Renting Or Owning A House And Costs In Cebu

[TedDBayer]

I'm Canadian. I plan on going to Cebu next month to look for a place to rent for 6 months so I can decide if I like it. The places I see online seem expensive compared to Canada. Can someone give me a good contact for renting and buying. I know I can't own land, can you give me an idea of what kind of money I'm looking at for leasing?. I'd like a house about 100 sq mts.with a yard.

 Is electricity really that expensive? I'd never survive without AC. Is $400 a very high bill? I do not see washers and dryers in the house listings. Is this normal?

 Is furniture expensive? I need a good bed. I have a dog and cats so I want leather sofa and chair. Is this expensive ,price?

 I was thinking of being south of the city, I don't mind secluded, but I'd like to have good grocery shopping and a hospital nearby. What area should I be looking at. Thanks.

[robert k]

Hi Ted, I would look into the cost and procedure of bringing the dog and cats. There are some threads on the subject and I would search for them. I have always loved my pets but considering the cost I would probably find them a new loving home in Canada rather than bring them.

 

Ted, you know your situation best, I would consider a $400 electric bill high and start looking to see how many neighbors are tapped into my line, unless I had a large house with poor insulation and I was trying to hang meat at home. Electricity is expensive in the Philippines and unreliable many places without a natural disaster, if you include storms and days without power due to scheduled maintainance, you will probably need a fairly large generator if you have a medical condition and really could not live without A/C.

 

From what I hear, the advertised prices online for places to rent are out of line of what the market really is. I know of no place where good furniture is cheap. Just for an idea of what can be had I suggest you look at EMCOR Philippines site, they have furniture and appliances and they are not the cheapest but it will give you a good cross section of what is available for many items and what it will cost if you can't find something someplace cheaper.

 

I think south of metro Cebu could be a great place to stay. I am especially interested in Naga city. Unfortunately my last trip coincided with an earthquake and a super typhoon so I did not get over to Naga to check it out personally, in depth. I intend to live there for a month on my next trip to get a good solid feel for the city

 

Welcome to the forum.

[Lou49]

Ted, have u ever been to the philippines ?

[sjp52]

Hi Ted. I let my wife take care of renting a house. She just contacts a real estate lady and she shows her houses to rent and My wife finally picks one. The one we are in now is 18,000 pesos ( $432 can ) per month. We paid 1 month and 2 months deposit with a 6 month lease. It is 3 bedrooms and comes will all furniture and 2 airconditioners. It has a big balcony and in a nice subdivision. I run the aircon in the bedroom all night and the one in the livingroom all day when were home. My electric bill is around 5500 a month ( $132 can ). I live in Cagayan De Oro which is  south of Cebu on the south island

[Tukaram (Tim)]

The online real estate prices are definitely too high.  Most companies really don't advertise online here.  So if they are online they are overpriced for foreigners, usually.  Best bet is to shop around for a hotel, and when you get here go look around and find a place.  Also if you pick a place online you won't know if you are next door to a loud karaoke bar or a piggery!  Boots on the ground is the only way to find a house/apt. 

 

Electricity is high and it is up to you what you can live without to keep expenses down ha ha.  Washer & dryers are not very common here.  Most washers are a cheap plastic thing that is almost as much work as hand washing.  Dryers are almost always a line in the yard. 

 

I have not seen leather furniture here - they make soup out of the skin...  It would most likely be expensive.  And during the rainy season will probably mildew pretty bad.  I had a hard time just keeping up with my leather belts & shoes this year. 

[bows00]

Unless you have a local Filipina doing the negotiating, expect to pay the foreigner tax.  And yes, do not go for anything on-line... super inflated for the foreigner.

[frosty (chris)]

Hi Ted, I am only new here so I will tell you what I did. I found a girl on an internet site and we became friends, I told her I wasn't looking for love only friendship and she has accepted this. As mentioned you really need a local to help you, it really is a state of chaos in the Phils and especially for a long nose. This young lady has helped me no end and has found a few places for me to look at just by asking around and walking about and looking. Finding a friend I think is harder than finding a lover there so just go slow and take your time when you get there and that is easier said than done. My friend has been compensated for helping me, which I think is only fair and the arrangement suits us both. Boots on the ground and a trusted friend is the only way to go. Good luck to you.

[johnb]

Regarding accommodation, everyone is right about not using the overcharging online housing sites, however if you check out the classified adds in Cebu classified, sulit.com etc you can find some reasonable deals, they normally state the monthly rent and deposit requirements so you shouldn't run into any foreigner tax till you meet face to face you can also ask questions via texts, if your considering bringing pets make sure the landlord is informed upfront, you may have problems otherwise.

 

http://www.cebuclassifieds.com/index.php?catid=97

 

Johnb

[Geoff Thomas]

Depending on what your looking for and the level of service as well as after service You are looking for I would agree with some of the people posting on this topic, however if your in a mid to high end budget, then I would highly recommend four or five different brokers here in Cebu. We can steer you clear of bad landlords, get you connected with various services you may require and even sort out your driving license requirements.

Unfortunately there are a lot of people that have been ripped off here in the Philippines, but and a big but! If your cup is always half empty and you can't see the obvious flaws in an otherwise fantastic place, you will undoubtedly fall victim ( I was once one of these victims, although my cup is always half full )

So to cap it off, us online advertisers tend to deal at a professional level, yes our houses are not cheap, why? Because we tend to deal in a different market place working with corporate people that expect certain standards when relocating to a new country.

If you are looking for a higher level of expertise to help you with your transition, please send me a message and I will be glad to point you in the right direction, wether or not you use our services I will gladly give you some pointers as to what and where to look for depending on your personal requirements.

Merry Christmas

[Geoff Thomas]

South of Cebu depending on where you want to be and how much social life you require opens up a few options, hospitals are scarce the further south you go, Badian I think is the last, it is close to moalboal which has quite an extensive expat community, bars, restaurants etc. I lived there for 18 months and although I enjoyed it and still visit from time to time, you definitely need to get to Cebu City from time to time for some essentials and normality, roughly a 3 hour trip.