My Cost For A Year Of Living In Cebu City

[Mike S]

Maybe this will help you out to kinda get an idea on what it costs us per year to live in Cebu City ...... now some will say you can't do it for this amount and that we (my asawa and me) are paupers .... but it isn't so .... we started in a 1 bedroom apartment and just recently moved 2 months ago and upgraded to a 2 bedroom ..... 1 bedroom was 7800p per month including water ..... 2 bedroom is 10,300 including water ....... I am now on a 13a temp. resident so there is no longer the cost to the BI ...... nor the government costs you see below as that included all the costs of getting married and the 13a plus ACR I card ...... some will also say that some of the categories are misleading and can't be true ...... but I assure you that I keep detailed records and ALL bills and receipts are entered into a computer budgeting program and accounted for ...... no guessing ..... even Thirsty Drinks are accounted for ....Now in all fairness we do not drink ... smoke .... party or eat at the Lighthouse Restaurant everyday (just for you Billie ... hahaha) but that is by choice not because we can't afford it .... I eat and enjoy native foods so having to buy the prime-rib at Ayala Gaisano's deli is not a necessity for me ..... We also don't use the aircon ... it's there we just don't need it ..... I lived in central and south Florida for over 30 yearsAnyway ..... this is just us ...... yours will be different ....... DON'T COME HERE WITHOUT SUFFICIENT MEANS TO SUPPORT YOURSELF ...... or you better darn well be able to adapt ....... IMHOSpending by Category10/1/2008 Through 9/13/2009Subcategory ...........................................................TotalIncome Categories Retirement Income - Unassigned ...................................0.00Total Income Categories ..............................................0.00Expense Categories Food : Groceries .................................................119,615.81Bills : Rent ...........................................................99,920.00Food : Dining Out ..................................................48,910.44Personal Items & Care : Other ..................................40,765.00Transportation : Taxi ..............................................23,560.00Government Related : Visa costs................................21,317.00Household : Appliance .............................................18,932.75Health-care : Prescriptions .......................................18,114.39Bills : Electricity ......................................................17,612.18Household : Hardware ..............................................16,527.04Household : Furnishings ............................................15,194.46Food : Market .........................................................13,889.55Bills : Online/Internet Service and phone ......................13,052.75Government Related : Certificates & Forms .....................9,870.00Miscellaneous : Odds & Ends ........................................8,884.84Clothing : Clothes ......................................................7,140.88Miscellaneous : Computer ............................................5,736.50Household : Kitchen ....................................................4,835.02Health-care : Supplements ...........................................4,042.70Clothing : Shoes & Accessories ......................................3,584.15Health-care : Hospital ..................................................3,535.00Government Related : Visa Related costs. ........................3,360.00Support .....................................................................3,210.00Bills : Cellular ..............................................................2,650.00Personal Items & Care - Unassigned ................................2,357.00Entertainment : DVD Movies ..........................................2,319.00Bills : Water drinking only ..............................................1,840.00Transportation - Unassigned ..........................................1,426.32Miscellaneous - Unassigned ...........................................1,268.29Personal Items & Care : ................................................1,006.80Bills : Natural Gas/Oil cooking only .....................................994.00Health-care : Doctor .......................................................800.00Clothing - Unassigned ......................................................662.85Entertainment : Books ......................................................249.00Total Expense Categories ............................................537,183.72Grand Total .............................................................(537,183.72)

[tropicalwaste]

Maybe this will help you out to kinda get an idea on what it costs us per year to live in Cebu City ...... now some will say you can't do it for this amount and that we (my asawa and me) are paupers .... but it isn't so .... we started in a 1 bedroom apartment and just recently moved 2 months ago and upgraded to a 2 bedroom ..... 1 bedroom was 7800p per month including water ..... 2 bedroom is 10,300 including water ....... I am now on a 13a temp. resident so there is no longer the cost to the BI ...... nor the government costs you see below as that included all the costs of getting married and the 13a plus ACR I card ...... some will also say that some of the categories are misleading and can't be true ...... but I assure you that I keep detailed records and ALL bills and receipts are entered into a computer budgeting program and accounted for ...... no guessing ..... even Thirsty Drinks are accounted for ....Now in all fairness we do not drink ... smoke .... party or eat at the Lighthouse Restaurant everyday (just for you Billie ... hahaha) but that is by choice not because we can't afford it .... I eat and enjoy native foods so having to buy the prime-rib at Ayala Gaisano's deli is not a necessity for me ..... We also don't use the aircon ... it's there we just don't need it ..... I lived in central and south Florida for over 30 yearsAnyway ..... this is just us ...... yours will be different ....... DON'T COME HERE WITHOUT SUFFICIENT MEANS TO SUPPORT YOURSELF ...... or you better darn well be able to adapt ....... IMHOSpending by Category10/1/2008 Through 9/13/2009Subcategory ...........................................................TotalIncome Categories Retirement Income - Unassigned ...................................0.00Total Income Categories ..............................................0.00Expense Categories Food : Groceries .................................................119,615.81Bills : Rent ...........................................................99,920.00Food : Dining Out ..................................................48,910.44Personal Items & Care : Other ..................................40,765.00Transportation : Taxi ..............................................23,560.00Government Related : Visa costs................................21,317.00Household : Appliance .............................................18,932.75Health-care : Prescriptions .......................................18,114.39Bills : Electricity ......................................................17,612.18Household : Hardware ..............................................16,527.04Household : Furnishings ............................................15,194.46Food : Market .........................................................13,889.55Bills : Online/Internet Service and phone ......................13,052.75Government Related : Certificates & Forms .....................9,870.00Miscellaneous : Odds & Ends ........................................8,884.84Clothing : Clothes ......................................................7,140.88Miscellaneous : Computer ............................................5,736.50Household : Kitchen ....................................................4,835.02Health-care : Supplements ...........................................4,042.70Clothing : Shoes & Accessories ......................................3,584.15Health-care : Hospital ..................................................3,535.00Government Related : Visa Related costs. ........................3,360.00Support .....................................................................3,210.00Bills : Cellular ..............................................................2,650.00Personal Items & Care - Unassigned ................................2,357.00Entertainment : DVD Movies ..........................................2,319.00Bills : Water drinking only ..............................................1,840.00Transportation - Unassigned ..........................................1,426.32Miscellaneous - Unassigned ...........................................1,268.29Personal Items & Care : ................................................1,006.80Bills : Natural Gas/Oil cooking only .....................................994.00Health-care : Doctor .......................................................800.00Clothing - Unassigned ......................................................662.85Entertainment : Books ......................................................249.00Total Expense Categories ............................................537,183.72Grand Total .............................................................(537,183.72)

Thanks for the info.. how many of you live on that income ? Also the fact you dont eat out or drink doesnt really matter as many of the items on your list people wouldnt do so the budgets could easily shuffle round. My personal most expensive month was P50,000 but generally we are around P25,000 a month and that includes trips to the beach etc. But everyone has different setups. Your right about making sure you can afford to live in the Philippines before coming but also people should be aware to "keep within budgets" as things first appear cheap when you arrive and overspending can happen so easily.

[Old55]

Thanks for the info.. how many of you live on that income ? Also the fact you dont eat out or drink doesnt really matter as many of the items on your list people wouldnt do so the budgets could easily shuffle round. My personal most expensive month was P50,000 but generally we are around P25,000 a month and that includes trips to the beach etc. But everyone has different setups. Your right about making sure you can afford to live in the Philippines before coming but also people should be aware to "keep within budgets" as things first appear cheap when you arrive and overspending can happen so easily.

If you don't mind my asking Edited September 16, 2009 by Boss Man
fixed quote tags

[TheMason]

Thanks for the info.. how many of you live on that income ? Also the fact you dont eat out or drink doesnt really matter as many of the items on your list people wouldnt do so the budgets could easily shuffle round. My personal most expensive month was P50,000 but generally we are around P25,000 a month and that includes trips to the beach etc. But everyone has different setups. Your right about making sure you can afford to live in the Philippines before coming but also people should be aware to "keep within budgets" as things first appear cheap when you arrive and overspending can happen so easily.

If you don't mind my asking

[Mike S]

The info I provided was in response to another board where a member said you would need $3000 (144000p) to live comfortably here in the Phils and that people living on 50,000p or less per month were living poorly ...... and as I have not seen a yearly actual budget I thought I would post one ..... we also live right in the middle of Cebu City so the cost is a bit higher than those living outside the city ....... example ..... we looked at places to rent outside the city for a lot less than we pay here ...... and yes there are a lot of categories listed that others would not have but if I buy a package of nails ..... place mats ...... flower pots or wall hooks it is recorded in the budget ..... it is far to easy for items to be forgotten and not kept track of ...... by the way mine it is recorded under categories not individual items Why do I do it ....... because it is fun and I enjoy it ...... do I need to keep such detailed records ....... nawwwwww .. not really .....

Edited September 17, 2009 by Mike S

[TheMason]

The info I provided was in response to another board where a member said you would need $3000 (144000p) to live comfortably here in the Phils and that people living on 50,000p or less per month were living poorly ...... and as I have not seen a yearly actual budget I thought I would post one ..... we also live right in the middle of Cebu City so the cost is a bit higher than those living outside the city ....... example ..... we looked at places to rent outside the city for a lot less than we pay here ...... and yes there are a lot of categories listed that others would not have but if I buy a package of nails ..... place mats ...... flower pots or wall hooks it is recorded in the budget ..... it is far to easy for items to be forgotten and not kept track of ...... by the way mine it is recorded under categories not individual items Why do I do it ....... because it is fun and I enjoy it ...... do I need to keep such detailed records ....... nawwwwww .. not really .....

The report you posted looks an awful lot like a Quicken report. I worked in Quicken tech support for years, so it was good to see it posted. Some people like to track their finances in anal-retentive detail. I'm one of them. I'd be lost without my detailed records. I'm almost embarrassed to say this, but I track things down to the centavo when the receipts allow me to. I didn't post the detailed report because my categories are not as generic as yours are.I'm glad you posted the yearly expenses though. I find it very easy to live well for a small amount of money. I get along just fine on a smaller budget and think most others would be able to do it as well if they knew how. In my case, having a Filipina wife definitely helps. If I had to secure my own housing and everything else, I'd pay Kano prices a lot more than we do now.

[Mike S]

I hate to say it but I started out with M$ Money 2004 ...... wanted to upgrade as M$ no longer supports Money but was told to expect all kinds of problems if I incorporated into a new program ...... it's basic and works for me except it takes forever to do anything once you get a broad data base ...... but hey .... I'm retired .... what else do I have to do ...... ....... the secrete to a good working budget is detail ... detail ... detailI agree on the Filipina help part ...... Julie doesn't take no for an answer and bargains for everything that can be bargained for ....... you ought to see her on Colon St. ........ sometimes I almost feel sorry for the vendors ...... you'll notice I said almost ...... almost until I feel the extra centavos in my pocket ...... :AddEmoticons04230:

[Mik]

A person living here should have a savings account for unexpected medical expenses. Maybe put into that emergency account at least 20 per cent of your income each month.

[chimellie]

Looks like a person can live comfortably on about 1000 USD in Cebu. I am looking at about 7 more years to retirement, I hope it doesn't get too expensive when the time comes, I like to play golf at least once a week, go out to eat the local food once or twice and go out have a few cold ones and play some pool once in a while, and going to the beach too . So for me it would take about 1500 USD a month, is it a good number ?Thanks

[Mr Lee]

Looks like a person can live comfortably on about 1000 USD in Cebu. I am looking at about 7 more years to retirement, I hope it doesn't get too expensive when the time comes, I like to play golf at least once a week, go out to eat the local food once or twice and go out have a few cold ones and play some pool once in a while, and going to the beach too . So for me it would take about 1500 USD a month, is it a good number ?Thanks

Chi, you already own a home, so those expenses will be different than rent. Taxes, upkeep, etc. and only you would know what those cost you and no one know what they will cost you 7 years from now. But IMO, for now you should be OK and the guys we know who live in Cebu on less than $1000 do so without A/C and without drinking and eating out that much, so your numbers would most likely be higher if you are going to want to use A/C and drink and eat out time to time. No one knows what 7 more years will bring and we can only guess, but I would say that you should think about more than $1500 a month by then if you wish to live a very comfortable life style.