What are some pros and cons about living in and/or away from the city?

[Jack Peterson]

9 hours ago, Dr. Shiva said:

Can you please still list the locations? I'm happy for every recommentation. It can be that I overlooked the location. Thank you.

 

8 hours ago, Dr. Shiva said:

There is also Panabo City. Nearer to Tagum City than to Davao but still just one bus ride away from both cities.

 Morning All & a Special Good morning to our friend Dr Shiva 

 Doc, you have this morning given me the smile I needed  But i just had to smile, you see, on One Topic you are asking for Advice and yet on another you are giving Advice on the same Subject. Nothing wrong with this as we all need Advice But I really did find this Funny 

 Have a good day Everyone, I am on my own here this morning So I am about  I see and hear  Tough! That's me 

 Now where did I put that Coffee 

[davewe]

10 hours ago, Dr. Shiva said:

Valencia is on my list primary due being near to Dumaguete and its cooler climate. And for shopping it takes only one ride to the Robinsons mall. Valencia seems to have a working waste management as having an emergency transport system even if it is getting misused sometimes. But I admit that it is not my top location. This is why I'm looking for even better locations.

I would agree that one to two months staying on one place will provide only a rough picture of a location. 

Can you please still list the locations? I'm happy for every recommentation. It can be that I overlooked the location. Thank you.

For years the standard answer for everything from everyone was "boots on the ground" until it drove me crazy and yet now I have to say the same. Based on recommendations from our very own folks here we rented a month to month apartment so we could with "boots on the ground" decide on a house rental. Despite years of planning, several things became obvious early on; for one we didn't want to live in Dumaguete proper. We explored Valencia, Bacong and close to Sibulan and liked them all for various reasons. In the end the house we rented did not have several of the things that were on my list of requirements or near requirements. But it had a lot going for it that was not on my list.

So I believe you are best off targeting a general area and then "with boots on the ground" you can get more focused.

[hk blues]

1 hour ago, davewe said:

So I believe you are best off targeting a general area and then "with boots on the ground" you can get more focused.

In an ideal world, absolutely.

But, for many it is simply impractical to do this. If you have kids, moving them around schools etc as you are deciding where to settle is not ideal. And moving your stuff from place to place isn't the best either. 

The concept is excellent, the practicalities for many make it very difficult.

1 hour ago, davewe said:

 

 

[Jack Peterson]

6 minutes ago, hk blues said:

The concept is excellent, the practicalities for many make it very difficult.

Agreed in the Main but what we did was choose the School first then travelled the area around for our place to settle We found on 2 occasions that places we found were in an Area that the schools were closed for Registrations for almost 1 year

 If life was always easy it may become Boring 

[davewe]

48 minutes ago, hk blues said:

In an ideal world, absolutely.

But, for many it is simply impractical to do this. If you have kids, moving them around schools etc as you are deciding where to settle is not ideal. And moving your stuff from place to place isn't the best either. 

The concept is excellent, the practicalities for many make it very difficult.

 

Everyone has to do it in the way they believe is best. I certainly visited the area I was considering moving to multiple times. For some that might mean moving to the country and then deciding on the best city for them. For others it might mean deciding on a city and then coming and finding a rental. For other it might mean buying a property in advance and shipping all their stuff from their home country - that's not my fave BTW.

For my wife and I we did it the way that seemed best for us based on lots of research. I guess my point was that despite my years of research, once I was here we changed our minds on several major areas. However one decides to do it, flexibility still seems important.

[Snowy79]

Another thing that will make a difference to your final residence is your personal attitude which no on here can control. 

I've been getting the itchy feet again to move but I'm torn as there's a great bunch of Ex pats here with a very active social life. Not just drinking but bike rides, day trips in a Jeepney, meals out etc. 

I've only been here a few months but have been readily accepted by the guys. At the same time there's a few ex pats that are positively detested by them due to their attitude. If you're not one for socialising be careful where you settle as it could get lonely if you're not liked. You can bet your reputation will process you and others that don't know you will judge you. 

If it's a city there's more of a choice for friends. If it's the Province you could get lonely. 

[Dave Hounddriver]

16 minutes ago, davewe said:

Everyone has to do it in the way they believe is best.

It is the only way. Some people are happy living in the same house forever and drive their kids to school every morning because the school they go to now is not the same one they went to 2 years ago.  Others move back to their home country when the kids get school age.

I have moved from place to place my whole life because over a period of 3 to 5 years my wants and needs change.  I am happy where I am at for now but I have never found "the perfect place" so how could I possible recommend it to others.

[hk blues]

8 hours ago, davewe said:

Everyone has to do it in the way they believe is best. I certainly visited the area I was considering moving to multiple times. For some that might mean moving to the country and then deciding on the best city for them. For others it might mean deciding on a city and then coming and finding a rental. For other it might mean buying a property in advance and shipping all their stuff from their home country - that's not my fave BTW.

For my wife and I we did it the way that seemed best for us based on lots of research. I guess my point was that despite my years of research, once I was here we changed our minds on several major areas. However one decides to do it, flexibility still seems important.

Yep...horses for courses as always. 

For me, with a wife and young child to consider, and the need to ship a container from Hong Kong, it was not going to be easy whatever option we chose so I chose the most practical option.

I also had a mindset that meant certain 'big boxes' had to be ticked, and everything else was negotiable. Did I make the right choice? Probably not, but then again I'm certain I'd give the same answer even if I'd done it differently.

[Dave Hounddriver]

7 minutes ago, hk blues said:

Did I make the right choice?

THAT is the crux!  There IS no one right choice.  There are only choices that are right for you, right now.  Each person has to make that choice on their own and change that choice when the occasion demands.

[Dr. Shiva]

Another crux is to have to rely on recommendation to prevent wasting too much time and money to search the right future living place. Especially if not living in the Philippines in before the move. We have probably only two to four future short visits before moving there.