As you can see our first apartment is near completion with the internet cafe below we also constructed. Many people complain about local methods and lack of professional service. But lets take a step back a little. The problem in the Philippines is so much skilled labour has gone abroad leaving a skeleton staff. More people of handyman level than skilled labour. But remember your only paying P300 a day (general rate currently in Cebu). Material wise you get what you pay for as long as you have someone monitoring your stocks and mixes. The reason being if your paying P300 which is roughly also what your paying a local contract supervisor there is a high case of people lowering the mix of concrete or stocks being low by the time they reach site. Purely because its how they make the money difference up. Your the wealthy foreigner anyway so why you complaining you can afford it right? Well its something that happens too often and something that can easily be avoided. The Project in the picture has cost me over P500,000 including the computers in the internet cafe. At the same time I have spent time every day to monitor the construction and supervise as well as my father in-law who is not only hard working he also has a knowledge of construction in the Philippines. Cross reference that with my nearly 20 years in the British construction industry working from carpenter and electrician upwards. We have pretty much had a smooth run on the project.

  An important factor on the project was the roof section which is also the floor for the 1st level (2nd level in the U.S.) we used a technique of pouring a slab of concrete over metal sheet. Which is also a technique a lot of sub divisions have adopted. This allows easy pouring without the problems of shuttering. As well as a clean finish. We adopted hollow block on the walls which do have a habit of hairline cracks because of access issues. I would like to use sectional concrete walls on other projects in the future or the poured walls which is another technique. But it all comes down to access and budget. Our projects were based on P160,000 a piece for building construction and we came within that.

But for the future I am also looking to assist others with projects we have our own team of workers here that are already very capable at local level but I am looking to improve the skill as we go. e.g. getting the electrician to change from the single core installations to twin and earth to allow shorting of electrical cables when faulty to trip the mains before a risk of  a fire which is my biggest worry within the Philippines. We wired our buildings the same as the UK for that reason and something I refuse to skimp on. Also mixing traditional local methods with western ones will improve speed and quality of work. There is no point trying to go fully westernised on design and materials etc. because it becomes expensive. Meeting in the middle somewhere that is not only achievable but safe is part of the service we are looking to provide in the future as well as introducing new working practices and techniques with existing materials.

There is also the consultation side of things you may be interested in if you already have relatives etc. doing the construction project. If your just looking for someone to oversee the project every day as well as monitor if your getting value for money. To hire me personally its P20,000 a month which is the going rate within Cebu. Back in the UK I earn upto £350 a day so your getting a lot of skill and knowledge for your money. Why is it so cheap? because im in the Philippines im at home with my wife. The same can be said for house designs etc. everything I can pretty much do or have arranged. There is one difference between asking me and asking someone else and that’s simply I give market value not over and the reason being is my reputation is not only something valuable to me in the Philippines but also in the UK when working there. It is important for me to always provide a better service than anyone else not only for your benefit but the fact is I enjoy my work and expect it to always be grade A.

The TV shows who said you have to watch them? Immigration fees I will give you that but not because of the increases but the fact they regularly change and they don’t keep people informed.

But the Philippines isn’t going to change and that is the fact I live with every day. Getting up to be at the SSS office for 5am just so my wife can get an ID card because they can only process so many in  a day I would here a western answer “why don’t they do overtime?” or “why don’t they get more staff” it isn’t going to happen its part of life here. Processing takes a long time so expect it infact my 13(a) residency visa is already complete and we asked to delay collecting it. It is the laid back attitude which brought so many people here in the first place and you have to take the rough with the smooth. I have neighbours with a multi-cab with excessive speakers which shake the building sometimes. I could complain about it but generally it doesn’t bother me because he is only there 5 mins before he drives off. Last week I had to go out for a break. Will Irwin’s response who I wrote about in a previous article was to buy 2 hectares to basically create distance between him and his neighbours.. The truth of the matter it was his ramblings that irritated me in the first place not the music. Because the truth of the matter its the grumpy old men that are getting under my skin. The constant whining and in fighting between several of them. The fact some will bad mouth others behind peoples backs to cut them out of contract work. I’m not on about my work by the way just something I know that went on between a local translator and two expats. Not sure what the one expat said to the translator but she stopped talking to the other Expat who had work for her. Why? because the one expat has issues with the other. Yet the other Expat it is all water under the bridge. These disputes between Expats are the sort of things why so many fail in the Philippines. The cutting ones nose off to spite the face is something I have seen too much of in the last two years and often why I look to stop writing as I’m disappointed with so many of the Expats that come to the Philippines. What stops me from quitting though is the Filipino community here and abroad who read the blogs because they enjoy my ramblings from a perspective that sort of sits between an Expat and a Filipino. Why my ramblings are a little different is probably due to my upbringing with a military family moving from country to country finding that you live between Military and local people in some sort of balance.

If you want to make a difference in the Philippines while living here teach people who want to learn. I’m not on about lecturing at a college etc. but the education of the kids that roam your area during the day. Maybe they lack the interest or money for education (moneywise schooling is free but all the add-ons cost money as the school uses it to help with its funds) but that is why its more important to teach them things that they will find interesting or useful. Starting with responsibility with such things as anti-graffiti and anti-littering as both of these contribute to degrading an area but also the clearing up of your area will hopefully stimulate others to take responsibility. I am currently just awaiting the concrete work to stop on the external of the Apartment as we will be adding plants along the roadside with fruits etc. free for people who want to pick them offering a small source of food but also cleans up the road a little adding a bit of colour.

It is always easy to be negative and it drags everyone down with it. The truth of the matter is you need to look at how to improve things not make them worse. If your in the Philippines respect that people are different here but at the same time if you want them to change you have to accept you need to change as well. You can hunt down literally thousands of negative posts on the Philippines but isn’t it about time people started posting about what they did to make things better instead?

Anyway getting a little off tangent and it being nearly 2.30am its time to rest. If you have any money making ideas please add them on the comments below im all ears

BUILD a House in the Philippines?
- Expect minimum $40,000 (not included lot) for only 100 sq mt living area
BUY an existing House & Lot?
- Expect minimum $50,000 for only 100 sq mt living area
RENT a House?
- Expect minimum $300 per month for only 100 sq mt living area
- $600 per month for a beautiful big house

First thing was the pricing (as shown above) build a house for a minimum of $40,000 ? only if you haven’t got a clue what your buying and trusting people like the advertiser. Buying property is relatively cheap here still purely because of the way LOCAL business development hasn’t expanded. i.e. no point having thousands of houses at $40,000 because the local market can’t support the demand most people haven’t got that budget. But someone browsing the net unaware is unlikely to know that right?

But an existing for $50,000 for 100 sq mt ? Well to be honest if your in a sub division in Cebu I would expect to pay around $20,000+ for 100 sq mt. But then again I wouldn’t spend $50,000 purely because it could take years to resell if we decided to move and also the fact its based on Sub-division prices which are simply false pricing because there is no real MARKET VALUE to compare prices. So why spend $50,000 best value for money is to look for a house via Filipinos and not making people aware you are buying. But no doubt our friend advertising these facts will be able to help via his realtor friend at a good premium right?

Rent $300 a month upwards? Well we have a small 1 bedroom house that costs us around $60 a month and I would say most expats are paying more but a lot of it is down to choice and security. I wouldn’t live in a condo or a sub-division but for $300 you can probably squeeze a 2 bed house with enough looking inside a sub or a 1 bed condo. The reason most people rent is not down to the house value but simply you can make more money with the money you would have to pay for the house in the first place unless you went for a mortgage.

So what would my advice be? If your buying be aware there are always hidden faults inside properties and also making sure the deeds match what the people have been paying in tax because often people build without permits which means there are back taxes as well as some hassles with officials although nothing major could cost you a few pesos to make everyone happy.

Going to construct. Will Irwan (the person who replied to the post which is the site I’m taking these pieces from) will tell you not to trust a local builder and to go with a reputable company as there is a 15 year defect liability by law in the Philippines. But what a lot of people don’t realise is that if you want a Western home it costs Western money its not that much cheaper! quality always costs more and I wouldn’t trust anyone with something I am not managing myself. There has been cases of concrete being cut from the mixes so people can make a bit extra on the side. There is a huge hotel outside SM that has stayed unfinished for years because of some of the defects and a problems with cost cutting (cost cutting for stuff the company had already paid for!) if the large companies are prepared to screw over big players what about the new expat on the block? Paperwork is simply that.. PAPERWORK you want a good builder they come with recommendations and previous jobs you can inspect. Balls to all the certificates and guarantees. Same in the UK how many Corgi Plumbers are cowboys? Infact a local borough council in the West Midlands carries the Corgi stickers on its vehicles yet it doesn’t have one Corgi registered plumber. The stickers are old. So who can you trust in the Philippines a lot of the time its down to you and Google.

The thing is to take your time every person I have met with an investment opportunity of a life time for example Will Irwin is also talking about his $30,000 investment returning $1,000 a month for investing in Nuts as a pretty much guaranteed thing because they are hurricane resistant etc. etc. but nobody mentioned drought which is one thing I have heard from a few expats who got involved with Mahogany they simply ran out of water and died losing the entire investment. Or David Whittle with his hard sell on the Legacy group very pushy to get people to invest as it was a “guaranteed” income of easy money and even if it went bad the money is covered by PDIC insurance right? Well if that was the case he and many others wouldn’t be struggling to get money back that they invested.

  Your probably thinking I’m a bit negative on this post and its more to do with a wake up call for people who are arriving. Don’t trust people around you! Because they invested in something doesn’t mean its going to work out as they could be blind to it as much as you are except you are buying into their trust. If your wanting to buy a house and want to pay extra go via a realtor but to be honest I would rather take the time out and spend a couple of months looking myself and getting something at the right price. Your time looking would probably pay you off financially because realtor = commission but remember the commission is based on SALE PRICE which is why you can often see people paying upto 3 times the real value of properties. We were at the doctors yesterday and the doctor had her long list of Vitamins she wants to sell us because they are “essential” but the essential has two different meanings. Essential to her making money off us to help pay for her next free cruise from the company she sells for. Essentially I see little value or use of vitamins unless there is a shortage within someone’s body of a specific type and even then there is the old fashioned way of eating healthy.

Building property I wouldn’t advise for anyone with no knowledge or patience. You need to take time to monitor the quality and also the methods being used. Often some things don’t make any sense and its partly these reasons I am looking to start our own construction company in the future. Not because I want to “get rich” off expats but we are building our own properties and it just makes sense for us to build properties for others along the way. Nothing wrong with Will Irwan making money with his company and I wish him all the best. But most of these old guys I have met offering advice to others are out to make money as its how they manage to retire in the Philippines in the first place. In the last 2 and a half years I have been in the Philippines I have learned I trust the foreigners less than I do Filipinos. There are good amongst both groups but the conversations I have had with other Expats recently out of frustration have all come back with the same response.

So if your coming here to retire etc. look after your money because if you don’t someone else will. If you want a genuine friend and advice I offer both as a friend I would tell you the Philippines offers a wonderful life if you embrace it and keep your head screwed on at the same time. As an advisor if you have enough money to retire just find some small investments in the Philippines you can do yourself or with someone you really can trust. But most importantly something that will not destabilise your pension and living ability. If you have large amounts of money (above P3m) I would simply find something outside the country to do with it that is secure we are in difficult financial times worldwide and markets change in an instant. If anything I would probably advise buying a home in the UK for example and renting it out. It gives stable income and somewhere to go back to if things don’t work out. If your coming without a stable pension or income I would simply say keep your job in your home country and visit first and get to understand the country. Making an income is possible but not easy. Getting to grip with how things work is time consuming but can be done. Cost cutting and setting goals would probably be your only real viable way of doing it for a big move. What ever you read above or in any articles just think about whatever it is your reading. If it seems too good to be true or complete bull your opinion is the most important. Its your life, your money, your retirement.

When the netcafe originally started it was based on the idea of being a simple chat hotspot for people being able to contact people overseas. It quickly became more of a haunt for gaming enthusiasts and now has more kid users than anyone else. They come in all shapes and sizes and different levels of wealth but have yet to see any of them argue or dispute anything at worst they laugh and joke about things they are doing or watching online. With the current Fiesta some of the kids have also been practicing dance moves and performing on stage at night.

Its more a bit of local fun than anything else but all the kids in the area are taking it very serious for the Fiesta. Maybe seeing it as an opportunity to be discovered or just to win the competitions. Either way a lot of kids have been spending a lot of time practicing various dances and sorting out remix CD’s for the performances. One of the Netcafe kids also got up and sang a mixed version of Lady GaGa songs.

What I enjoy about the singing and performing is the fact all the kids want to take part. There is a keen interest to participate and be a part of the Fiesta. I think its one of the major factors Filipinos have in life that make visiting the country always interesting as there is always something going on somewhere and people willing to get up and sing or dance..

There is a term you will here Expats use sometimes which is “Only in the Philippines” and its often just like a shrug of the shoulders nothing personal or against anything but just sometimes things just are the way they are thinking about it only resolves in a headache. Now before people start thinking I am against the Pageant its actually to do with the night that followed. Because the Pageant itself people took very seriously. If you were there and seen the other days you would notice that on the Pageant night extra lighting appeared with affects and also a few stage props. Fencing and a central area for seating for people who seemed to be relatives complete with tables. It was the fact that the pageant took place and the day after was a mock version of guys who are straight dressed in women’s clothes pretending to be gay. Only in the Philippines is something like that likely to happen I think its the fact that generally people here are so laid back that its acceptable nobody seemed offended by it and both nights gathered a fairly large crowd.

All in all the events were opposites of each other. The Pageant reminded me something like Miss world with a bit of comedy thrown in. The participants had obviously spent a lot of time and money on the clothes they wore. The swimwear was a bit more skimpy than I had expected but then again the competition between the contestants was pretty strong they all wanted to win. But along the way talking a bit about themselves several of the contestants came up with witty and funny speeches to the enjoyment of the crowd.

On a different level the guys who were dressing up as women pretending to be gay were all about comedy. Most seemed a bit worse for wear no doubt from alcohol and a lot of comical answers to questions which led to roars of laughter and cheering from the crowd.

Its good to see things being done from within the community. But also a bigger budget would make it better for all involved. Who knows maybe next year we will do some sort of assistance such as stage etc. I won’t promise anything this year as simply we don’t know where things will be financially next year yet.

As the apartment is heading into its final stages of completing we started concentrating on our businesses that need development. We started selling ice pops out of the internet snacks and now our neighbours are also starting to sell frozen drinks. Not a major problem but just a show of how quickly people adapt to ideas that work. We are also experiencing some competition from our main competitor internet cafe who is operating on the main road. Offering free swimming for so many hours. Good promo or are things getting desperate? only time will tell but from what feedback I got from one of the 7 (yes 7) netcafes in Upper Calajo-an the one on the main road is also asking the kids where they go to play on the internet and sending people to look at peoples setups. Now that doesn’t sound like a confident business but then again we also looked at the same unit they are in and decided it was cheaper long-term to build a building rather than pay the high rent as most of profit margin is wiped out by the cost of the location. You maybe thinking location location location.. well in most cases you could be right but the unit is too small compared to ours. Ok we don’t have the fastest internet or PC’s but we are the cheapest and can function on a lot less than the main competition because we have no debt or high rent. All in all we are here to stay and with the snacks and Sari-Sari expanding soon the business will remain viable and profitable.

I have been told by a lot of expats that its not viable to compete with Filipinos but like I say a lot its all about not NEEDING the business income at least initially. This will allow it to grow by itself the competition is irrelevant as simply they start trying to beat you and and offer crazy promo’s etc. but your here for the long haul just setup and let things develop around you. Customer service is something that is important and a lot of places lack. Prime example was Nutech my wife called ahead for items I needed and they said they had them all in stock. I arrive they have one out of the four and I ask when are they getting the next stock of the items “maybe a week or two”. Not I will call you as soon as I am aware sir.. not I will call and find out now sir.. just something I hear very often lately a very “I cant be bothered to find out sir”. Which is what they really meant. Doesn’t annoy me the way it used to simply because it happens so much you get used to it. But at the same time I am thankful because if I can provide that service that people will be surprised to receive because of not being used to it instantly going to win customers.

As you can see the apartment is coming along well and im looking forward to getting the next 3 projects out the way so we can do the Aquaponics and also an incubator due to Pap’s chickens laying eggs constantly. So those of you thinking I have it easy when I come home to the Philippines think again.. I have had probably a month of 1am finishes at the netcafe including a few 4-6am finishes, a bit of stress with the budgets on the apartments and cutting out some bad debt from another business. Not the life of someone who wants to sit still but anyone who knows me will pretty  much tell you its the way I like things to be… busy and constantly progressing.

I have watched TV documentaries discussing the class system and how it fits into society. All that seemed to be followed is the “benefit class” who are generally people who are unemployed,unemployable or got no interest in ever having a job. But what about the divide that has developed since the 60s as things started to mess with the education and political system that now has kids that struggle to read or write and little knowledge of their own country. What about the divide caused by women’s rights which have pretty much destroyed equality in society. There is a class that doesn’t grumble but gets on with life they are the “Bedsit class” which are the divorced males who have been swindled out of life with a bad divorce and a biast legal system. Hard working and living in a Studio apartment which really means a room with a sink in a shared house which normally has a mix of students and drug addicts as neighbours they are the forgotten in society. Working to pay their ex partners for “child maintenance” which in most cases see`s the woman not needing to work as the guy will pick up the tab. If he complains no doubt an arguement will develop and access to his children will be made difficult as its the easiest way to screw him over and force the last bits of money out of him. Welcome to the UK!

I have friends who live like the above and its one of the reasons I would never be part of that society anymore. Because lets face it what ex wants to see you happy? I was discussing the fact with a friend at work a few months ago where she had come from a bad split and found out her ex has a new girlfriend. The first concern was “how did the new girl look”. It was a positive feedback to find out the girl was ugly and my friend was happy. We then discussed what it was about the woman and the truth was no woman wants a successful and happy ex they want them to suffer. May sound a bit odd so would be nice for some comments on here to back it up..lol but I experienced the same myself, my ex became bitter knowing I am happy and had moved on and its the category of “bedsit class” are the ones that are stuck in limbo because of the crap divorce and no doubt got a lazy ex who is sitting on his money until the kids reach 16 and he can stop paying. At what point does a woman become disabled and unable to work? as soon as she gives birth or before that? Im not against all women btw I just seek equality. In any separation the “ABILITY” to work should be taken into account and deducted from the child maintenance as simply there are a lot of “part-time” and full-time jobs out there that the parasite women could do and actually be a benefit to society. I am well aware there are women who do work and bring up kids on their own. Some of them struggle to get payments and may not even know where theyre ex is. But I am not talking about those women I am talking about the ones who stop these guys moving on in life. They are bled to death by allowance payments and for what? a Saturday morning with his kids?

Personally I looked at some of my friends lives and couldn’t see me living like that I would rather put a noose round my neck. Its an acceptance of loss to a society who doesn’t want you but wants your money, to an ex that keeps you on tight reigns. To hell with that if you haven’t ventured into Asia before book your holiday this year and if you want to come to Cebu I will help you organise your trip.

If this seems a bit off topic today its simply because I am having one of those days where things are niggling at me from the UK. Nothing to make me mad but just frustration. But its also a frustration I know many others have. But the choice is you can be miserable in a bed-sit until you get old and somebody smells that stale odour from under your door that can only be described as a body left rotting for a few weeks. Or you can come to Asia and seek out a new life. It isn’t easy but your life in the UK isn’t either difference is here you have sunshine and if you can secure a small pension you can live month to month without being overstretched financially. Also the ability to hop back to the UK for a few months a year to top up the finances keeps you ahead of the game.

The hard bit is not seeing your kids and its something very familiar to a lot of expats. Most I have met have been robbed blind in divorce and pretty much lost everything they own all here for the same reason a better life and a better future. I know what I would prefer my daughter Nicole seeing a father who has achieved and secured her future than a father that sits in a bed-sit on his days off and just looking towards the weekends to see her. Life never throws fair cards and many decisions are hard. But the valuation is on how I can secure a future for my family (family being my daughters, wife, parents and in-laws). Difference I found here in the Philippines though is people want to help and develop.

I got in a dispute with someone a while back over pigs as he had told me I don’t know what I am talking about as there is little money in pigs. Truth is like he admitted himself he “made a profit” as well on his. But its the cost of the setup as we are generally too quick to assume we are going to make XYZ in the first year. But the fact of the matter is that year one is the learning curve, year one is the year where you spend money until if everything is setup, year one is where things break,don’t work or find you are being over charged for things. In reality if you make money in YEAR ONE your doing well. Now we ran 2 batches over about 8 months we made a profit on both batches but stopped. Why? Because the profit margin as a “Piggery” wasn’t viable because we had a small stock of 30 pigs and I wanted to generate enough income to Support my wife April and Daughter Zoei as well as create a stable income for my parents in law as Aprils mother used to work miles away making clothing and would be out of the house for at least 10 hours a day for a small salary. This is why I gave up the piggery at the time it didn’t pay enough for 4 people to be supported. So when the last batch sold we had around P57,000 so we took it and put it into another business which is now our biggest income I won’t go into too much detail but it does support 6 people and has allowed us to fill in a budget shortage on the first apartments construction after the Net cafe delays and an unexpected extra P80,000 (more than half of the budget for Apartment 1). But the other thing is like I said its all about the coins. The net cafe is now fully functional and the income already covers its own bills and a small salary for Jovie but it will grow. The first apartment is also in its final stages of construction before the fitting out starts and the Sari-Sari store is in its early stages but will quickly grow. The one important factor that makes a difference is not stretching the businesses as the early stages are important to its survival and prosperity. We are all living off the one main business at the moment and allowing the smaller ones to move forward in the next couple of months I expect that we already own a couple of freezers, stocks of frozen food and livestock for sale. We wont be doing anything fancy with the live chicken mind as they will be supplied by the egg producers who need to clear out the barns ready for new stock. Basically we will be buying in bulk for quick turnaround rather than fattening them on expensive animal feeds and before someone comments on the meat difference between “free range” etc. these chickens already sell well which is why we are doing it. Once the stocks are selling the next stage is getting apartment 2 completed before December. The end result will be steady incomes from multiple enterprises. But at the same time not absorbing too much time to stop us progressing with new ones. Aprils mum already has an idea for a new venture which was joked about tonight. Not because the idea was funny but April and Jovie are more concerned about what we have right now as simply our man power and budget is split in so many directions its time to pull in the reigns and sit for a while. Same reason I have stopped going out recently to keep our budget down as the net cafe hammered us a bit on top of the bad debts we received. Bit of a reality to check but now the wheels have started to slowly turn again we are all going in the right direction and no doubt will see the rewards by the end of the year in time for the Christmas party..