Renting Vs Buying In The Philippines

[Art2ro]

Inspector, Have the last words? Ok, I will! Comment you made,"Just giving my opinion on why I, a white Kano, would never buy in the Philippines, and what I have seen... and facts".So my curious question would be, why are you here in the Philippines from what you've seen and of the facts you have mentioned? You're beginning to sound like another Travis and he returned to the U.S. maybe for good! I guess if you ever buy that house in Phoenix, which I may say looks nice, you will return to the U.S. for good too and never come back to the Philippines? I guess since you are in Davao, it's much nicer there living amongst the City's elitist of Filipino society! Well, enjoy the rest of your stay in the Philippines and hope you get that house in Phoenix!

[Inspector]

Inspector, Have the last words? Ok, I will! Comment you made,"Just giving my opinion on why I, a white Kano, would never buy in the Philippines, and what I have seen... and facts".So my curious question would be, why are you here in the Philippines from what you've seen and of the facts you have mentioned? You're beginning to sound like another Travis and he returned to the U.S. maybe for good! I guess if you ever buy that house in Phoenix, which I may say looks nice, you will return to the U.S. for good too and never come back to the Philippines? I guess since you are in Davao, it's much nicer there living amongst the City's elitist of Filipino society! Well, enjoy the rest of your stay in the Philippines and hope you get that house in Phoenix!

Well, since you asked me a few questions here, I guess I must reply. :541: First off, you suggest I'm becoming another Travis, when in fact...I am Travis. We share this account. :lol: No, seriously....how is becoming a Travis to be construed in a positive light, with the methods you present such suggest it being a negative? Are you another one of those filipino's who take offense at anything negative said about your country?...as I presented in the pinoy bashing the philippines web sites? Jeez...you should hang around a bunch of Americans and listen to them complain about their own country...either Bush, Obama...the economy...high taxes, guns, abortions, church and state ect ect. Without complaints, you simply bend over and take it up your arse...who wants to do that? :bash: I simply have stated an opinion as to why I would NOT buy a house in the Philippines. Can you dispute the lack of insurance? No. You suggest you don't need it, and that your house is so cheap that if it was washed away or rattled to the ground...you would take the pinoy approach and accept it. I wouldn't...and I don't feel any house and the money invested in it is worth not being insured. Then I bring up the fact the Philippines is a natural disaster haven, and this is not a properly mended combination with the no insurance. Again, can you dispute the fact the Philippines is not a natural disaster zone? No...so again, I present my facts of why I would not buy a house here with facts. Then, I present a fact of poor resale for high end homes. This is again, fact. I again simply present my case of owning a home here being not in my best interest simply because I will NEVER OWN THE HOUSE. My wife would. I'm not comfortable with that, despite the fact many a divorced woman in the west do get the house, pre crash days...upon a divorce. Still, I want my name on the ting from the start...if I can't, NO WAY I am buying a house. I then again compare a white kano versus your situation being completely different then yours, being you are a fil/am...simply can't compare what a person like myself and you would go through. Again, this is fact, and why you owning a house, taking care of your car and home, is not the norm of what I have seen...and what I am sure many others have seen, especially reading message boards of expats for the last 8 years. Buying a car here is completely different then the US, with carfax reports and service records. This goes for houses as well...I have seen far too many with broken everything, worn electrical systems that are not only built not to western standards, but in need of total replacement. Plumbing issues, cracks, poor building ect. Sorry to sound like a Travis, if indeed that is something you find horrible, but it is...what it is. Ask Lee what he had to do just to get his condo western standards. BTW, if I was going to buy anything...and took a chance on no insurance, at least a condo gets my name on it. As far as where I am living now..well, I have lived in the province and in a average non gated filipino community before settling down here in a quiet hood. No, I don't like MANY things about this country, as it is a third world...well, I feel fourth in most places, but I find many issues with the states as well. I do like Arizona .... low taxes, cheap housing and open country. However, this thread was about renting vs buying a house here, and as said...I would never buy a house in this country for legit and logical reasons I have presented. Your isolated case is wonderful, and I am happy that you are living the dream with a purchased house...so it seems as a fil/am, you have found the better method of living in your country as purchasing. If I was you, I would probably do as the same. Being me, there is no way in hell I would buy ANYTHING here, especially real estate...and I'm trying to purchase a car now, and aside from used cars being silly overpriced, I have only seen ONE that was cared for...but it was TWICE as much as a kelly blue book would value it in the states. Not biting. The house I am looking at in Buckeye is a investment house, thus supplementing my pension with some more rental income. It would be my second house out in Arizona renting. My eventual plan is as I age, get back to the states...especially once I am 65, but more then likely before. Medical sucks here...but hey, that's another thread and more "Travis" for you. :thumbsup: I have quite a bit of time before that happens...but I am quite a bit more happy then maybe these posts sound. Actually, you will rarely see bitching to my GF. I laugh quite a bit at the absurdity here and she does too...not paranoid at all, but to the topic at hand.... I certainly would not plunk down any money for any real estate here. I find that, IMHO, a not so bright investment. Facts given, but for those going for it...you won't see me knocking them and I have seen some success among the mostly bad outcomes. :tiphat:

[sjp52]

When and if I buy or build a house here it will not be so much for me as it will be for my wife. I have it in my mind that if things go south in our marriage or I die I would still want my wife to have security and a nice place to live in. I promised my wife when I married her that I would always take care of her and her having a nice house is one of the ways that I will fulfill that promise. If you are worried about the quality of house here than build your own as it would probably be cheaper and you have a say in how well it is built. If you are worried about Typhoons get a house in areas that do not experience them. As for the car issue, there is no hurry to get a car because taxis are cheap and just wait until a foreigner is leaving and buy his car. I,m not so sure as to what to do about insurance. Maybe just bank the premiums that you would be paying and hope for the best. I do have to agree with inspector on us westerners being whiners, And yes that is a positive. I think that is one of the problems here that too many people just sit back and take the crap that the government and businesses throw at them. If Art is a little defensive about his country he has a right to be and its good to see. There is so much negative talk about the Philippines ( some rightfully so ) that it makes me wonder why the people that hate it so much are still around. There are a lot of things in the Philippines that I don,t like but if I hated it as much as some do I would be gone. My thoughts are to rent for a year or two more and if we plan on staying, build our house once we find the right area to live. Inspector I think you just venting your built up frustrations of this place and we all have to do that some times. There are bad days that I think to myself, What am I doing here and then I look at my cute little Filipina and say Oh yea thats why.

[Inspector]

Inspector I think you just venting your built up frustrations of this place and we all have to do that some times. There are bad days that I think to myself, What am I doing here and then I look at my cute little Filipina and say Oh yea thats why.

Who's venting? :89: How is my opinion on why I will not buy a house here, backed by facts, considered "venting"? I haven't even gotten into the "facts" of how difficult it is to build a house...from all the red tape on. If you want to build a house for your wife, more power to you. :89: This forum seems based on the negative...have you read the news lately? Makes you want to hide under your bed...if it wasn't for the insects and spores that will kill you there. :hystery: My biggest complaint now is this corded phone that pulls the entire thing off the subwoofer every time I use it...damn cord gets stuck in those corded circles...drive me nuts....and then I laugh. I always laugh. Like now...I'm a giggler. I will say it again...a HUGE VENT!!!!!!!!.....the Inspector would not buy a house here. Yes, it's true.

[Art2ro]

Rent is cheap in the Philippines! And yes, it's a pain in the ass to build a home of one's choosing, but it's more of a pain in the ass to put up with _sshole landlords! So, if one rents, be sure to pack light so one doesn't have to move a lot of household stuff in case one has to relocate often! Or just return to the U.S. if a 3rd world country isn't to your liking! Pretty simple solution to one's preference, because there are still greener pastures in one's home country now during this global recession we are all in! It's all about economics and it isn't that economic anymore living in the Philippines, because this country maybe 3rd world, but it has 1st world tastes, which isn't practical for your average person, locals or foreigners! It's a place for only the middle class and the well to dos and the poor Filipino people are just dropping dead like flies everyday from natural weather calamities, poverty, filth and diseases! It's just the facts of life here in the Philippines and other 3rd world countries!

[Call me bubba]

here is another article about problems with "owning " a house,it seems that the BAD GUYS WIN while the GOOD GUYS(homeowners) LOSE or Royally get Sxxxed here is just a few edits .please read the FULL article as it is EYE OPENING When they tried to sue the corporation to recover the property, they got the shock of their lives: they were required to pay P1.5 million in judicial fees based on the P80-million market value of the property stolen!Unable to pay the cost of seeking judicial redress of their grievance, the brothers could only suffer in silence. Who says crime does not pay? Even as our Constitution says, “no one shall be denied access to the courts by reason of poverty” and therefore, arguably, the embattled individual titleholders should breeze through the court’s docket sections in filing cases to stop Torres and his goons dead in their tracks, in reality, that is not going to happen.Thus, assuming that the aggregate value of the real estate involved amounts to P100 billion (conservatively), at the going rate of P18,000 plus per P1 million… well, anyone can do the math here! Sad to say, indeed, the extremely high cost of seeking judicial redress of grievances in such instances may lead the less-moneyed among us to take the law into their own hands (which is actually happening already with affected homeowners barricading their premises in defiance of court orders!).http://opinion.inquirer.net/13215/nightmare-on-visayas-avenue

[bows00]

Although I have never lived in the Philippines for more than 2 weeks at a time, I value the inspectors insight on the subject. My current retirement plans are to buy and rent out properties in the US to off-set my rental expenses there. And yes.. I chose this strategy only because I have the same fears the inspector emphasized throughout this thread.

[Art2ro]

Although I have never lived in the Philippines for more than 2 weeks at a time, I value the inspectors insight on the subject. My current retirement plans are to buy and rent out properties in the US to off-set my rental expenses there. And yes.. I chose this strategy only because I have the same fears the inspector emphasized throughout this thread.

There's nothing wrong with your plans! It just makes alot of sense as long as you can afford to do so without going into financial hardship! Who doesn't want to make extra money in order to live a comfortable life anywhere and always have a backup plan!

[Dave Hounddriver]

Although I have never lived in the Philippines for more than 2 weeks at a time, I value the inspectors insight on the subject. My current retirement plans are to buy and rent out properties in the US to off-set my rental expenses there. And yes.. I chose this strategy only because I have the same fears the inspector emphasized throughout this thread.

I have had rental properties in a city where I did not live. Family members have also done it as have close friends. With this experience under my belt I feel confident telling you that there WILL be problems that require you to personally attend to the situation. Yes, you can use a property manager and yes, they will take care of most things. Using a property manager to the fullest means they will find contractors when repairs or maintenance are needed. It means your rate or return over a long period of time will be less than buying quality stocks or bonds. It means you are relying on inflation to keep the value of your property growing rather than depreciating as all buildings do over time. You will be required to personally attend when the building becomes unrentable due to damage from tenants or from natural causes. An example would be in a northern climate when your furnace dies and the management company is unwilling to make the decision for you as to the best way to update the heating system. If going there in person once in a rare while is not a problem for you, and you are willing to risk your retirement on property values increasing then go for it. I chose to get away from the stress of it once fully retired but cannot deny it is a valid investment.

[MikeB]

Buying distressed properties at bargain basement prices and renting them out sounds like a no-brainer but, as Dave points out, there are lots of headaches and pitfalls to being an absentee landlord; not to mention that all the rent proceeds are taxable, although there are other things that can be written off. Best to talk to your accountant first and weigh all the pros and cons.