Breakfast with Kindle

KINDLE NEWS FLASH! October 7, 2009. Amazon has announced a new international version of the Kindle which, according to Amazon, works wirelessly in the Philippines and around the world.

I have never found having to get my Kindle downloads through USB to be a major inconvenince.  To me the biggest news is that Amazon will ship the Kindle to the Philippines and allow Philippine residents to purchase Kindle content.  Here’s the link to the new INTERNATIONAL KINDLE. You can click on the image below just to get all the details. If you decide to buy, you’ll help support goIloilo by using this link. Thanks! Just remember that such purchases will be subject to Philippine customs duty.

NEWS FLASH TWO.  Before buying a Kindle be sure to look over the brand new Barnes & Noble “Nook” e-reader. More info at http://www.barnesandnoble.com/nook/index.asp

A big advantage for Philippine readers is that the Nook offers Wi-Fi purchase of books.

The e-reader competition is heating up!

Here’s our older Kindle post. I was fortunate to receive an Amazon Kindle for Christmas from a very kind friend in the U.S.  I have had no problems performing the required device registration at the Amazon website in the U.S.  I have had no problems buying, downloading and using Kindle content.  Amazon will convert files (PDF, TXT etc.) you email them to the Kindle .azw file format for free.  That also works fine.  All these tasks were accomplished with a Philippine (Globe) IP address.  It’s my understanding that you must have a credit card with a U.S. address in order to purchase a Kindle.  Some have said that it’s possible to get around this requirement by purchasing an Amazon gift card with a foreign (non-U.S.) credit card and using the gift card to purchase the Kindle.  I have not needed to test this work-around as I have a U.S. address and credit card. Let’s hope the Kindle does become available in the Philippines. I’m sure it’s Amazon’s objective to sell it worldwide.  As of now, they can’t keep up with the demand in the U.S.

I’m a reader.  If you don’t live in Manila, the selection of books and international newspapers and magazines is quite limited — in Iloilo, very limited.  Iloilo has a huge college student population but, as far as I know, no bookstores other than the National Bookstore branches at Robinson’s and SM City.  The number of books actually for sale is shockingly small. High shipping costs make buying from Amazon or other foreign booksellers expensive.  Electronic versions of many classic and out-of-copyright books are available for 99 cents on Amazon and free from other sites such as Project Gutenberg.

Kindle offers a work-around, and not only for books.  International newspapers are completely unavailable in Iloilo City.  Using the Kindle I can have the current issue of the Financial Times with my morning coffee — or of course any one of a dozen other foreign papers. Sure, I can read these on my computer, but the user interface and especially the portability of the Kindle is superior to my laptop.  Now that we live on the ocean in Tigbauan, Iloilo, I like to take my Kindle down to the shore in late afternoon. I read the paper and watch the sun set behind the palm trees! The Kindle is another technology (along with DSL and Skype) that helps make the life of the expat even better.  Now you can live in the most remote provincial location* and read the New York Times with your breakfast.  That’s progress!

The one problem I’ve had with our Kindle, the original Kindle, is that the display fades almost to unreadability when the ambient temperature is high, say 90F. We do not use usually use air conditioning so this is a disadvantage.

If you’d like to buy a Kindle in the U.S.A. before you come to the Philippines please use this link and help to support goILOILO.com

*if you have Internet access.  You didn’t buy rural property with checking that did you?

WATTPAD. If you’re interested in e-books and you’re on a budget, check out http://www.wattpad.com/ They offer e-book materials which work on a variety of cellphones and lots of free books and other content for download.  The website is available in Tagalog.

7-15-06

Very nice job, Tom. To reinforce some of Tom’s post I will add a couple of sentences on my own satisfaction with life in RP. Finding a happy location to live in was true for us… moved a few times, finally buying, building and matching our desires with our income.

Though there are 3 expats in our city of 51 barangays, we seldom see each other (except at joint Rotary Club meetings), and I have more to say to my barkada (close group of Filipino men my age who have taken me in lock-stock and barrel). I sit with them 2 or 3 nights a week and drink beer and eat pulutan. I work at a university with one, play tennis with another, take small trips with 2 others, and so on. I never had this level of social interaction in the US, preferring pretty much to stay apart. These guys are always sort of around and while not bothering, or pestering me, they make it very easy to do things with them that I enjoy. They often do things that incorporate my wife and kids.

I am mostly stared at, called Joe, and my presence sometimes stimulates laughter and a clerk scurrying away to call for another clerk to wait on me. Though I have learned to speak Tagalog in a primitive fashion, those listening always expect me to speak English and there is always that communication dance until we settle. While some Filipinos are fluent in English, most in my experience are marginally able to communicate in English, and a lot cannot). My Rotary Club is made up of doctors and attorneys and the like, and they insist that I speak Tagalog because its hard work for them to translate constantly.

This list, remote when I choose it to be, serves my need for expat communication. Strange huh? Oddly, it fills my need when I read and write things back and forth with members. While I have never met Don H. personally, I feel I am a friend. We sometimes communicate by text or voice. Others on the list I know as “friends”, though they aren’t what you would think of in the US as friends. With a few others I sometimes sense animosity or adversity. On a few occasions I have been in Angeles but never try to talk with any of the expats or visitors I run across.

Just my thoughts,
Mike M.
——

10-22-07

Hi Chris,
I am the project director of a program that brings education (1st to 10th grade), counseling (drug, offender, victim), skills training (electronic, well drilling, etc), and spiritual- read character development, to approximately 500 prisoners at the Bulacan Provincial Jail. Its not a prison until they have been convicted which takes up to 5 or 6 years, and then they go to one of the 7 prisons in the Philippines- from here they go to Muntinlupa. My “salary” goes to the prison. There are a total of 2,2500 prisoners here. I also direct Tanglaw Pag-asa (hope and peace), the juvenile rehab center for 75 youth in slam for index crimes.

Visiting daily 1 – 5. The are dependent on family/visitors for everything (medication, shampoo, clothes, etc), except an insufficient amount of food daily. Now we are not allowing money in because of extortion. I am trying to establish a bank against administrative opposition.

Many if not most prisoners are indigent-usually meaning squatters. Their children, spouses, can’t afford transportation so they never receive visitors. Many families disintegrate during the 5 year incarceration period. I have recently arranged with a Rotary Club in San Jose del Monte to bring 50 visitors twice a month. My club will pay one trip per month (about 1,600 with food thrown in).

There are many groups waiting for counseling. I do 10 sessions per groups- in part for the therapy and in larger part for the opportunity for prisoners to talk to someone.

If you want to know about hell, visit one. If you are in Bulacan, drop in and I’ll give you the tour.

Thanks for asking, Mike M.
—-

10-31-07

Its how we live, its what we do and we are not likely to change. Its also known and talked about by everyone and everyone throws up their hands. This level of pessimism is like fresh salt, spicy or painful.

For me, the most difficult part of finding solace in living in the Philippines has been fitting into the culture. The hugely numerically dominant lower classes beg, borrow, and steal what I have and throw their offal in any water source. We cherish their white toothed smiles though many if not most have rotting teeth and no health insurance. The overflow of their offspring roam the streets of every municipality, unclaimed.

The extremely thin middle classes hang onto their legacy of property and practice their barkadas day and night, clinging to one another while drinking 5 beers each night and eating pulutan. They have insurance, make heartless use of the lower class in their employment, and enjoy their status. Their smiles conceal what they are thinking. They claim they want to change the status of the lower classes but cling tightly to everything they own- except for when it comes to the barcadas. They are pessimistic about the government.

The extremely wealthy overlords- it is said that 250 families own 95% of the Philippines- rule with impunity. They seldom have to rethink anything they wish to do because they are in charge. They control government, economy, crime and social progress.

——-
To oversimplify about myself, I was raised in a lower class environment, and like many, many Americans crawled into and was accepted by the huge middle class. Poor people brushing elbows with well-to-do people and no one the wiser. I didn’t hobnob with the Rockefeller, Kennedy and Bush families, but except as a child, never knew hunger. We all had/have money sufficient to keep us content.

Here, I am welcomed with open arms into the middle classes, but as a generality find it cloistering, sadly hypocritical and disingenuous. They seem to tolerate my pitiful philanthropy, commenting that they are blessed to have me here- but, they don’t want to join me in trying to fix things. I search among them unsuccessfully for a confidante. I relish my daily reading of the comments of people on this list- my contact with reality. I seem to be stuck in paradise to sort of coin a phrase. I don’t really want to spend my remaining years consuming 5 beers a night and eating goat entrails.

But, that’s who we are and what we do. Take it or leave it.

Mike M.

———

“I am lonely here, made more so by an increasing recognition of how deeply alien I am. I have long tired of the nightly drinking and eating with the barcada. I see more deeply into the Austroasian mind as time passes.”

——–

News Report

American found dead By: Emil G. Gamos & Erick Silverio MALOLOS City —An American psychologist was found dead under his car parked on the MacArthur Highway in Barangay Pio Cruzcosa, Calumpit, Bulacan early yesterday morning.

Police said Mike Mikesell, president of the Rotary Club of Barasoain,
Malolos and former consultant at the Tanglaw Pag-asa (Bulacan Center for Youth Offenders), had a gunshot wound in the head.

The victim was found by village watchmen under his silver XLT Ford Ranger with a .25 handgun at 3:50 a.m., police said.

Police said a handwritten note with a message “Pls. contact Fe Mikesell” was found on the car windshield. Fe Mikesell turned out to be the victim’s Filipino wife.

Acting Bulacan police director Senior Supt. Allen Bantolo said he is still awaiting the results of the forensic investigation of the SOCO on the incident.

“Sa initial report, it appears na mukhang me element ng suicide dahil sa nakitang handwritten note at baril sa tabi ng bangkay ng biktima,” Bantolo said.

Bantolo directed the Provincial Police investigation branch to conduct a thorough probe of the incident.

Mikesell supported the giving of free services to juvenile delinquents detained at Tanglaw Pag-asa. He is also very active helping the local government in its youth and health programs.
——–

3-28-08

Hello everyone. I’m a long-time friend of Mike Mikesell, and I’ve been a member of this group as long as he had, although I never posted a message. I’m also married to a filipina, and I was the one to introduce the Philippines to Mike.

I want to clear up some confusion about his passing and to recognize his contributions to the Philippines.

I’ve been quite active to trying to ensure a complete investigation happens, and that is the case. The police are extensively conducting this, and the Am. Embassy is watching all of this too.

If you knew Mike well, you would know he would never take his own life, and just last week I had been helping him line up a boat that he had planned to live on with his family. They recently visited a marina to look at one. He was also investigating a business idea I sent him.

It’s now become known Mike had recently taken out a restraining order on someone. He also had received death threats. Mike was found under his truck shot with his gun he carried in the truck. His hands were scraped. He was dirty, indicating he put up a fight.

I can only conclude something went sour with someone or with multiple people who decided to do this. It may have been Mike was going to protect himself with the gun, and they got it away from him.

You may be aware Mike was a psychologist (we went to the same grad school and were in the same psychology program), and Mike volunteered his time as a professor at the Univ. of Bulacan, a prison, an orphanage, a juvenile detention center, and a women’s insane asylum. I visited all these facilities with him last year, and the people there (both staff and patients/prisoners) loved him. Mike was also the president of the local Rotary. Mike brought programs to these facilities that had never been seen in the Phils . He moved people out of cages were they had been locked away for years. He brought hope to others who could not get the ear of anyone to listen to their plight. He helped people develop skills that would keep them out of these facilities in the future. Mike loved helping others caught up in these facilities/situations, and he was driven to do whatever he could.

Mike’s wife, Fe, is barely coping, as you can imagine. I’m sure at some point she will be viewing these postings. Any other positive comments, memories, you may want to relate to her, I’m sure she will appreciate.

These years in the Philippines for Mike have been the best for him. I’m sure that he has no regrets in coming here. He sometimes pushed things to their limits, but that only enhanced the wild ride of his life that simply added to his enjoyment. Goodbye Mike.

and finally,

I too feel a huge loss for Mike and now understand why Mike posted to this site concerning Life Getting To Him Here

I seriously doubt that Mike committed suicide but was set up for a contract killing,he may have underestimated the danger he was in. It is very easy to have a misunderstanding with a Filipino and be in grave danger.

We westerners commonly think that any altercations can be resolved by the courts and we rely on the Police to intervene in any disputes, however the mind set in this country leans more to revenge then settling disputes in court. The going rate for a contract killing is less then 300 USD thank God that the killers did not go after Mikes family as well

One of my best friends returned to America because of a land dispute between his wife’s family he nor his wife were involved The dispute was over fish pond ownership her father killed his cousin in a heated argument with a bolo and was also shot in the leg during the argument self defense but the cousins family put out a contract on my friends family

After this my friend started getting death threats on his life as well as his sons and his wife’s , so after 5 years of living here happly they decided to move back to the USA

My friend was a retired police officer from Detroit City and had seen his share of problems and had the recommendations on the wall to prove it but he realized that the threat to his family was real and it was impossible to insure his families safety.

As for Mike carrying a gun I’m sure the out come would have been the same with or with out the gun the only difference the gun could have made was if Mike had used it instead of carrying it he should never have let them get close enough to take it away from him

Just my opinion after 7 years of living here

Tom, Roxas City

When the foreigner living in the Philippines with his Filipina wife dies, what happens to the wife and kids?  In too many cases there is little saving, pensions may stop and the wife and kids may end up destitute.

That’s why there are big advantages to the Filipina of becoming a US or European citizen.  When the husband passes away the Filipina has a US or European citizenship and passport.  She and any children can relocate overseas and find employment or receive government benefits.  Even if the widow remains in the Philippines, as a US citizen she can receive US Social Security Survivor’s benefits, immediately if the couple has children, or when she turns 60.  Details at http://www.ssa.gov/pgm/links_survivor.htm The rules can be quite complicated.  You can call the Social Security Services section at the US Embassy in Manila at: (63) (2) 301-2000

There is one too little-known alternative for Filipina widows who were married to US Citizens, the I-360 Widow/Widower immigrant visa.  The widow or widower can self-apply to immigrate to the US after her husband’s death.  Of course their children are already US citizens, if their birth has been registered with the US Embassy in Manila.  The widow will need enough money to survive during the I-360 application process, to pay the application fees ($455.00 as of 10-08), to travel to the US Embassy in Manila for interviews and finally to travel to and get settled in the US. This will amount to several thousands of dollars. For more information, go to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services Click on the “immigration forms” tab, scroll down to the I-360 line and download the form and instructions.

The widow or widower may self-file this petition if:

• You were married for at least two years to a U.S. citizen who is now deceased and who was a U.S. citizen at the time of death;
• Your citizen spouse’s death was less than two years ago – SO DON’T DELAY;
• You were not legally separated from your citizen spouse at the time of death; and
• You have not remarried.

The I-360 petition must be filed with:

• copy of your marriage certificate to the U.S. citizen and proof of termination of any prior marriages of either of you;
• Copies of evidence that your spouse was a U.S. citizen, such as a birth certificate if born in the United States, Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship issued by USCIS; Form FS-240, Report of Birth Abroad of Citizen of the United States; or a U.S. passport which was valid at the time of the citizen’s death; and
• copy of the death certificate of your U.S. citizen spouse.

Unmarried minor children may be included on the same I-360 petition.

Special note to previous married widows: self-petitioning widows of US citizens may be denied visas if it is discovered that there was a prior marriage. When an individual marries more than once, the party applying for immigration benefit must show evidence of the termination of the first marriage as well as the existence and validity of the second marriage. The person seeking the immigration benefit of a marriage has the burden of establishing the validity of the second marriage. Proving that the prior marriage is terminated may either be through court documents granting annulment or dissolution of the marriage. The USCIS generally recognizes annulment granted in a foreign country such as in the Philippines, as a matter of comity, as long as that particular court had jurisdiction to grant the annulment.

The following was posted my Ron McCarthy of the excellent Mag-Anak Yahoo Group: “There have been circumstances where these (I-360) visas have been denied. Needless to say, many lawsuits have been filed against the USCIS regarding this matter. The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (which has appellate authority over California, Nevada, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington) was the first circuit court to address this issue. In its precedential case of Freeman v. Gonzalez decided in 2006, the Ninth Circuit held that alien spouses remain immediate relative spouse for the purpose of the immigration law, and that the death of their US citizen spouses prior to the second wedding anniversary does not strip them of the opportunity to obtain permanent residence in the United States.”

——

I have prepared a guidebook for my wife on the steps she should take should I predecease her.  These include:

• Contact our US attorney
• Inform American Citizen Services at the US Embassy in Manila
• Get several copies of my official death certificate. May also need a Consular Report of Death of an American Citizen Abroad
• Notify Social Security Administration of my death.
• My wishes regarding disposal of my remains.
• Various instructions on how to handle financial affairs.
• If your wife qualifies for an I-360, be sure she has a copy of your marriage certificate, divorce papers from any of your prior marriages and knows where to find your US Passport.  It’s much easier for you to obtain such documentation while you are alive than it will be for your widow after you die.

Sorry if this is not so helpful to non-Americans.  I am not knowledgeable about the situation for other nationalities.  If you can add more information, please leave a comment below.

Iloilo City Central Market, Philippines

We live in Iloilo City and keep quite close track of our food expenditures.  We had read about soaring food price inflation in the Philippines so we decided to see how much our own food expenditures had risen.  Bear in mind that our figures include the non-food items we buy at the grocery store such as soap products and a few other incidentals.  Since our income is in US dollars, we keep track of our expenses in dollars.

On Sept. 30, 07 the exchange rate was P45.20 pesos per USD.  On Sept. 30, 08 the exchange rate was P47.25 per USD.  I don’t have the math skills to make much more sense of this for peso purchasers.

I do note that the rice we buy is a premium quality rice variety called Malido.  Last year it was P32 per kilo.  Today it is P48, a 50% increase.  This is from the same rice vendor in the Villa, Iloilo City public market. We used to buy imported Thai Jasmine rice but now we like the Philippine Malido.

Here are our figures:

• Jan 1 to Sept 30 2007 $205.76 per month.
• Jan 1 to Sept 30 2008 $251.87 per month
• Increase: 22% or $46.11 per month

If anything, the picture may be worse than the above figures show.  We are buying more fruits and vegetables at public markets where they are cheaper — and better.  We are also buying some meat products from stalls rather than the supermarket.  We used to think that it was safer to buy meat at the supermarket (refrigeration, fewer flies) but we have been increasingly suspicious that supermarkets use red dye to make meat look fresh when it’s not and maybe other adulterants as well.  When we go to a meat vendor in the early morning we can find freshly killed and butchered (apologies to vegetarians!) meat that looks just that way — fresh and unadulterated.

We are a household of two persons.  We do buy luxuries such as imported olive oil, imported spaghetti sauce, Parmesan cheese and some other imported cheese, New Zealand milk and butter and so forth.  Nothing here claimed to be the product of statistical competence, but hope it may be of interest to others expats or aspiring expats.

ILOILO BIG MAC INDEX:  The price of a Big Mac meal has become something of a transnational guide to the cost of living, popularized by the Economist Magazine.  The news from Iloilo City is not promising.  When we moved here in early 2007 a Big Mac meal was P98.  As of January 2009 it’s P126, a 28% increase in two years.

Road trip: buying ultra-fresh Yellow Fin Tuna in San Joaquin, Iloilo

I’ve been driving in Iloilo City since February, 2008 when we bought a new, very basic  Toyota Innova. Most days the Innova stays at home. We take jeepneys in the city, sometimes taxis. For eight pesos we can go most places we need to go and we don’t have to worry about accidents or parking.  Besides, it can be more fun.  When I’m sealed up in my air conditioned SUV, I sometimes (not always) look with envy at those in the jeepneys.  That said, having your own car can be nice when it’s hot or raining or when heading to the mall to stock up on groceries or other hefty items.  But mainly we wanted our own vehicle to explore the Panay countryside, especially when family or friends visit.  Long haul jeepneys and buses drive so fast you can’t see or enjoy anything, can’t stop to see the sights, can’t buy local specialties, stop at restaurants and markets in the towns you go through, and so forth.  With your own vehicle you have a freedom to explore your island and stop where and when you feel like it.  Usually we take a cooler packed with ice, drink and snacks.  The cooler also allows us to buy seafood at some of the markets along the way.

I did not have my Philippine driving license when I bought the car so getting a license was my first task. Since my New York State license had not yet expired, getting the Philippine license was pretty easy.  Because I already had a valid license, the written and driving tests were waived.  My wife’s New York and Philippine licenses had expired so she was told she had to take both tests.

We went to the main Land Transportation Office (LTO) office in Jaro.  The experience was pretty good.  We did not need any fixers and were not asked for anything beyond the official fees.  The application form was given to us by the polite guard.  We were then sent to get our physical exam and drug test at the somewhat shabby private offices outside the LTO compound.  I had a hard time peeing more or less in public, but they were patient with me.  The drug test is for methamphetamine and marijuana, the popular and affordable street drugs in the Philippines.  The physical exam was pretty basic, vision and blood pressure.  Then it was back to the LTO for photo taking and processing.  We walked out with my completed license the same afternoon.

The main LTO office is in Jaro, near the Gran Plains Subdivision, before the Toyota dealership.  You can renew a valid existing license at a branch office on the second floor of Robinson’s Mall in Iloilo proper.

Road trip: the end of the road for our new Innova when going from Alimodian to Maasin, Iloilo

Driving in the Philippines. I admit that driving in the Philippines terrifies me.  I am terrified that I will have an accident, that I will hurt someone.  I am terrified at the complexity and chaos on the Philippine roads.  I feel that disaster is always close at hand.

There are so many complexities that I have to try to pay 100% attention 100% of the time.  Consider the hundreds of children and other pedestrians along side the road.  Will they dash in front of you? I had a young lady walk right in front of my car without looking.  If I had not been going so slowly, I definitely would have hit her. Consider the disparity of speeds on the road, crazily speeding buses and passenger vans, jeepneys always ready to stop in front of you to pick us a passenger, slow moving pedicabs and tricycles appearing suddenly, going much slower than other vehicles on the road.  Consider the darting dogs and chickens, grazing goats and cows wandering into the road. It’s nerve wracking!

Night time driving — I absolutely avoid it whenever it can.   To the above, consider that many vehicles have NO lights and that there are practically no street lights — the darkness is deep.  Consider speeding (or abruptly stopping) jeepneys with no lights — no headlights, no taillights, practically stopped pedicabs and tricycles appearing out the darkness in front of you, the roads still lined with people inches from your speeding vehicle.

Drive very slowly and cautiously.  Don’t feel under pressure to do anything. Don’t make a move until you are confident it is safe. You can creep down a street, you can turn anywhere you want, stop in the middle, park in the middle or side or side wise. No one will complain.

Generally big vehicles have the right of way no matter what.  Everyone yields to a loaded tandem dump truck barreling down the road.  Cars generally yield to jeepneys.  Keep your ego under control.  Driving in the Philippines is one big game of chicken.  Don’t be aggressive until you really know the rules.  Are you retired? What’s your hurry?

IN CASE OF AN ACCIDENT, remember these rules:

1. Let your driver (if any) or wife do the talking.

2. Make the assumption that you are in the right.

3. Realize this is emotionally more difficult for the Filipino.

4. Remember that a Filipino driven to aggression is dangerous.

5. Get it over fast if you can – a crowd will develop quickly.  If someone has been hurt, you might get assaulted by an angry crowd.

The US Embassy in Manila offers this advice: “If the other parties involved in the accident become hostile or accusatory, give them your name, phone number and business card and ask them to call you when they are calmer so you can work out the details.  If you feel at risk or threatened by the section of town where the accident took place, travel to the nearest police station or inform the nearest police officer.”

6. Philippine accident investigation procedures require the driver of an involved vehicle to report to the local police station to give a statement. Expect this request and cooperate if all parties are amicable.

7. Always carry a photocopy of your Philippine Driver’s License and surrender this to the police. Do not give up your original license. This is often lost at the station and you’ll never get it back.

8. Have the police emergency number programmed into your cell phone.  If things turn ugly you’ll be happy to have the police show up.

9. Be sure to obtain complete information about the other party – name, address, driver’s license number, license number of the vehicle and the name and address of the owner of the vehicle if other than the driver.

US Embassy, Manila Offical Advice on Driving in the Philippines:

Travel within the archipelago is possible by boat, plane or car. Traffic conditions are often crowded and chaotic. Drivers routinely ignore stoplights, lane markers and other traffic control devices and traffic rules are rarely enforced. As in most places where traffic is highly congested and under-regulated, driving in the Philippines requires maximum attention and patience to avoid accidents. Vehicles on the road include automobiles, trucks and buses as well as manually-operated tricycles and carts. Due to a lack of navigable sidewalks, pedestrians also use the road in most areas. Many roads are in disrepair, with large potholes; roads under repair are often not clearly marked or identified and may be a significant hazard, especially at night. Lower-lying roads will frequently be flooded after even a light rain, making it difficult to see holes and other obstacles. During the rainy season, roads at higher elevations sometimes experience landslides.

Pedestrians should exercise extreme caution when crossing roads. Driving off the national highways and paved roads is particularly dangerous, especially at night. Taxis are plentiful and inexpensive by U.S. standards, and are the recommended form of public transportation. All other forms of public transportation, including the light rail and jeepneys, should be avoided for both safety and security reasons.

All front seat occupants of vehicles are required to wear safety belts. Traffic signals and signs, often in English, are similar to those in the U.S., and traffic moves on the right. U.S. auto insurance is usually not accepted in the Philippines, and foreign drivers involved in serious accidents may face extreme difficulties. The central Philippine agencies responsible for transportation and safety are the Department of Transportation and Communication and the Department of Public Works and Highways. In several large metropolitan areas, emergency police services can be reached by dialing 166. Emergency ambulance service is slow and unreliable and crews are rarely equipped or trained for life-saving measures.

Safety of Public Transportation: Poor

Urban Road Conditions/Maintenance: Poor

Rural Road Conditions/Maintenance:Poor

Availability of Roadside/Ambulance Assistance: Poor

Nonetheless, when I read posts by expats saying that there’s no more crime in the Philippines than there is in the USA, I’m concerned.  Americans from LA or Baltimore or Miami might not see much difference. (See this article in the New York Times about the psychology of “lock” and “no lock” advocates.) For small town Americans, the Philippines can be quite different.   Enthusiasm for their new life in the Philippines, thinking that the situation Philippines is the same as life in the US can prevent foreigners from taking common sense precautions to provide for their own safety in the Philippine context.

I’ve been following news of murders of foreigners in the Philippines for several years. There are quite a few, considering how few foreigners there are in the Philippines.  Here are a few observations that might be of help to anticipate problems.

• Most violence against foreigners is not perpetrated out of desperation by the poor Filipino whose family needs food or medicine.  Perhaps we are projecting on to Filipinos our own perceptions of what we would do in such circumstances.  Most provincial Filipinos would never commit such acts.  They accept what comes their way as part of God’s plan.

• I believe that break-ins and murders are not by the desperate acting out of real need, but rather by those who feel it is a way to get rich quick, often by maids, casual workers and boyfriends who have some knowledge, association and access to the foreigner victims.  The operative influences are greed, sex, booze and shabu (methamphetamine) — not helping a sick or hungry family member. This is not too different for such low-life crimes in my home country.

• Almost all the murders of foreigners I have read of have occurred in the foreigner’s hotel or apartment or home, not in bars, not on the streets, not by the Muslim extremists.  Most of these murders been been committed by people the victim knew or people associated with these people, not by a strangers breaking into their house.

• The most common perpetrators are the foreigner’s girlfriend’s boyfriend, the maid’s boyfriend, or some relative of the girlfriend wife or the maid.  Ex-employees are another possibility.  These murderers don’t break in, they are let in, either knowingly by the foreigner or by one of the other parties mentioned.   The foreigner is killed because he resists or because the robber is known to him and he does not want to be caught.  Sometimes the accomplice maid or girlfriend is “tied-up” and reports the crime to neighbors or police when she gets free.  I have read of dozens of foreigners murdered in this way.
• If you are a Caucasian foreigner and stay out of dangerous areas in Mindanao, you probably don’t need to worry about being kidnapped.  Except for Mindanao, kidnappers generally target rich Chinese-Filipinos (Chinoys).  Generally, they pay ransom without going to the police.  The police have been reported to be involved in such kidnappings.  Some foreign businessmen and aid workers have been kidnapped, usually Japanese.  Remember, the vast majority of retirees are pensioners who live on modest retirement pensions — not good kidnap ransom targets.  Kidnapping a rich Chinoy businessman really boils down to negotiations over the size of the ransom.  Kidnapping a foreigner invites complications.
• If you do have a lot of money, keep it in a foreign bank.  Information about your bank balances in your Philippine bank are not necessarily secure. Don’t brag about or discuss your finances with any one, including other foreigners.  Make sure everyone is aware that you are living off of a pension, that when you die the money stops.  Don’t have a safe in the house.  Everyone will assume it is full of money. Don’t withdraw large amounts of cash from your bank account.  There have been cases where bank employees sent text messages about large withdrawals to accomplices outside the bank.  The foreigner was robbed at gunpoint.  Pay for major purchases (vehicle, house) with a manager’s check from your Philippine bank.

Break-ins are also a problem.   We have friends whose house was broken into the very first night they stayed there.  Luckily they slept through the experience. Break-ins are very common in their open subdivision.

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/

The wall of Lo Wai, a walled village in Lung Yeuk Tau, Fanling, Hong Kong

Some foreigners feel it’s distasteful and/or unnecessary to live in a walled compound.  Walled cities, walled compounds, are everywhere in developing countries and historically a response to insecurity. Think of the lovely walled cities of Europe; Italy, Portugal, Spain and China. They were not built to make better scenery for tourists!

Generally, don’t expect your neighbors, security guards or police to come to your aid if you get into problems at night.  It’s dangerous for them to get involved, just as it may be dangerous for you to intervene to help someone in the middle of the night.  A well-liked, long-time American resident of Iloilo City was recently stabbed to death in his apartment.  Neighbors suspected something was wrong.  After all, the American was a big guy, a martial arts enthusiast, being murdered by four young men.  The neighbors were very close, in a close-packed neighborhood.  It’s hard to imagine there was not a lot of noise.  The neighbors peeked in the windows in the morning and the guy was dead.  Any neighbor coming to his aid might well have been killed too.  Some news accounts tried to portray this murder as the possible work of a New People’s Army “sparrow” assassination unit.  This is far-fetched. The NPA does not generally stab and rob well-liked Americans in their home at night in the city.

A stable, monogamous married life is prudent.  A taste for young boys has gotten many foreigners into trouble.  Chasing young women also exposes you to all sorts of dangers.

So, there is some benefit, if you live in a city, to life in a gated, guarded subdivision.  It’s not perfect, but low-life characters may find it a bit harder, bit more intimidating, more frightening to get in at night, and a bit harder to flee.  This only applies to subdivisions with real security including roving patrols at night.  It’s no accident that Filipinos move to such subdivisions if they can afford it.  Many subdivisions put up a show of security with a fancy guardhouse, but often anyone is allowed in.

Secure subdivisions don’t exist outside the bigger cities and may be less necessary, but don’t fool yourself.  Many foreigners have been killed in their bucolic rural homes. Foreigners report that they have lived in such and such a place for two or three or five years and have never had a problem.  While I’m glad that they have not had problems, I don’t feel such anecdotal tidbits really prove anything.

Observe how affluent Filipinos provide for their security.  Foreigners sometimes belittle walls, and gated subdivisions and other security precautions that seem over-done or distasteful from an American or European perspective, as though they know better than Filipinos what the dangers are and how to provide security.

Here a few specific security suggestions:

• Keep gates locked at all times and doors at night.
• Don’t leave your home unattended for any extended period of time and certainly not overnight.  If you are away, have a family member or trusted maid stay in the home.
• Maintain good control over who comes into your compound or house, especially at night.  Unless you really trust your maid, make sure she can’t let people in.  Once again, if you are murdered, it’s probably because you or someone else let the killer in.  Recently a foreign retiree was watching TV with his wife.  The dog started to bark.  The man opened the door to see what the problem was.  He was immediately stabbed in the stomach by an intruder waiting there.  He died on the way to a hospital.
• Have one or more noisy dogs.Have the police emergency number programmed into your cellphone and keep your cellphone in your bedroom.  Consider a secure bedroom door and don’t challenge any burglar.  If someone breaks in, stay in your bedroom and let them steal what they like.  If you have lights or an alarm you can turn on, do so.

We love living in the Philippines.  Many expats may feel these comments to be excessively alarmist.  Most Filipinos would not.  (See Josh’s comments below.)  These comments are intended to help you stay safe, not to frighten. These precautions will become second nature to you.

I’ve only been married to one American woman and one Filipina but, like everyone else, have observed many other relationships.  I don’t think it’s a question of which are “better” women.  My American wife was wonderful, as is my Filipina wife.

To me, the major difference is that with many American marriages there is a constant, sometime simmering, sometime overt, power battle.  The American wife is determined to be an equal partner and have an equal voice in each and every decision and aspect of the couple’s shared life.  The Filipina, at least the traditional one, definitely wants equality and even dominance, but only in certain areas.  She is content to let the husband do what he wants, to feel that he has control in many areas.  This vastly reduced turf battle is what makes marriage to a Filipina such a relief for so many men.

The husband must provide for the family, must not womanize or gamble away too much money .  He must work and support the family.  He must treat his wife and her family with respect, especially in public. He should let his wife run the household.  If he does what is expected, he will in turn receive respect, affection and considerable freedom.

I suppose that attitudes are changing, but only slowly.  I don’t know who ever described Filipinas as submissive.  The Ilonggas of Iloilo are formidable, tough-minded ladies.  Cross them at your peril.  But, at the root, most marriages still seem pretty traditional.  Filipinas are not unaware of how foreign marriages work — maybe that’s why they are content not to emulate them.  The very matriarchal Filipino model can work pretty well for women.  She runs the things she cares about, but makes the husband feel submitted to.  Its the domestic exemplification of the benefits of diplomacy over aggression.

Infante Flyover in front of University of the Philippines Visayas

Generally I try to be pretty positive but I’ve been so sad to see the degradation of one of Iloilo City’s most beautiful streets, Gen. Luna. Gen. Luna Street was all that most Philippine city streets are not. It was a gracious boulevard with a landscaped median with trees separating two lanes in each direction. Between the sidewalk and the roadway was another landscaped buffer also with street trees. All this meant that Gen Luna’s four lanes and wide sidewalks could accommodate both vehicle and pedestrian traffic gracefully. The boulevard seems to be an integral part of a colonial “city beautiful” program including and linking the old Provincial Capitol, the Arroyo fountain, and the University of San Agustin and UPV campuses. I may not have all the historic details right but this ensemble really is one of Iloilo City’s finest assets.

This photo shows the completed flyover in front of the city campus of the University of the Philippines in the Visayas. The further work shown in the photo is the digging up of the landscaped buffer which formerly separated the roadway from the sidewalk. Someone must have come to the realization that the flyover eliminated two lanes of the old road. The solution — dig up the buffer and pave that too. Perhaps there were traffic problems at this intersection. One wishes that more elegant and more economical solution could have been found. Even more unfortunately, another such monstrosity is scheduled for construction at the intersection of Jalandoni and General Luna. It will do to the pretty University of San Agustin neighborhood what the Infante flyover has done to UPV, perhaps worse. (See http://goiloilo.com/downhill-on-general-luna-redux/ for an update)

I don’t think my complaint is just being against “progress”. There is much talk about attracting tourists and development to Iloilo. I hope that planners will realize that one of Iloilo’s strengths is its physical attractiveness and surviving historic resources when compared to other Philippine cities. Iloilo was spared the almost total destruction of its pre-war architecture and civic infrastructure that Cebu and Manila suffered. Investors, tourists and retirees care about the quality of the environment in which they live and this includes the physical attractiveness and livability of the community.

Beachfront for sale, San Joaquin, Iloilo - about two hours from Iloilo City (this is an example only - don't contact me about buying it)

Buying rural real estate in the Philippines.  Real estate in the Philippine provinces. There are so many beautiful rural areas in the Philippines.  I think of the lush, unspoiled area around Lucban, Quezon Province, I think of the spectacular rural landscapes in the hills of Bohol.  Closer at hand for us, are the mountains and unspoiled beaches of Antique Province on Panay Island.  When the foreigner sees that fantastic ocean front is so affordable, that the promise of living the beach-front dream is so easily obtainable in these eye-catching rural places.

But, before you leap, consider why such undeveloped rural and beach properties are so undeveloped and so inexpensive.  For the Filipino there is no work.  Whenever one (Pinoy or foreigner) needs decent medical or dental care, whenever you want the most rudimentary imported groceries, whenever you want to dine out, whenever you want a shopping mall, whenever you need a hardware store, you may have to drive hours over rough provincial roads. Not once, but each and every time you need to see the doctor or dentist, for every shopping trip. Emergency medical care in the Philippines is poor in the cities.  Outside the cities there is none. There will be no Internet access, no Goggle and easy access to the world wide web’s rich resources for you or your kids, no Skype to keep up access to your family at home, no email and no blog. For all practical purposes there will be no police protection.  If you have kids, the public schools for your kids will unlikely be what you have in mind. There will be no private school alternatives.  You will be tremendously exotic to your neighbors, some of whom may never have seen a white foreigner before.  It’s likely that there will be no English speakers to chat with.

Don’t get me wrong, living such a life in the rural Philippines can be richly rewarding, but I contend that it’s a rare foreigner who could really be happy without the conveniences and necessities mentioned above. Bless those that can.

I’ve spent decades living in rural and very rural places in the USA; in the mountains of Washington State with no road access, in Maine when I was the only year-round resident of my township and twenty-three years on a farm in upstate New York in a town with a population of 750.  No matter where you are in the USA, you really are not disconnected from essential services and your home culture in the way you are in the rural Philippines.

Here as elsewhere, land prices seem to be directly related to distance from the city.  In Iloilo City (depending on location) land is about 5,000 pesos per square meter.  In Oton, ten kilometers out of the city, land is about 2,500 pesos per square meter, in Tigbauan, twenty-five kilometers out of the city, we paid 1,200 per square meter.  Tigbauan is a far commute to the city.  Continue further out, you’ll find beautiful small towns such as Miagao, and the prices continue to drop.

My wife and I ruled out places we really liked for some these considerations.  We ended up buying property in small town, twenty-five kilometers from Iloilo City.  The town is a very attractive rural place, quiet and beautiful, rice fields, carabaos ploughing, with the mountains of nearby Antique Province as the backdrop, a 250 year old Spanish church and good beaches.  We feel it’s a good compromise for us.  We like small town, rural life.  We’ll get that but we’ll also get reasonable access to the necessities and amenities of the city.

See also my Philippine Real Estate Primer: http://goiloilo.com/a-primer-on-iloilo-real-estate

The Philippines has a totally pay-as-you-go health care system. Your first stop at the hospital (as it is in the US) will be the cashier’s office. You must have money to pay for health care, otherwise you will not get care, will not be admitted to a hospital no matter how dire your situation. A very few hospitals will accept foreign medical insurance cards, but most will not. Larger hospitals accept credit cards (St. Paul’s does) but many do not.

Do not come to the Philippines unless you have the resources to pay for medical care. Even if you are admitted to the hospital, security guards may prevent you from leaving the hospital until your bill is settled.

Routine health care expenses in the Philippines can be very inexpensive.  Your total cost for routine health care may be less than you’ll pay for deductibles and co-payments in the U.S.  Care for a serious illness (coronary bypass surgery, cancer treatment for example) can run in to the many tens or thousands of dollars.

The US medical insurance program for the elderly, Medicare, does not cover care in the Philippines.  Some US veterans can receive care through VA clinics.  Some retiree medical insurance programs will reimburse you for care paid for in the Philippines.  A very limited number of Philippine hospitals accept US Blue Cross Insurance.  One is Asian Hospital in Alabang, a southerly suburb of Manila.  If you’re well enough and are covered by Medicare, you can return to the US for treatment.

Sorry, but I’m not familar with how or if European, Canadian or Australian national health insurance programs work (if at all) in the Philippines.  Please add any information you can share in the comment box below.

Private heath insurance is available such as Blue Cross Philippines.  I’ve had mixed reports about it.  Some have had satisfactory experiences, others are very unhappy.  Pre-existing conditions will be excluded.

Consider signing up for the Philippine government program, PhilHealth. Benefits are very limited. The cost is P100 per month and the insurance covers the whole family. While PhilHealth not at all a comprehensive plan, it’s worth signing up for and can save a meaningful amount of money if you’re hospitalized. A foreign spouse can be covered. The Iloilo City PhilHealth office is well-run and signing up a fairly painless process. You can pay annually.

Tropical Paradise?

This is addressed to those who have not been to the Philippines but are looking for an affordable tropical retirement location. It is not applicable to those who want to vacation at one of the many beautiful Philippine resorts for a few days or weeks.

The Philippines is not a budget version of Hawaii or Key West or Mallorca. It is an impoverished developing nation with about the same land area as the State of Arizona, but with more than 90 million residents. In cities, poverty, pollution and environmental degradation are everywhere. Open sewers and the smell of sewerage are frequent companions. Trash is strewn everywhere. There are hardly any parks. Power blackouts are frequent. The creatures of the land and sea have mostly been devoured by a hungry population. Vehicles belch black diesel fumes along main roads. Mangy dogs wander the streets. The raucous beat of karaoke shatters the night and ever-present roosters wake you at four in the morning. You’ll need walls and bars on the windows of your house to prevent break-ins.

If you’re careful, decent routine medical and dental care can be found in the larger cities, but questionable care is a real possibility. Dengue fever, malaria and other tropical diseases are risks as are hepatitis and tuberculosis. If you can’t pay up front for medical care, you will not receive any. Emergency medicine usually involves taking a taxi to the nearest hospital.

It can be inexpensive to live in the Philippines, but the biggest savings come when you can adapt to living more like Filipinos; buying chicken and pork rather than Australian steaks, skipping Cheerios and other imported products, eating eggplant and other fruits and vegetables that grow in the Philippines rather than imported broccoli and apples, using a fan rather than air conditioning, riding the jeepney rather than maintaining an SUV. Those who insist on trying to live a Western lifestyle, may not find the savings so great, especially when you consider you must pay all health care expenses.

Some rural places in the Philippines can be quite inexpensive and really are paradisaical, but you’ll be hours or days from medical care, Internet, books and so forth. Shopping will be restricted to fish, local vegetables and a few canned goods. If you’re healthy and self-sufficent and your material needs are simple, this might well be your paradise.

For my wife and me the Philippines is a paradise, but it’s the people who make it so. Filipinos, especially in the provinces, treat foreigners with great kindness and respect. In turn, I respect them for who they are and the way they live their lives. Every day I see them face their often very difficult lives with inspiring dignity and good humor. They are truly a special people and I feel privileged to live among them.

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

This is a very nice beachfront lot. It lies between the National Highway and the ocean so there is traffic noise, otherwise it’s just about perfect. Sand is tan. There are coconut and flowering frangipani trees already on the property. Not much filling is necessary. It is not occupied. The lot is 30 to 45 minutes to Iloilo City. The price is P2500 per m2, negotiable. If interested call or text Butch Guzman at +63-921-551-2717.

Guimbal Beachfront for Sale

This is a very nice beachfront lot. It lies between the National Highway and the ocean so there is traffic noise, otherwise it’s just about perfect. Sand is tan. There are coconut and flowering frangipani trees already on the property. Not much filling is necessary. It is not occupied. The lot is 30 to 45 minutes to Iloilo City. The price is P2500 per m2, negotiable. If interested call or text Butch Guzman at +63-921-551-2717.  The mountains in the distance are in Antique Province.

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

To the Molo market, Iloilo City

Iloilo does not get nearly so many foreign tourists as places such as Boracay, Cebu, Manila and even Dumaguete and Bohol. Often, I can spend the day in the city and not see another foreigner. Of course, there is a community of resident expats, many who have been in Iloilo many years. Expats hold meetings twice monthly. On the first Wednesday of the month at the Balkonahe Restaurant in Jaro and on the third Wednesday at the Marina on Diversion Road. As elsewhere in the Philippines, there are many Koreans here studying English.  Based my first year and a half in and Iloilo and several months in Cebu City, I find Ilonggos, male and female, to have a reserve and seriousness which differentiates them from the more outgoing Cebuanos and even Tagalogs.  They seem serious, proud, industrious, honest, and pious compared the more fun-loving Cebuanos or Tagalogs.  Beyond the reserve, I find Ilonggos to be honest, kind, and courteous but don’t expect them to fawn over you because you’re a foreigner.

There’s certainly nothing unusual about young Cebuanas dating foreigners but this does not seem common here. While Iloilo has a few “girlie bars” it does not have the kind of pervasive sex tourism/bar scene found in Angeles or Cebu City. Casual dating of a “white” guy would not be considered proper by many Ilonggas. I rarely see young Filipinas with older foreigners, a very common sight in Cebu. Many of the Filipina-foreigner couples appear to be married couples who have grown plump together over the years.

The upside of this is that the foreigner is more a curiosity than an opportunity and is generally left in peace and treated with respect. It’s unusual for me to be overcharged or otherwise taken solicited or taken advantage of because I’m a foreigner. There are not so many beggars. Sometimes when I do see children begging money, they will approach other Filipinos or my wife but not me. I have never been approached by prostitutes or other hustlers. “Hey Joe give me money” is rare here. I relate the relative lack of begging and prostitution to Ilonggo pride.

I ride jeepneys almost every day. I walk the streets downtown. So far, I have never had even a hint of a problem with crime or pickpockets, although friends have. On the contrary, I left a bag with cellphone and digital camera behind when getting off the jeepney. Fellow riders stopped me to be sure I did not forget the bag. If I drop something, multiple people rush to make sure I get it back. There is a robust police presence in many parts of Iloilo City. I do not wander the streets at night. If you do your mileage may vary.

Pastoral landscape looks like Vermont

The lot we bought is not far from the Tigbauan, Iloilo village center, maybe about 1.5 km.  It’s walking distance to the market and the ocean.  The road we are on is short but really rough, almost impassible after heavy rains.  No one else using the road owns a car or maybe even a motorbike.   The road peters out beyond our property, but dozens more families must live further on, beyond the end of the road.  We see the families walking out though the fields, fresh-scrubbed and neatly dressed as Filipinos almost always are, even if they live in a native-style house with no running water.  Perhaps they’re going to the market in Tigbauan or they might even be riding a jeepney to the big malls in Iloilo City.  Some might be going to work or to school, hoping for a nursing  or merchant marine job overseas  We just never see cars on our road or on the municipal road it connects to.  They’re filled with people walking.  On a school day, you’ll see school kids everywhere, lining every road to and from the many schools.  They’re adorable in their uniforms, but by the hundreds and thousands — laughing, smiling well-behaved.

Our neighbor's SUV

So, I’m slowly adjusting to a new meaning for rural.  My kids grew up in small towns in Upstate New York.  Perhaps we liked Tigbauan because it reminded us of home -  a pretty small town, a stone church, a cluster of old buildings downtown surrounded by farming countryside.  While Tigbauan looks a little like Westport, New York there’s one big difference.  My kids went to the only K-12 school there was.  The total K-12 student population was about 300.  Tigbauan, with about 50% less land area has eight high schools, five primary schools and sixteen elementary schools.  The population of Tigbauan is over 50,000.  Westport NY has a population of 1362.  So, Tigbauan may have reminded us of home but it’s not.  Perhaps this is emblematic of the foreigner’s experience of the Philippines.  We see big shopping malls filled with the usual chains, we see Pizza Hut and MacDonalds and theaters showing Hollywood blockbusters, people speaking English and we feel right at home — but we’re not at home.

Property Taxes — a welcome contrast.  When we lived on a farm in Upstate New York, our local real estate taxes were about $4,000 per year.  The annual property taxes of our Tigbauan property are P129.04, however since we paid them early we received a discount.  We paid P98.24 for 2009.  Of course this will go up when we build a house but still low property taxes are a big benefit to life in the Philippines.

Carabao (water buffalo) "helps" our surveyor.....

Foreigners can mostly shield themselves from the foreignness, the good and the bad, by living in a Western-style house in an upscale subdivision and hanging out at the big malls.  That’s not going to be possible in Tigbauan.  The only shopping is in the public market.  It’s open every day, but market day is Sunday and on Sunday it’s packed with shoppers and vendors, many of which come in from remote farms to sell their farm products.  The older ladies like to smoke cigars which they roll of locally grown tobacco.  There’s a tobacco section, in fact just about everything is sold there.  But this is not a farmer’s market that’s a colorful adjunct to regular shopping.  It’s the only shopping there is.  If you’ve ever wished the mall and supermarkets would go away and things could be like in the old days, this is it — the near-medieval market!  I don’t want to overdo the image of hardship.  Much of what’s on sale is wonderfully fresh and inexpensive; tropical fruits especially mangos, papaya, jackfruit, bananas.  Fresh vegetables — eggplant, potatoes, cabbage, carrots, peppers, green beans, okra, squash, onions, garlic, tomatoes.

June, 2009. Carol holds our first harvest from our now fenced lot. We also have an inexhaustible supply of kang kong which has spread over the lot.

The rice fields around us are mostly owed by a big landowner.  We have seen a tractor adapted for work in wet, muddy rice fields.  We have seen walk-behind tractors, similar to roto-tillers.  But mostly we see Filipinos in conical straw hats, plowing with carabao – water buffalo, planting rice by hand,  just like one of those grainy old movies about China.  One of reason we bought the particular plot of land we bought is because wireless Internet access was available.  We’ll build our house, sit on our porch surfing, watching the carabao plowing the rice fields around us.  We’ll walk to that medieval market to shop.  For sure, it’s going to be a seismic change.  Stay tuned!

Read all about our Philippine House building Project at http://goiloilo.com/building-our-philippine-house-index/