goILOILO.com
Travels and personal perspectives on Iloilo and Panay Island
Iloilo Real Estate Notes and Snapshots
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All about Philippine real estate and all about Iloilo real estate – with photos. Foreigners may not own real property in the Philippines, except condominiums. Even though having your “own place” is irresistible, give deep consideration to renting instead of owning. Buying is much easier than selling. There will be a limited market for your multi-million peso dream home. You may wait years before finding a buyer. If your neighbor decides to raise pigs or start a karaoke bar, you’ll wish you had resisted the lure of home ownership. A renter can just move on. If you own a home you must just bear whatever happens or become involved in foreigner v. local squabbles which you’re unlikely to enjoy.
For the foreigner retiring to or retired in the Philippines another important consideration is health and health care. You may feel perfectly healthy when you retire at 55 or 60 or 65. No matter how fit you may seem now, chances are that you may have major and possibly disabling illnesses in your future.
- Is that beautiful beach property you dream of with easy reach of reasonably good medical care? It’s very possible to go from seeing a doctor once a year to seeing a doctor or doctors once per week. Is that practical from your proposed property? If you rent you can easily move to accommodate changing circumstances.
- Medical care is more affordable in the Philippines but, for a serious illness, it still it can be expensive. If you’re from Europe or North America you’re entitled to free medical care. Will it make sense to return home if you have a chronic illness. If so, what will happen to your dream home in the Philippines? If you rent you can more easily accommodate changing circumstances.
- If you’re a foreigner who’s married a younger Filipino spouse, does the property make sense as a home for her after you’re gone? Are you leaving her with the means of supporting herself and maintaining the house?
There are many subdivisions in Iloilo and surrounding communities and more springing up all the time. Unlike hilly Cebu City, Iloilo is surrounded by flat rice land and fish ponds which are being filled in and developed. Iloilo does not have the pretty hillside subdivisions of Cebu City.
In Iloilo’s “elite” subdivisions lots can cost P4000 to P7000 per square meter or more. Almost always there is a discount for cash, usually 10 to 20%. Prices at the shiny new subdivisions are usually not very negotiable. Since it’s likely the luster will be off the new subdivision in a few years, consider shopping for a lot or existing home in one of the older subdivisions. There are bargains to be had. In my opinion, P3,500 per square meter is a fair price for property in an older Iloilo City subdivision.
Lot size. Foreigners, especially Americans, are often shocked by the small size of building lots in the Philippines. We were. For many Americans, the dream home includes a large yard with plenty of room for landscaping, gardening, BBQ, badminton, swimming pool and so forth. We thought 1,000 square meters is the smallest lot we could live with. After all, 1,000 square meters is about 1/4 acre — a very small lot by American standards. So we went outside the city where prices are lower and bought 1,500 square meters. Only now are we starting to realize the real cost of our transported suburban dream. Most Philippine lots need to be fenced with a hollow-block fence. Most lots in the Iloilo area need to be filled so they will not be flooded during the rainy reason. With a small urban lot, these expenses are relatively small, but the cost of fencing our large lot is very high because there are so many feet of fencing to be done. The same is true with filling. The cost of filling and fencing can equal the cost of the property. Of course we’ll have some of the advantages we dream of; open space, gardens, room for fruit trees, mountain views, clean air and clean water.
I feel that many of the big subdivisions located well outside the city offer questionable value. Per square meter costs can be high given the rural location and, if you buy a house and lot package, the overall cost can be well above the resale value of the property. The picture is even worse if the developer finances your purchase.
We have looked at most of the established subdivisions in Iloilo and, with a few exceptions, we frankly must say we don’t find them to be an impressive lot. Compared to the better Cebu City subdivisions, there seems to be little interest in maintaining the attractiveness of the subdivisions, too little attention goes to maintaining landscaping, roads, sidewalks, lighting, signs and community facilities. Even nicely designed upscale developments seem to fall into decay rather rapidly. Locals tell me this is because, once the subdivision is sold out, control goes to a homeowner association and that property owners just don’t want to spend money to maintain the subdivision, even in subdivisions with quite expensive houses. The better subdivisions in Cebu City (such as Maria Luisa) do a better job.
Some of the possible advantages of buying property and living in a subdivision.
- First of all, there is a certain regularization of surveys, titles and access within most subdivisions. If you buy a lot, especially with cash, your chances of getting a clear title, defined lot lines and road access are fairly good.
- You may also have access to a decent drainage (sewer) system to hook into. I would not buy in an Iloilo subdivision that did not have municipal (NAWASA) water. The quality of municipal water seems to be good but there are increasing shortages. Since you can strike water in Iloilo practically anywhere you can dig a hole, many houses use ground water rather than paying for municipal water. Unless far out in the country, I’d be leery of the quality of such ground water except for laundry and car washing. There are thousands of septic systems and various kinds of commercial waste — all seeping into a shallow water table.
- Just because there is a drainage system does not mean the subdivision will not flood. There are serious flooding problems in many parts of Iloilo. Some high-end subdivisions (and unfortunate lot purchasers) have been more or less abandoned due to flooding. Many parts of Jaro have such problems but flooding is something to consider wherever you look. If you arrive by air look down and you’ll see that Iloilo is barely above sea level and laced with rivers and fish ponds. Unless you are looking at properties during the rainy season, it can be very difficult to determine if a particular property floods. The worst type of flooding is caused by overflowing rivers. More transient flooding can be caused by poor drainage. In Iloilo, flooding can be a passing inconvenience or a disaster when several feet of water and mud pour into your house. You must talk to neighbors, bystanders, pedicab drivers and anyone else you can find to gather information. Typhoon Frank (June 2008) caused terrible flooding problems in Jaro and Pavia subdivisions previously thought to be safe from flooding. There is a flood control project under construction. Sellers may tell you that this project will solve flooding problems, but only time will tell.
The road into a small Tigbauan, Iloilo subdivision after heavy rain.
- In the Philippines there is really no zoning or effective planning or land use regulation. Outside of subdivisions, it’s common to see big houses cheek-by-jowl with shacks and businesses. Just as the ever-present security guard is a private response to crime and weak law enforcement, subdivisions are a sort of privatized zoning. They have rules governing the types of houses that can be built, commercial uses and keeping of livestock. The rules are often poorly enforced but still can work to provide a more refined environment than you’ll find outside the subdivision.
For example, some gated subdivisions do not allow dogs to roam the subdivision roads and prohibit roosters and other farm animals such as pigs. I have seen and smelt pigs in high end subdivisions. The rules are hard to enforce. Keeping pigs and chickens is a god-given right in the Philippines and irresistible to the thrifty Ilonggo, even if quite well to do. A foreigner seeking to get rules enforced can become entangled in feuds.
- Security. I consider Iloilo to be quite safe, but break-ins are a problem as they are elsewhere in the Philippines. We have friends whose house was broken into the very first night they stayed in their new house. Fortunately they slept through the robbery. They were in a subdivision, but an open one, no guards. Some have guards, but the streets are filled with pedicab drivers and other hangers-about.
There are a very few subdivisions that offer real security with strict admission requirements and roving patrols. Villa Soriano would not let me, a kano in, even with the excuse that I wanted to buy property. That’s strict. I was able to wander about Maria Louisa in Cebu, no problem. Villa Rosario also has pretty good security. Some subdivisions are quite open during the day but stricter at night. Without such security you’ll not want to leave your house unattended.
When I visit a subdivision I look around and gauge a “barbed wire index” as a clue to break in problems. If the compounds in the subdivision have lots of added barbed wire, rebar extensions on top of existing walls to hold even more barbed wire, I figure there is a reason.
I do feel that it’s easier to resell a property in a top subdivision in the City proper because affluent Filipino buyers value security and convenience.
See also http://goiloilo.com/crime-against-foreigners-philippines/
NEGOTIATION:
Generally speaking, there are two types of sellers; those who hold real estate as an investment and are willing to wait as long as it takes to get the price they want. Holding property for years in the Philippines is easy as real estate taxes are so low. Then there are those who are motivated sellers who really want to sell and are willing to negotiate. Some motivated sellers have unrealistic expectations, hoping to strike it rich, especially if a foreign buyer shows up. My approach for either type of seller is to decide what a property is worth to me and make an all cash offer. It may be well below the asking price. Probably it will be refused. Be very polite. Don’t lord it over the seller. Explain the problems you have in paying more; kids in college, exchange rates etc. Leave a calling card and ask them to contact you if they change their mind. Be patient. Eventually you’ll find a property you like and a motivated seller.
Monthly rentals suitable for foreigners seem pretty abundant, with monthly rent ranging from P6000 to P25000 per month with P6000 to P8000 typical for two bedroom apartments and P10000 to P15000 for a decent but not lavish house. Really nice free-standing houses to rent can be quite hard to find.
REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONALS:
Below are some real estate brokers who we have enjoyed working with — but of course this must be a conditional recommendation. Always do your own research and make up your mind. I do not accept any payment of any kind from any of these people.
Butch Guzman, Socorro Subdivision, Iloilo City, 0921-551-2717 from outside the Philippines +63-921-551-2717. If you want to send him an e-mail send it to: hammerslag@gmail.com and I’ll get to him.
Boyet Octavio, +63-33-337-3441 mobile +63-927-593-6962,email: ricardooctaviojr@gmail.com, Suite 205, La Salette Building, Valeria Street, Iloilo City.
Mike Corro 0916-729-5472 www.iloilorealestate.com
Real Estate etiquette for foreigners. You are not in Kansas any more. Real estate brokers in the Philippines often struggle to survive. Many do not own vehicles. They may not have computers and can’t engage in lengthy e-mail correspondence with you. This does not mean they are fly-by-night operators, it’s just a reflection of how tough it is to survive in the Philippines. You may have to supply and pay for a vehicle such as a taxi. If they do have a vehicle, give them a couple of hundred pesos to help with gas. Salespersons working for the big subdivisions may have nice vehicles to cart you around in.
Iloilo Real Estate Attorney. We have had very good luck with Jeanette Ong, Casa Plaza Building (adjoins the Atrium Shopping Center), Suite 210, Iloilo City, +63-336-3826, mobile 09209188170. Jeanette is a former Iloilo Registrar of Deeds. She specializes in real estate and has treated us in a honest and straightforward manner.
There’s a very useful Yahoo Group (e-mail list) about Philippine real estate. You can post real estate questions there. The group is run by Dave Williams who has years of experience with Philippine real estate and Philippine real estate problems. You’ll get an unvarnished advice from Mr. Williams. Click the button below to subscribe. It’s free, it’s not a high volume list, is strictly moderated to keep out spam and you can quit anytime
Below are snapshots of properties which we have looked at over the last three years. It’s likely that many have been sold. They are here just to give an idea of the Iloilo real estate market. We do not own or have any other interest in any of these properties nor do we receive any compensation of any kind for showing them here. They are here just to give non-residents dreaming of retiring in Iloilo an idea of the Iloilo real estate market.
Here’s an example of what can be done on a budget in the Philippines:
A budget house near the beach in Villa, Iloilo
Our friends bought a 100 square meter lot very near the beach in Villa, Iloilo City for less than $5,000. It has a pretty view of the ocean and they have access to the beach only a few steps away. They are building a small (36 square meter) concrete house for less than $10,000. The house can be expanded by another story. This photo is taken from the future second floor of the house.
1000 m2 Beachfront for sale at Guimbal, Iloilo
Guimbal Beachfront for Sale
Ledesco Village Subdivision, Iloilo City, House and Lot P3M
House for Rent, Villa, Iloilo City
The best way of finding a place to rent is to cruise the streets and watch for signs like this. Property owners put up signs like this so they can avoid paying a commission to a real estate agent — typically on month’s rent.
Beachfront for Sale at Oton Iloilo City, Panay Island, Philippines 600 m2 @ P2500 located in Oton. Also available 200m2 adjoining and 1243 beachfront (?) @2000. No public water.
Swish Southville Subdivision, San Jose Street, Iloilo City
"Main Street" Southville Subdivision, Iloilo Iloilo City, Panay Island, Philippines In December 2006 we looked at a large four bedroom house here. The price was P 9M. We looked at it again in August 2007. The price, fully furnished, was P 7M.
P 7,000,000 house for sale in Southville Subdivision, Iloilo City. Southville is mostly built-out subdivision. Unlike some other subdivisions, maintenance and security at Southville seems good.
This house in Lawaan, Iloilo City, sold for P1.4 million -- a good deal.
A big new house goes up in the Metropolis subdivision, Iloilo City
Lots for sale at Metropolis subdivision, Iloilo, City
Model homes on a model street: Savannah Subdivision, Oton, Ilolio. Note no walls and no security grills. That's what makes it look like a suburban subdivision in the west?
800m2 Lot, Socorro Subdivision, Molo, Iloilo City, P3,300 per square meter. Socorro is an older, quiet and convenient. It is closed, gated, guarded and patrolled after dark but is open during the day. This is one of the place I take my walks.
House in Socorro Subdivision, Iloilo City
We considered buying this interesting house in the Socorro subdivision. It is on a 1,000 square meter lot. We’ve heard it sold for P 5 million. The new owners have made improvements to it.
Gran Plains Subdivision, Jaro Iloilo City
Some of the biggest subdivisions in the Jaro district of Iloilo were affected by the typhoon Frank flooding of 2008. Do you homework before buying a lot anywhere in Iloilo City. Gran Plains and several other Jaro subdivisions were not flooded.
Providence subdivision, Iloilo City
Townhouses for Rent in Villa, Iloilo City, 3 BR, pricey at P20,000 per month
Apartments for rent in Villa, Iloilo City, Philippines - decent 2BR apartments for P6,500 per month.
This is just a snapshot I took while walking in Arevalo (Villa), a pleasant westerly part of Iloilo City. We have friends who rented in this compound so we got to see three of the apartments. Monthly rents here are about P6,000 to P8,000 per month. It seems like a good choice for basic housing. Contact Socemo “Simone” Paraguya at 033-336-3955.
There seems to be many rentals available in this part of the city. We think it’s a good place to live, less crowded and more green than the city proper with good transportation into the city center via jeepney or taxi. The Arevalo public market is convenient. To find a rental you just have to walk the main streets and look for signs. Also check the Landheights Subdivision for rentals. A pedicab driver can tour you around the subdivision.
Pavia Iloilo: 3463 square meters of titled mountain view land for sale Iloilo City, Philippines View of adjoining property reportedly purchased by Ayala Land for future development.
Pavia, Iloilo land for sale
Pavia Iloilo: 3463 square meters of titled mountain view land for sale
This property is an easy drive out of Iloilo City. It’s level and requires only little filling. It has long frontage of concrete road plus additional right of way to the far end of the property. Pretty mountain views. Adjoins large tract reportedly acquired by Ayala Land for future development. Also close to Providence and Savannah subdivisions but is priced at less than one-half per square meter. Buy this land, keep the part you want to build on and sell the balance. Surveyed. Drainage system along road. A good buy at P1000 per square meter. Contact Butch Guzman 63-921-551-2717. 0921-551-2717 from the Philippines.
Santa Barbara Heights subdivision
This new subdivision adjoins the beautiful and historic Santa Barbara, Iloilo golf course. Any golfer (or anyone else) should look at this subdivision. It’s quite beautiful. We don’t have prices or other details but you can get contact information from the photo above.
Santa Barbara Heights subdivision
Santa Barbara Heights subdivision
Santa Barbara Heights subdivision
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Posted by GOIloilo on 08.13.08 6:47AM under Iloilo City, Iloilo Real Estate, Medical and Dental, Nature, Environment, Perspectives
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Posted by goILOILO.com : Retire in the Philippines: how far from the city? on 09.04.08 1:51 pm
[...] also my Philippine Real Estate Primer: http://goiloilo.com/a-primer-on-iloilo-real-estate Posted by GOIloilo on Thursday, September 4, 2008, at 1:51 pm. Filed under Iloilo Real Estate, [...]
Posted by goILOILO.com : Crime against foreigners in the Philippines on 09.20.08 10:52 am
[...] Here, just about everyone goes into some level of lock-down at night. If you’re prosperous you’ll have a concrete wall and iron grates on your windows If you’re poor you’ll have a bamboo fence and gate, bamboo grates on your windows. All have a four-legged alarm system — if poor a mutt, if richer a Doberman. If you leave something out at night, it might well be gone in the morning. Well-to-do Filipinos move to gated subdivisions. There are a variety of reasons for that. For further reading see our Iloilo the real estate primer link http://goiloilo.com/about-iloilo-real-estate/ [...]
Posted by rosita rea on 12.04.08 7:21 am
i just want to know pls asap if how many sq.m. the house and lot that ive seen in lawaan subd.iloilo and how many bedroom and toilet?pls
Posted by GOIloilo on 12.04.08 11:08 am
Rosita,
As noted at the beginning of the photo session, most of these properties have already been sold or rented, as applicable. They are shown her just to give people an idea of the Iloilo real estate market. We are not real estate agents. We are just sharing photos of properties we have looked at. We don’t have any additional information. Good luck!
Posted by Mike Koffler on 05.31.09 3:58 am
Very comprehensive website! Packed with great tips! Another alternative to renting or buying would be remodeling a relative’s house, the living with them in separate quarters. While this could be expensive, it may also take the headache out of looking for a place to settle down.
Posted by GOIloilo on 09.16.09 11:53 am
This is from a reader who would like to help you with real estate. I don’t know her so can’t recommend one way or another.
E-mail : nicolecaday@gmail.com
People are nice, “malambing”, friendly, and a lot safer compare in manila. I hope I could help!email me if your interested!
Comment:
Hi everyone!Anyone planning to reside in Iloilo? I’m a real estate agent. You can choose from different varieties: subdivisions, foreclosed houses, or near in the city houses. Iloilo is the best place to settle down especially if your getting old