Congratulations, you have given one of the most comprehensive cost analysis I’ve seen for building here in the Philippines! You nailed it on the way Filipinos price their land, it’s more of a I want, pie in the sky, 200 years in the future price, not what we have in the US, comparable pricing of previous sold in the surrounding area and backed up by rigorous calculations by a licensed appraiser. Most bloggers dance around the cost and as you discovered the extra cost of doing it right with the quality building materials most foreigner want. A word to expats about the future of their home after they are gone. Look around once here, the climate and low quality building practices due to cost here decimates the buildings so poor quality to begin with will cost you in a very short time a lot in never ending repairs, once your gone it’s up to your family to upkeep the home and sadly it just doesn’t get done. The short end of it, your family then tries to sell it, in terrible condition for what it cost to build or at the Filipino pie in the sky price eventually settling for far, far less. So don’t think your leaving them with something of high value the second your gone it’s a quickly declining asset. A good business that will generate a constant stream of revenue for them is of higher value to them and for them than something they cannot maintain and quickly declines in value. Expats build for themselves Filipinos simply don’t need the same home foreigners build, of course we want what we want and most indeed want a quality retirement home just keep in mind your families future without you here.
I think your advice is spot on and I know when I am gone, this home will be costly to maintain. I am planning for that so if Jenn does decide to stay here, which I believe she will, she will have what she needs to maintain the home and property. If she doesn't desire to stay here without me, then the house will be in immaculate condition to sell should she decide to do so. Even if for some reason she had to take lower than what it cost to build, she will be fine financially for as long as she hangs out here on this earth. Everything you said, I have given great thought and effort to avoid happening to the love of my life. I am glad you said it!
Can't find a way to DM you... beside the wall is drainage.. Your message: Hey sir! Wow! big property with a lot of linear meters of perimeter fencing. Looks like your doing chb on one side and pole on the rest. Sorry for the late response, you messaged on Jenns messenger. Feel free to send me a message request and we can chat on my messenger if you would like. What is the frame work on the outside of the chb wall?
Thanks for being real and transparent. Building your own home in your own country is not easy. Building in a foreign country is like baptism by fire school of hard knocks. My cousins built homes in their province, even locals have a hard time too. People were stealing supplies even light bulbs. They had to hire guys to stay on their property while their house was being built. They would randomly visit the site and no ones working, lots of extras they didn’t anticipate too, behind schedule etc. Btw their homes are modest 2-3 bdrm 1 bath under 1,000 sq ft. Building a home is a huge and rewarding endeavour. Enjoy your paradise. Mabuhay!
I like how you described the process, "School of hard knocks!" I couldn't have said it better. Everything you described, we experienced as well. The builder even hired a local person to keep an eye on things when the workers would take a week off here and there. Problem was, every time I visited during these weeks off, the person hired to watch things, was no where to be found . Crazy stuff. Appreciate you watching sir!
Actually building your own home, in a Foreign country is easy, if you know how to build a house. A lot cheaper also, takes a lot longer, but you get exactly what you want, and do not need to deal with the locals, except to hire manual laborers and tell them what to do and how to do it, or higher skilled workers that know how to do stuff. The issue is most people never learn how to build a house. Honestly it's way easier them people think and not complicated at all. But businesses do not want you to know this because then you'd never hire them. This is why there are so many regulations in places like the US. You are not hiring someone to build you a house. Your hiring someone to build a house according to "regulations" which vary from state to state etc. In developing nations, regulations are generally not an issue. And most regulations are there not because they make any actual sense, but in order to create jobs and an industry. As a former Quality Engineer, I can tell you for a fact, most Building codes are absolute bullshit and serve no purpose where the building is concerned. Despite what the codes say they are supposed to be for. TH-cam can teach you how to build a simple house and even wire it and plumb it. Practice a bit, and then design and expand yourself, once your ready, build the home of your dreams yourself, save the money, and not get scammed.
I’m sure you could say that I am biased (I am an architect 😂) but I didn’t find that boring at all. I think you actually did a very good job of walking through the numbers for people - clear concise and simple. I think you’ve ended up with a great product as well. Congratulations, enjoy your new home
Hey Thanks Wesley! Appreciate you watching and good to know that you didn't fall asleep in the middle of it 🤣. The way you described it was what I was hoping for. Yes, we are loving being in our new home. We are very blessed!
Hey. Wait right there. I walked away from a Filipina in Canada after 12 years. Don’t put your head up that high. And in the 12 years, I did see lots of men waving the white flags too. Many did asked me how I could still stand this b.s. ! I’m not a womanizer. I’m a quiet person. But holy. I can’t tell you how many times I was accused of having an affair. My friends called me already a playboy. Bringing it to the point. Not one Filipina will come into my life. And some of my friends are absolutely cured too. Greetings from Panama.
This is the first video of yours I have watched. I learned very much from it. I too am a Texan and have been engaged to a Filipina over 5 years. She is in Philippines and I am still in America. Initially she was going to move here but that plan changed recently. She has a big family and I have no family so I am moving there. I will rent while searching for land to build on. I will subcontract the building of the house. We do not need- nor want a huge, fancy house like most Americans in Philippines have. We had been interested in building a tiny home here in America but since I am moving there it will be bigger than a tiny home but probably half the size of yours. In Texas I was on the Gulf Coast near Galveston. I never needed a pool because I had the Gulf to swim in. Plus it gave me a huge fishing and boating spot. Philippines has much more available swimming and fishing area as Texas does, so we need no pool. I like salt water much better than chlorinated water. I'm really looking forward to moving there. I still have much to learn. I have lived in Europe when I worked, but my company handled all the documents and paper work necessary for me to live there. This time I reckon I have to do it myself. It's pretty overwhelming but I can handle it. For now, I will watch your videos hoping to learn more. I have subscribed to your channel.
Appreciate having you on board with us and always an honor to have a fellow Texan watching us. You can do it brother. Just dot your i's and cross your t's and you should be fine. Defer to your Filipina as much as your comfortable doing, as they have a better grasp for the culture and people and that is super important here. People here live very simply, and yes our home is about the size of what I was used to in Texas. And though I don't consider it big, for the province, it is larger than most. About 1600sqft or so. It's comfortable for me and when all the family is here, we all have a little room to move around and yard to play in. Yes, there is a lot of coastline here in the PI for sure. I just chose to live inland so no ocean anywhere near us. The pool sure is nice to soak in on a hot Philippine day and the aesthetic value for me is priceless. Congrats on the 5 years of dating. Jenn and I dated 5 years before we made it official about 2 years ago. Thanks again for watching and subscribing brother!
If you do need a land I’m from Cebu the barrio of Sangat San Fernando.. I have properties for sale if you’re interested.. I’m now here in Indianapolis btw
My Filipina wife (and I tacked on as foreign spouse) just purchased a lot and we are at the beginning stages of house design etc. Your vid was an eye opener, and I wanted to express my dep appreciation for your time and transparency. You probably just saved me/her countless hours of fruitless frustration and anxiety. Again, thank you... !!!!! Rich & Jessica
Hey brother Rich. So glad something we said or did helped you in some way. I replied to your email brother. Take a look and let Jenn and I know if there is anything we can do to help you and Jessica. Thanks for watching!
Congrats to both of u.... there's someone who can accept me as a single mom with a lot of kids and I can really find someone who can be with for the rest of our lives together as family🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏❤️
Thanks for sharing your BOM with us. We are currently building with a architect builder who was a classmate of my wife. He is based in Manila and he graciously agreed to build for us in the province of Barangay Hiyop, Pandan Catanduanes. We just want to enjoy the build and relax while it is being built. Completion date is in April 2023. You have a lovely home and we wish you all the best. Cheers mate!
Very interesting to know all that costs, yes the swimming pool is always apart from the price of house construction. You got a beautiful house and nice surroundings. Far from the noise and crowded city
Brother your build is like almost 100% parallel with ours here in Zambales. Much of the same issues if not all. We are still not done yet and the end is a ways out…we let our contractor go just shy of the four month mark because of all the issues you speak to here. His crew was and is outstanding and we kept them but sent him packing…best wishes to you and yours as you continue your endeavors here in the Philippines…peace to you n yours 😎
Well, the thought crossed my mind, but at the point it did, we were almost there and 90% vested in the process. So I just felt starting from scratch might prove to be worse than the alternative. No worries though, we are getting it done as the God's allow!
Mr. Rick - I admirie your honest comments and critiques about your home building experience. We all want to say it came out perfect without hicupps, but truth be told life is never a bowl full of Cherries. I hope to be a close neighbor next year with the purchase of farm land and plans to build a house just outside of Tarlac. Perhaps someday I can share my experience. If I end up Vlogging - perhaps I'll call it "What could possibly go wrong" . It's probably already out there.
John, thanks for watching brother! I love the Vlog title! Kind of sad that I didn't think of it first 🤣. Let me know when you get to Tarlac. Jenn and I go there probably a couple of times a month, as it is one of the larger cities to where we live.
Hello Rick. Good job been here for 28 years..i think you did a very good build and price..i build every thing one day at a time .just hire local builders..hope to build some day .with a design and engineered home.you broke it down very well.what to look for and what to expect.Thank u for your time
I’m married to a Filipina. We own in Aklan. I’m also from East Texas…Tyler, TX. Y’all’s house is really nice. We.re headed back tomorrow the PH to see our kids and grandkids. Stay safe…enjoy the home.
I really enjoyed your video. Thank you. I just drove through that area 2 weeks ago. My wife is from Bicol, and we took a trip up to Baguio. I enjoyed the drive from Manila to Baguio and the view from the highway was beautiful. I told my wife that this looks like a good place to build a house. Thanks again.
Wow Ray! You were only about 25 minutes from us when you passed the Anao/Moncada exit off the TPLEX. You most likely looked at Mt. Balungao, which is the extinct volcano I talk about all the time in my vlogs. Small world brother!
I am looking into building out there also for me and my family. This video is very enlightening, and I can now prepare for the "additionals" and ask questions accordingly.
Whoa’ seems to me that was very deceptive of the builder, to show you the complete plans and pricing and then not include the vast majority of items. Thank you for this video, I lived in the PI for six yrs and knew that I would need to be vigilant when building and had a few odd experiences of my own on smaller projects but this is something I probably wouldn’t have expected. But now I will get every single thing in writing before I sign any contracts.
That is a smart move on your part. Shame is sometimes what is in writing in the contract, doesn't come to fruition. They then tell you if it isn't in the Bill of Materials, then it isn't a part of the build. Imagine looking at 12 pages of materials that looks like a Home Depot inventory sheet and having to determine exactly what you are getting.😂
Whew, they really know how to whittle you down to the last buck. I would have also assumed the wall and everything would be included. I hope you get to enjoy it. You seem to have a good attitude about it.
$115k in todays exchange rate, but for during our build time, $130k is about right. That would be everything, including the projects that have been done by other contractors since the build. And yes, never could have built this for anywhere close in the US. Thanks for watching sir!
@@rickeybaker9066Yes, the price is far less than what you’d pay in the US. That’s because it is not in the US. The price is much higher than many houses other expats there. But, no doubt, from the little I’ve seen, this house looks very lovely. The pool looks gorgeous.
Congrats Rickey. Really helpful video. I will be building in Bagac County farm next year . Dealing with Filipinos in construction is totally different, no matter what you do you end up with more. Even here in Montreal I started at 560 and end up with 1 mil anyhow it's done and looks nice just enjoy it 👍
I truly hope you are and will be very happy. You seem to be a very good guy, and I believe the builder took quite a bit of advantage of your kindness. That being said, you have a beautiful home, and it is a fraction of what you would pay here in Rockport, TX. Thank you for sharing.
TJ, you are absolutely correct, we have a wonderful home and for a fraction of what a similar structure would cost back home. So, my complaints are muted for sure. Always good to hear from a fellow Texan! Thanks for the kind words and for watching!
Hi Rick Thanks for sharing.. Conversion to US$ about $102000.00 according to currency convertor. Probably a reasonable outlay. I don't know how that cost compares to US homes but you've got what you wanted in the location of your choice to see you out your days.. My uncle in law in Thailand was hired to build our home. We had 2 choices. 1. No control over materials and a total cost of thb2 million baht, or 2. Fixed labour which amounted to AUS$17k but we chose and pay for all materials. Exchange rate then was AUS$1=thb32 I went the latter as here at least, they've 3 quality grades of concrete and metal framing. Guarantee they'd always pick the lowest quality to maximise their profit but I wanted the top grade of everything to ensure it wasn't falling down anytime soon. I found out later I too had to pay extra for built in wardrobes or kitchen cupboards. Uncle quoted a plucked out of the air price so we declined and sourced that ourselves later. Uncle paid for the draftsman, engineer to draw up and certify plans. Excavation & hiring of framework for slab etc, electrician. You don't need any "fit for occupancy" certification or the need to submit planning & approvals docs etc. You only have to show a photo of a toilet in place, an electrical consumer unit on the wall & grounding rod connected up to get rubber stamped off on for an electricity supply. At this point you can get your property registered and given an actual address. We had to hire a drill team for water bore which was probably the only other once off large expensive cost. User pays for all materials for electricity from the house to the company lines which in our case about 300 metres. So poles, cabling etc.. All up unfurnished about AUS$100k My only house I had built in Australia was $480k for a house 1/3 the size of this house & 90m2 of land it sat on compared to about 4 acres here.. I paid AUS$6k for the land here. I prefer Australia everything compared to Thailand but I can live here for the sake of my wife being near to her family.
Hello sir! Appreciate you watching. My calculations on the home cost itself, comes out to about $79k usd. That's at the rate of 51 pesos to $1. That is where the exchange rate was for most of our build. That's just for the house and additionals inside the home. Not the pool or driveway or perimeter wall. My calculations put us right at $46 usd a sqf. A new build back in Texas would easily be three to four times that amount. So, all in all, I think we came out ok on it. Thanks for sharing some detail on your build in Thailand. Always wondered how the PI compared to other Asian countries. Sounds like you came out way ahead on your build. And I totally understand, I miss just about everything in East Texas, but you won't here me complain to much about living in this incredibly beautiful location, in a comfortable and paid for home, spending my remaining days on this earth, with an incredible woman that loves me to the moon and back!
The smartest purchase was the location of the land, away from any daily problems you will experience. I bought next to a Cemetery and my neighbours are amazingly quiet. Probably one of the most beautiful houses I have seen in the Philippines. That certainly is a great achievement for the price because building in the Philippines can be an old man killer.
Thanks brother! Yep, we don't hear much out of the cemetery down the road. Thanks for the compliment! We really are enjoying our home, the design and the location. Thanks for watching!
Sounds like it was a pain in the ass, but man when it's all said and done, you have a beautiful home. Thanks for taking the time to tell us about the build.
Thank you for sharing your home and providing a breakout of costs. Hiring a good contractor, engineer and architect etc. are very important when building in the Phils, but finding really good ones that are available in your area can be a challenge. It is worth investing the time, though.
Hi can you build your own house like an “Owner Builder” because I hope to settle there one day & have built 3 of my own homes as an Owner Builder in Australia so I’m probably more qualified than the slow she’ll be right attitude builders of the Philippines 😂
@@mattbright8635 You absolutely can Matt. The challenge will be finding labor with the skills if you are wanting to build in the same style as Australia. Materials are also always a challenge, but nothing says you can't come here and oversee the build. At least you know when you are done, you can live with what you built!
While I enjoyed your build, as a design builder in the USA, after designing my x wife’s house in Mindanao. I advised her to hire a structural engineer that cost her about $120 a month to stop by as often as was practical to check on her house build. He worked for the city permit/planning dept. of her small town. I got a dozen pictures a day for the 6 months. He also kept track of supplies while both of us were in the US working. It was by far, the best money one could spent especial if you are not in country or are not an expert in construction management. It’s not as easy as it looks. Hirng a civil engineer/structural especially if family is building for you can save a lot of hurt feelings and ensure a good build. To expect from builders who lack the know how for 1st world standards thru no fault of their owners can lead to tensions that will last for years and cost you a million more pesos. A few suggestions would be; pour your walls with solid concrete(no hollow block, use fiber entrainment/tiny fiberglass added to the mix, and vibrate your concrete. And lastly, never scrimp on rebar. My x wife’s house was designed to a 7.5 earthquake scale. It more than doubled her rebar cost, but will ensure a house that can be pasted down to her progeny for generations to come with less maintenance.
Joe, super smart of you to have done that. Our construction manager was actually a Structural Engineer and I believe he built a strong home for us. What he wasn't, was a good project finisher. Just didn't have the knowledge and communication skills to get all the finishing touches done right. That's my opinion of course. Additionally, toward the end, he was pretty much left to his own by the company and there didn't seem to be any accountability for him to answer to. What you did was smart and we thought we were getting something similar and I believe we did up until the last two months or so of construction.
@@rickeybaker9066 well at least you know that the bones of your project are much better than is typical. And while no one wants to correct poor quality, structural matters are very difficult to correct.. I’m looking at a row of townhouses in Zapote , Cavite that went into foreclosure and am considering buying a few of them and will higher a PE to assist me. Always good to have a second opinion when investing large sums. My biggest misgiving is the structure, looks can be deceiving. We were lucky to have her very talented brother in law is a hands on builder, but of course he lacks experience doing high end jobs and demands she wanted, but his finish work was great. Sometimes family when they see one of their own doing so well, develop entitlements to your materials for other jobs and such. So for her, the engineer functioned as a guard against materials walking away. This is something I’ve heard from many expats.
@@joem1070 You are absolutely correct Joe. Much better to not have the structural issues. One thing you absolutely have to be aware of here with already built projects, is that structural issues can be hidden for a while and they are really good at doing that here. In our project, the engineer was also the site foreman overseeing each construction specialty and was also charged with the materials. Not convinced that all that was purchased, made it into the house. Not to mention, a great deal of waste as evidenced by all the construction trash we picked up for weeks after moving in. But, water under the bridge for us. Best of luck with your venture in Cavite!
Nice to see the solar. Great for those constant blackouts. Nice pool, too. Good job. Edit: Such an amazing lesson in how things are built differently over there. Paying for the worker's lunches was also priceless. Gosh, I would have aged ten years just going through the stress of the build. Thanks!
Thank you sir and I would tend to agree with you. If it wasn't for the value, this would have been a less enjoyable experience. Thank you for watching!
Thankyou for sharing this. Currently building my house there half way through but I stop at the moment. Though, its not yet even finished at least I have some insight now regarding the expenses that I may use in the future.
So glad to hear that we have been able to help you somehow Kristine. Congrats on your home build and I wish you nothing but great experiences with it from here out!
Bataan have always been an expensive province due to their close proximity to Manila. Bataan also has one of the highest employment rate compared to any other provinces due to their Economic Zone and Power Plant that supplies neighbouring provinces.
We loved living in Bataan, just didn't want to sacrifice the home we desired for the sake of high land prices. I just struggled with the arbitrary land prices that seemed to have no rhyme or reason. Thanks for watching!
hey Rick, thanks for the info & what to watch out off-- im moving there next year & im not sure if i can afford to build now- these- people went crazy on the prices for land- i mean crazy lol hey you got s beautiful wife , beautiful house just sit back & enjoy what you got.- its not our country not our culture, how are we to know- take care & peace out Dennis
Hey Dennis! Congrats on the future move. Land prices vary here drastically, depending on the location. Where we are, prices are still very reasonable. It allowed us to build the home we had hoped to build. Thanks for the compliments and Jenn and I are loving it here. There are always valleys to go through in any location, just have to keep climbing to get to the mountain top!
Thanks Jim, appreciate the kind words. I will answer your question this way, if I were building a Filipino style home, then yes, this builder could build a quality home. If I were going to build an American style home with a turn key finish again, then I would have to say no. The finish was less than satisfactory for me, even though I had been super clear that I expected a turn key finish.
That is not too bad, sir. Thanks for sharing your experience. Want to build one soon. Maybe now will cost me 10m now. That's a lot for me. 3 more years to save. Enjoy the fruits of your labor.
Your right, a lot more bang for our buck in the Philippines. Prices did increase during all the COVID Craziness, but they have leveled off. It's not like in the US where material and labor costs have just continued to rise month after month. Wishing you the best on your future build!
I think it's about right the price for everything. I'm surprised you got the land that cheap may I ask where did you look to buy land did you use website to search for land ?
No sir, we have found that the websites are not kept updated and there is no MLS here. What worked best for us was to find someone in the local area that was someone that locals would go to if they wanted to find a buyer for their land. The lady we utilized, knows people that have land to sell and even will approach an owner about selling, if she knows she has a solid buyer. There are no for sale signs and even if there were, knowing which rabbit trail to go down to look, would be incredibly time consuming. I would advise knowing where you want to look, contacting family or friends in the area and asking if they know of someone that can help with locating property. The lady that was recommended to us was wonderful. She knew what were must haves and what were deal killers for us. So, she would make sure that any property she took us to met those criteria, and did not waste our time.
Living the good life I see, all you need is a golf course where everyday you get a hole in 1. The complex is really nice, don't forget the Constantine wire, every veterans home should have it. I don't need anything special myself, but you went all out.
Well Rick, nice name by the way 😂, I have screws and rods in the lower back so I don't golf. Swinging a wood is one of the only things I can do to actually feel my screws 🤪. No need for the wire, there are other ways to protect ones castle! It has made for a very nice, relaxing and comfortable retirement home for sure. Thanks for watching brother!
Rickey, welcome to the Philippines way of house building. It reminds me of what we called being Nickel and Dimed in the US. No Punch list being done as part the Turnover? You got it done but I see the frustration on your face at having to go through something that you wish you could have avoided if that has gone through the build process already could have told you of the pitfalls to avoid. Enjoy the fruits now that essentially it's complete.
Thank you Charles! Yes, it very much felt that way. I am actually a veteran of being treated differently when it comes to prices, but I had hoped this experience might be different. It got to the point that I just had to say, enough is enough, not even one more additional will I do. A budget is a budget. We are enjoying being here and hope to spend the next couple of decades enjoying what is left of my life!
Beautiful home and location, and great news about having drinkable well water! I follow allot of expat builds in the PI, and if the expat isn’t on site every day to supervise, it seems the builds will be the standard PI way as you mentioned. In my pinay and I ever decide to build there, I’ll either have to be hands on for the build, or hire a westerner or skilled Filipino project manage to ensure it’s built to our standards. Not a western country so it’s either go with their construction style or become the general contractor to build to your desired standards. There are lots of talented construction tradesmen in the PI, they just need to be trained when you want something done in a way that’s different from what they know. Nice house, it’s a design like we would build. Enjoy your retirement!!
Hank you are right on and unfortunately I was unable to be here daily and honestly, construction wasn't my area of expertise back in Texas, I just have a knack for spotting quality when I see it. Another factor to consider is the availability of desired building materials. You really are limited by where it is you decide to build. If you get to far away from major population centers, it becomes cost prohibitive to bring in the desired materials and sometimes, at least for me, I had to compromise on what I could get. If the budget was unlimited, I could have gotten exactly what I wanted, but reality is, there are limits, for me anyway. I think you nailed it, the key is hiring the right person to oversee the day to day activities, or if you have the abilities, do it yourself. Wishing you and your Filipina all the blessings this life has to give brother!
GREAT video. Very informative! Not a fan of the sit and talks BUT yours worked for this topic. Many lessons learned. We bought home in a Subdivision that had been vacant for 2 years - for those that don't know can't do that in a tropical country. But after a team of us and my wife's family cleaning in and out for days our complete reno could start. I wish I had seen a video like yours before we bought. We looked at vacant lots but I was too afraid to build here - having gone through our complete reno in and outside I would tell people go for it BUT they should also watch your video FIRST. I loved how diplomatic you WERE in many spots, especially when you compared the Builder's quote for your front wall at the end of your project to the 250k less quote, as you said "THAT SAYS ALOT".😅 So many great points in your video - we too have computerised drawings for our outer building reno - thanks to your tips I will be on top of that to clarify up front. Not sure about your experiences with materials used - but I had small custom TV stand built we agreed on price, wood to use and high gloss paint, 3k. Builder brought it to the house when "done" and it was so rough with knots - what he had done was ignore my choice of plywood and bought rough thinner AKA CHEAPER plywood so he would make extra money on the fixed price. I rejected it and he took it apart and sanded everything and repainted. I took it the second time, still not what I wanted, but I told him too bad as it was a test for our future reno plans and now I would never use him or recommend him. Also was supposed to take 2 weeks, 1st delivery was 1 month then I rejected and then over a month more to come back. On our house rebuild only a few changes to our original nice solid wood cabinets (just updated paint from dark brown to high gloss white and modern cabinet handles) wanted some inner middle shelves added, for canned storage, the shelf height was too high. Told the builder use exact same size cabinet wood - AGAIN (different guy from TV stand) he came back with paper thin sheet of plywood and said would build 1x2 box frame under around and cross because plywood I wanted was too expensive. Again I said NO and from then on I purchased all materials. This is my big lesson learned here at least in Negros Oriental on any build you must control all material purchases to ensure you get the quality you want. Even paint you pick high quality and they quote based on that and then buy lesser quality to make higher profit. Oh ONE last tip - the days I drove 1 hour each way to our construction site they worked better, when not there a few days it looked like not much done. The local sari-sari store owner told me a few days a week my 4 man painting crew would quit early afternoon and drink on his patio then go home at quitting time. I did a few surprise visits one hour before end of shift and they were always cleaning up for the day. We got to the end of the 4 week contract and said they needed to extend 2 more weeks for another 50% of the original price. I told my reno crew stop working and gathered everyone in our compound and asked if the reno crew wanted to add the rest of the outside painting to their job (5 guys paid daily rate). The reno crew foreman said YES and I fired the painting crew on the spot. They tried to backtrack and apologise I said no as I I knew when I wasn't around they quit early and worked slow. The reno crew did a great job painting our steel roof and compound walls and all metal attached to the walls. Painting like that not rocket science. FYI we bought for 3mil then renos, taxes fees moved to 4mil (Subdivision corner lot, 250 sqm double lot, pedestrian gate, car gate, 3 bdrm 2 bath, + outer Bldg maids quarters another bathroom, storage room, laundry area and outdoor covered kitchen, with complete security wall. You have an amazing place for your 6.5 CONGRATS
Thank you for the kind words brother! All of your observations were spot on and it sounds like you experienced a few of your own during your renovation. 4 mil for a completely renovated 3/2 home is an awesome price and your hands on approach was the key I am sure. When my build started out the materials were acceptable and I believe the overall structure of our home is solid. It is when they got close to the end and went to take care of the finishes, that is where the cheeping on materials really showed up. The builder stopped monitoring his engineer and his engineer was going over on his budget, so by the time the Architect discovered a lot of missing materials on the build, they then started trying to do less and less, only to ultimately not finish the job. But, time, a bit more money and my ability to be there everyday, we got the job done and I am pleased with the final product.
Sit down with me as I go over details of our home size, lot size, initial budget for house and pool, and all the "additionals", down to the final total of the cost to build our home in Cuyapo, Nueva Ecija!
Just a quick question. As I can see you have built a house almost in the middle of a rice field. Was the land with agricultural title or residential title?
i didnt hire a contractor or architect or any of that, i just hired 5 guys from the village as labor and worked along side them every inch of the way . (after i fired my wifes family and took over after they sort of got started?) my place is 1024 sq ft ,bathroom, kitchen,living room and large storage room downstairs, 2 bedrooms and a small landing/hallway upstairs with a 13 ft X 16 ft terrace, it overlooks the ocean. i spent 18,000 dollars in 2015 to get the initial structure built and i went all out on primed rebar in 4 inch squares in the slab and really good rebar design in the 12x12" ring beams and columns and arch beams supporting it, i have ten 10" columns on the perimeter walls and a large 28 inch X 28 inch column in the center of the house. i did an additional small 6" ring beam halfway up the walls upstairs before finishing the walls up to the 6x6" roof ring beam. i over-did the rebar a bit since i am not a structural engineer. i used 2 sizes of crushed stone in the concrete and added sahara waterproofing in the slab concrete since it was half terrace and would serve as the roof of the living room downstairs. the roof is just 2x8 hardwood beams every 4 foot , i sunk big steel bolts into the ring beam on top so i just bolted 2x8's on those as a sill plate and covered it with 3/4 inch waterproofed plywood on them and heavy gauge sheet metal. i primed and painted that white hi gloss enamel to keep it cool. its probably one of the strongest structures in the country just because i didnt know how to calculate loads etc, and was scared of having a 10 inch thick concrete slab over my family's heads! everyone who sees it says i can park a few dozen loaded semi trucks upstairs stacked one on top the other with no problem. so i guess i really over spent $$ there. i have since put another 10,000 dollars into it this past year adding a 15' 'X 4' front porch of all reinforced poured concrete 6 inches thick (no hollow block) in case of a storm surge/typhoon to protect the house since we are right on the ocean. and skim coated and painted the exterior and added nice one way reflective windows and tiled the floors. i will be 63 this july so i am winding down now, its pretty much maint. free , just spot sand&prime and paint the roof every 4 years and sand and spot prime and paint the steel handrails on the terrace every 2 years. its as done as its going to get, i'm ready to retire again LOL i will not worry about earthquakes under 6.2 or any typhoons smaller than yolanda. $28,000 in materials and labor and about $100,000 dollars of my own 'free' labor at US prices.🤔
So what I will take from that is, I am super jealous of the skills you do have. Unfortunately, I do not possess those skills and would not have been a lot of help with 5 laborers. I pretty much was dependent on the skills of the Architect and engineer. I do however know a poor finish when I see it. I believe you will be super happy with your finished product, if for no other reason than you put your hard work and effort into it. You made out like a bandit on materials brother!
Bro, congrats on the nice home. Moreover, the builder that nickel and dimed you on this project please share their name so others will be aware of them! I’ve watched several homes being built throughout the Philippines and the ones that went as plan on cost got three to four bids from different builders to avoid the cost overages you experienced with this Contactor. Great to hear that you withheld some of the money on the backend to make sure everything gets done….because you can bet $1m dollars they won’t be around to fix/warranty any of the work once they are gone. This is my first video to watch of your channel…please share the name of this builder so others looking to build…can beware of this Contactor. Once again congrats on the home 🎉
Thank you sir, appreciate you watching! We did due diligence when looking for a builder, and I bottom line went with the one I believed I had a relationship with. I'm a relationship kind of guy and I put a lot of stock in that. Relationships here however, are not what they are back home. Things may appear deep when in fact they are very shallow. Let me say that my intention has never been to disparage anyone. I have always just tried to be honest, from my perspective of course, and folks can come to their own conclusions. I believe our builder has and can do quality work. For whatever reason, the project manager on our build, just did not live up to my standards. Where I believe the company went wrong, was in not doing what they should to remedy the mistakes and to heed my repeated concerns along the way. It is actually very normal here in the PI, customer service has an impressive start, but essentially that is where it ends. My experience here is that companies that I have had dealings with, to include our builder, simply don't problem solve well and the customer isn't first by any means. If we were in the US, I would be a much stronger critic here, but I am not in the US and I am a "foreigner" in this country and I am reminded of that fact almost daily, so I will simply say, watch Week 7 and you will get the information you seek!
For anyone worried about builders, it's easiest to treat drawings as the contract, and especially specifications. You don't have to be a designer yourself, just be detail-oriented and make a complete list of every space and description of the project yourself and with the Architect/Builder. That way they can generate the drawings and specs to address these and price accordingly. This is exactly the meaning of value engineering, you get what you specify and is clear for the builder. DO take your time in designing your home, it is typical to take a year or more ON PAPER to design and the purpose is to fill in as many of the blanks as possible to make a complete picture of the information set. Talk to a professional, consultation, talking about it for the most part is FREE (at least for myself and many in my professional circle). For the most part, having visited and lived in other parts of the world, PH is for me the best of all worlds for westerners.
Good advise sir! Communicating your expectations can be challenging at times. But pictures should take out the ambiguity for sure. Thanks for watching!
Congratulations on your built. I'm still on the building stage. Our contractor wanted to charge us 200k for ground soil on a 168 sqm lot. Obviously I put the house on hold, until I fine a cheaper price. One thing as a expat or even a native Filipino you need to do. Be on site almost every day to over see the work and materials. Your very right about one thing foreigners often overlook or assume what's included in the building plans and what's not. Get everything clear from the beginning. Filipino mindset is all expats are millionaires😅. It's a good idea to have a budget and remind the contractor of that budget. Good luck in your plans. 👍
Sir the house looks awesome! I'm a retired veteran planning to retire there in a couple year. Your video is a great help, trying to understand how things gets done in the Philippines is definitely helpful. California is just getting way too expensive to live. Hope to meet you guys in future.
Always an honor to meet another retired veteran brother. Looking forward to it. Super glad the video was helpful. It is a challenge here, but one worth taking! I understand the "getting way to expensive to live" thing. I saw more Cali plates when I went back to Texas the past 3 months, than I have ever seen in my 60 years on earth. I know it isn't the weather they are moving there for .
awesome video. I am a contractor in Dumaguete and we have done somewhere around 150 projects here over the past 10 years. When you first said your quoted price, I was skeptical and decided to watch the whole video. The way you got hit with the "additionals" is actually common practice here. Give a cheap price up front and make money from extras seems to be a business model and one we find frustrating to quote against. When we give a quotation, we leave almost zero room for misunderstandings between what a client expects to get and what we expect to give him. I would rather have us lose a job than have myself and our clients needing to go head to head like that. The thing we try to remember is that most retirees have a hard budget and if we go over that, they are rarely in a position to just go back out into the workforce to make more money to pay for the over-runs. Your actual finished price is right on or a little under what this house would actually cost to build. A shame that your contractor just did not be up front about that from the get go. Congrats though. the end result is beautiful
You nailed everything I have been trying to share with folks. And let me say, my preference would have been to have someone do as you say you do. Build me a "Turnkey" home and provide me with an honest cost upfront. No one likes to be surprised and yes, retirees especially. You only have what you have when you are retired. Had we ended the construction where the bid ended, we would have had a half finished home in my eyes. I couldn't be happier though, with what we were able to get it to. It is a beautiful home in our own little slice of paradise! Thanks for watching 🙏
Thank you for this. I'm British-Filipino moving back out there and looking to build something similar, if a bit smaller and without the pool out in Romblon.
Still unbelievable value for money compared to the UK. In London where I live you would be lucky to purchase a garage for storage or somewhere to park your car. Beautiful surroundings nice and quiet.
Congratulations on your beautiful home. I think your house came out beautiful and the overall cost i think is very reasonable. I moved to New York City in 1991. Purchased our first house in 1999. My first major renovation was on 2016 wherein we gutted the house ,changed the electricals, plumbing,insulation bathroom and kitchen basically the entire inside of the house was renovated. The initial cost assessment was 165k but it ended costing me 250K. I was inspected by Department of Buildings and was issued a violation, i had to attend court hearings on multiple occasion. It was one of the most unpleasant experience in my life but it is all worth it at he end. My last project was the concrete work that i had surrounding the house with some pavers installed which cost me another 45 k. Congratulation on your beautiful house it is beautiful.
Life is full of lessons Marlon, and for us here in the Philippines, those lessons just keep on coming . Regardless, every time I pour a cup of coffee and sit out by the pool, the world just seems perfect! Thanks for watching sir!
I watched and enjoyed this video. Found it to be very informative. You have a very nice piece of property and I hope you enjoy it, once it is all complete. Thanks for sharing....
Dude; your place is awesome; I love how you are out in the middle of nowhere; my build in Moises Padilla is almost complete and as soon as I get my home sold in Florida me and my filipina gonna retire there; cheers
Hello sir, appreciate the kind words! Building in Visayas! I have heard it is beautiful down there. Will have to venture that way some time. Just got back from seeing Davao and loved it. Yep, we are pretty isolated and I love it that way. I haven't heard a rooster since I left Balanga in Bataan!
Congrats! We take the Moncada/Anao exit off the TPLEX when we travel home, so yes, we are pretty close to each other. Let us know when you come home and we can get together for a cup of coffee and solve the world's problems .
Don't feel so bad,i had experienced it in florida.we changed contractor 3 times and had to go to court(same problem of yours) You can just imagine the trouble we had, and by looking at your place not bad at all,compared to the price we built here! Good luck to your new home !
I live in the Philippines, retired, buy I will never buy property here nor will I build a house, government is on shaky grounds, Filipinos over charging foreigners, yet you don't own the property, no I will not throw my money away I'll continue renting.
An "architectural feature" on the rendering SHOULD BE in the original price -- period! Thanks for the video - in the midst of wife building a house now... we are going back to the Philippines next month, so I will get to see it then. Your place turned out beautiful!
Agreed! I tried explaining that to the Architect and encouraged him if he plans to do business with foreigners in the future, what is on the drawing should be what is bid. Period. Best of luck with your build brother! Hope all goes well. And yes, we love the design we built, it is just what we were wanting.
Thanks for taking the time to share - bungalow designs are my favorite. You have a wonderful home - lots of great features to enjoy for the years to come. The builder - yes - doesn't surprise me even though I do not know them personally. Looking - in the educating process myself in doing a build there in the PHP, I have already experienced such in some discussion with several. Have no interest in dealing with such a builder - everything in writing - in detail to hopefully eliminate what you have gone through. Being in the business for many years myself hopefully will assist, priding myself in my own business of no extras with my client's because everything is clear (what builder does final drawings with sign offs and then along the way says architectural concepts LOL! ) Like going to buy a car with no engine OR tires LOL! I'm well versed in this type of builders methods which to me just makes no sense, unethical on their part but just how they go about doing their business which in the end leads into frustration and delays for the home owner - hence no final release due to deficiencies. You should not have not even paid 5% out of the 10 completion agreement specially with all of the games played mainly due to them not being so interested now in getting things taken care of. Doing the numbers appears you may have paid an extra approx close to 2 mil which on this build is sad. Yes still cheaper than from where you are but this has nothing to do with this deal hence so wrong in so many ways on their part. Anyone reading - a little friendly advise. Why it's important to ask as many questions and get everything in writing in detail - also important to look at other projects the company has done - get at least 5 home references - see and talk to these home owners. The actual rough build it's self but then look at the finishes. Finish material like floor and wall material, windows & doors - hardware - kitchen cabinets - sink - faucet - counter and any other feature areas - roof material - landscaping - perimeter walls - gates is what break most projects with clients running out of money if dealing with builders like this so ensure you know what you are getting. For many this can and will be their life savings being allocated for the property and home - could easily be their last. Hopefully in the end you get all resolved and just enjoy! Have a wonderful day!
Excellent advise for all brother! We actually did look at the builders current projects and past builds and was even able to visit with one of his builds that was an American. Turns out it was the builders brother in law and I most likely didn't get the full picture. Regardless, where I believe I failed is that I believed a relationship between myself and the builder had been formed and I bottom line, just trusted to much. Let my guard down if you will. It sounds like you have a full grasp of what you want in your build, so I have no doubt you will fare even better than we did. Nothing but the best to you and thanks for watching!
@@rickbaker0217 Yes I know - not your wrong and what should have been followed was the actual drawings signed off but obviously did not happen. To help others watching or reading they need MORE in Detail so not to run into the same issues with bad builders being unethical charging as they did - it's just so wrong and leaving the bad taste - this is just how they do business and continue to get away with it. Home builders do not need to or should not have to deal with such stress and nonsense. Simple thing to help avoid - have in writing items Fence: Is included in contract price and actual build details of where. Same goes for driveway - kitchen cabinets and details and on and on. In the contract all building permit costs - hook-up fees builder assumes - included in agreed price. Might seem like a lot of extra work and details but really isn't because all you are doing is a follow-up and putting everything in writing as per your discussions. Everything in writing with as much detail as possible to assist in eliminating what you went through. Referral - doesn't surprise me it was a related referral LOL!!!! what so ever. This is a business transaction. I have followed and as mentioned, over all like your design, appreciate you sharing. I hope you get to enjoy for many many years to come. Have a great day!
Wow, that's a lot of good info. we have land in pangasinan and will probably begin building home with a pool once we actually have the title in her name. We have been waiting almost 2 years for the title. we got an update recently saying soon, but we all know how Philippine time works slow and slower
Hope for nothing but the best with your goals to build in Pangansinan! Sorry to hear the title is taking so long. We were blessed to have purchased land that had a clear title and we had it in Jenn's name in just two months. Hoping yours is resolved soon!
I absolutely understand what you’re referring to in regards to mobility. I can’t believe you built that home for around 100 K US. Just so you know the real estate market in the US has gone crazy over the last five years. I don’t believe you could build that for three or four times what you spent. Thank you for a comprehensive breakdown.
New subscriber here. I live in Texas and we are planning a move to the PI when I hang up my gloves and retire. Sounds like you got a whole lot of house for the money, but it is never easy over there.
Hello my Texas brother from another mother! Always good to hear another Texas headed this way. You are right, building here is an adventure for sure, but it can be done and you can ultimately feel good about what you did.
Very helpful video for anyone building in the Philippines. I think that builder retired after doing your job. All said and done that is a beautiful home for that amount of money.
That was pretty good after the dust settled. Little bit stressful when everything keeps becoming "an extra". I'm a big fan of putting requirements and detailed the deliverables in writing that is signed, notarized and witnessed etc... Even with that, there are some things beyond everyone's control like the supply chain. You have a beautiful home, pool and a beautiful wife. The view from your back yard is also amazing too. Thanks for sharing your info. I'm thinking real hard and planning to do the same soon.
Congrats,the house looks great,a real nice retirement home in a quiet location,,,,what will you do with the extra land you have?that's a big property,maybe in that pond you can have tilapia fish so you always have a supply of fish and also grow vegetables to become self sufficient,,,you have your own water,electricity, possibly fish ,fruits and vegies,,,,,good luck tc always
Hey Ken! Yes, I believe this will be all that I was hoping it would be. Everyday it just seems a little more like "home". Well, that's exactly what we are going to do with the property. We will rebuild the terraces that the builder took dirt from, and once it's in good shape, we will be planting fruits and vegetables. The pond is actually just outside our perimeter fence, but no worries, a guy comes by here every morning, selling fresh Tilapia at a super price!
Gosh this has been fascinating to watch . I just feel on your channel & so glad I did . ( Its so different to so many countries .) But you & your wife have a beautiful home . Enjoy it all Toughly enjoyed watching your channel. Much love from wales . Thank you for showing.❤️ enjoy xxxxx
Thanks for watching and yes, it is different anywhere you are. Every country has it's positives and negatives. It's the reason we named the channel what we did, "The Good, The Bad, The Philippines!" So glad you enjoyed watching and thank you for the kind words. We love being here and despite the negatives, this is where we choose to be. Always good to hear from someone in Great Britain! Scotland, Wales and Ireland make up about 96% of my DNA!!!
Great summery, my takeaway is that you experienced some cost creep due to your inexperience in the province area. Hire local is great advice... Congrads on the new home..
I just found you on TH-cam and I am also, I am a senior citizen, my daughter and her husband live in Subic bay. I am here in San Pedro California. Still a government job, but looking to come to the Philippines and purchase myself.
![BOWKYLION - วิงวอน (ex-change) [Official MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/cLdnZWDaO-w/mqdefault.jpg)
Congratulations, you have given one of the most comprehensive cost analysis I’ve seen for building here in the Philippines! You nailed it on the way Filipinos price their land, it’s more of a I want, pie in the sky, 200 years in the future price, not what we have in the US, comparable pricing of previous sold in the surrounding area and backed up by rigorous calculations by a licensed appraiser. Most bloggers dance around the cost and as you discovered the extra cost of doing it right with the quality building materials most foreigner want. A word to expats about the future of their home after they are gone. Look around once here, the climate and low quality building practices due to cost here decimates the buildings so poor quality to begin with will cost you in a very short time a lot in never ending repairs, once your gone it’s up to your family to upkeep the home and sadly it just doesn’t get done. The short end of it, your family then tries to sell it, in terrible condition for what it cost to build or at the Filipino pie in the sky price eventually settling for far, far less. So don’t think your leaving them with something of high value the second your gone it’s a quickly declining asset. A good business that will generate a constant stream of revenue for them is of higher value to them and for them than something they cannot maintain and quickly declines in value. Expats build for themselves Filipinos simply don’t need the same home foreigners build, of course we want what we want and most indeed want a quality retirement home just keep in mind your families future without you here.
I think your advice is spot on and I know when I am gone, this home will be costly to maintain. I am planning for that so if Jenn does decide to stay here, which I believe she will, she will have what she needs to maintain the home and property. If she doesn't desire to stay here without me, then the house will be in immaculate condition to sell should she decide to do so. Even if for some reason she had to take lower than what it cost to build, she will be fine financially for as long as she hangs out here on this earth. Everything you said, I have given great thought and effort to avoid happening to the love of my life. I am glad you said it!
I supposed you should demand the price as pictured and no exceptions.
Can't find a way to DM you... beside the wall is drainage..
Your message: Hey sir! Wow! big property with a lot of linear meters of perimeter fencing. Looks like your doing chb on one side and pole on the rest. Sorry for the late response, you messaged on Jenns messenger. Feel free to send me a message request and we can chat on my messenger if you would like. What is the frame work on the outside of the chb wall?
@@safffff1000 Unfortunately demanding doesn't always get you the result you are desiring. I wish it were that simple.
Totally agree except that "the second your gone it’s a quickly declining asset". It is NOT a declining asset but a declining LIABILITY!
Thanks for being real and transparent. Building your own home in your own country is not easy. Building in a foreign country is like baptism by fire school of hard knocks. My cousins built homes in their province, even locals have a hard time too. People were stealing supplies even light bulbs. They had to hire guys to stay on their property while their house was being built. They would randomly visit the site and no ones working, lots of extras they didn’t anticipate too, behind schedule etc. Btw their homes are modest 2-3 bdrm 1 bath under 1,000 sq ft. Building a home is a huge and rewarding endeavour. Enjoy your paradise. Mabuhay!
I like how you described the process, "School of hard knocks!" I couldn't have said it better. Everything you described, we experienced as well. The builder even hired a local person to keep an eye on things when the workers would take a week off here and there. Problem was, every time I visited during these weeks off, the person hired to watch things, was no where to be found . Crazy stuff. Appreciate you watching sir!
Actually building your own home, in a Foreign country is easy, if you know how to build a house. A lot cheaper also, takes a lot longer, but you get exactly what you want, and do not need to deal with the locals, except to hire manual laborers and tell them what to do and how to do it, or higher skilled workers that know how to do stuff.
The issue is most people never learn how to build a house. Honestly it's way easier them people think and not complicated at all. But businesses do not want you to know this because then you'd never hire them. This is why there are so many regulations in places like the US.
You are not hiring someone to build you a house. Your hiring someone to build a house according to "regulations" which vary from state to state etc.
In developing nations, regulations are generally not an issue. And most regulations are there not because they make any actual sense, but in order to create jobs and an industry. As a former Quality Engineer, I can tell you for a fact, most Building codes are absolute bullshit and serve no purpose where the building is concerned. Despite what the codes say they are supposed to be for.
TH-cam can teach you how to build a simple house and even wire it and plumb it. Practice a bit, and then design and expand yourself, once your ready, build the home of your dreams yourself, save the money, and not get scammed.
I’m sure you could say that I am biased (I am an architect 😂) but I didn’t find that boring at all. I think you actually did a very good job of walking through the numbers for people - clear concise and simple. I think you’ve ended up with a great product as well. Congratulations, enjoy your new home
Hey Thanks Wesley! Appreciate you watching and good to know that you didn't fall asleep in the middle of it 🤣. The way you described it was what I was hoping for. Yes, we are loving being in our new home. We are very blessed!
I appreciate you being transparent, even showing the struggles.
No worries Anthony. Life is sometimes very much a struggle. No reason to pretend it isn't. But, it's the sweet moments we hopefully hang on to!
@@rickbaker0217 Your house is located Noth from Manilla?
That mountain in background is Arayat right?
Love seeing men walking away, and into the loving embrace of a good Filipina
Have to agree, it's a good place to be!
Hey. Wait right there. I walked away from a Filipina in Canada after 12 years. Don’t put your head up that high. And in the 12 years, I did see lots of men waving the white flags too. Many did asked me how I could still stand this b.s. ! I’m not a womanizer. I’m a quiet person. But holy. I can’t tell you how many times I was accused of having an affair. My friends called me already a playboy. Bringing it to the point. Not one Filipina will come into my life. And some of my friends are absolutely cured too. Greetings from Panama.
This is the first video of yours I have watched. I learned very much from it.
I too am a Texan and have been engaged to a Filipina over 5 years. She is in Philippines and I am still in America. Initially she was going to move here but that plan changed recently. She has a big family and I have no family so I am moving there. I will rent while searching for land to build on.
I will subcontract the building of the house. We do not need- nor want a huge, fancy house like most Americans in Philippines have. We had been interested in building a tiny home here in America but since I am moving there it will be bigger than a tiny home but probably half the size of yours.
In Texas I was on the Gulf Coast near Galveston. I never needed a pool because I had the Gulf to swim in. Plus it gave me a huge fishing and boating spot. Philippines has much more available swimming and fishing area as Texas does, so we need no pool. I like salt water much better than chlorinated water.
I'm really looking forward to moving there. I still have much to learn. I have lived in Europe when I worked, but my company handled all the documents and paper work necessary for me to live there. This time I reckon I have to do it myself. It's pretty overwhelming but I can handle it.
For now, I will watch your videos hoping to learn more. I have subscribed to your channel.
Appreciate having you on board with us and always an honor to have a fellow Texan watching us. You can do it brother. Just dot your i's and cross your t's and you should be fine. Defer to your Filipina as much as your comfortable doing, as they have a better grasp for the culture and people and that is super important here. People here live very simply, and yes our home is about the size of what I was used to in Texas. And though I don't consider it big, for the province, it is larger than most. About 1600sqft or so. It's comfortable for me and when all the family is here, we all have a little room to move around and yard to play in. Yes, there is a lot of coastline here in the PI for sure. I just chose to live inland so no ocean anywhere near us. The pool sure is nice to soak in on a hot Philippine day and the aesthetic value for me is priceless. Congrats on the 5 years of dating. Jenn and I dated 5 years before we made it official about 2 years ago. Thanks again for watching and subscribing brother!
Just make sure to have 100k$ for yourself for medical expenses.
If you do need a land I’m from Cebu the barrio of Sangat San Fernando.. I have properties for sale if you’re interested.. I’m now here in Indianapolis btw
Good luck with your new plans this keep your eyes wide open. Don’t be embarrassed to ask for advice from expats.
From Seabrook, TX here.
My Filipina wife (and I tacked on as foreign spouse) just purchased a lot and we are at the beginning stages of house design etc. Your vid was an eye opener, and I wanted to express my dep appreciation for your time and transparency. You probably just saved me/her countless hours of fruitless frustration and anxiety.
Again, thank you... !!!!!
Rich & Jessica
Hey brother Rich. So glad something we said or did helped you in some way. I replied to your email brother. Take a look and let Jenn and I know if there is anything we can do to help you and Jessica. Thanks for watching!
Congrats to both of u.... there's someone who can accept me as a single mom with a lot of kids and I can really find someone who can be with for the rest of our lives together as family🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏❤️
Thanks for sharing your BOM with us. We are currently building with a architect builder who was a classmate of my wife. He is based in Manila and he graciously agreed to build for us in the province of Barangay Hiyop, Pandan Catanduanes. We just want to enjoy the build and relax while it is being built. Completion date is in April 2023. You have a lovely home and we wish you all the best. Cheers mate!
Hello my Aussie brother! Sounds like you have a good thing going. I wish you both the best on your build. Thanks for watching!
if you don't mind sharing the cost of your new home with this builder and the sq footage? Thanks!
Very interesting to know all that costs, yes the swimming pool is always apart from the price of house construction. You got a beautiful house and nice surroundings. Far from the noise and crowded city
Brother your build is like almost 100% parallel with ours here in Zambales. Much of the same issues if not all. We are still not done yet and the end is a ways out…we let our contractor go just shy of the four month mark because of all the issues you speak to here. His crew was and is outstanding and we kept them but sent him packing…best wishes to you and yours as you continue your endeavors here in the Philippines…peace to you n yours 😎
Well, the thought crossed my mind, but at the point it did, we were almost there and 90% vested in the process. So I just felt starting from scratch might prove to be worse than the alternative. No worries though, we are getting it done as the God's allow!
Good video, thanks for sharing ....
thank you for watching🙏
Mr. Rick - I admirie your honest comments and critiques about your home building experience. We all want to say it came out perfect without hicupps, but truth be told life is never a bowl full of Cherries. I hope to be a close neighbor next year with the purchase of farm land and plans to build a house just outside of Tarlac. Perhaps someday I can share my experience. If I end up Vlogging - perhaps I'll call it "What could possibly go wrong" . It's probably already out there.
John, thanks for watching brother! I love the Vlog title! Kind of sad that I didn't think of it first 🤣. Let me know when you get to Tarlac. Jenn and I go there probably a couple of times a month, as it is one of the larger cities to where we live.
Hello Rick. Good job been here for 28 years..i think you did a very good build and price..i build every thing one day at a time .just hire local builders..hope to build some day .with a design and engineered home.you broke it down very well.what to look for and what to expect.Thank u for your time
I’m married to a Filipina. We own in Aklan. I’m also from East Texas…Tyler, TX.
Y’all’s house is really nice. We.re headed back tomorrow the PH to see our kids and grandkids. Stay safe…enjoy the home.
Small world brother! We are in Tyler right now. Hope your trip was uneventful and all are safe in Aklan. Drop a toe in the water at Boracay for us!
Even with the cost overunns, about 120K for your home is a great deal! It's beautiful!
Thank you Scott, won't argue with you on that 😉. Thanks for watching!
congratulations its beautiful ... keep living and loving and spreading kindness as you are.
Thanks Brian! Appreciate you watching brother!
Lots of challenges when you deal with a lot of builders in the Philippines. Kudos to you and your family. I'm glad it's finished, enjoy your new home!
Thank you for the kind words and thanks for watching!
I really enjoyed your video. Thank you. I just drove through that area 2 weeks ago. My wife is from Bicol, and we took a trip up to Baguio. I enjoyed the drive from Manila to Baguio and the view from the highway was beautiful. I told my wife that this looks like a good place to build a house. Thanks again.
Wow Ray! You were only about 25 minutes from us when you passed the Anao/Moncada exit off the TPLEX. You most likely looked at Mt. Balungao, which is the extinct volcano I talk about all the time in my vlogs. Small world brother!
Always interesting vlogs… thorough and helpful details. Thank you.
Thank you sir! Appreciate you continuing to watch!
I am looking into building out there also for me and my family. This video is very enlightening, and I can now prepare for the "additionals" and ask questions accordingly.
Glad it was helpful brother! Nothing but the best to you on your future adventure!
Whoa’ seems to me that was very deceptive of the builder, to show you the complete plans and pricing and then not include the vast majority of items. Thank you for this video, I lived in the PI for six yrs and knew that I would need to be vigilant when building and had a few odd experiences of my own on smaller projects but this is something I probably wouldn’t have expected. But now I will get every single thing in writing before I sign any contracts.
That is a smart move on your part. Shame is sometimes what is in writing in the contract, doesn't come to fruition. They then tell you if it isn't in the Bill of Materials, then it isn't a part of the build. Imagine looking at 12 pages of materials that looks like a Home Depot inventory sheet and having to determine exactly what you are getting.😂
Thanks for sharing. You've built a beautiful home.
Thanks for watching brother!
Whew, they really know how to whittle you down to the last buck. I would have also assumed the wall and everything would be included. I hope you get to enjoy it. You seem to have a good attitude about it.
It is indeed a skill here Cecil 🤣. And yes, we are enjoying it very much. So blessed to be able to call this home! Thank you for watching!
Hey cecil
I was temporarily stationed at Clark many years ago...my takeaway was always the kindness, grace, and humility of the Filipinos,
Yes Ed, in most cases I believe you would be correct in your take away. I have way more positive experiences here than negative.
So roughly $130k USD. Bargain today, and a fantastic retirement home!
$115k in todays exchange rate, but for during our build time, $130k is about right. That would be everything, including the projects that have been done by other contractors since the build. And yes, never could have built this for anywhere close in the US. Thanks for watching sir!
Be a better bargain if the actual house was built full at the required build plans not all the additional surprise “nope not included” if price 🤬
You can build a resort and a shopping center for that..he paid way too much.
@@rickeybaker9066Yes, the price is far less than what you’d pay in the US. That’s because it is not in the US. The price is much higher than many houses other expats there. But, no doubt, from the little I’ve seen, this house looks very lovely. The pool looks gorgeous.
@@jamman7344Many expats have built homes for as little as $20~$50K there.
Lot of surprises unfortunately had to be very frustrating...
Congratulations on getting finished
Thanks Phillip, for watching. Life is full of surprises, just have to get to the other side of the valley!
Congrats Rickey. Really helpful video. I will be building in Bagac County farm next year . Dealing with Filipinos in construction is totally different, no matter what you do you end up with more. Even here in Montreal I started at 560 and end up with 1 mil anyhow it's done and looks nice just enjoy it 👍
Yes sir Mike, you are correct. Congrats on your upcoming Bagac build. Beautiful area with incredible views!
I truly hope you are and will be very happy. You seem to be a very good guy, and I believe the builder took quite a bit of advantage of your kindness. That being said, you have a beautiful home, and it is a fraction of what you would pay here in Rockport, TX. Thank you for sharing.
TJ, you are absolutely correct, we have a wonderful home and for a fraction of what a similar structure would cost back home. So, my complaints are muted for sure. Always good to hear from a fellow Texan! Thanks for the kind words and for watching!
Hi Rick
Thanks for sharing.. Conversion to US$ about $102000.00 according to currency convertor.
Probably a reasonable outlay. I don't know how that cost compares to US homes but you've got what you wanted in the location of your choice to see you out your days..
My uncle in law in Thailand was hired to build our home.
We had 2 choices.
1. No control over materials and a total cost of thb2 million baht, or
2. Fixed labour which amounted to AUS$17k but we chose and pay for all materials. Exchange rate then was AUS$1=thb32
I went the latter as here at least, they've 3 quality grades of concrete and metal framing. Guarantee they'd always pick the lowest quality to maximise their profit but I wanted the top grade of everything to ensure it wasn't falling down anytime soon.
I found out later I too had to pay extra for built in wardrobes or kitchen cupboards. Uncle quoted a plucked out of the air price so we declined and sourced that ourselves later.
Uncle paid for the draftsman, engineer to draw up and certify plans. Excavation & hiring of framework for slab etc, electrician.
You don't need any "fit for occupancy" certification or the need to submit planning & approvals docs etc. You only have to show a photo of a toilet in place, an electrical consumer unit on the wall & grounding rod connected up to get rubber stamped off on for an electricity supply. At this point you can get your property registered and given an actual address.
We had to hire a drill team for water bore which was probably the only other once off large expensive cost.
User pays for all materials for electricity from the house to the company lines which in our case about 300 metres. So poles, cabling etc..
All up unfurnished about AUS$100k
My only house I had built in Australia was $480k for a house 1/3 the size of this house & 90m2 of land it sat on compared to about 4 acres here.. I paid AUS$6k for the land here.
I prefer Australia everything compared to Thailand but I can live here for the sake of my wife being near to her family.
Hello sir! Appreciate you watching. My calculations on the home cost itself, comes out to about $79k usd. That's at the rate of 51 pesos to $1. That is where the exchange rate was for most of our build. That's just for the house and additionals inside the home. Not the pool or driveway or perimeter wall. My calculations put us right at $46 usd a sqf. A new build back in Texas would easily be three to four times that amount. So, all in all, I think we came out ok on it. Thanks for sharing some detail on your build in Thailand. Always wondered how the PI compared to other Asian countries. Sounds like you came out way ahead on your build. And I totally understand, I miss just about everything in East Texas, but you won't here me complain to much about living in this incredibly beautiful location, in a comfortable and paid for home, spending my remaining days on this earth, with an incredible woman that loves me to the moon and back!
The smartest purchase was the location of the land, away from any daily problems you will experience. I bought next to a Cemetery and my neighbours are amazingly quiet.
Probably one of the most beautiful houses I have seen in the Philippines. That certainly is a great achievement for the price because building in the Philippines can be an old man killer.
Thanks brother! Yep, we don't hear much out of the cemetery down the road. Thanks for the compliment! We really are enjoying our home, the design and the location. Thanks for watching!
Sounds like it was a pain in the ass, but man when it's all said and done, you have a beautiful home. Thanks for taking the time to tell us about the build.
No worries Dylan. No ass left to have a pain in 🤣. But I am grateful for our blessings. Thanks for watching sir!
Well looks like a beautiful peaceful place to be. Enjoy!
It is. Super peaceful and I never get tired of our views. Thanks for watching!
Thank you for sharing your home and providing a breakout of costs. Hiring a good contractor, engineer and architect etc. are very important when building in the Phils, but finding really good ones that are available in your area can be a challenge. It is worth investing the time, though.
You are absolutely right! Well said !
Hi can you build your own house like an “Owner Builder” because I hope to settle there one day & have built 3 of my own homes as an Owner Builder in Australia so I’m probably more qualified than the slow she’ll be right attitude builders of the Philippines 😂
@@mattbright8635 You absolutely can Matt. The challenge will be finding labor with the skills if you are wanting to build in the same style as Australia. Materials are also always a challenge, but nothing says you can't come here and oversee the build. At least you know when you are done, you can live with what you built!
Definitely very smart. Owning your own pool in the very hot Philippines 👍 thanks for sharing the details!
Thanks Mark! Yes, the pool is the focal point day and night in our home.
While I enjoyed your build, as a design builder in the USA, after designing my x wife’s house in Mindanao. I advised her to hire a structural engineer that cost her about $120 a month to stop by as often as was practical to check on her house build. He worked for the city permit/planning dept. of her small town. I got a dozen pictures a day for the 6 months. He also kept track of supplies while both of us were in the US working.
It was by far, the best money one could spent especial if you are not in country or are not an expert in construction management. It’s not as easy as it looks. Hirng a civil engineer/structural especially if family is building for you can save a lot of hurt feelings and ensure a good build. To expect from builders who lack the know how for 1st world standards thru no fault of their owners can lead to tensions that will last for years and cost you a million more pesos.
A few suggestions would be; pour your walls with solid concrete(no hollow block, use fiber entrainment/tiny fiberglass added to the mix, and vibrate your concrete. And lastly, never scrimp on rebar. My x wife’s house was designed to a 7.5 earthquake scale. It more than doubled her rebar cost, but will ensure a house that can be pasted down to her progeny for generations to come with less maintenance.
Joe, super smart of you to have done that. Our construction manager was actually a Structural Engineer and I believe he built a strong home for us. What he wasn't, was a good project finisher. Just didn't have the knowledge and communication skills to get all the finishing touches done right. That's my opinion of course. Additionally, toward the end, he was pretty much left to his own by the company and there didn't seem to be any accountability for him to answer to. What you did was smart and we thought we were getting something similar and I believe we did up until the last two months or so of construction.
@@rickeybaker9066 well at least you know that the bones of your project are much better than is typical. And while no one wants to correct poor quality, structural matters are very difficult to correct.. I’m looking at a row of townhouses in Zapote , Cavite that went into foreclosure and am considering buying a few of them and will higher a PE to assist me. Always good to have a second opinion when investing large sums. My biggest misgiving is the structure, looks can be deceiving. We were lucky to have her very talented brother in law is a hands on builder, but of course he lacks experience doing high end jobs and demands she wanted, but his finish work was great.
Sometimes family when they see one of their own doing so well, develop entitlements to your materials for other jobs and such. So for her, the engineer functioned as a guard against materials walking away. This is something I’ve heard from many expats.
@@joem1070 You are absolutely correct Joe. Much better to not have the structural issues. One thing you absolutely have to be aware of here with already built projects, is that structural issues can be hidden for a while and they are really good at doing that here. In our project, the engineer was also the site foreman overseeing each construction specialty and was also charged with the materials. Not convinced that all that was purchased, made it into the house. Not to mention, a great deal of waste as evidenced by all the construction trash we picked up for weeks after moving in. But, water under the bridge for us. Best of luck with your venture in Cavite!
Nice to see the solar. Great for those constant blackouts. Nice pool, too. Good job. Edit: Such an amazing lesson in how things are built differently over there. Paying for the worker's lunches was also priceless. Gosh, I would have aged ten years just going through the stress of the build. Thanks!
Thank you for watching sir, and appreciate the kind words!
Inspite of unexpected expenses, I think you are getting value for money there. That's really a nice house you've got there!
Thank you sir and I would tend to agree with you. If it wasn't for the value, this would have been a less enjoyable experience. Thank you for watching!
Thankyou for sharing this. Currently building my house there half way through but I stop at the moment. Though, its not yet even finished at least I have some insight now regarding the expenses that I may use in the future.
So glad to hear that we have been able to help you somehow Kristine. Congrats on your home build and I wish you nothing but great experiences with it from here out!
Bataan have always been an expensive province due to their close proximity to Manila. Bataan also has one of the highest employment rate compared to any other provinces due to their Economic Zone and Power Plant that supplies neighbouring provinces.
We loved living in Bataan, just didn't want to sacrifice the home we desired for the sake of high land prices. I just struggled with the arbitrary land prices that seemed to have no rhyme or reason. Thanks for watching!
Good video. Thanks for sharing.
hey Rick, thanks for the info & what to watch out off-- im moving there next year & im not sure if i can afford to build now- these- people went crazy on the prices for land- i mean crazy lol hey you got s beautiful wife , beautiful house just sit back & enjoy what you got.- its not our country not our culture, how are we to know- take care & peace out Dennis
Hey Dennis! Congrats on the future move. Land prices vary here drastically, depending on the location. Where we are, prices are still very reasonable. It allowed us to build the home we had hoped to build. Thanks for the compliments and Jenn and I are loving it here. There are always valleys to go through in any location, just have to keep climbing to get to the mountain top!
I just love the house and the view. Just wow!
Thank you and thank you for watching!
Love your home and surroundings. Design looks much like Richard Armstrong. Would you still use the same builder after some of the problems you had?
Thanks Jim, appreciate the kind words. I will answer your question this way, if I were building a Filipino style home, then yes, this builder could build a quality home. If I were going to build an American style home with a turn key finish again, then I would have to say no. The finish was less than satisfactory for me, even though I had been super clear that I expected a turn key finish.
That is not too bad, sir. Thanks for sharing your experience. Want to build one soon. Maybe now will cost me 10m now. That's a lot for me. 3 more years to save. Enjoy the fruits of your labor.
Your right, a lot more bang for our buck in the Philippines. Prices did increase during all the COVID Craziness, but they have leveled off. It's not like in the US where material and labor costs have just continued to rise month after month. Wishing you the best on your future build!
I think it's about right the price for everything.
I'm surprised you got the land that cheap may I ask where did you look to buy land did you use website to search for land ?
No sir, we have found that the websites are not kept updated and there is no MLS here. What worked best for us was to find someone in the local area that was someone that locals would go to if they wanted to find a buyer for their land. The lady we utilized, knows people that have land to sell and even will approach an owner about selling, if she knows she has a solid buyer. There are no for sale signs and even if there were, knowing which rabbit trail to go down to look, would be incredibly time consuming. I would advise knowing where you want to look, contacting family or friends in the area and asking if they know of someone that can help with locating property. The lady that was recommended to us was wonderful. She knew what were must haves and what were deal killers for us. So, she would make sure that any property she took us to met those criteria, and did not waste our time.
Living the good life I see, all you need is a golf course where everyday you get a hole in 1. The complex is really nice, don't forget the Constantine wire, every veterans home should have it. I don't need anything special myself, but you went all out.
Well Rick, nice name by the way 😂, I have screws and rods in the lower back so I don't golf. Swinging a wood is one of the only things I can do to actually feel my screws 🤪. No need for the wire, there are other ways to protect ones castle! It has made for a very nice, relaxing and comfortable retirement home for sure. Thanks for watching brother!
Rickey, welcome to the Philippines way of house building. It reminds me of what we called being Nickel and Dimed in the US. No Punch list being done as part the Turnover? You got it done but I see the frustration on your face at having to go through something that you wish you could have avoided if that has gone through the build process already could have told you of the pitfalls to avoid. Enjoy the fruits now that essentially it's complete.
Thank you Charles! Yes, it very much felt that way. I am actually a veteran of being treated differently when it comes to prices, but I had hoped this experience might be different. It got to the point that I just had to say, enough is enough, not even one more additional will I do. A budget is a budget. We are enjoying being here and hope to spend the next couple of decades enjoying what is left of my life!
Your house looks great. Congratulations. Enjoy the house and pool.
Thanks Steven! Really appreciate you watching sir!
Beautiful home and location, and great news about having drinkable well water! I follow allot of expat builds in the PI, and if the expat isn’t on site every day to supervise, it seems the builds will be the standard PI way as you mentioned.
In my pinay and I ever decide to build there, I’ll either have to be hands on for the build, or hire a westerner or skilled Filipino project manage to ensure it’s built to our standards.
Not a western country so it’s either go with their construction style or become the general contractor to build to your desired standards.
There are lots of talented construction tradesmen in the PI, they just need to be trained when you want something done in a way that’s different from what they know.
Nice house, it’s a design like we would build. Enjoy your retirement!!
Hank you are right on and unfortunately I was unable to be here daily and honestly, construction wasn't my area of expertise back in Texas, I just have a knack for spotting quality when I see it. Another factor to consider is the availability of desired building materials. You really are limited by where it is you decide to build. If you get to far away from major population centers, it becomes cost prohibitive to bring in the desired materials and sometimes, at least for me, I had to compromise on what I could get. If the budget was unlimited, I could have gotten exactly what I wanted, but reality is, there are limits, for me anyway. I think you nailed it, the key is hiring the right person to oversee the day to day activities, or if you have the abilities, do it yourself. Wishing you and your Filipina all the blessings this life has to give brother!
Nice job with the home and excellent detailed explanation.👏
Thanks for watching!
Be careful and be wise ..OO!;)
.WELCOME TO PHILIPPINES
Excellent advise! Thanks for watching!
GREAT video. Very informative!
Not a fan of the sit and talks BUT yours worked for this topic. Many lessons learned.
We bought home in a Subdivision that had been vacant for 2 years -
for those that don't know can't do that in a tropical country. But after a team of us and my wife's family cleaning in and out for days our complete reno could start.
I wish I had seen a video like yours before we bought. We looked at vacant lots but I was too afraid to build here - having gone through our complete reno in and outside I would tell people go for it BUT they should also watch your video FIRST.
I loved how diplomatic you WERE in many spots, especially when you compared the Builder's quote for your front wall at the end of your project to the 250k less quote, as you said "THAT SAYS ALOT".😅
So many great points in your video - we too have computerised drawings for our outer building reno - thanks to your tips I will be on top of that to clarify up front.
Not sure about your experiences with materials used - but I had small custom TV stand built we agreed on price, wood to use and high gloss paint, 3k. Builder brought it to the house when "done" and it was so rough with knots - what he had done was ignore my choice of plywood and bought rough thinner AKA CHEAPER plywood so he would make extra money on the fixed price. I rejected it and he took it apart and sanded everything and repainted. I took it the second time, still not what I wanted, but I told him too bad as it was a test for our future reno plans and now I would never use him or recommend him. Also was supposed to take 2 weeks, 1st delivery was 1 month then I rejected and then over a month more to come back.
On our house rebuild only a few changes to our original nice solid wood cabinets (just updated paint from dark brown to high gloss white and modern cabinet handles) wanted some inner middle shelves added, for canned storage, the shelf height was too high. Told the builder use exact same size cabinet wood - AGAIN (different guy from TV stand) he came back with paper thin sheet of plywood and said would build 1x2 box frame under around and cross because plywood I wanted was too expensive. Again I said NO and from then on I purchased all materials.
This is my big lesson learned here at least in Negros Oriental on any build you must control all material purchases to ensure you get the quality you want.
Even paint you pick high quality and they quote based on that and then buy lesser quality to make higher profit.
Oh ONE last tip - the days I drove 1 hour each way to our construction site they worked better, when not there a few days it looked like not much done.
The local sari-sari store owner told me a few days a week my 4 man painting crew would quit early afternoon and drink on his patio then go home at quitting time. I did a few surprise visits one hour before end of shift and they were always cleaning up for the day. We got to the end of the 4 week contract and said they needed to extend 2 more weeks for another 50% of the original price.
I told my reno crew stop working and gathered everyone in our compound and asked if the reno crew wanted to add the rest of the outside painting to their job (5 guys paid daily rate). The reno crew foreman said YES and I fired the painting crew on the spot. They tried to backtrack and apologise I said no as I I knew when I wasn't around they quit early and worked slow.
The reno crew did a great job painting our steel roof and compound walls and all metal attached to the walls. Painting like that not rocket science.
FYI we bought for 3mil then renos, taxes fees moved to 4mil (Subdivision corner lot, 250 sqm double lot, pedestrian gate, car gate, 3 bdrm 2 bath, + outer Bldg maids quarters another bathroom, storage room, laundry area and outdoor covered kitchen, with complete security wall.
You have an amazing place for your 6.5 CONGRATS
Thank you for the kind words brother! All of your observations were spot on and it sounds like you experienced a few of your own during your renovation. 4 mil for a completely renovated 3/2 home is an awesome price and your hands on approach was the key I am sure. When my build started out the materials were acceptable and I believe the overall structure of our home is solid. It is when they got close to the end and went to take care of the finishes, that is where the cheeping on materials really showed up. The builder stopped monitoring his engineer and his engineer was going over on his budget, so by the time the Architect discovered a lot of missing materials on the build, they then started trying to do less and less, only to ultimately not finish the job. But, time, a bit more money and my ability to be there everyday, we got the job done and I am pleased with the final product.
Sit down with me as I go over details of our home size, lot size, initial budget for house and pool, and all the "additionals", down to the final total of the cost to build our home in Cuyapo, Nueva Ecija!
Just a quick question. As I can see you have built a house almost in the middle of a rice field. Was the land with agricultural title or residential title?
90k USD nice deal. that land and home in USA 250 - 300 k in California. new to your channel. total in all not bad 5.4 m pesos.
@@hillbillyintheasia6122 You’re not getting a condo for that in California
Did you start in 2020 or 2021?
@@jasmingostevcic4124 Hey Jasmin, it is a TCT title. No requirement either way on agricultural or residential.
i didnt hire a contractor or architect or any of that, i just hired 5 guys from the village as labor and worked along side them every inch of the way .
(after i fired my wifes family and took over after they sort of got started?)
my place is 1024 sq ft ,bathroom, kitchen,living room and large storage room downstairs, 2 bedrooms and a small landing/hallway upstairs with a 13 ft X 16 ft terrace, it overlooks the ocean.
i spent 18,000 dollars in 2015 to get the initial structure built and i went all out on primed rebar in 4 inch squares in the slab and really good rebar design in the 12x12" ring beams and columns and arch beams supporting it, i have ten 10" columns on the perimeter walls and a large 28 inch X 28 inch column in the center of the house. i did an additional small 6" ring beam halfway up the walls upstairs before finishing the walls up to the 6x6" roof ring beam. i over-did the rebar a bit since i am not a structural engineer.
i used 2 sizes of crushed stone in the concrete and added sahara waterproofing in the slab concrete since it was half terrace and would serve as the roof of the living room downstairs.
the roof is just 2x8 hardwood beams every 4 foot , i sunk big steel bolts into the ring beam on top so i just bolted 2x8's on those as a sill plate and covered it with 3/4 inch waterproofed plywood on them and heavy gauge sheet metal. i primed and painted that white hi gloss enamel to keep it cool.
its probably one of the strongest structures in the country just because i didnt know how to calculate loads etc, and was scared of having a 10 inch thick concrete slab over my family's heads! everyone who sees it says i can park a few dozen loaded semi trucks upstairs stacked one on top the other with no problem. so i guess i really over spent $$ there.
i have since put another 10,000 dollars into it this past year adding a 15' 'X 4' front porch of all reinforced poured concrete 6 inches thick (no hollow block) in case of a storm surge/typhoon to protect the house since we are right on the ocean. and skim coated and painted the exterior and added nice one way reflective windows and tiled the floors.
i will be 63 this july so i am winding down now, its pretty much maint. free , just spot sand&prime and paint the roof every 4 years and sand and spot prime and paint the steel handrails on the terrace every 2 years. its as done as its going to get, i'm ready to retire again LOL
i will not worry about earthquakes under 6.2 or any typhoons smaller than yolanda.
$28,000 in materials and labor and about $100,000 dollars of my own 'free' labor at US prices.🤔
So what I will take from that is, I am super jealous of the skills you do have. Unfortunately, I do not possess those skills and would not have been a lot of help with 5 laborers. I pretty much was dependent on the skills of the Architect and engineer. I do however know a poor finish when I see it. I believe you will be super happy with your finished product, if for no other reason than you put your hard work and effort into it. You made out like a bandit on materials brother!
Bro, congrats on the nice home. Moreover, the builder that nickel and dimed you on this project please share their name so others will be aware of them!
I’ve watched several homes being built throughout the Philippines and the ones that went as plan on cost got three to four bids from different builders to avoid the cost overages you experienced with this Contactor.
Great to hear that you withheld some of the money on the backend to make sure everything gets done….because you can bet $1m dollars they won’t be around to fix/warranty any of the work once they are gone.
This is my first video to watch of your channel…please share the name of this builder so others looking to build…can beware of this Contactor.
Once again congrats on the home 🎉
Thank you sir, appreciate you watching! We did due diligence when looking for a builder, and I bottom line went with the one I believed I had a relationship with. I'm a relationship kind of guy and I put a lot of stock in that. Relationships here however, are not what they are back home. Things may appear deep when in fact they are very shallow. Let me say that my intention has never been to disparage anyone. I have always just tried to be honest, from my perspective of course, and folks can come to their own conclusions. I believe our builder has and can do quality work. For whatever reason, the project manager on our build, just did not live up to my standards. Where I believe the company went wrong, was in not doing what they should to remedy the mistakes and to heed my repeated concerns along the way. It is actually very normal here in the PI, customer service has an impressive start, but essentially that is where it ends. My experience here is that companies that I have had dealings with, to include our builder, simply don't problem solve well and the customer isn't first by any means. If we were in the US, I would be a much stronger critic here, but I am not in the US and I am a "foreigner" in this country and I am reminded of that fact almost daily, so I will simply say, watch Week 7 and you will get the information you seek!
Well it came out Nice after all the Hassle. . .Very Nice Design and the house looks Very Good and the Location is Perfect. . .
Yes, all in all, we feel good with what we built and where we built. Life is good!
For anyone worried about builders, it's easiest to treat drawings as the contract, and especially specifications.
You don't have to be a designer yourself, just be detail-oriented and make a complete list of every space and description of the project yourself and with the Architect/Builder. That way they can generate the drawings and specs to address these and price accordingly. This is exactly the meaning of value engineering, you get what you specify and is clear for the builder.
DO take your time in designing your home, it is typical to take a year or more ON PAPER to design and the purpose is to fill in as many of the blanks as possible to make a complete picture of the information set. Talk to a professional, consultation, talking about it for the most part is FREE (at least for myself and many in my professional circle).
For the most part, having visited and lived in other parts of the world, PH is for me the best of all worlds for westerners.
Good advise sir! Communicating your expectations can be challenging at times. But pictures should take out the ambiguity for sure. Thanks for watching!
Congratulations on your built. I'm still on the building stage. Our contractor wanted to charge us 200k for ground soil on a 168 sqm lot. Obviously I put the house on hold, until I fine a cheaper price. One thing as a expat or even a native Filipino you need to do. Be on site almost every day to over see the work and materials. Your very right about one thing foreigners often overlook or assume what's included in the building plans and what's not. Get everything clear from the beginning. Filipino mindset is all expats are millionaires😅. It's a good idea to have a budget and remind the contractor of that budget. Good luck in your plans. 👍
Super solid advise Gilbert! Wishing you nothing but the best on your build brother.
Sir the house looks awesome! I'm a retired veteran planning to retire there in a couple year. Your video is a great help, trying to understand how things gets done in the Philippines is definitely helpful. California is just getting way too expensive to live. Hope to meet you guys in future.
Always an honor to meet another retired veteran brother. Looking forward to it. Super glad the video was helpful. It is a challenge here, but one worth taking! I understand the "getting way to expensive to live" thing. I saw more Cali plates when I went back to Texas the past 3 months, than I have ever seen in my 60 years on earth. I know it isn't the weather they are moving there for .
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awesome video. I am a contractor in Dumaguete and we have done somewhere around 150 projects here over the past 10 years. When you first said your quoted price, I was skeptical and decided to watch the whole video. The way you got hit with the "additionals" is actually common practice here. Give a cheap price up front and make money from extras seems to be a business model and one we find frustrating to quote against. When we give a quotation, we leave almost zero room for misunderstandings between what a client expects to get and what we expect to give him. I would rather have us lose a job than have myself and our clients needing to go head to head like that. The thing we try to remember is that most retirees have a hard budget and if we go over that, they are rarely in a position to just go back out into the workforce to make more money to pay for the over-runs. Your actual finished price is right on or a little under what this house would actually cost to build. A shame that your contractor just did not be up front about that from the get go. Congrats though. the end result is beautiful
You nailed everything I have been trying to share with folks. And let me say, my preference would have been to have someone do as you say you do. Build me a "Turnkey" home and provide me with an honest cost upfront. No one likes to be surprised and yes, retirees especially. You only have what you have when you are retired. Had we ended the construction where the bid ended, we would have had a half finished home in my eyes. I couldn't be happier though, with what we were able to get it to. It is a beautiful home in our own little slice of paradise! Thanks for watching 🙏
@@rickbaker0217 been watching more of your videos and love what you are doing!!!!
Thank you for this. I'm British-Filipino moving back out there and looking to build something similar, if a bit smaller and without the pool out in Romblon.
Hey Andrew! Then welcome home sir! I wish you nothing but the absolute best!
Nice to know I will be there in late July when my lady arrives back from her over seas job
Sounds like a plan! Thanks for watching!
Still unbelievable value for money compared to the UK. In London where I live you would be lucky to purchase a garage for storage or somewhere to park your car. Beautiful surroundings nice and quiet.
Yes sir, same in the US. I feel your pain.
Congratulations on your beautiful home. I think your house came out beautiful and the overall cost i think is very reasonable. I moved to New York City in 1991. Purchased our first house in 1999. My first major renovation was on 2016 wherein we gutted the house ,changed the electricals, plumbing,insulation bathroom and kitchen basically the entire inside of the house was renovated. The initial cost assessment was 165k but it ended costing me 250K. I was inspected by Department of Buildings and was issued a violation, i had to attend court hearings on multiple occasion. It was one of the most unpleasant experience in my life but it is all worth it at he end. My last project was the concrete work that i had surrounding the house with some pavers installed which cost me another 45 k. Congratulation on your beautiful house it is beautiful.
Life is full of lessons Marlon, and for us here in the Philippines, those lessons just keep on coming . Regardless, every time I pour a cup of coffee and sit out by the pool, the world just seems perfect! Thanks for watching sir!
I watched and enjoyed this video. Found it to be very informative. You have a very nice piece of property and I hope you enjoy it, once it is all complete. Thanks for sharing....
Thank you for watching Charles! And Yes, we are enjoying being here very much. Feeling blessed to be able to call this home!
Dude; your place is awesome; I love how you are out in the middle of nowhere; my build in Moises Padilla is almost complete and as soon as I get my home sold in Florida me and my filipina gonna retire there; cheers
Hello sir, appreciate the kind words! Building in Visayas! I have heard it is beautiful down there. Will have to venture that way some time. Just got back from seeing Davao and loved it. Yep, we are pretty isolated and I love it that way. I haven't heard a rooster since I left Balanga in Bataan!
Thanks for that! Through all the hassles you carried on and have a beautiful home.. Good for you guys.
Thanks Barry, appreciate the comments as always!
Nice work.. now sit back and enjoy...
Thanks brother, and yes, we have enjoyed it very much 🙏
Awesome home . I just built a home in moncada tarlac , next door to you guys . Planning to retire their also.
Congrats! We take the Moncada/Anao exit off the TPLEX when we travel home, so yes, we are pretty close to each other. Let us know when you come home and we can get together for a cup of coffee and solve the world's problems .
Don't feel so bad,i had experienced it in florida.we changed contractor 3 times and had to go to court(same problem of yours) You can just imagine the trouble we had, and by looking at your place not bad at all,compared to the price we built here! Good luck to your new home !
Thanks Jay and sorry to hear about your Florida build experience. We appreciate you watching sir!
I live in the Philippines, retired, buy I will never buy property here nor will I build a house, government is on shaky grounds, Filipinos over charging foreigners, yet you don't own the property, no I will not throw my money away I'll continue renting.
An "architectural feature" on the rendering SHOULD BE in the original price -- period! Thanks for the video - in the midst of wife building a house now... we are going back to the Philippines next month, so I will get to see it then. Your place turned out beautiful!
Agreed! I tried explaining that to the Architect and encouraged him if he plans to do business with foreigners in the future, what is on the drawing should be what is bid. Period. Best of luck with your build brother! Hope all goes well. And yes, we love the design we built, it is just what we were wanting.
I was down in antique a province a couple weeks ago I love the Philippines and I plan on moving there thanks for the information
That's awesome David! Hope it all works out well for you brother. Thanks for watching!
Great house and property seems worth the cost time to enjoy!
Thank you for watching!
thank you for the video and the sharing of your costs! You are a fantastic guy! Congrats to your beautiful house
Glad to do it Werner. Thanks for watching brother!
3M for a house is ok! Im currently living in IL but in the future Me and Wife gonna retire in the Philippines.. Congrats to your new house!
Thanks for watching!
Thanks for taking the time to share - bungalow designs are my favorite. You have a wonderful home - lots of great features to enjoy for the years to come. The builder - yes - doesn't surprise me even though I do not know them personally. Looking - in the educating process myself in doing a build there in the PHP, I have already experienced such in some discussion with several. Have no interest in dealing with such a builder - everything in writing - in detail to hopefully eliminate what you have gone through. Being in the business for many years myself hopefully will assist, priding myself in my own business of no extras with my client's because everything is clear (what builder does final drawings with sign offs and then along the way says architectural concepts LOL! ) Like going to buy a car with no engine OR tires LOL! I'm well versed in this type of builders methods which to me just makes no sense, unethical on their part but just how they go about doing their business which in the end leads into frustration and delays for the home owner - hence no final release due to deficiencies. You should not have not even paid 5% out of the 10 completion agreement specially with all of the games played mainly due to them not being so interested now in getting things taken care of. Doing the numbers appears you may have paid an extra approx close to 2 mil which on this build is sad. Yes still cheaper than from where you are but this has nothing to do with this deal hence so wrong in so many ways on their part. Anyone reading - a little friendly advise. Why it's important to ask as many questions and get everything in writing in detail - also important to look at other projects the company has done - get at least 5 home references - see and talk to these home owners. The actual rough build it's self but then look at the finishes. Finish material like floor and wall material, windows & doors - hardware - kitchen cabinets - sink - faucet - counter and any other feature areas - roof material - landscaping - perimeter walls - gates is what break most projects with clients running out of money if dealing with builders like this so ensure you know what you are getting. For many this can and will be their life savings being allocated for the property and home - could easily be their last. Hopefully in the end you get all resolved and just enjoy! Have a wonderful day!
Excellent advise for all brother! We actually did look at the builders current projects and past builds and was even able to visit with one of his builds that was an American. Turns out it was the builders brother in law and I most likely didn't get the full picture. Regardless, where I believe I failed is that I believed a relationship between myself and the builder had been formed and I bottom line, just trusted to much. Let my guard down if you will. It sounds like you have a full grasp of what you want in your build, so I have no doubt you will fare even better than we did. Nothing but the best to you and thanks for watching!
@@rickbaker0217 Yes I know - not your wrong and what should have been followed was the actual drawings signed off but obviously did not happen. To help others watching or reading they need MORE in Detail so not to run into the same issues with bad builders being unethical charging as they did - it's just so wrong and leaving the bad taste - this is just how they do business and continue to get away with it. Home builders do not need to or should not have to deal with such stress and nonsense. Simple thing to help avoid - have in writing items Fence: Is included in contract price and actual build details of where. Same goes for driveway - kitchen cabinets and details and on and on. In the contract all building permit costs - hook-up fees builder assumes - included in agreed price. Might seem like a lot of extra work and details but really isn't because all you are doing is a follow-up and putting everything in writing as per your discussions. Everything in writing with as much detail as possible to assist in eliminating what you went through. Referral - doesn't surprise me it was a related referral LOL!!!! what so ever. This is a business transaction. I have followed and as mentioned, over all like your design, appreciate you sharing. I hope you get to enjoy for many many years to come. Have a great day!
You have a beautiful home 🏡 congratulations. Enjoy your life.
Thank you, Pete
Wow, that's a lot of good info. we have land in pangasinan and will probably begin building home with a pool once we actually have the title in her name. We have been waiting almost 2 years for the title. we got an update recently saying soon, but we all know how Philippine time works slow and slower
Hope for nothing but the best with your goals to build in Pangansinan! Sorry to hear the title is taking so long. We were blessed to have purchased land that had a clear title and we had it in Jenn's name in just two months. Hoping yours is resolved soon!
I absolutely understand what you’re referring to in regards to mobility. I can’t believe you built that home for around 100 K US. Just so you know the real estate market in the US has gone crazy over the last five years. I don’t believe you could build that for three or four times what you spent. Thank you for a comprehensive breakdown.
I agree Eric, just one of many reasons I retired here. We really do appreciate you watching!
New subscriber here. I live in Texas and we are planning a move to the PI when I hang up my gloves and retire. Sounds like you got a whole lot of house for the money, but it is never easy over there.
Hello my Texas brother from another mother! Always good to hear another Texas headed this way. You are right, building here is an adventure for sure, but it can be done and you can ultimately feel good about what you did.
Very helpful video for anyone building in the Philippines. I think that builder retired after doing your job. All said and done that is a beautiful home for that amount of money.
Thank you sir, I appreciate you watching. Hope it was helpful!
Great project !😉
It had it's good moments and a few not so good moments. But bottom line, I would do it all over again if I had to. Thanks for watching!
@@rickbaker0217 Welcome ! And God bless your family!
Interesting story and Ultimatly A Beautiful Home. Enjoyed your story and Many Congrats 🎊
Thanks for watching Mike!
That was pretty good after the dust settled. Little bit stressful when everything keeps becoming "an extra". I'm a big fan of putting requirements and detailed the deliverables in writing that is signed, notarized and witnessed etc... Even with that, there are some things beyond everyone's control like the supply chain. You have a beautiful home, pool and a beautiful wife. The view from your back yard is also amazing too. Thanks for sharing your info. I'm thinking real hard and planning to do the same soon.
Appreciate the kind words Robert. All in all, we are happy here and life is good. Best of luck to you on your building adventure!
I want to build a house in the PH the same way you did!! I’d love to learn the whole process.
Help you anyway I can brother. Feel free to email us at the email on our TH-cam if there is anything I can clarify for you.
Great place ! Thanks for sharing
And thanks for watching!
The only thing I think I missed is the cost of a piece of nail. Thanks for your very detailed accounting.
LOL! I tried to be as specific as possible, but I think you are right, I left that out
Congratulations, I know it was a painful experience but that's kinda in every home building experience...
You are correct. All in all, we love our home design and we love where we built it. Thanks for watching!
Great help as when I go to build in mindano as have coconut farm off mainhighway 2 miles from ocean
Sounds beautiful John! Thanks for watching sir!
Congrats,the house looks great,a real nice retirement home in a quiet location,,,,what will you do with the extra land you have?that's a big property,maybe in that pond you can have tilapia fish so you always have a supply of fish and also grow vegetables to become self sufficient,,,you have your own water,electricity, possibly fish ,fruits and vegies,,,,,good luck tc always
Hey Ken! Yes, I believe this will be all that I was hoping it would be. Everyday it just seems a little more like "home". Well, that's exactly what we are going to do with the property. We will rebuild the terraces that the builder took dirt from, and once it's in good shape, we will be planting fruits and vegetables. The pond is actually just outside our perimeter fence, but no worries, a guy comes by here every morning, selling fresh Tilapia at a super price!
Gosh this has been fascinating to watch . I just feel on your channel & so glad I did . ( Its so different to so many countries .)
But you & your wife have a beautiful home . Enjoy it all Toughly enjoyed watching your channel. Much love from wales . Thank you for showing.❤️ enjoy xxxxx
Thanks for watching and yes, it is different anywhere you are. Every country has it's positives and negatives. It's the reason we named the channel what we did, "The Good, The Bad, The Philippines!" So glad you enjoyed watching and thank you for the kind words. We love being here and despite the negatives, this is where we choose to be. Always good to hear from someone in Great Britain! Scotland, Wales and Ireland make up about 96% of my DNA!!!
Thanks for sharing po ❤🙏 congratulations on your new home!
Thank you and we appreciate you watching!
the exchange rate has been great for many years, i remember when it was 39 peso- 42 peso to the dollar. i was excited when it hit 46 !
Yes sir, always nice to see it in the 50+ peso range!
Beautiful home. Congratulations. Money well spent
Thanks JP, appreciate you watching!
Wished you could give us a tour or view of your house so we could see what your house looks like from inside and outside.
It’s in one of our videos called Turn Over Day. Here’s the link: th-cam.com/video/Ja1aKmeq9Ws/w-d-xo.html
Good idea on the single story house. My mother always said the same thing.
I believe I will be glad I did it Mike. These artificial knees won't last forever.
Great summery, my takeaway is that you experienced some cost creep due to your inexperience in the province area. Hire local is great advice... Congrads on the new home..
Yep, it was creeping alright . Thanks for watching!
I just found you on TH-cam and I am also, I am a senior citizen, my daughter and her husband live in Subic bay. I am here in San Pedro California. Still a government job, but looking to come to the Philippines and purchase myself.
This has been a great place to retire to for me Gail. I wish you nothing but the best in your future retirement!
Great video Rick! Appreciate you sharing to help others understand the ins and outs of building here in the Philippines.
No worries Mark, always happy to help others try to avoid pitfalls if possible. Always nice to see your comment!!!
I just come across your channel and find it very interesting on your journey on building your home .
Thanks David! I appreciate you watching!