Real Estate in Philippines

Last updated on Nov 27, 2021

Summary: People living in Philippines offer advice about real estate. How do you find a home in Philippines? Should you buy or rent? What is the cost of housing?

How do I find a place to live in Philippines?

We asked expats how they chose their neighborhood and found a place to live. They answered:

"We found a corner 2br condo (pool) on facebook under Davao House Rent. The neighborhood is central to most things; malls, easy taxi service, resto’s, Security is a must. Remember expats cannot own land. That is important if you are going to build," explained one person living in Davao , Philippines.

"Accommodation is in abundance, but safety was key when I was looking for a house. After much research, I found a lovely house in a well guarded sub-division called Timog Park Homes," said another expat in Angeles City.

"My wife's father whom has lived all his life in our area helped to find the property as I wanted to overlook the ocean from our new home. I had a new home built to my spec's so when we arrived the house was good to go," remarked another member in Isabel.

"My wife has lived in this area for over 15 years and has a chrome plating busines located in another close city," explained one expat living in Valenzuela City, Philippines.

"I reasearced a bit, found a reputable real estate person and found a great home near one of the gates to Clark. It was former US military housing and actually fairly nice," said another person in Angeles City.

"I had Cendant relocation services and in the end, negotiated the contract myself. The landlord let me know that the relo rep was "on the take," so I took over," added another expat who made the move to Angeles City.

Need a rental in Philippines? We've partnered with Explorastay, the largest aggregator of 1-12+ month stays. Compare listings and rental rates from 20+ accommodation sites in one search, including: Booking.com, VRBO, Expedia, UniPlaces, Spotahome, HousingAnywhere, Zumper and over a dozen more accommodation companies.

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What is a typical expat home or apartment like in Philippines?

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About the Author

Betsy Burlingame is the Founder of Expat Exchange. She launched Expat Exchange in 1997 as her Master's thesis project at NYU. Some of Betsy's more popular articles include 12 Best Places to Live in Italy, 12 Things to Know Before Moving to The Dominican Republic and the Living in Panama Guide. Betsy loves to travel and spend time with her family. Connect with Betsy on LinkedIn.

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