Purchasing a Condo ... Pros and Cons

[Jollygoodfellow]

16 minutes ago, Ice Patrol said:

.Its a matter of finding a decent quality unit in the right location for a bargain

What part of the Philippines are you thinking of ???

[Jollygoodfellow]

10 hours ago, Jack Peterson said:

 I don't know how you do it,( Live that small) My daughters Bedroom is 16 sq mtr + her CR so about 19 in Total and she complains ( as they Do)

Well it's like this. Really how much space do you need? If there are only 2 people and you did not bring unnecessary things that you have to store then 22sqm is quite roomy. Before I came here I was living in a 3 bedroom house with ensuite to my bedroom bla bla  and only me living there but when it comes down to it, no I never needed it and certainly can live without it all. In fact I had a very large lounge which I never used, one bedroom was my computer room and another was just storage and all just wasted for my needs. More so now as I dont have much and like I say, you get used to living in a smaller place.

I see some condos which are smaller than 22 sqm and I bet its enough for most people if they put in perspective of their real needs.

Anyway the size of this condo for a studio in this area is about the same but location, location ,location. Soon i can walk more or less across the road and be in an Ayala mall. No need driving anywhere or closing gates. 

Suits me fine but wont suit everyone.

[Rayj]

My wife built a Bahai kubo with plywood , bamboo, and thatch roof for fun. Soon after she decided she really wanted a real concrete house so she had the same man, 1 man job or him and a helper change it to concrete with the same floor plan. Now we can add air conditioner and a little countertop. It does have a small bathroom and comes in at around 30 sq m. I didn’t catch on to what she was doing until she was well into it. I should have seen the signs as we were tuning into the “tiny homes” TV series’s. Now we feel as our “hotel room” is always reserved and ready for us. I give her credit for pursuing her passion to the end and she expects we’ll christen it in 2020. My only problem with that is she always wants to come during fiesta time and the tilt-a-whirl, and bingo are adjacent to us on the other part of our property so it’s no go for me from feb 1 to April 30. I haven’t a clue when fiesta officially starts so I can’t take a chance. Ahhhhhhh I would like to try October to January some day.

[Ice Patrol]

5 hours ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

What part of the Philippines are you thinking of ???

I am going to be open minded about selecting a location but Iloilo seems great for me.

[Ice Patrol]

13 hours ago, Jack Peterson said:

  Yep Found them:

    

That child has got room to roam...WoW ! 

 

[Tommy T.]

15 hours ago, Jack Peterson said:

  Yep Found them:

 

That doesn't look like a girl's bedroom - way too neat!

[Ice Patrol]

23 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

Hi Ice. I think it will depend a lot on where, exactly you want to settle. Prices, quality and convenience vary with location. I am in Davao. Others are spread out all over. Renting is a great idea so you can get the feel of the place - I highly recommend that. However, I looked for a condo here and most of them were really tiny - 40-70 sq. meters. Filipinos are small people - generally - so maybe that's why? I also found the ex-pats are the ones who seem to live in them here while Filipinos buy them then rent them out for tourists and business visitors or use them occasionally for their own use sometimes because they live out of town. Prices vary, but $60,000- $80,000 seems to be a rough average for what I just described.

I recently got the ssrv - it is NOT ciizenship - only a "permanent" visa. There is a huge difference. It was not difficult, but lots of little steps to take to get there.

Thanks for the info Tommy T....I am living in about 100 sq meters now and its much more than I need.So the smaller size is good for me.Hopefully I will find a nice bank repo unit .Not sure why the condo prices are unusually high in the PH. but its the same here in the US.

[hk blues]

3 hours ago, Ice Patrol said:

I am going to be open minded about selecting a location but Iloilo seems great for me.

I'm in Iloilo - in a house on a sub-division about 30 minutes drive from the city.  In the last 3-4 years a number of condo developments have started, they tend to be within the same location, about 20 minutes drive form the city - newly developed areas with a good choice of bars (kinda), restaurants or shops BUT seem pricey when compared to houses IMO.  It seems like a typical 2 bedroom condo is about 25-50% more expensive than a typical 3 bedroom house.  I'd worry a little about the maintenance of the common areas in the future - just my opinion, but many locals do not seem to care much about maintenance of their own property, never mind shared.  

[bamfurlong]

hello ice patrol

yes i am happy that we buy on a subdivision because before when we visited and stayed in condos i found that the other people who lived in the condos where very insular, no hello, no good morning and many are not the actual owner, just family members who say OHHHHHHHHHH we will be caretaker and then stay there while the owner is abroad.

I dont know if condo living in the USA is the same , so maybe its normal for you .

 

Buying on a subdivision is not without headaches, i make the developers send me weekly photos of the work because they dont listen and just reply "yes sir" "yes sir" . at least when i see the photos i can correct them.

I have friends who are from Iloilo and they say its a good place , and easy for travel boracay .

 

Regards

John

  

[bastonjock]

I bought a condo in Davao on an established build 

Its been a good investment so far , you have your monthly dues at around 1500 peso a month , annual tax is 28,000 , when i lived there i found the other ex pats friendly