Northern property supply rose 6.9% in H1 2026 while new sales fell 3.5%; absorption is only 1.6% and stock would take about 56 months to sell. Chiang Mai condo sales grew, helped by foreign demand, and 500 usufruct registrations there show foreign buyers using legal alternatives to nominee structures. Developers selling 2-3 million baht homes face tight bank lending; the REIC director advises pre-approval with banks before taking bookings and offering cheaper units to compete with used homes. A developer warns that transferring units to register usufruct adds transfer fees, a 2% registration fee, specific business tax and VAT, so budget for those costs before choosing this route.