r/Philippines_Expats

how much should i have saved for this time frame? cheap condo, flying from cali. Should 3.5-4k be enough? i should have an extra 10k saved aswell just in case

Hi there!

I have been semi living in the Philippines (Cebu City) for around 2.5 years now.

Usually I just extend my visa a few days before it expires.

I always get annoyed about the express lane fee's, especially since they have gotten so expensive. A while ago I've heard that you don't have to pay them, if you just come a 1-1.5 weeks before your visa expires and just pick up your passport again a few days later.

One time when I came 5 days early, I have been told by an officer at the BI that I'm too early and won't be allowed to extend and I need to come like 2 days early or smth. Looking back, did he say that so I will get scammed basically and forced into paying the express lane fees?

We ended up still going in and it worked but we still had to pay the fee so idk.

If you're from cebu, how do you do it so you don't have to pay the express lane fee?

Another question, I have been thinking of if it's not too expensive, to maybe trying to let an assistant handle the extention for me from now on or maybe just next time, to save time since I've gotten quiet busy plus I often struggle there because I don't hear well (I'm a woman I my early 20s so it's usually not taken seriously and they get annoyed if I don't understand them)

Anyways, how exactly am I doing this, where am I looking for someone?

How do you usually do it and where can I find propel I can actually trust or that are licensed or whatever?

Thank you!

Need advice from anyone experienced with condo plumbing leaks / PMO handling.

We’re in a DMCI condo unit dealing with an ongoing leak issue that’s now affecting multiple units.

PMO previously already did repairs involving our unit and the unit above before, including opening/changing portions related to the plumbing/leak area, so this has actually been going on for quite some time already. Unfortunately, despite previous work and repairs, the issue seems to still be unresolved.

Recently, PMO did another pressure test in our unit, and during the test, more water reportedly came out on our side, so they suspected our embedded line. They then did major chipping in our bathroom wall/pipe area, but even after opening it up, they still could not identify the exact source of the leak.

Now they’re saying the leak may possibly be from the upper unit (Unit 1211) or another connected/common line, and they may need to inspect/chip there too.

Our concern is:

•	they still haven’t confirmed the actual source,

•	they were already preparing to cement/close parts of the chipped area,

•	and the whole process is starting to feel very trial-and-error.

This has become extremely disruptive and time-consuming for everyone involved. Multiple units are affected, schedules constantly have to adjust for inspections/work, and there’s still no clear diagnosis or timeline despite repeated repairs and chipping.

We’re now considering formally asking PMO to hire a professional leak detection specialist (thermal imaging/moisture detection/etc.) instead of continuing random chipping and assumptions.

Questions:

1.	Is it normal for pressure tests to point to one unit, but the actual source ends up elsewhere?

2.	Should we insist on professional leak detection before more chipping?

3.	Has anyone experienced leaks traveling from upper/common lines even if water appears in your own unit during pressure testing?

4.	Should they avoid cementing/restoring until the exact source is fully confirmed?

Would appreciate advice from engineers, plumbers, PMO people, or condo owners who’ve gone through something similar. This whole thing has honestly been exhausting.

I see some other foreigners post here, and say stuff as "I avoid all expats".

In germany we actually have this saying, which actually rhymes (in german): "Hüte dich vor Sturm und Wind, und Deutschen, die im Ausland sind!"

It means: "Avoid storm and wind, and germans who are in other countries".

Basically related to scams, not trusting, needing money, or just being super negative people.

So here I see some foreigners post "I avoid all other expats". Ok, brother. But then what are you doing in an expat forum as this?

Its a bit cringe. I also know from experience a lot of people who left their home country and now live elsewhere are negative. I actually been living abroad for 20+ years in various countries, as I run location independent agencies in online marketing and then got lucky being in Crypto very early and making a few good choices early on what Altcoins to buy that got me up to 1000x. So I know this well. And its not just now with the political climate, these people were already whining all day 20 years ago. These were also always the ones who never stayed too long and soon found something to complain about in their new home too.

However I always seeked out positive and successful people like me and this has worked extremely well.

Met people with yachts to drive/sail out every week, got into golf clubs, ran weekly beach volleyball and soccer games with other expats etc.

They rarely talk negative. They are generally happy people and see fun stuff, not issues. They would never call other foreigners incels or losers or anything like that.

Probably reddit is not the best place for this as its just a magnet and a huge clickbait always for negative topics.

Where do you find positive, happy expats that do things and really appreciate being in the philippines, and love the nature, markets, women (of course) and generally the locals and feeling like a Rockstar here almost day to day?

Talked with one less educated Filipino and he thought European literally get free money from the govt every month, like a universal basic income, and that flight ticket is probably near free for us and other people think prices in Europe are probably same or cheaper than Philippines.

That's why one guy called me greedy and called me "greedy American" when i woudn't give him money on the street.

Im pretty sure they think most Europeans or US don't even have to work or earn since the govt will just give them unlimited money glitch and ask me for more.

The barber got super mad at me for giving him a 100 pesos tip "Only" when its a third of his wage

Meanwhile prices due to oil are getting closer in Manila to some smaller Eastern European cities when the food is clean etc.

EDIT: Now this applies only to less educated ones, i met plenty of very smart, well traveled rich Filipinos

Hi everyone,

I’m currently staying in the Philippines and working online as a teacher. My main issue right now is that the Airbnb internet has been really unreliable — it keeps cutting in and out, which is a big problem for my classes.

Because of that, I recently got a Globe SIM registered and started using mobile data as a backup. So far I’ve been testing phone hotspot and USB tethering, but I’m still getting small interruptions and minor instability that I can’t really afford during live teaching sessions.

Now I’m considering getting a dedicated prepaid Globe WiFi modem/router device (the portable ones you can buy locally), but I wanted to ask people who have experience here:

• Does a dedicated Globe WiFi device actually give a more stable connection compared to phone hotspot or USB tethering?
• Any noticeable difference in speed or reliability in real use?
• Or is it basically the same network performance no matter what device you use?
• Any tips to avoid random disconnects or lag during calls?

I really need something stable because my income depends on being able to teach online without interruptions, and I don’t want to risk my setup while I’m here.

Thanks a lot in advance for any advice or personal experience 🙏

Always heard about these stories, first time it’s ever happened to me. Meet a girl online, says she’s a single mom, poor and the baby daddy abandoned her when she found out she was pregnant. Im very cautious but we FaceTime, and I can see at first all of this is true. Shes beautiful, genuine connection, wow, amazing.

Then she starts asking for money, I make 100x what she needs in a month, I give. But I turn into an ATM, we fight, she backs down, problem better. Then I find out she talks to other dudes on the dating site still. Fight, argue, she stops. (I really think she did)

Months go by and heck, I go to see her. Mixed signals - one side she is so excited I meet her family and friends and it’s a good meeting, other side I still can’t nail down for sure if we have a real relationship or if I am a bank card. Mixed signals.

Go home, keep talking, find out yesterday she has a secret Facebook (she made a Facebook for her baby is how I found it). When I opened the baby’s Facebook page he only had a few friends and one of them had his last name, it was the dad.

I cracked his profile open for a look and low and behold another profile with the same name posting love letters on each others profile for months of open record. Sexual, romantic, playful, all of it. All the way up to May 19th being the last date. Literally since before we’ve dated.

Confronted her on it and she lied until I forced her to admit she still loves him but he has another family - Im guessing they still meet up for boom boom based on their messages but she promises she hasn’t. Anyways, there it is.

Cheating is normal but what I couldn’t understand was she told me she wanted me to be a father to her son, he needs a dad, we could get married, all that. With dying devotion and submission - the level of this sort of lying is something Ive never seen in my life. It truly is something I couldn’t imagine and played me hard.

Ive not only never been cheated on (to my knowledge I guess) but never experienced anything even close to this level of deception having dated both in the USA and Asia over 15 years, what on earth is going on???

Guys I received a $30 visa gift card as a monthly payment and idk how to redeem it here. I heard u can use Lazada or shoppe but idk how please let me know how to redeem or use this to convert into some type of payment or even cash I really need this money I'm struggling out here.

Every week someone posts here asking if they should buy a condo and 40 people show up to say "lol no, rent forever, condos are a scam." And honestly? They're mostly right. I've been watching this market for years and the warnings are usually correct.

But the math right now is weird. Like, actually weird. And I don't think people have caught up to it yet.

Metro Manila condo vacancy is sitting at around 25%. The Bay Area is over 50%. There are roughly 30,000 ready for occupancy units that developers cannot move. Two years ago a "discount" was 10% off and a free fridge. Last month I watched a developer offer 45% off TCP, waived VAT, waived downpayment, and a ₱150K gift certificate. They are not doing this out of kindness. They are panicking.

Meanwhile BSP has cut rates five times since August 2024. Policy rate is at 4.25%, down 225 bps. Mortgages followed. Luxury CBD prices dropped 2% nominal and almost 4% in real terms last year, third straight quarter of declines.

So you've got desperate sellers, cheaper financing, and falling real prices all hitting at the same time. That doesn't happen often.

Now here's where I get crucified in the replies, so let me get ahead of it:

The peso is terrible. Down 4% YTD against CAD, 18% over the last decade. If you're buying with foreign currency you're catching a falling knife on a falling asset. Foreigners still can't own land, only units, capped at 40% of the building. Yields are getting murdered by the same oversupply that's giving you the discount, you can have the cheap entry OR the rental income, not both. And about 60% of condo associations are run by clowns who'll triple your dues to repaint a lobby nobody asked for.

All true. But none of it kills my thesis.

• Buy if you're looking for a place to live in long term and not an investment
• If you accept the premise that COL tends to increase at a faster rate in developing countries, plan to live here permanently, and want to stabilize your housing expenses going forward.
• Focus on established CBDs - BGC, Makati, Rockwell, Ortigas. Not Bay Area, never Bay Area. RFO only, no pre-selling unless you enjoy gambling. Cash or pre-approved financing so you can actually pressure the salesperson. And you have to plan to live in it or sit on it for 7+ years.
• If you're trying to buy a 2BR in Pasay to rent out for passive income, please put the deposit back in your pocket and walk away.

If that's you, right now is probably better than 2019 and almost certainly better than 2028, because Colliers is forecasting completions to drop and vacancy to start easing in 2027. The discounts disappear when the inventory does.

Change my mind.

Ya’ll cooked if you think investing in a third world country is ever a good idea.

There is a reason all serious third world banks offer USD accounts.

There is a reason migration to western countries is rampant - better opportunities for work, investing and maintaining your health.

Just put all your cash in a properly regulated literally to big to fail western stock market index fund and ignore all these ‘opportunities in se asia’ brain farts.

The only opportunity in SE Asia is you!!!

I know this may sound a bit privileged, and I don’t mean it in a condescending way, but I’ve noticed a lot of expats in the Philippines eventually run into the same issue: the day-to-day friction can slowly wear on your patience.

And to be clear, I genuinely love the Philippines. The people, the warmth, the food, the beaches, the overall energy of the place. There’s a reason so many foreigners choose to stay long term. But like anywhere, navigating daily life in a different system and culture can sometimes become mentally exhausting, especially when you’re trying to handle everything yourself.

One thing that dramatically improved my quality of life was hiring a personal assistant. I make sure she’s paid fairly and treated professionally, but having someone help manage errands, scheduling, paperwork, appointments, deliveries, follow-ups, and the countless little logistical issues has honestly been invaluable.

For lack of a better term, she acts as a buffer between me and the small frustrations that can otherwise accumulate over time. The result is that I get to focus more on enjoying the country instead of getting drained by avoidable stress.

Anyway, unsolicited advice for fellow expats: if you have the financial flexibility, investing in reliable local help can make your experience significantly smoother and more enjoyable.

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Hello everyone, I've been here in the Philippines visiting my gf since April 6th. Before we left to her province I paid for a additional month till June 4th at some mall in Manila. Basically, I love it out here, the culture and people here. Everyone has been good to me, being stared at took me a while to get use to but everyone here knows me now hahaha... yesterday I attended my first fiesta and will be attending the next 2 today and Saturday. I'm happy now the island isn't going through black outs anymore 😪 those days and nights were rough but swimming at Cantingas River helped haha 👌 so I'm not ready to leave yet back to the United States and my question is would i be able to pay for another month or 2 at the mall i originally went to? If I'm able to change my departure date again with United airlines I plan on staying for another month or 2 🙏 thanks you anyone who has advice

Writing this because I couldn’t sleep. I went home to the PH hoping for a nice, relaxing vacation and honestly just craving that “Filipino hospitality” again. I wasn’t expecting anything out of the ordinary, just the familiar smiles and random small conversations I remember before moving abroad. But in one day, I experienced consecutive awful customer service encounters.

Getting a haircut
I went to a well-known salon expecting service that matched the price. The hairdresser kept complaining about how early the first customer was, and the whole time it felt like he didn’t even want to cut my hair. He didn’t detangle or properly wash my hair like how my sister experienced at the same salon, so the whole thing felt so uncomfortable. He kept pointing out how “putol putol” my hair was, but instead of giving advice or suggesting treatments, it just came off judgmental rather than helpful. In my head, I was like duh, that’s why I’m getting a haircut! I even explained it was from a previous layered cut cuz my hair has never been bleached or dyed, so it wasn’t damaged. I honestly felt like getting a cheap haircut from a small salon was better lol

Getting waffles
My nephew stood in front of the counter for over 5 minutes while the employee mixed batter and just completely ignored him. I politely said, “Hi miss” while smiling, just to let her know there was a kid waiting (assuming she didn’t notice) She didn’t respond at all and gave me a fucking side eye as if I said something offensive. Not even a “wait lang po” or “di pa po kami ready.” Mind you, this was at 12 PM. The mall opened at 10 lol.

Getting a mani-pedi
The two employees doing my nails kept talking about how jealous they were of their coworker who got a ₱1k tip from a “foreigner client.” One of them rolled her eyes at me when I said I didn’t want nail polish on my fingernails (which costs extra) and just wanted regular cleaning. It honestly felt like she assumed I wouldn’t tip well.

Picking up my order
I told the cashier I’d come back in a few minutes while they prepared my pizza to-go order. After around 5 minutes, I returned and heard them calling out order numbers after mine, so I assumed mine was ready. There were like five employees behind the counter and it wasn’t even busy, but nobody would make eye contact with me. They all acted busy doing something else while I stood there waiting. I didn’t realize I had to practically fight for someone’s attention just to ask about my order lol. And yes, my pizza was already cold when I got it cuz it’s been sitting there for a while.

These aren’t even all of the bad experiences I had. I try my best to be patient and empathetic because I used to be in the hospitality business before but have hospitality workers become so entitled lately? Is it because they’re underpaid? Overworked? Or is this really the new norm around the metro? (Service seems dependent on how much you tip or how good you look) Definitely not coming back to the PH for vacation again. Maybe just to visit relatives, and that’s it.

Been in Manila for over a week now. I’ve already gotten my Visa waiver, I’ve been thinking of staying for another month since I would have to leave by July 12th. I’ve seen that I would have to go into the office to complete this type of extension. What do I need to obtain the ACR card and when should I go apply for it? I know now it’s early but I at least want to plan for it.

Heading over to Manila for extended business and am currently debating between a lease and an Airbnb.

When I calculate it all out, the Airbnb cost seems to come out to around the same than a lease, all without the hassle of deposits, buying your own amenities and being locked in.

As a heavy electricity user, Airbnbs become an even more obvious option, as I can run my AC and tech without having to worry about the bill.

Is there something I'm missing here, or is Airbnb genuinely the superior option here?