Bonanza Resort Khao Yai has resumed development of single houses at the resort by launching Momento by The Bonanza, worth 975 million baht.
Mr Songkarn and his actress wife Taksaorn. ‘Khao Yai has now changed from a destination for retirement to that of a place for relaxation and retreat,’ he says.
"Khao Yai has now changed from a destination for retirement to that of a place for relaxation and retreat. Visitors are increasingly a new generation, so the project targets buyers aged from 35," said Songkarn Taechanarong, chief executive of the Bonanza Group.
The 29-year-old eldest son of Phaivong Taechanarong, Bonanza's owner and founder, said property projects of every kind have been developed in Khao Yai in recent years due to its peaceful and convenient location.
They include hotels, single houses, condominiums, tourist attractions and community malls in an area where nine golf courses and a variety of adventure activities already operate.
Mr Songkarn said land prices in Khao Yai range from 15,000 to 60,000 baht a square wah, depending on location and facilities.
Land prices have risen by an average of 5-10% per year over the past five years, but last year alone they soared as much as 15-20%, stimulated by massive floods that hit several provinces including Bangkok.
Momento by The Bonanza will be on an 80-rai site adjacent to the Bonanza Resort. It will comprise two phases, with 37 plots for phase one and 29 for phase two.
Launched two weeks ago, half of phase one has already been sold.
Plot sizes start from 200 sq w, with unit sizes from 262-400 square metre, while prices range from 14.5 to 22 million baht for a fully furnished unit.
The project has been designed by ApStract, an architecture firm owned by the father of Mr Songkarn's superstar wife Taksaorn.
Krung Thai Bank is financing it with 160 million baht.
Bonanza Resort has been developed over the past 20 years, covering more than 5,000 rai on Thanarat Road.
The hillside resort with lakes was one of the first two property projects in Khao Yai. It comprises a hotel, condominium, 18-hole golf course, plots of land for sale, single houses, a car racing field and a concert venue.
The group also plans to spend 60 million baht next year to renovate the hotel and develop 40 new rooms. It now has only 160 rooms, which is not enough for meeting and convention guests.
Mr Songkarn, also a part-time model and actor and the Information and Communication Technology Ministry's spokesman, joined his father's property business five years ago after returning from New Zealand, where he earned a bachelor's degree in finance.
He started with the development of an adventure park at Bonanza Resort, followed by three phases of a condominium with 35 units each. The first two phases were sold out and the group has 20% remaining of the last phase with units sized 110 sq m and priced at 4 million baht.
The group's subsidiaries in Bonanza Resort include property developer Schuter Enterprise Co, Bonanza Resort Hotel Co and Bonanza Golf & Country Club Co.
The group also has plots in Bangkok, where Mr Songkarn wants to build a condominium. One potential site is eight rai at Beverly Hill on Chaeng Watthana Road.