I think many expats that own a house in their home country are, at a certain point in time, faced with a dilemma to sell it.
Not really those that sell because they need the money to move right now.
I am in the same boat, owning a house in Florida USA.
When a person decides to move/retire in Thailand, they are faced with a few choices?
They can hang onto their home and rent it out; thus gaining an income. Property tax, property insurance, management, maintenance and damage still are factors.
They can hold onto it in the event something ever goes upside down in Thailand, they still have a house/country to move back to.
They could decide they are at an age they will never go back and decide to sell it. Houses in the west that are paid off, can bring in a good amount to a retired couple living in Thailand.
We don’t need the money from selling our house in Florida, however, we are starting to realize we never go back and live in the US. It could be due to old age, or the direction the US is heading, but firm on the idea Thailand is the final stop.
Not only is selling a house a pain, you have to do something with all the contents, meaning selling, giving away to charity or shipping to Thailand.
More headaches.
Rural Thailand looks like a pretty safe bet the next 20+ years, but as we can see from recent world current events, catastrophic things that still happen. (Although I personally believe rural Isaan to be one of the safest areas to be for many good reasons).
Letting go of a house you might have owned your entire life is never an easy undertaking but sometimes you are faced with no choice.
As always only YOU can plan what is best for your future.