He moved to Bangkok but still works US hours

works US – Andrew Corona, who moved to Bangkok in January 2025 after quitting his corporate job in early 2019, now runs a US commercial real estate private lending firm while working American hours from Thailand. He says the overnight schedule has become easier—and finan

On a typical day in Bangkok, Andrew Corona starts waking up later than most people would expect from someone tied to American clients.

He says he usually wakes between 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., spends his afternoons at the gym, running errands, and relaxing by the pool, then begins his workday around 7 p.m. For a private lending firm tied to US commercial real estate, that schedule means the work happens overnight in Thailand.

Corona, 30, moved to Bangkok for more than just a change of scenery. He says the shift away from his old life in San Diego helped him build something that doesn’t feel as consuming—and he now calls the freedom to choose his days a bigger measure of success than his previous routine.

The path to Bangkok began with one long trip

In 2018, Corona flew to Bangkok with a friend for a monthlong vacation. As the trip drew to a close, he realized he wasn’t ready to leave.

“I told my buddy that I was not going home, and I extended my stay for another three months,” Corona said.

During that extended period, he spent time traveling around Southeast Asia, then returned to San Diego convinced he wanted to live in the region someday. He said he’d been dreaming about living in Southeast Asia ever since his first trip to Thailand in 2018.

But at the time, he says relocating across the world wasn’t feasible. Remote work was far less common then, and his corporate job rarely allowed for extended travel.

“You’re lucky if you can get even two weeks’ time, typically,” he said.

By early 2019, Corona had quit his job to run his own business. Even so, he said it wasn’t until the pandemic normalized remote work that the move became realistic.

He described getting frustrated with San Diego, saying homelessness, drug use, and political divisions changed how he saw the city. That frustration, combined with his growing belief that overseas life was possible, pushed him and his then-girlfriend to seriously consider living abroad.

From trial run to a home in January 2025

In early 2024, Corona and his now-fiancée rented an Airbnb for three months in Bangkok as a trial run. They began imagining a long-term future in the city, but the rest of 2024 was spent traveling around the world—exploring Buenos Aires, Madrid, and Dubai.

Corona says he and his fiancée now live in a two-bedroom apartment in Bangkok. In January 2025, he said they officially settled in the city.

They live in a two-bedroom. two-bathroom furnished condo in Thonglor. an upscale neighborhood often compared to “the Beverly Hills of Bangkok.” Corona puts their monthly rent at 80. 000 Thai baht. or about $2. 500. He said that’s roughly half of what he paid for a two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment in San Diego.

His building includes amenities such as a rooftop pool, a gym, a golf simulator, lounges, and parking. It’s also within walking distance of a train station.

Not everyone back home understood the move. Corona said one relative initially imagined the couple living “in a hut on the beach,” rather than in a modern city.

When he budgets, he estimates monthly expenses—covering utilities, groceries, and a gym membership—at about $1,700. He sets aside another $1,000 to $2,000 for entertainment and leisure.

Working American hours—without the grind he expected

Corona hasn’t changed the core rhythm of his work just because he moved across oceans. He says he still works US hours, running a private lending firm for US commercial real estate.

The bulk of his work takes place overnight in Thailand. His fiancée largely follows the same routine.

“It was a little bit of an adjustment to reverse my entire schedule,” he said.

Still, he says he has come to prefer the schedule now. He described it as more relaxing and pointed to small comforts that fit the night work.

“In a way, it’s provided more of a relaxing work schedule — and a cup of coffee around 8 or 9 p.m. isn’t so bad,” he said.

When they’re off, the couple sometimes takes what he jokes is a “lunch break” at a nearby Japanese restaurant open until the wee hours of the morning. After finishing work, Corona says he usually heads to bed between 4 and 6 a.m.

He explained the difference in attention at night: “I honestly prefer it because I find it easier to focus at night. Even in the US, I would catch myself working in the evenings just because that’s when there were fewer distractions.”

For him, it isn’t just logistics—it’s momentum.

Why Bangkok stuck, even with other options on the table

Corona speaks Spanish fluently. He said that on paper, Madrid or Buenos Aires “should’ve been the obvious choice.”

“But Bangkok just felt like home in a way I didn’t anticipate,” he said.

Thailand’s changing policies also helped shape the feasibility of life for people like him. Corona and his fiancée hold the five-year Destination Thailand Visa. In recent years, Thailand introduced several visa programs to attract remote workers.

Corona also described language as less of a barrier in Bangkok, saying English is widely spoken there.

“And if we can’t overcome that language barrier, we’ll use Google Translate to help bridge that gap,” he said.

The city made connections fast—through moments he didn’t plan

As Corona settled in Bangkok, he said his enthusiasm began spreading to friends in the US.

One San Diego friend moved over despite never having visited Thailand. Corona described the shift like a chain reaction: “The next thing I know, he’s living here and having just as much fun as me.”

He also credits Bangkok for the speed with which friendships formed. One of his first close friendships, he said, started unexpectedly during earthquake tremors in the city last year.

He recalled seeing another tenant running down in nothing but a towel because he was in the shower when the earthquake occurred. Corona said the two spoke during the evacuation, and the encounter became even more memorable after another resident accidentally ran outside naked, his robe undone.

“Because of him, I got introduced to a lot of people that I then became close with,” Corona said. “What I’ve realized is that, as big as the city is, it’s very interconnected. Once you get adopted into one friend group, many follow shortly after. It’s like a domino effect.”

Foreign residents are a visible part of Bangkok’s economy—and daily life

Corona is not alone in calling Bangkok home. In 2025, Thai civil registration data recorded 102,988 foreign residents living in Bangkok. The true number, he said, could be much higher in a city of 5.4 million.

Other expats described what brought them in. In February, Bill Strayer, a retiree who trades US stocks in the middle of the night, told Business Insider that he cited Bangkok’s safety and vibrant social scene as reasons for moving.

Still, the lifestyle isn’t only about stability and leisure. It’s also about how work can be structured when schedules cross time zones—and how that changes what people do with their days.

A different definition of success after the move

Corona said life in San Diego was harder to romanticize once he experienced what he described as a shift in the city.

But even in Bangkok, he said he doesn’t miss Southern California much beyond one thing.

“Apart from a ‘good burrito,’ there’s not much Corona misses about life in Southern California—and the move changed his definition of success,” the story says.

Now, he measures success differently.

“Now I measure it by freedom. The ability to wake up and decide where I want to be, how I want to spend my time, and build something that funds that life rather than consumes it,” he said.

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