What is the Housing Market like in the Philippines?

[Joe LP]

Rent first is a great idea.  But also slows the process.  I already had a girl, like you do, so at least visit(long visits, if you can) a few times to get some ideas.  

My dad was a master builder, and on the side of owning his own building/contracting businesses, he did fixer uppers.  Usually old ones.  I grew up living in over 5 different centennial homes.  Kinda cool.  But, as always, the moniker is location, location, location.  That is easier to do in the USA than it is in the Philippines.  Been in the same area now for 10 years(rural, not big city).  There is not really any major "rhyme or reason" to predict what's next.  Some things, if you see them coming can give you a good sense on where to invest, but apart from possible plans for a new mall and buying land near it or something akin to that, it's more of a guessing game than anything that is a "certain thing" when it comes to buying land that will go up or not down the road.  

Like some have said, there are certain areas that might be good for investment, but getting 5 acres for said amount would be tough, forget 5 hectares.

["P2"]

Wow... thanks for the feedback everyone. We haven't made and decision or commitment yet. I'm still about 5 years out from retiring. I like to plan ahead to make sure I get all of the details covered. My wife and I just got back from a 3 week vacation/family reunion there in the Philippines. It was my first time there and what an eye opener! I was amazed at the differences in living conditions there and the level of poverty was just heartbreaking. We stayed in Cebu for about 5 days and then spent sometime with her family in her home town and then we went to Boracay for a few days and then back to Cebu and then home. I did notice that they don't have neighborhoods like what we have her in the US. In my housing search (mainly online) I see where they seem to start developing a neighborhood/gated community with relatively larger houses but when you "Google Earth" them it looks like they all stopped and there are only a handful of houses built. What happened? Did the developer run out of money or something? So I think you guys are right... building or buying a home is probably not a good idea... renting will be what we explore at first if we decide to move there. 

Ideally, I would like to find a decent beachfront house to rent. I have found several houses for sale that are beachfront but I believe that they are way over priced; upwards of 20 million. So I think we will take our time and see what's out there. I have time, so there is no rush.

Did I tell you about my driving experience in Cebu? Holy Smokes! White knuckle experience the entire time. I know I embedded my finger prints in the steering wheel of our rental car. It's INSANE that no one follows any kind of driving/traffic laws there. Crossing major intersections ages you 10 years. I'm surprised we didn't see any traffic accidents or fatalities while we were there. Drive anywhere in Cebu was mentally and physically exhausting. 

[Joe LP]

Here's a helpful tip.  If you have someone you trust and knows and understands houses this can help you out.  After I was here about 8 years, my brother decided he wanted to retire here also.  So he was looking for a home.  Well, me being here I started looking.  Most plans failed.  But then I started looking for homes on facebook marketplace.  It did take about 18 months, but what you'll find a lot of are "Rush Sales".  Usually it's a gambling issue, but also at times it really is a family medical issue or something, but they need money "here and now" if you will, and sell cheap.  

My brother got a steal.  This was a case where the former police officer that was since retire bought land out in the country, built half his house on it, and ran out of money.  Needed it fast, and brother bought a nice 2 level stone home for under 1mil php.  The lot is in my wife's name, the house in his and he moved here last September.  

A few issues that needed to be taken care of, but just normal for what you buy when you are expecting a "fixer up".  Which is normal for my family.  But he's sitting nice and pretty and enjoying life here now.  If your wife has any family members that you trust and know how to look at everything from the bones to the fine jewelry on a home....this is an option for a way to use to find a home.

[OnMyWay]

One of you guys buy one of these places and we will have a forum party there!

https://www.philippinesbeachfrontvilla.com/?fbclid=IwAR2MbjOHHsCOrmI_Qn4Xc2gjkW2AocsSCGt0Rd5CCwOXIYMZykN0Q-Hi1m8

["P2"]

2 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

One of you guys buy one of these places and we will have a forum party there!

https://www.philippinesbeachfrontvilla.com/?fbclid=IwAR2MbjOHHsCOrmI_Qn4Xc2gjkW2AocsSCGt0Rd5CCwOXIYMZykN0Q-Hi1m8

You know... I was just looking at that and was seriously thinking about it, BUT then I saw that they have the Desjoyaux Saltwater French Swimming Pool as an amenity... well.... that was the deal breaker for me. It will be a hard pass...

[Hestecrefter]

3 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

One of you guys buy one of these places and we will have a forum party there!

https://www.philippinesbeachfrontvilla.com/?fbclid=IwAR2MbjOHHsCOrmI_Qn4Xc2gjkW2AocsSCGt0Rd5CCwOXIYMZykN0Q-Hi1m8

That's nuts.  Aimed at people with more money than brains.  

I looked at the pics.  The project is being built very close to sea level.  I see ocean, then a very narrow strip of sand, then a low seawall, reinforced with some boulders.  With sea levels predicted to keep rising and with typhoons, how long before the sea washes away your Desjoyaux Saltwater French Swimming Pool and the rest of it?  

A few years ago, I visited a family on Palawan who had a small farm on the ocean.  They were being forced to move to higher ground.  Their farm was being inundated by the ocean.

[Dave Hounddriver]

28 minutes ago, Hestecrefter said:

A few years ago, I visited a family on Palawan who had a small farm on the ocean.  They were being forced to move to higher ground.  Their farm was being inundated by the ocean.

I hear of this kind of thing happening, but I have never seen it.  Scientists say the sea level has risen 3 inches in 20 years, but with the tides going up and down a yard or two each day it is hard to notice 3 inches.   It is also not clear if the rise in sea level is related to humans everywhere dumping rocks etc into the sea to reclaim or expand land or something else.

What I have seen, often, is tides, storms and ocean currents washing away land that used to be on the shore.  It is often redeposited at another location and then washed back to the original spot years later.

All that said, I would not build a house right on the ocean either.  Earthquakes, tsunamis, and typhoons play a big part in that bias.

 

[Kingpin]

7 hours ago, "P2" said:

 they seem to start developing a neighborhood/gated community with relatively larger houses but when you "Google Earth" them it looks like they all stopped and there are only a handful of houses built. What happened?

Unlike the US, the house doesn't come with the land, so what you're describing is the  common practice of Filipinos buying up all the "developed" land fast at low prices, that's their investment here. They know that years or decades later they can flip it for profit or pass it down.

 

 

 

 

[Hestecrefter]

1 hour ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

I hear of this kind of thing happening, but I have never seen it.  Scientists say the sea level has risen 3 inches in 20 years, but with the tides going up and down a yard or two each day it is hard to notice 3 inches.   It is also not clear if the rise in sea level is related to humans everywhere dumping rocks etc into the sea to reclaim or expand land or something else.

What I have seen, often, is tides, storms and ocean currents washing away land that used to be on the shore.  It is often redeposited at another location and then washed back to the original spot years later.

All that said, I would not build a house right on the ocean either.  Earthquakes, tsunamis, and typhoons play a big part in that bias.

 

I had never witnessed it myself before that time.  I was quite surprised by how real it was.  I had heard of it, but kinda' downplayed it in my mind, I suppose.  With one of the family who had grown up there (she was then 41 years old), I walked around the old home site.  She showed me where some of their land had been and had been washed away. She also described how, with storms, the water would now wash over portions of the land that never experienced that problem before. The house had become unliveable.  It was a bit of an eye-opener.  

In April 2016, we were given the use of a beach house in Malibu, that belonged to the mother of friends.  She had purchased it a few years before for $5 million.  I was a bit surprised by how little actual "beach" was in front of the house.  The whole property was really no more than a small city lot, maybe 60 feet wide and no more than 100 feet deep, with one long side within no more than about 25 feet from the Pacific Coast Highway, and the opposite side on the Pacific Ocean.  The house was built around 1960 or so.  It was 2 levels.  Part of the lower level I would describe as a thick concrete wall, sort of a sea wall itself.  At high tide, the water would lap against it.  We would hear the water against it, sleeping upstairs at night, if the tide was high.  In fact, the sound was a tad more thunderous at times, rather than the sound of gentle lapping.

Our host came by one day and pointed out a few very large rocks in the water in front of the house.  They were rocks about the size of one of those "Smart Cars" or maybe a bit bigger.  He said that, in stormy weather, those rocks would get moved around by the waves like they weighed nothing.  He also described how the windows and sliding glass door on the upper level had been broken more than once by rocks thrown up by rough seas.  He mentioned that mummy was then in the process of closing on another beach house further down the beach.  It offered more setback and some higher ground.  Seems that mummy was not too concerned about pera.  She had enough to be able to go out and buy a second beach house without having to sell the first one in order to afford the second one.  Maybe she'll pick up one of those pricey beach houses in the Phils.  If one has endlessly deep pockets, I suppose one does not have to fret over $5 million or so washing out to sea.

 

 

Edited May 23, 2023 by Hestecrefter
correct typo

[Lee]

Earlier in this thread, there was a discussion about building a house.

My go-to local resource for Philippine home construction info for years was a blog done by an American who lived in Iloilo. Bob chronicled his house build step by step noting everything that worked and didn't work along the way. It was broken down by categories---roofing, electrical ,air con, etc. His blog has since disappeared it would appear. Does anyone know if something happened to Bob and his blog? I can name his blog but I'm pretty sure that the site mangers would disapprove of my citing his website (that doesn't work today). PM me if someone has any info to share.