i know this has been said and asked before, but lets try again, the cost of living over in the phils, not a big city but not a worn out place either, if i brought my place say just a lot for now, what am i expected to pay ie, tax ground rent water, electric so on , all the things we get charged for here, so A 800 SQ METER lot would cost to run each month or year is what, and is it the bigger the lot the more you pay too,
don't worry too much about the taxes in phils...for sure emma can arrange it without paying much lol....dont move out yet..need emma here
got to do everything right grace , and we are here for a few more years yet, i am going to the phils no matter what though, even if i am in a jar under ems arm so she can plant me there
Depends what standard of living you want.
I'm happy in a Nipa hut.
.
malaria's callingOriginally Posted by grahamw48
Depends what standard of living you want.
I'm happy in a Nipa hut.
.
the cost of living in the Philippines can vary widely. Not only must you consider where you want to live, but also what you’re comfortable standard of living in the Philippines maybe.
Trying to live as cheap as you can, because that is all you can afford, is destined for an unhappy outcome. Your motive for living in the Philippines must be more than it just being cheap. Although cheap and affordable are high considerations. The last place you want to be, is the Philippines if you have run out of money.
Not surprising, how much you pay for rent is going to vary from place to place. Rentals in Manila are by far the highest in the country. Regional areas can be significantly cheaper.
Another determining factor is what type of dwelling you decide to rent. A one bedroom apartment will be more affordable than a fully furnished five bedroom house in an expat village.
Cost of rent in the Philippines can range from P10,000 per month in regional cities to upwards in excess of P50,000 per month in Manila. For P15,000 a month you will be able to find something pretty decent.
Food and groceries are not expensive to purchase in the Philippines. If you are prepared to eat local foods then your food and groceries will be quite cheap. Even if you allow for a fixture of western style foods the cost will not be enormous compared with what you would pay back home.
To give you an idea of costs in the Philippines you should budget between P25,000 to P40,000per month.
The cost of living in the Philippines is considerably cheaper than in western countries. How frugally you want to live is entirely up to you, as the options are many.
No matter what you end up deciding, make sure you have an income source to sustain you during your retirement years, yes the cost of living in the Philippines is cheap but if you run out of money, the Philippines is not where you want to be.
Are you copying and pasting Moy ?
It is true that some poriners are titillated by the 'fun' of living like a native, but of course they also have the luxury of the embassy 'back-up plan.'
yes and nosome where facts to what ive experience while husband living in the PH
Whatever prices are quoted nowadays will be irrelevant and eclipsed by inflation when you make your move steve,costs are only going one way,thats UP
Sometimes you're flush and sometimes you're bust, and when you're up, it's never as good as it seems, and when you're down, you never think you'll be up again. But life goes on.
The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It's the passion that she shows to the outside world.
well said tawiWhatever prices are quoted nowadays will be irrelevant and eclipsed by inflation when you make your move steve,costs are only going one way,thats UPand very true
and going higher and higher and higher ..under this present tory government.... Resign cameron you have no idea .... go back to hug a huddy...
thats why we are looking at buying the lot now, i dont want to live poor but also i dont want to live like a king too, its in between thats what i want, a few chickens a large garden and a small house
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/26359720
similar house we gotback in my province in the Philippines
really miss those days
Very much dependent on where you want to live.
Got offered a real nice 5 bedroom new build for just 12,000 pesos a month in Dipolog City Mindanao a great area with a nice mix of local and a slight Western influence in the mall there { ie you really wont want for nothing. }
Anyway i certainly dont need that amount of space.
Incidentally my girlfriends family have just bought a new-build 3 bedroom place on the outskirts of town for £20,000! on the same large development we checked out a large one bedroom new build for £9000, basic by our standards but certainly decent. The long term interest rates are very high but if you have a few £ spare and can pay off within 5 years its very very tempting!
The gfs family try hard to not let me buy anything at the market but i certainly insist!
£5 a day would give us all a great feed and enough for a couple of beers for me and her dad too!
When i do stay there it certainly saves me a small fortune and i have paid them back with a nice laptop, wifi connection and a new flat screen TV with UK and US cable, a nice arrangement for us all.
[QUOTE=Jimbojac;300804]Very much dependent on where you want to live.
Got offered a real nice 5 bedroom new build for just 12,000 pesos a month in Dipolog City Mindanao a great area with a nice mix of local and a slight Western influence in the mall there { ie you really wont want for nothing. }
Anyway i certainly dont need that amount of space.
Incidentally my girlfriends family have just bought a new-build 3 bedroom place on the outskirts of town for £20,000! on the same large development we checked out a large one bedroom new build for £9000, basic by our standards but certainly decent. The long term interest rates are very high but if you have a few £ spare and can pay off within 5 years its very very tempting!
thanks jimbojac, buy now seems the only way
Tax on a lot that size with no buildings or improvements...About 30.00 Pesos a year where we live (or less)..if i brought my place say just a lot for now, what am i expected to pay ie, tax ground rent water, electric so on
Ground water costs us nothing until we decide to use it.. The local barangay charge us 10.00 Pesos per Cubic meter.. In Tagbilaran its 15.00 Pesos so prices do vary a little..
City water prices and service charges? No idea as we have our own deep well and pump..(our abode in Manila region)
If I was single or married with no kids the absolute minimum I would need to live here would be 50k a month with at least 50K Sterling in a UK bank account..
I know perfectly well that I could survive on far less .. Thing is,I simply do not wish too anymore. Been there done that..Wrote the book!!
[QUOTE=fred;300842]Tax on a lot that size with no buildings or improvements...About 30.00 Pesos a year where we live (or less)..
Ground water costs us nothing until we decide to use it.. The local barangay charge us 10.00 Pesos per Cubic meter.. In Tagbilaran its 15.00 Pesos so prices do vary a little..
City water prices and service charges? No idea as we have our own deep well and pump..(our abode in Manila region)
If I was single or married with no kids the absolute minimum I would need to live here would be 50k a month with at least 50K Sterling in a UK bank account
thanks fred, i hope you are wrong in 50k a month thats pesos or pounds
For what it's worth take a look at this Cost Of Living In The Philippines page.
The city and currency inputs can be changed by the drop down menu's
I though it was quite a fun tool.
To the original question, I personally don't believe there's any meaningful answer since 'cost of living' is individual thing wherever we live.
It can only be stated at todays worth.
Inflation in Pinas will only go up. By how much each year is just not predictable
Exchange rates will not really improve for us Brits. How much will the pound be worth this year? Next year? in 5 years?
Ex-pat life will always be unpredictable, and tough to feel 'futureproof' when realiant upon western income streams.
If that elusive 'cost of living' happens to be P50k in July 2011, what will that be in £'s in 2015?
Just my 2 centavos
so true terpe , but we all have to make a start of our dreams, save and work hard for now, when we are over there at xmas we shall look around what is availible, the moey we have here is making nothing so once we do find our little paradise then we shall buy it now, its just making sure everything is right and you have enough funds
My cost of living here in Baybay:
-house rent is P3,000 and share that with my friends who are couple with their 2 kids, and 2 of my younger sisters live with me...so I pay P1,500/month for the rent
-water bill: P150 - 200 monthly
-electric bill: 200 - 350/month
-daily allowance for food is P150...every lunch I spend at least P20 t0 P40 for food (1 1/2 cup rice P8, P10 veggie, P15 to P20 for adobo etc)
-groceries: P500 - P1000 for 2 weeks to 1 month supply
- I spend from my salary at least P1500 to P2000 for personal needs or for my miscellaneous, the rest I give to my sister to budget for our food consumption.
my life is pretty simple, work and home, I save a little when me and my friends plan to do an island hopping or go hiking...right now, me and my sisters are planning by the end of July to try this zipline in Agas-agas bridge.....just 2 weeks ago, on a weekend, we went to a falls. I'm pretty lucky and I appreciate it very much, that everything is accessible without spending too much.
love makes life worth living
Trying to live as cheap as you can, because that is all you can afford, is destined for an unhappy outcome. Your motive for living in the Philippines must be more than it just being cheap. Although cheap and affordable are high considerations. The last place you want to be, is the Philippines if you have run out of money.
Wise words indeed from a sage, Moy
I know of three expats who have basically just run out of money and had to go back "home"
One,an Australian had been here for 19 years but was unwise in planning for his and his family's future.He is now claiming welfare in Sydney. The other two were both British, both came out about 8 years ago when the exchange rate was high and spent as if there was no tomorrow with no regard to the fact that prices here would rise steeply and the exchange rate would drop by over 30%.
The cost of living in the Philippines is much less than UK but it is very easy to spend money.
Forward planning and a regime of financial discipline is essential here. Its not rocket science and could be the difference between living or merely existing
Agree whole heartedly with Moy, Tanga and as always Terpe..
Just about every expat I know that lives here (except me) have good work and military pensions..
Im glad I didnt just leave a shed load of cash in the bank believing that I would always be able to rely on 7% interest and a good exchange rate.
The only way to keep up with inflation here is to have some kind of business that increases income as it (inflation) rises.. Either that or like most guys here have a damned good pension..
It used to be cheap here and some things still are..Like labour costs,booze,land and property in certain provincial areas of the country.. What else? Oh yes..Booze.
Electricity,Gas, , food and groceries are all going up and so are building materials and just about everything else ,mostly due to world oil prices and greedy vendors.. Some things like electricity (almost the most expensive in the world) and petrol occasionally have roll backs but in general the new prices stick and then rise once again.
Still far cheaper for us to live here than it would be in the UK..Dont forget we pay no council tax,water rates or hoards of Gov. stealth taxes except of course for VAT.
750.00 Quid a month still provides a pretty good quality of life here if your house,apartment etc is paid for..
Just my view.
Just about every expat I know that lives here (except me) have good work and military pensions..
Fred,
I receive no pension as I am 51. I sold my business in UK 12 years ago and spent the next 3 years between Philippines and UK.We already had a house here and I tried to get over for 3 weeks each year,(my wife would stay on for a few weeks with her family)
It got harder and harder to go back to UK.I was reasonably flush but just did not have the confidence to start another business and certainly found the climate hard to take,even in winter.
We had envisaged splitting our time between UK in summer then Philippines in winter but through circumstance the plan was fastracked by 20 years.
We have now been permanent here for the last 9 years. We live simply and very comfortably but not really in luxury and through choice exercise restraint.We dont pay high water rates,council tax and telephone charges etc.A small income from 3 or 4 sources supplements our capital and covers most of our expenses.
We have a slightly lower standard of living here but a far superior quality of life
Yep! Quality of life is the key and to give you folks a personal example.........
Many years back i went out to dinner with my then boss and he was splashing out on the wine at £35 a bottle which would be about £50-£60 in todays money, all very nice but to be honest having a cold beer with my Mates at the beach would have been better!
Life is what ya make of it huh!
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