Good Areas In Cebu For Expats To Live

[Robin Hilborne]

Where are good areas in or around Cebu City to live for expats? Do they tend to live in the same areas for social contacts etc.

[Dave Hounddriver]

I find expats spread out all over Cebu City and the surrounding metropolitan area.  There are bad areas, but you have to try them out for yourself as it would be impossible to map out each bad area.  The expats stay according to their budget and personal preferences so if you tell us those 2 things there might be more specific help forthcoming.

[IamMissLee]

i also cant tell which area is good for you. depending on person, the preference is different. i suggest you to look around. Seeing is believing!

[newbster]

I agree w/ the other posters, I think expats are spread out all over Cebu city and its suburbs and in fact the entire island of Cebu.

 

Probably you might want to think about what you are looking for in a place of residence.

Do you want cheap? middle? expensive?

Do you want city? suburbs? country?

Do you want to own a house through your wife if she's Filipino (you as a foreigner can't own I guess) or rent a house? Or do you want to buy a condo which you are allowed to own as a foreigner or rent a condo?

Do you need access to large malls or are you happy with the limited shopping opportunities of a small mall?

Do you need access to a good hospital or are you healthy and probably don't expect to visit a hospital?

Are you fine with a lot of heavy traffic and pollution? Or do you prefer to be away from the city a bit and get some fresher air, perhaps live at a little higher elevation in some wooded area that might be cooler?

There are probably a lot of other questions I'm forgetting but those might get the discussion going a bit better. :)

[Thomas]

Others can tell much better than I about Cebu city, because I don't like cities   :)   

(but I find most far away part of Minglanilla rather nice.)

Do you want to own a house through your wife if she's Filipino (you as a foreigner can't own I guess)

Foreigners CAN own a house, but not land

((if not through company, if the COMPANY need land, then foreigner cam own 40 %))

So a foreigner can own a whole house on long time LEASED land.

[newbster]

Do you want to own a house through your wife if she's Filipino (you as a foreigner can't own I guess)

Foreigners CAN own a house, but not land

((if not through company, if the COMPANY need land, then foreigner cam own 40 %))

So a foreigner can own a whole house on long time LEASED land.

Thomas, I'm really interested in this topic (and some other similar topics also but I'll try to avoid asking about all of those and diverting this thread).

 

I hope it's ok if I ask you for a little more detail here?

Owning through company - is the idea that you form a company, the company purchases land and owns it but the foreigner can only own 40% of the company so essentially it seems like a very insecure way to own land since the same basic problem applies - someone else owns land that you purchased right? Maybe I am missing a nuance?

 

Owning a structure/building but leasing the land under it. Is this safe? Is it easy to do? How long do you see people get a lease for? I mean can I get a 100 year land lease then build a house on it? Can the lease be broken by the owner thus seizing the building? This one sounds pretty interesting to me since I'd really prefer to build so that I can invest in things like solar panels and other improvements like a western-style CR. 

 

Thanks :)

[Thomas]

I hope it's ok if I ask you for a little more detail here? Owning through company - is the idea that you form a company, the company purchases land and owns it but the foreigner can only own 40% of the company so essentially it seems like a very insecure way to own land since the same basic problem applies - someone else owns land that you purchased right? Maybe I am missing a nuance?

Well. Better owning 40 % than 0 %   :)

If you spread the other 60 % at several different people, who don't know each other, they can get trouble to vote you down  :dance:

 

If I will be in such situation (which I probably will somehow) then I plan to try to cover (part of*)  the gap by give a LOAN to the company to the purshase of the land. Then having the loan as asset too.

 

NOTE! The company has to NEED land for it's business to make it ok.

 

But it cost to have such companies, if you don't need a company for some business anyway, so the question is if it's worth it. Some land in provinces don't cost much to buy, so not so much money to lose   :)

 

*I suppouse other involved want to get something to participate.

Owning a structure/building but leasing the land under it. Is this safe? Is it easy to do? How long do you see people get a lease for? I mean can I get a 100 year land lease then build a house on it? Can the lease be broken by the owner thus seizing the building?

Much of the land are Freehold. It can be problem to know who have the right to sign contracts then. But if it's TITLED land, I suppouse it's rather easy to make a lease contract.

I mix up my research about Thailand and Philippines sometimes, I don't remember how many years, but it's around 2 x 30 years, and it's possible to get it extended.

The lease contract follow the LAND UNDEPENDING who own the land.  Make the lease contract REGISTERED, so it can't be a mess by a new owmer can claim he didn't know of it.

It seem hard for the land owner to end the lease, because one tried to end it by scaring off the leaser   :)    So make sure the lease owner LIKE the lease contract deal in the LONG run too, so he want to keep it.

 

If you find a titled land you want to lease, but the land owner want to sell, then I asume a lawyer can make a combination of lease, "loan" with having the land as collateral, and YOU have option to buy the land for the loan sum. Then you get a lease, have the control. and the other get his money.

[brock]

Sad but true fact,,,The Philippines is not a foreigner friendly country,,,,,,If you want to own a house and land, If you want to own a business, If you want to own a gun,,,,,,,,,Why not just go to a country that allows all this,,,why put up with all the BS ?

[Medic Mike]

Where are good areas in or around Cebu City to live for expats? Do they tend to live in the same areas for social contacts etc.

I like Banilad area :)

[Thomas]

Sad but true fact,,,The Philippines is not a foreigner friendly country,,,,,,If you want to own a house and land, If you want to own a business, If you want to own a gun,,,,,,,,,Why not just go to a country that allows all this,,,why put up with all the BS ?

Well. Actualy I had Thailand as favorite EARLIER,  

but I SWITCHED TO Philippines, although the biger problems with typhons and earthquakes, after I have compared what they allow  :)

 

A big difference are the VISA rules. Simpler in Thailand IF traveling over the border OFTEN, 

BUT I plan to stay as old too, and I will surely don't like such Visa runs then. It's expensive to get a retirement VISA in Thailand.  (I believe it was over 30 000 SEK (now = 4000 USD) back when I checked, but I don't remember what the curency values where back then.)