Moving To The Philippines Was The Best Decision I Ever Made!

[Art2ro]

happy it worked for you Art

Yes, but it took 12 long years to get where we are today! "Life is just what we all make it to be"!

[sonjack2847]

Well this is my fourth visit and I plan on staying until April 2012, so far so good I hope it stays this way.

Good for you! Enjoy your vacation and have fun from start to finish! :tiphat:

Hi Art my plan is to only go back to the uk for 1 month next April. I have to sort out my income tax and make sure my tenants and property are ok and pay some bills that at this time can only be paid in person also to catch up with the few friends I have who actually still live in the uk (most of them left years ago).CheersKevin

I see a lot of similarities here in what we're trying to do. Keep your posts comming and best of luck to you. :cheersty:

Well I have been here a month now and have no regrets so far. I have bought all my furniture( well hers I guess) My property is fully let in the uk and I have had good reports about it from my friend there. I am now starting to try to live on a budget which I can sustain, I try to stay away from the malls as I spend money which is not planned. I do visit them for the cinema 1 or 2 times a month,we like to go to Sandtrap on a sunday and I have started to play badminton 2 times a week.I go to Abbeliana ( they also have a pool and other activities gym etc)sports complex in Jones ave. It costs us 145p for 1 hour but they are not too hot on time keeping, the last time we went we only stopped playing when my raquet bent at a right angle at the hand grip so game over. I am enjoying my time here and if it carries on like this I think it will be permanent as I think the uk has had it for me. I have been going to a few bars 1 time a week but that is boring me now so maybe I will cut that out (so sad when beer becomes boring). We will be visiting her parents soon and it will be the first time I have met them. It is apparently a 2 hour walk from the road but judging the pace that Sim walks it is probably 1 hour, short legs you see hehe. Well take care all Kevin

[piglett]

I guess there's a small percentage of retirees or vacationers that are happy why they moved or came to visit the Philippines since I didn't get too many positive comments on this topic! It's seems to be always being a matter of money which alot of retirees or pooreigners don't have enough of, therefore making one's life miserable in the Philippines and Travis was one such of an example!

correct they don't have enough $$$ but they think everything is sooo cheep in the PIthey try to live like a kano but they are not in kano land anymore.if you want to live cheep live in the province & buy NOTHING imported.live off what you can get at the stores rite down the street (fish, rice, adobo ect) also don't have any payments on anythinghow can you live cheep if you are paying for a new car & a house you paid too much for (kano tax)if you want to live like a kano & you are poor stay home i guess the "not much chance of earning some extra scratch" on the side could make it tough too in the PI piglett Edited October 19, 2011 by piglett

[Jimbo1361]

Well Art I am happy for you I went to A/C to look around have not been there since 1986 I am retired now and young as well 46 I can tell you in a week the one bar I went to was good enough to go to everyday but I can see how it would get boring after a while I was tired of it in a week but I am not a drinker. I loved the fight (meriweather) I was pissed off but hey I thought the other guy had him till he got nailed. I am going to look at other places to live around PI I liked A/C never had any problems as I took in some shows at the mall walked to and from a good bit. My question I know it is depending on where you live and who you live with but what is the area you are from? I am not married to a national there were a lot of beautiful women there but I think Location is my best word I could describe. I have the income to keep both my US and a rental in PI but making the move to live ther full time has me in a bind. I love the weather I have Arthritis really bad and a bad back so I am loking for a good second home. I have the same outlook being retired early in life buy local stay comfortable no matter what you do but stay active it sounds like you are happy and the "Skin tax" is alive in many parts of the world just not as obvious as there. I would probally have liked it better if I had more time to poke around and meet other expats but I was only stayng 2 weeks I had to come home early on account of family emergency I will be coming back I really had a good time. Life is too short I saw that myself way too many older guys with smiles on their faces. I plan on being a middle aged guy with one myself soon.

[joeatmanila]

It all depends why someone did the decision to come and live here.if for cheap living the he for sure did the wrong decision, countries in Latin and central america are cheaper than here, same is Vietnam, inland china and others.Coming here because you will be a king for 800$/month...depends what you consider a kingdom....survival and living is two different things and i cannot call my self a king because i manage to survive.It is my best decision i ever made though. I live as I TRULY LIKE on an affordable price to my incomes.

[Art2ro]

Well Art I am happy for you I went to A/C to look around have not been there since 1986 I am retired now and young as well 46 I can tell you in a week the one bar I went to was good enough to go to everyday but I can see how it would get boring after a while I was tired of it in a week but I am not a drinker. I loved the fight (meriweather) I was pissed off but hey I thought the other guy had him till he got nailed. I am going to look at other places to live around PI I liked A/C never had any problems as I took in some shows at the mall walked to and from a good bit. My question I know it is depending on where you live and who you live with but what is the area you are from? I am not married to a national there were a lot of beautiful women there but I think Location is my best word I could describe. I have the income to keep both my US and a rental in PI but making the move to live ther full time has me in a bind. I love the weather I have Arthritis really bad and a bad back so I am loking for a good second home. I have the same outlook being retired early in life buy local stay comfortable no matter what you do but stay active it sounds like you are happy and the "Skin tax" is alive in many parts of the world just not as obvious as there. I would probally have liked it better if I had more time to poke around and meet other expats but I was only stayng 2 weeks I had to come home early on account of family emergency I will be coming back I really had a good time. Life is too short I saw that myself way too many older guys with smiles on their faces. I plan on being a middle aged guy with one myself soon.

You'll probably need to stay longer and check out the other regions of the Philippines to really get a good feel what's here to be had before making a final decision to stay even longer, or not since you are not married to a local Filipina, you should take time with that though and not rush into an uncertain relationship! Anyway, good luck upon your next return to the Philippines!

[Mr Lee]

Purchasing a condo is allowed by foreigners, so we can own a condo to more or less fix our living costs, and make going back and forth easier, that is what my wife and I do, go back and forth and have a condo in Cebu.

[Allan G]

Hi folks, WoW this forum has made me rethink my retirement plans LOL Its always been Makati that we planned to live, in a rented condo. However, now I am considering Cebu maybe renting with a view to purchasing, either a condo, or now thinking about a house in gated community, as we would like to have some of you expats as neighbours :cheers: Only potential prob with Cebu is extra flight from Manila to get their (I dont like flying) and none of Vanessa's friends are there. However, of course we can make now friends, and it appears lots of expats live their and have old friends & family to visit when we invite them ;) We have not been to Cebu yet, so I guess at some point we need to check it out. We are visiting Manila next year and the plan is again in 2013, but we may change plan to Cebu in 2013. WoW lots to think about Cheers :)

[Art2ro]

Hi folks, WoW this forum has made me rethink my retirement plans LOL Its always been Makati that we planned to live, in a rented condo. However, now I am considering Cebu maybe renting with a view to purchasing, either a condo, or now thinking about a house in gated community, as we would like to have some of you expats as neighbours :cheers: Only potential prob with Cebu is extra flight from Manila to get their (I dont like flying) and none of Vanessa's friends are there. However, of course we can make now friends, and it appears lots of expats live their and have old friends & family to visit when we invite them ;) We have not been to Cebu yet, so I guess at some point we need to check it out. We are visiting Manila next year and the plan is again in 2013, but we may change plan to Cebu in 2013. WoW lots to think about Cheers :)

Allen G,Don't jump into conclusion too quickly! Do an extensive "boots on the ground" search and experience a few other regions before making any final conclusions or decision in retiring here full time! It just may save you a lot of heartaches or regrets! Yes! Lots to think about! Edited October 21, 2011 by Art2ro

[Allan G]

Hi Art2ro, Thanks for the advice. Yes no doubt we will need to visit Cebu. My main concerns are safety and ideally some other expats :-) Thats why we initially just considered Makati. I'm thinking renting a condo for around a year before deciding whether to prchase, or just rent a 2 or 3 bed condo until its time to buy a 1 bedroom condo to settle down in old age later on lol But I guess we should look at some gated communities too, both in Makati & Cebu......any recommendations? When we are in Makati next October we can view some condos and gated communities to get a feel for whats out there. Cheers for all thoughts :-)

Hi folks, WoW this forum has made me rethink my retirement plans LOL Its always been Makati that we planned to live, in a rented condo. However, now I am considering Cebu maybe renting with a view to purchasing, either a condo, or now thinking about a house in gated community, as we would like to have some of you expats as neighbours :) Only potential prob with Cebu is extra flight from Manila to get their (I dont like flying) and none of Vanessa's friends are there. However, of course we can make now friends, and it appears lots of expats live their and have old friends & family to visit when we invite them ;) We have not been to Cebu yet, so I guess at some point we need to check it out. We are visiting Manila next year and the plan is again in 2013, but we may change plan to Cebu in 2013. WoW lots to think about Cheers :horse:

Allen G,Don't jump into conclusion too quickly! Do an extensive "boots on the ground" search and experience a few other regions before making any final conclusions or decision in retiring here full time! It just may save you a lot of heartaches or regrets! Yes! Lots to think about!