clause
Utilities and supplies	Whether charged at cost or with a margin	Cost schedule

Savills describes several fee types in branded schemes: a management fee paid by the owner if the operator manages the residences, a trademark licence fee if the scheme is franchised, and annual service charges for common areas. Treat them as categories to look for, not as expected amounts.

Income structures also differ. Hotel-managed residences may use revenue sharing, profit sharing, a defined return for a specified period, a hybrid, or a hotel rental pool. Ask whether any stated figure is calculated from gross or net revenue, and what is deducted first. Our guide to gross and net returns shows how to compare like with like.

Can you negotiate fees?

That depends on the seller. Ask which terms are fixed for every owner and which are open, and ask how and when each fee can change. Get the answers in writing. If a fee can rise, find out who decides and what limits apply.

Reports, Accounts and Audit Rights

You cannot judge a rental programme without reports. Ask:

• How often you receive statements, and in what format.
• Whether statements show gross revenue, each deduction and the amount paid to you.
• When payments are made after each period.
• Whether you can inspect the operator’s records, and who pays for an audit.
• How errors are corrected and how long you have to raise a query.

A good statement lets you rebuild the owner’s share from the contract. If you cannot do that with a sample statement, ask the operator to explain the gap.

Owner-Use Days and the Rental Programme

Owner stays and rental availability pull in opposite directions, so the rules matter.

• How many days you may use the unit, and in which periods.
• How you book them, and how early.
• Whether stays attract cleaning or service charges, and how much notice is needed.
• Whether owner stays affect your income share.
• Whether any dates are blocked.
• Whether you can lend the unit to friends or family.

Also check how your unit enters the rental system. Savills notes that in branded schemes, owners may use the property themselves or let it through the hotel’s rental scheme, and that a furniture package to the required specification is mandatory to join. Ask whether joining the programme is required or optional, whether you can withdraw, and what happens to your unit’s availability while you do.

Maintenance, Furniture and Insurance

Clarify who is responsible for what, and who pays:

• Repairs inside the unit versus shared areas.
• Replacement of furniture and equipment, and the schedule for it.
• Insurance of the building, the contents and rental activity, and who is named on each policy.
• What happens after damage caused by guests.
• Whether the operator may carry out works without your consent, and up to what cost.

Transfer When You Resell

The agreement often decides whether a buyer will want your unit. Ask:

• Does the agreement pass to the new owner automatically, or is the operator’s consent needed?
• Are there transfer fees, notice periods or conditions for a new owner?
• Can a buyer who does not want the rental programme opt out?
• What documents must you hand over at sale?

For leasehold units, our guide also lists transfer rights, assignment conditions and what happens at the end of the lease as points to understand. Our guide to Phuket property total return covers exit planning in more detail.

Disputes and Governing Law

Read the dispute clause before you need it:

• Which law governs the agreement.
• Whether disputes go to court or to arbitration, and where.
• Which language is binding if there are translations.
• How notices are given, and to which address.

If the agreement is in English but a Thai version is the binding one, ask a Thai-qualified lawyer to review both.

How to Judge an Operator’s Reliability

A well-written agreement does not prove that an operator performs well. Look for evidence you can check:

• Which properties the operator manages today, and for how long.
• Whether you can visit one and speak to the management team.
• Sample owner statements from an existing property.
• The operator’s licence status for each property it runs.
• How the operator handles complaints, and who owners contact.

Ask for facts rather than reviews, and keep the replies. Our guide to long-term rental potential in Phuket separates the developer from the operator for the same reason.

Red Flags

Slow down if you see any of these:

• The seller will not show the draft agreement before you pay.
• Key terms sit in a brochure but not in the contract.
• A promised return appears without saying what is deducted.
• The operator or licence holder cannot be identified.
• Fees or terms can change at the operator’s discretion with no limit.
• You are pressed to sign before a lawyer has reviewed the documents.

The Trees Residence as an Example

The Trees Residence presents itself as a hotel-managed premium residence, fully managed by a professional hotel operator. The developer’s brochure lists planned hotel services for owners, including a concierge, housekeeping, room service, laundry and maintenance.

Use this checklist on any project you consider, including this one. Ask the team for the operator’s name, licence details and the draft management agreement, then compare each clause with the questions above. The The Trees Residence project overview page has the project details.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a hotel residence management agreement?

It is the contract between the owner and the operator that runs the residence. It covers the services, fees, reporting, owner use, term and exit. It is separate from the sale and purchase contract.

Can I negotiate management fees on a Phuket hotel residence?

It depends on the seller and the project. Ask which terms are fixed for all owners and which are open, and get the answer in writing. Compare fee schedules in documents, not verbal quotes.

How do I check whether an operator is reliable?

Ask which properties it manages and for how long, request sample owner statements and, if possible, visit a managed property. Also confirm the licence holder and licence status.

Who should review the agreement?

Ask a Thai-qualified property lawyer to review the management agreement together with the purchase contract and the title or lease, and ask an accountant about tax.

Does the agreement fix how much I will be paid?

Only the wording of the contract answers that. Many agreements describe how income is calculated rather than promising an amount, so check whether any stated figure is gross or net and what is deducted.

Final Takeaway

Read the management agreement as closely as the purchase contract. It decides how your residence is run, charged and passed on.

Get the draft in advance, list every charge, check the term and exit clauses, and have a Thai lawyer review the package. If an answer is vague, ask for it in writing.

If you are comparing Bang Tao projects, explore The Trees Residence and ask the team for the documents mentioned in this checklist.

Legal and financial note: This article is general information based on the sources named above, read in October 2026. It is not legal, tax or financial advice. Laws and project terms can change, and the English translation of the Hotel Act cited here is unofficial. Verify the position and the specific documents with a qualified Thai lawyer before acting.

Image note: Images in this article are AI-assisted illustrations, including visuals based on The Trees Residence architectural renderings. They are not photographs of the completed project.