Ladies and gentlemen,
I am new to your forum but i have been living in VTE for 6 years already. Few details about a lease contract. You can lease a piece of land to a private laotian up to 30 years, up to 50 years with the state. Only NGOs and embassies could be entitled to 99 years. For example the Singaporean group behind the talat sao shopping mall got a 45 years lease with the state and is offering shops for 40 years. 5 years ago a 24 m2 room at the 2nd floor was sold 55000 USD. Nowadays in the new building the same surface, same floor is 105000 USD! Is it possible to make a 30 years old lease renewable one side. it means that the lessee can without the direct consent of the lessor (this is writing down in the contract) renew the lessee extra 30 years on and on, you can of course transfer the right to rent to your inheritors or to an another lao citizen (you can sell!!!). Be extremely cautious if you link the lessee to a license for operating business (the company own the right to lease not you as foreign citizen). If after 15 years for any reasons you do not get the renewal of your license you could be in trouble. Electricity and water bill are linked to your activity on this piece of land the lowest rate is residential after industrial and the most expensive commercial. My advice : get a good lawyer! law agencies working for big companies are good but expensive. Through the Lao Bar Association you can get in touch with lao lawyer that are more or less specialized on that topic at a better price.
http://www.laobar.org/All the paper work done by the lawyer should cost around 1000 to 1500 USD and add the taxes and registrations fees...
about the price of land :
city center from 300 to more than 1000 USD a m2
KM 5 : around 100 USD
KM 10 : around 50 USD
KM 15 : around 25 USD
KM 20 : around 15 USD
as a rule of thumbs prices will rise a least 25% per year may be more depending on the location.
Remember most sales are done in baths, your gold might interest them too!
PS : you can get most the law decree on the net (most in Lao) : world bank, department of domestic and foreign investment. supreme court.