20,000$ US for soon to be expat

[Gary D]

NPA used to camp out on our mango land in Bataan some time ago when passing through. Don't kid yourself they are all over.

[Anselm]

Bislig is in a beautiful part of the world... that whole eastern coast of Mindanao is stunning. If you have a motorbike to explore you will enjoy it. And the seafood there is incredibly cheap! On top of the hill there's a restaurant owned by a Swiss guy... forgot the name... but it's beside the main highway then you walk up... tricycle drivers will know it

It's safe out there too despite others' concerns - I live in Davao but I've travelled up and down there a number of times, my biggest problem is that the motorcyclists are even less aware of their surroundings than in other places... NPA are only a concern if you own a lot of land really (and then they only extort), but even so I don't tend to drive the roads south from Bislig at night. But the NPA are getting pushed further and further back in east Mindanao to the extent of only being a real concern in some very out of the way areas, martial law has put paid to a lot of them

$20k for six months... you won't need anything near that much especially out there, you could live like a king on half that! Not sure if you'll find apartments in Bislig, it's only a small city, but you could get a 2 bedroom house for pretty cheap for sure.

[fillipino_wannabe]

Can't see why you'd pick Mindanao to be honest, there's plenty of other places here that are just as nice. What does Mindanao have going for it that you can't get in Cebu, Panay or Bohol?
Islamic terrorists took over a whole city there and held it for months, you don't really get that happening in many parts of the world lol. Not like it was an overly dangerous area before that happened either, it's only 2 hours from CDO.

[Arizona Kid]

13 minutes ago, fillipino_wannabe said:

Can't see why you'd pick Mindanao to be honest, there's plenty of other places here that are just as nice. What does Mindanao have going for it that you can't get in Cebu, Panay or Bohol?
Islamic terrorists took over a whole city there and held it for months, you don't really get that happening in many parts of the world lol. Not like it was an overly dangerous area before that happened either, it's only 2 hours from CDO.

Cavite and Batangas are very safe provinces to live in. As are many others. I think that the threat of insurgents attacking or kidnapping you is blown way out of proportion. Haven't seen NPA rebels or Abu Sayyaf around where I live since..well, never! 

[Clermont]

All the scare mongering that is written on this site about the PI's is no different to our own countries of a night. Advice is helpful, sure you have to be careful and only a mug walks around of a night in dimly lite areas. I talked to a few foreigner while I was there, all said, " listen to your partner" and they feel safer there than in their own country. In all the times I've been over their, that is my sentiment too, the average PI would give his shirt of his back. 

[OnMyWay]

29 minutes ago, Clermont said:

All the scare mongering that is written on this site about the PI's is no different to our own countries of a night. Advice is helpful, sure you have to be careful and only a mug walks around of a night in dimly lite areas. I talked to a few foreigner while I was there, all said, " listen to your partner" and they feel safer there than in their own country. In all the times I've been over their, that is my sentiment too, the average PI would give his shirt of his back. 

This particular topic included that he is thinking about living in Mindanao.  It certainly is not scare mongering to discuss safety for expats in Mindanao.  It is a known fact that some areas have increased risk of kidnapping and related serious crimes.

If you mean street crime, etc., I agree that many area of the U.S. are worse than PH.  I feel very safe where I live here in Subic.

[Lordtariq83]

Can't see why you'd pick Mindanao to be honest, there's plenty of other places here that are just as nice. What does Mindanao have going for it that you can't get in Cebu, Panay or Bohol?
Islamic terrorists took over a whole city there and held it for months, you don't really get that happening in many parts of the world lol. Not like it was an overly dangerous area before that happened either, it's only 2 hours from CDO.

I have heard the beaches are gorgeous in Bislig..but also i have a friend who lives in Davao so id wanna be close to somebody that i know.

 

[Anselm]

Safety in Mindanao: you kind of learn a lot about it living there and doing things in the provinces. There's a lot of misconceptions and most of them are peddled by people who have never been here.

Remember last year there was a time when Abu Sayyef held a couple of towns on Bohol, opposite Cebu. They specialise in sea attacks, and we can only imagine what could have happened next. Their first attack was on Palawan. All of these places are closer to the dangerous areas than Bislig. Thankfully the army put them down pretty quickly. 

Also - the dangerous areas don't tend to have much spillover, in my experience. I wouldn't go to Tacurong in Sultan Kudarat (in the south), but Koronadal/Marbel is 50km away and totally fine. Iligan is only 30km from Marawi, but plenty of expats live there and it's generally OK (if a bit creepy). 

Like I said, your biggest worry in Bislig is the NPA, and they aren't after an expat who doesn't tromp on their ground. 

What does Mindanao have for it that the other places don't? Less tourists, lower prices, more tribal culture, more mountains to climb... don't write off the country's second largest island because a few areas are bad.