Can I Really Live On $1000 A Month In The Philippines

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Michealusa
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Posted

As a newbie to international travel I know adjusting to traveling to the Philippines will be difficult but I have made up my mind that I am going to retire there.

I'll be making a 2 month trip  there early 2014 to get accustomed to the areas.

I will retire in early 2015 but I just found out my S.S. is going to be $1000 a month and thats it. Of course I cant live very well in the US on that .

I dont need a luxury place but certainly need something better that a nipa hut.

My question is will it limit the areas I can live in and can I live a comfortable life on $1000. a month?

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Mike S
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Posted

I'm going to add ... you can .... we spend about $1100 per months most of the time but then I'm on a 13a so no visa extensions or visa runs (cuts way down on cost) .... I am gonna add here if you do choose to live on that amount you better have a few dollars put away for emergencies ... and for gods sake DON'T SPEND THEM except for emergencies ...... there is almost no way for a foreigner to earn a living here unless you have the right visa or can work on line .... and I'm not kidding about that .... don't come here without back-up or you maybe sadly disappointed ....  remember you have no way of getting assistance should something happen to you while you live here .... unless of course you can get help or money from back in the States ... neither the Phil government nor the US government is going to help you

 

I'm not trying to discourage you just want you to do a lot of soul and financial searching BEFORE you make this life changing step ... . for me it was the best thing I have ever done ... but for some it is a bitter pill to swallow .... and when you have t swallow it 3x a day 365 days a year it can wear you down .... and it a lot of cases drive you to drink ..... JMHO

:cheersty:

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robert k
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I did not intend to do this but I stayed for 3 weeks with my girls family. We all ate good, including the extra family that was there. Electric bill for the month was P412, that was lights, fans, televisions and charging phones. Cooking done over charcoal because it was cheaper than Gasul/propane, butane, whatever it is. Actual charcoal made of dried charred wood is a quick hot fire and not much of a handicap.

 

I would recommend that everyone who wants to keep a budget start out with the minimum and add to it ala carte. I am about to get a new phone/tablet [ lost my old one ] because I have found that the worst broadband connection is better than many internet cafe's. I miss being able to snatch music from youtube at a moments notice, checking e-mail anytime. I would do without air conditioning unless you need it to live for the first month until you acclimate. I have actually come to find air conditioning unpleasant, dries my sinuses out. I wish I had already checked out Naga city, which I am not going to get to this trip because I am avoiding Cebu island because of the earthquake, seems to me not to be a good time to be a tourist there, but I think it may be a likely place to live reasonably well on a budget.

 

I gurantee that whenever someone moves, even if it is just across the street, you are going to bleed money. Keep that in mind and as always, a lifeline is a good thing to have. :) 

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Medic Mike
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I think you could, but I don't think it would be much fun :) :thumbsup:

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JJReyes
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My first response was on this topic is to determine how much retirement money you really have. It could be more than $1,000 a month.

 

The second is whether this amount would be sufficient to live comfortably in the Philippines. The answer depends on how you would budget living in North Carolina with the same amount. More likely the only option is to be a boarder in a single or shared room with a hot plate for cooking. When you compare what you can get for the same money in the Philippines, then what is waiting for you in the tropics is not bad.

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