Property Review - Tewana Home Project

Uncle Chai – who is he? You may not have heard of one of Phuket’s most fascinating characters before today but read a little more and we will introduce you to him whilst also offering a unique insight in to his lifestyle:

Uncle Chai (Supichai Vongpipunt) or just Chai to his friends is one of Phuket’s leading residential developers – but with a difference. His projects are undertaken as hobbies rather than work and in contrast to other developers he shuns beachside land plots in favour of plots inland that are surrounded by verdant greens. It is for the latter reason he is renowned among locals as the man to consult if you really want something private.

	Uncle Chai’s project is named Tewana which means “Dheva’s garden” in English. The ethos of the project is to deliver a home of ‘true rest’ for those looking for such a place.

After taking a tour of Uncle Chai’s project we found a place to sit down , cool down and get the low down on ‘Tewana’ and Uncles Chai’s life. Uncle Chai began by telling us. ‘I worked hard until I found that working hard was not enough and that I needed something to help bring balance to my life.’ ‘I found balance by building houses according to my own preferences and tastes’ Continuing it is a team effort though as ‘My wife is a designer and has more talent in decoration than me so she helps by taking care of each home’s décor’.

However, it is surprising to learn that Uncle Chai has no background in architecture or construction, advising us that “When I decide I want to build a house, I know that I need to find a reliable architect. For this reason I invited my architect to stay here with me - as in this way it will be easier for him to get to know my style”.

Uncle Chai again provides a surprise by informing us he aims to make only one or two houses a year; “My friend asked me why I don’t build more? Advising me to loan from the bank. But I told him I’m not that serious about it. Let’s say if I do this until I am 60, I will make about 15 houses - so if you want to have one of these limited editions, you better hurry up and buy! ” Uncle Chai tells us with a chuckle.

“Actually, for the moment I have three houses for rent under 'Uncle Chai Home Project' www.unclechaihome.com then, Colin is a new house under TEWANA project house for sale which Phuket real estate market accepted, sold out…, this I use as a show house for peoples initial decision making. If they like it and wish to make a deal then minor alterations can be made, but I will not undertake massive changes”

Uncle Chai’s Tewana Project is located in the Chalong area and offers the unique style of; a cosy house as a holiday home. Yet Uncle Chai homes’ further differ from others in that they are named according to that of the owner who buys them. His own moniker ‘Uncle Chai’ having similar etymology - its origin he states was really surprising. “Several years ago I bought some land and found that the land located in Soi Bannachai is appropriate because ‘Nachai’ means Uncle Chai in Thai and in life I am uncle to many nieces and nephews. Although the Soi’s name has changed now it stills impressed me till these days.”

Finally when questioned about his piecemeal approach to development Uncle Chai informs us it is because ‘continually developing oneself is as important as knowing how to judge what is enough to undertake.’

Tewana Home Project

Soi Bannachai, Chaofa West Rd., Chalong, Phuket 83000 Thailand

Tel: +66 (0) 81 492 6883

Email: vchai2000@hotmail.com

Website: http://unclechaihome.com/tewana.html