Planning my "scouting" trip

[Tstone]

5 minutes ago, Tukaram (Tim) said:

The biggest problem with budget is no one else can tell you what your comfort level is.  My wife and I live on $10,000 a year. We find it comfortable, and quite easy. I have been here 5 years and our expenses have not really changed. I do think over the coming years I will probably have to increase that amount... time will tell.  I do not have a lump sum,  I have a dependable monthly amount.

So you're in Iloilo.  Maybe I should make sure that's on my trip :D  What would you say you're doing "without" compared to say, another expat who prefers more western comforts?  Like If I were to snap commit to exactly your living conditions, what would be the things I'd notice as absent that I might have now in the U.S?  Just trying to get a handle on what 10k can afford basically.  I really don't have high demands, at least I don't think.  I'm happy with quiet days and don't mind keeping to myself a lot, but I do like plumbing and internet and to not be 90 degrees indoors if I can help it.

[scott h]

4 minutes ago, Tstone said:

I really don't have high demands, at least I don't think.

Here you have hit the nail on the head Tstone. You really wont know until you have been exposed to what the Philippines has to offer, or not. You can move into a nice subdivision and whamo, a rooster starts waking you up at 4am lololol. 

[GeoffH]

22 minutes ago, Tstone said:

I do like plumbing and internet and to not be 90 degrees indoors if I can help it.

 

In my opinion you've nominated 3 areas that can be err... learning experiences ;-)

Electric bills can consume a lot of money if you use AC a lot in a house, if you mostly use fans then not bad in my experience (maybe the difference between a 3000-5000 peso and 10000-15000 peso each bill).

Internet speed is not in my experience as fast as 1st world countries that I've been, some places I've gotten 30-40mbps and others only 1 to 8mbps, don't assume easy access to 100mbit cable or fibre.

And plumbing... well lots of places won't have hot water and in the CR you'll find a tap, a pail of water and a tabo instead of a flushing toilet and a shower.

 

Edited June 10, 2018 by GeoffH

[Rooster]

9 hours ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

Please give us some details that support that statement.  How many kidnappings and beheadings have there been in the city of Davao?  I don't know of any unless you count the one in 2015 on Samal Island that is 50 km away from Davao City.  I do know of plenty of foreigners murdered or dying suspicious deaths in many parts of Philippines but Davao City isn't one of them.  I hear its pretty safe.  Have you got some links to show otherwise?  Keep in mind that the "Dateline" on the articles may show Davao City (Click here for the example on Samal Island in 2015 ) but that is just where the reporter is writing the story, it is not where the story happened.

Gladly Dave,

From your Manila Embassy; Current as of June 10, 2018. The U.S. Embassy Manila advisory is similar. I think it's prudent for a 1st time visitor to first experience the green areas before venturing into the red/yellow area if at all.

https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/philippines

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/philippines-travel-advisory.html

 

[Tstone]

21 minutes ago, scott h said:

Here you have hit the nail on the head Tstone. You really wont know until you have been exposed to what the Philippines has to offer, or not. You can move into a nice subdivision and whamo, a rooster starts waking you up at 4am lololol. 

This kind of thing I can deal with.  lol.

 

7 minutes ago, GeoffH said:

 

In my opinion you've nominated 3 areas that can be err... learning experiences ;-)

Electric bills can consume a lot of money if you use AC a lot in a house, if you mostly use fans then not bad in my experience (maybe the difference between a 3000-5000 peso and 10000-15000 peso each bill).

Internet speed is not in my experience as fast as 1st world countries that I've been, some places I've gotten 30-40mbps and others only 1 to 8mbps, don't assume easy access to 100mbit cable or fibre.

And plumbing... well lots of places won't have hot water and in the CR you'll find a tap, a pail of water and a tabo instead of a flushing toilet and a shower.

 

Yeah I feel like electric is a big question mark for me.  I lived in Mexico for a few months with no AC, it was mostly open-air really, and that wasn't too bad (other than the roaches).  There are those days though you're just so sick of being damp and sticky and hot and it'd be nice to get sleep in a cool room for change.  And I'm a little curious really what the range of options is.  For the most part I can deal with heat and a fan though I'd be much happier in a slightly more temperate climate or to have an ocean breeze to take the edge off.

If it's always going to be 90 degrees I can deal without hot water I imagine.  I'm curious how much cooking people do versus eating out and how that impacts a budget though.  I suppose like everything else it'll depend on where I end up.  Man I'd like a toilet though, lol. 

I'd like to add you guys are giving a lot of great opinions though thanks for being awesome and keep em coming!  Really I'd love to hear someone's breakdown of like...."I live in X, I spend Y a month, that is slightly above/below average for somewhere outside a big city, here's some realities of living in this place at this expense level (like no hot water, etc), here's the internet situation, here's the electricity/AC situation, etc., here's the major things you'd be doing without compared to life in the west"  Sort of a baseline overview of life where you live to give me a point of reference. 

Edited June 10, 2018 by Tstone
Just to say thanks

[Jim Sibbick]

14 hours ago, Rooster said:

Ok,.  I'm curious, what is it that attracts foreigners to the Davao area compared to other areas in the PI where there are far less kidnapping and beheadings of foreigners?

The only kidnapping and beheading of foreigners from Davao I am aware  in the last 10 years or so is a couple of Canadian mining executives. The insurgents raided the resort on Samal Island where the mining executives were staying and took the mining executives and the resort owner who tried to stop them. This was all about the mining executives. All the tourists in the resort will left alone. Any foreign mining executive in Mindanao , and others such as religious nutters trying to convert Muslims to Christianity, should have different safety expectations to everyone else, in my opinion. 

Apart from that, 
- because of Duturte's death squads, the former criminals of Davao are dead or dispersed elsewhere, making it a safe place for the non criminals. 
- I have found Davao cooler and cleaner than other locations in the Philippines.
- It is a pretty location with many attractions.
- It has the Samal island close by, making day trips to beach locations easy from the centre of the city. I have been to Paradise island beach resort for the day on Samal Island. It is a pleasant place to spend the day. Since they changed the boat departure point for Paradise Island, you can be on Paradise Island in less than 10 minutes by boat from the city.

 

[Jollygoodfellow]

13 minutes ago, Tstone said:

Yeah I feel like electric is a big question mark for me.  I lived in Mexico for a few months with no AC, it was mostly open-air really, and that wasn't too bad (other than the roaches).  There are those days though you're just so sick of being damp and sticky and hot and it'd be nice to get sleep in a cool room for change.  And I'm a little curious really what the range of options is.  For the most part I can deal with heat and a fan though I'd be much happier in a slightly more temperate climate or to have an ocean breeze to take the edge off.

If it's always going to be 90 degrees I can deal without hot water I imagine.  I'm curious how much cooking people do versus eating out and how that impacts a budget though.  I suppose like everything else it'll depend on where I end up.  Man I'd like a toilet though, lol. 

Where you end up and how you like to live certainly depends on how comfortable or how much money you spend. As mentioned in this topic things can be not so good like internet and cooling but if you dont mind condo living then its cooler as you can be up higher. I have a good internet speed for this country which is 8mbp and it works fine and can go to a faster speed if l want to but no need. Plenty of hot water if I wanted it that way and flushing toilet so again if you chose to live in the backwoods it will be different. 

[Tstone]

8 minutes ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

Where you end up and how you like to live certainly depends on how comfortable or how much money you spend. As mentioned in this topic things can be not so good like internet and cooling but if you dont mind condo living then its cooler as you can be up higher. I have a good internet speed for this country which is 8mbp and it works fine and can go to a faster speed if l want to but no need. Plenty of hot water if I wanted it that way and flushing toilet so again if you chose to live in the backwoods it will be different. 

8 MB internet is more than fine, it's the reliability I've heard is the bigger issue.  I've heard condos are super small compared to houses though for comparable $, is this true?  My thought was I'd rent a house but I suppose it depends, are there advantages to a condo even though it's smaller?  

[Clermont]

First off, you've asked about housing, how long is your trip for, if it is only a short stay 30 odd days, book into a hotel and use eateries, you'll get the hang of where to eat and steer clear of road eateries. And by the way, your height will be an advantage, the PI's have a tendency to push in front of you, just reach over the top, you'll have no trouble outreaching them, they have short arms. Most hotels are in the vicinity of around 3000 peso per night, that is a fairly good hotel. Another thing most hotels don't have fridges in them, enjoy. 

[Tstone]

1 hour ago, Clermont said:

First off, you've asked about housing, how long is your trip for, if it is only a short stay 30 odd days, book into a hotel and use eateries, you'll get the hang of where to eat and steer clear of road eateries. And by the way, your height will be an advantage, the PI's have a tendency to push in front of you, just reach over the top, you'll have no trouble outreaching them, they have short arms. Most hotels are in the vicinity of around 3000 peso per night, that is a fairly good hotel. Another thing most hotels don't have fridges in them, enjoy. 

For my scouting trip I'll definitely just be staying in hotels or whatever, when Im asking about housing I mean more for the later, permanent move.  I'll look into airbnb or whatever deals i can find for cheap housing on my trip.  3000 peso a night sounds steeper than I'd like to pay.