The condo i live in (renting) within Cebu city is over 10 years old and the first high rise in the city. Occasionally one of the 2 lifts is down for repair. The fitness room equipment is either tired of misuse or broken. The pool is still ok though. But generally the place looks a bit tired. Something to think about while perusing those glossy brochures promoting luxury.

The Aussie landlord i have, completely refurbished the original unit in which we stay and told me of the really bad wiring and plumbing. From what he's told me of his other investments, the common sense has improved in the design of the modern condos but they are still built as cheaply as possible.

Prices for new condos are getting higher but it's whether or not they can be resold, and will they hold the value after 20-30years post build completion? I don't know the original price of the one i lived in but i'm guessing it is higher than the original upon construction. When i did approach a few real estate agents a few years ago about buying, they all preferred to direct me to future developments rather than complete ones. I guess they get commission on the former, but it shows that reselling your condo may be difficult via these agents especially when there are dozens of brand new condos are being built over the Manila and Cebu skyline. I can reason with them though. Why buy a condo which is a few years old, when you can have a brand new one decorated to your own liking. Building of new condo's won't stop for a long time yet.....so i doubt the selling culture of agents will be changing anytime soon.

Renting a condo rather than living in one is a viable option but you'll have to make effort in making your unit better and affordable than the hundreds of other landlords out there.

There is a Marco Polo suites development up the road from us in Cebu city, and there was a Hilton development over on Mactan island a few years back. I suspect these developments have a reputation so probably hold onto the value more than others. They of course come with a extremely high price tag to begin with.

Good luck with the decisions .....buying land off a local i suspect has more pitfalls than buying a condo from a huge well known condo building corporation (providing it is built already).