Would You Do It Again?

[Sampaguita]

I would like to know if the members who moved from their countries and now live in the Philippines full time, if you had a choice would you move there again?I would also like to know how members feel who travel between countries and the Philippines, what do you think are the benefits and or the negatives of that life?Thank you very much!{maraming salamat po} tagalog{daghang salamat} Cebuano

Edited October 10, 2009 by Sampaguita

[Mik]

At least I can afford to live here on my pension. It's better than working at some crappy job in the US and paying high taxes and insurance. If I could turn back the clock I was have stayed single. I have bad luck in relationships. I don't like to travel on a crowded plane and go through airport security and be treated like some common criminal with no right to privacy.

[Old55]

I

[Mr Lee]

As some members may already know, we have been working in the direction of moving full time to our condo in Cebu and I hoped we could accomplish it within the next year or two, but over the last year or so my plans have not been as clear to me due mainly to the instability of the Philippine government, natural disasters and what sure seems to me like a pattern of almost despise toward Americans by many of the higher ups in the Philippine government. I am hoping that the elections of 2010 will bring change, but not the type of change we seem to have gotten in the US which is forcing me to think about moving out of the US more and more as it seems that the change the US wishes to bring in is welcoming all those illegal aliens in without penalty for breaking the law in the first place and making those of us who worked our whole lives poor while giving to those who did not, but that is another topic. So I guess time will tell what our future plans hold and it is definitely getting to be a real pain traveling back and forth and getting harder with each trip, so settling in one place or the other sure would be a lot easier. I am just not totally sure I am ready to completely change my lifestyle to live safely in the Philippines, and have to live under the fear of pissing off a local and then ending up deported. I would like to see a more expat friendly government in 2010 that goes the extra mile to welcome all of the good ones among us to their country and to make our stay more comfortable and easier. I guess what I am hoping for is some of what the US gives Filipinos who live here, equality. I also guess I am just dreaming and may never see it in my lifetime, so it may become picking the better of two not so perfect places to live.

[Mike S]

I hear a lot lately about the PI government being unstable ........ I would be really concerned with the US government right now ....... it hasn't even been a year yet with the new leadership (and I use that term lightly) and things seem to be getting worst instead of better ........ and now Obama was awarded the Noble Peace Prize .... not for what he has done but as the head of the committee said "what he could do" ....... first time I ever heard of someone getting an award for what "they could do" ........ also please note he got nominated just 2 weeks after being voted in office ......... yes I can definitely see great things heading the US's way ...... thanks but I'll take the Phils ....... at least we know what to expect ........ IMHOAnd to answer the posters originally question ......... YES ........ most definitely yes

Edited October 11, 2009 by Mike S

[TheMason]

No, I would not do it again. In fact, I am in the process of undoing the decision to move here. Once my wife has her US visa, we'll return to the US. Other than being a cheap place to live I haven't found much to admire about this country. Its a corrupt, polluted, third world country heading in the wrong direction. The infrastructure is poor, the govt. doesn't do much to improve things, and its own citizens flee at the earliest opportunity. In my situation, I don't need the discount on the cost of living in order to have a comfortable life. I can live comfortably in the US or the Philippines so the low cost of living doesn't mean much to me.

[twostrokes]

Alhough this was aimed at those that live there, I can jump in anyway I guess. I had planned on moving there when I retired this year. After reading this and other forums on the PI, I then decided to just take a 6 month trip to check things out. But again while waiting to make the trip, the less and less I looked forward to it. I came to the conclusion that things were just too different from when I lived there. As many say, "you can never go back", thing change too much and too quickly. I knew the PI in the 60's, 70's and 80's even the early 90's. I didn't like the changes that had happened in the 80's and 90's very much, but did adapt to them. Being older now, having sufficient income to live comfortable here for now, I don't see any real benefit to moving back there. Plus, the wife does not want to live there either.So with the surgery I just had and the being it by a car last month, this cancelled the trip for me. I doubt if I will even plan another...Just doesn't seem there is much reason to subject myself to everything negative against Americans I keep reading about.

[Mr Lee]

No, I would not do it again. In fact, I am in the process of undoing the decision to move here. Once my wife has her US visa, we'll return to the US. Other than being a cheap place to live I haven't found much to admire about this country. Its a corrupt, polluted, third world country heading in the wrong direction. The infrastructure is poor, the govt. doesn't do much to improve things, and its own citizens flee at the earliest opportunity. In my situation, I don't need the discount on the cost of living in order to have a comfortable life. I can live comfortably in the US or the Philippines so the low cost of living doesn't mean much to me.

I kind of agree but only on some points and it does seem that the majority of expats that retire to the Philippines are those who probably could not afford to live on their pensions or other derived income while back in their home countries or those who do it for the women. The Philippines does not seem to be the place to retire to if you have a large income that would sustain you in either your country of origin or another first world country but there are place in the Philippines where even a well off foreigner could have a good life if they wanted to. There is always Makati which is a pretty big city and sort of resembles New York or any other major metropolis but not quite as expensive to live and some other areas that seem to be catching up in Luzon. So I guess that the majority of expats that do flock to the Philippines and have a pretty good income may only do it for the women and if we are already happily married and do not fool around and have a decent income, then there is really not too much reason to move to the Philippines except maybe to make our wives happy. Everyone has to make their own choices in life and I would just recommend that people know exactly what they are getting themselves into before moving to the Philippines because it sure is not for everyone and IMO it is not for people who are used to living in the lap of luxury. Lets face it, the Philippines is a third world country and with all its third world country problems and probably will be like that way into the future because those in power wish to get richer while the poor stay poor and unless people who are running the country wake up and want it to change, then it never will. What really amazes me is that there are so many evil people in power in such a religious country but I still love the people of the country and that is why I love living there and also the fact that it is such an ego boosting place to live for a man. One last comment that I would like to make is, if married to a Filipina, that lady would really have to be secure in her marriage for her to wish for you and her to live in the Philippines, because of all the women that seem to flirt with most of us. I guess I am lucky that my wife knows that I will never stray and I also guess that as long as we can continue to afford to live in both places then that is what we will have to continue to do. I just do not know how much longer that will remain practical with the way things in the states seem to be heading. Edited October 13, 2009 by Mr. Lee

[Mr Lee]

Alhough this was aimed at those that live there, I can jump in anyway I guess. I had planned on moving there when I retired this year. After reading this and other forums on the PI, I then decided to just take a 6 month trip to check things out. But again while waiting to make the trip, the less and less I looked forward to it. I came to the conclusion that things were just too different from when I lived there. As many say, "you can never go back", thing change too much and too quickly. I knew the PI in the 60's, 70's and 80's even the early 90's. I didn't like the changes that had happened in the 80's and 90's very much, but did adapt to them. Being older now, having sufficient income to live comfortable here for now, I don't see any real benefit to moving back there. Plus, the wife does not want to live there either.So with the surgery I just had and the being it by a car last month, this cancelled the trip for me. I doubt if I will even plan another...Just doesn't seem there is much reason to subject myself to everything negative against Americans I keep reading about.

Twostrokes, sorry to hear about your accident and hope you recover quickly. I guess you are sort of in the same place that I am in, but with a wife who does not really wish to go back, and first you would have to know why that is before even considering a return or even a visit. As I said in my last post, the Philippines sure is not for everyone and it is probably not for those of us who are still lucky enough to be able to afford to live in a first world country, but that may change with all the things that seem to be coming down the line, so it might be a good idea to position yourself, so that you would have a place to go if what I suspect is coming really shows its ugly head, and that is what I am basically doing and have been doing for the last number of year, keeping my options open. The US and most of the world seems to be heading toward chaos and pension systems are falling apart and may go broke in the future if things do not turn around, and then there is the issue of whether the dollar will be worth the paper it is printed on in the coming years, so while I can see your point, I think you should at least visit and see if you could live there again or if things are what you remember them to be. After all, not knowing is worse than being sure, IMHO.Added as an after thought for the younger single guys, go for it and enjoy yourself. Edited October 13, 2009 by Mr. Lee

[TheMason]

So I guess that the majority of expats that do flock to the Philippines and have a pretty good income may only do it for the women and if we are already happily married and do not fool around and have a decent income, then there is really not too much reason to move to the Philippines except maybe to make our wives happy.

If anything brings me back to the Philippines, this is what it will be. My wife is apprehensive about getting her US visa but only because she is afraid she'll be denied. She wants to work so she can contribute to her sons' college education and knows that she can't earn enough in the Philippines to do that. We'll just have to wait and see how she likes life in the US and whether or not she wants to return to the Philippines. I suspect she will want to go back at some point. Just as I miss the US, she will miss the Philippines as time goes by. The one key difference with her from most Filipinos is that she is not that close to her siblings and extended family. If her sons are willing and able to emigrate to the US, I suspect she would be quite happy to remain there. Time will tell how it turns out.Our plan for now is to live in the US for 3-7 years while she gets her dual citizenship and we'll see what happens after that.