Looking to buy land in Philippines and build my house

A foreigner cannot own land in the Philippines. Period.  You can lease land and build a house on it but you cannot own the land.  IF you have a Filipina wife, she can own the land and you can own the house.  Take a look at LivinginthePhilippines.com and you can find out almost any information you want. However they are very pro Philippines so keep in mind that that is only their side of how nice it is.  I have lived here the past two months and traveled around quite a bit and one thing you have to always keep in mind that this a third world country.  I have lived in Thailand, Cambodia, Viet Nam and China in the past so understand the cultures.  Good luck and I think you will find that website very helpful.

Ramblingroads wrote:

I'm not the kind of personality, of just gazing and grazing, the days away. Meaning I'm not really interested in "Proper Retirement". I need things to do, to occupy my mind... Alcohol, cigarettes, and the fantasy dreams of beautiful Filipinas  all lined up in a row waiting for wonderful me, has not worked. I mean they're not waiting...  Maybe I'd be better, if it wasn't just a dream of all those Filipinas.

People do negotiate minefields, for reasons known and unknown. But both must be worth it... Otherwise why on God's green earth would they do it? Crazy don't work! Crazy people are often pretty good at killing others but they mostly prefer not to hurt themselves.

Ah, the simple life, it ain't so simple...

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Vetretret:
There are many ways to fulfill ones fantasies!! In my OPINION to do so is to do it without the aid of alcohol,drugs and other vices like CIGARETTES...I have been there, done that and don't want anymore of it...Why cloud ones judgement with those vices which only cause emotional ups and downs, irrational thinking and indecisiveness to achieve ones fantasies; not to mention the destruction of millions of brain cells which could possibly lead to Dementia...If those vices are a part of ones makeup, I would suggest trying a different route...One may find a whole new view on what is the so-called simple life..., life itself is very complex thus should never be considered simple...

IT IS THE ULTIMATE CHALLENGE ESPECIALLY FOR US EXPATS...

Since being here I have witnessed many Expats who use one or more of the VICES I have mentioned and all they do is cry in their beer about how unhappy they are over their bad decisions(blaming the locals) and how they are going to do this and that to fulfill their fantasies but never seem to pull the trigger on any of them...They just hit the bar or local hangout, down some more suds, puff a few butts, pop some pills to discuss the same BS day after day...Is it any wonder they are disillusioned with what they wish is the SIMPLE LIFE!!!

You speak of CRAZY PEOPLE...What's more crazy than clouding ones mental awareness and wasting ones life pursuing fantasies which  aren't there and if by some chance they are, then more likely than not they will fail in fulfilling or maintaining those fantasies...THUS GREATLY HURTING ONESELF to the point of maybe PULLING THE TRIGGER TO END IT ALL...

LIFE IS WHAT YOU MAKE IT, SO GO AFTER YOUR DREAMS AND DON'T WASTE IT WONDERING HOW THINGS COULD HAD OR SHOULD HAVE BEEN...

TAKE CARE and "GOD" BLESS

Last edited by vetretreat (2013-07-22 09:37:09)

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Well any layperson or professional too, would have to be impressed by your reserve of talents, there Good Buddy, such multifaceted skill set(s), truly a man of many hats. But I'm not  (too) surprised because, we all are pushed to wear different hats these days, I mean pushed in cyberspace...  As (old) skills wear, and become obsolete, new ones must be cultivated, and even (strove...for)!  So say all the relevant leading economist of today, if a person wishes to stay relevant, that is, then, they've got to constantly re-tool and [ reinvent ] themselves.

Much like time waits for no man, cyberspace; waits for no man either. There are some interesting titles that are out there nowadays, how about "Victimologist"... A person who sees, diagnosis's, and fixes victims... And then there's the Moralologis, also known as the "Waxing Moralist",  who diagnosis's, and fixes morality, these chaps, are really quite amazing, as they are able to take on  the great moral issues, with great moral clarity, and (fix) the great moral divisions between what's right and what is wrong. . .with the rest of us.

And I had thought "We" on this thread were talking about buying land and maybe running a business of some kind. Who knew!

To clarify!

[ My landmine field, comment, was referencing to the business climate in the Philippines and possible dangers of taking a chance at running a business or owning a business here.] And let us not forget businesses in the West fall like domino's too.


[ My "crazy" person comment was about people wading through these fields of landmines, and it can't necessarily be crazy to do so because there's plenty of successes. ] Maybe not the big bucks, but how much does one need anyhow, to supplement his retirement checks?

I was  referring to business  (risk) not shooting  holes in one's head, I'll personally take alcohol any day of the week in its place... But that's just me.

How you got off onto Alcoholism; Small Cell Carcinoma; Emphysema; and the like, was just a (tad) strange there Good Buddy, but when you went fatalist; and started talking, of suicide... "pulling of triggers and ending it all", raised caps, "preaching"... is just plain damned bizarre... Do you think about such things often, or perhaps you're inclined to emotional duress? I was thinking maybe I should not respond to this one, I don't want to run the risk of pushing people over the edge

However; being the good; kind; sweet lad that I am, I'll try and ferret out the main (theme) of this morally wild rambling rant, and perhaps make a few insightful comments, as we waddle through the now high-jacked, "moralistic" landmine laden field.

Just to be clear on the chosen skill set of today, it appears to me it's back to the morality hat today. But wait, there's even more hats, the psycho-medical, hats too. And raised caps, such passion as you (teach) us!

Hallelujah there brother, (and), how good they are when they turn.... I mean when they've seen the light, and have quit with vile disgusting behaviors of "vice". Good to "see" you're still there, on the wagon.

A little clarity of the [ "wagon" ] statement is in order, as some of the "fan-club", may not be familiar with the terminology.

[ "on the wagon" ] statement means abstaining, complete abstinence, as in do not drink any alcoholic beverages, period, zero, none.  Being on the Wagon, one does not drink alcohol. Don't offer her wine; she's "on the wagon". Don't offer him beer he's "on the wagon."

[]  The antonym, meaning opposite: "off the wagon", is used for the person who (was) on the wagon, and thus did not drink alcohol, and is now back to drinking alcohol, he started drinking again; he [ "fell off the wagon" ] he's back on the bottle; he's back to drinking alcohol.

Historically speaking both "on the wagon" and "off the wagon" dates from the same period.

B.J. Taylor used it in Extra Dry (1906): he said, “It is better to have been on and off the wagon than never to have been on at all.”

Yeah, it's a little bit tricky to understand exactly what he means with that statement, about it being better to have been (on and off) the wagon.

But to the Moralist, Medicalist, and Psychologist, I guess it's good to get them all three in there. You know with the multi-hat cyberspace professional...no task is to large or to (small).

To "Fall Off The Wagon" means the poor sap is hitting the bottle again, drinking alcohol, no control, just sits on his bar-stool and pours down the alcohol; day in and day out. His "dreams" of crossing the ocean in a peanut shell gone... evaporated; like the popping bubbles in his beer as he stares down into the bottom of his glass, as the liquid goes flat, like his poor, despicable, retched, unfulfilled life.

This behavior is also known and referred to as he, "drinks like a fish", as you can easily enough understand the reference. A fish drinks a lot...

But it's good, good, good; the morality advisors are everywhere, and give us guidance, they "save us from ourselves" with their most excellent moralizing, pointing out "our faults" such  individuals are at least (one) of the (four) "corner stone's" of civilization. Without which we would only have the (three) Corner Stone's of Civilization, you know like a three legged sitting stool, a precarious thing....

Ah, but then there's [ "Vice" ] how wonderful she is too... Vice is a she you know; the great temptress of Eden and renowned apple eater.  Which unleashed... lust, jealousy, clothes, greed, envy, gluttony, over indulgence, and some other interesting things... the other (three) corner stone's of civilization.

I'll kindly refrain from telling "you folks" out there... which is the better lot in life; or path to follow, with regard to the (four) corner stone's of civilization; because I don't really know; what strikes so many different, fancy's.

Especially; to those of whom have numbers that are adding "up", as in (3 times 7), 21 years, or (4 times 11), 44 years, and on up the ladder, 50, 60, 70, 80...years on.

But as a special note... to those 50 + and climbing on into their, 60's, 70's, 80,s and beyond... who like a little drink, or smoke, or chasing a pretty Filipina from time to time, heed these words; Illegitimi non carborundum.... It's the Latin for: "don't let the bastards grind you down" probably the most important statement you'll ever read here on the Expat.com.   

Oh, and since we are on the more finer points of behavior, the next step in becoming and staying an excellent person is to always fart downwind, it's simply the humanitarian thing to do.


Peace; happy trails!

Always keep the faith.

Ramblingroads...Im rolling on the floor..hahahahahahahahahahahh
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhaahahhaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahhahahahhahahahahahahh...

I'm leaping off the wagon and heading for the local bar and down six 1 litre bottles of Red Horse, then head to the local smoke shop to bUy a BONG, go home light up the SENSI, pop a couple of OXY's, put on a Nicholson movie "AS GOOD AS IT GETS" and after - figure out how in the Hell I will DODGE all those dangerous cracks while attempting to cross the Bermuda Triangle in my Peanut Shell...But not before I throw my 9 MIL in the river...

Days following after several repeat episodes; realizing it is buying land and building a house is the fantasy this posting is all about...HELL YES!!WHY NOT!! I got my "HEAD" straight now!!!...Pull the trigger on my fantasies and buy that Land, Build that House, and YEA and get that Bar Business I have always fantasized about with its Filipina Beauties...WHAT A LIFE, DIDN'T REALIZE WHILE ON THE WAGON, CONCERNING MYSELF WITH THE BORING CONSIDERATION OF HOLDING OFF THE AMMO OF "FARTS" UNTIL I WAS DOWNWIND FROM MY FELLOW EXPATS...NOW THAT I AM OFF THE WAGON THEY SHALL KNOW I AM JUST AS FULL OF "AROMATIC SHIT" AS THEY ARE....

I'M ALIVE AGAIN!!!

CHEERS TO ALL!!!

There must be some kind of way out of here
Said the joker to the thief

There's too much confusion
I can't get no relief

Business men they drink my wine
Plowmen dig my earth
*None will ever own the mind
*Nobody knows of its worth

No reason to get exited
The thief he kindly spoke
There are many here among us
Who feel that life is but a joke

But you and I we've been through that
And this is not our fate
So let us not talk falsely now
The hour's getting late

Ramblingroads wrote:

There must be some kind of way out of here
Said the joker to the thief

There's too much confusion
I can't get no relief

Business men they drink my wine
Plowmen dig my earth
*None will ever own the mind
*Nobody knows of its worth

No reason to get exited
The thief he kindly spoke
There are many here among us
Who feel that life is but a joke

But you and I we've been through that
And this is not our fate
So let us not talk falsely now
The hour's getting late

Bob Dylan, always on time, nothing like being All Along the Watchtower.

Dylan THE GREAT ONE!!! Really miss those days

good day sir,are u still looking for a land to buy here in phil?

chuchie wrote:

good day sir,are u still looking for a land to buy here in phil?

As long as I off the wagon...What do you have in mind???

In cebu place

okie

garyww wrote:

A foreigner cannot own land in the Philippines. Period.  You can lease land and build a house on it but you cannot own the land.  IF you have a Filipina wife, she can own the land and you can own the house.

I am Filipino-American. My husband is American. We have 2 very young children.

I have lands under my name. The last one was acquired after I got married. In that title, it does say that I'm married, and it names my husband. We built a house on the property. On the building permits and city hall records, it states that both of us are owners of the house. If I just suddenly pass away, to whom would the ownership of the land be transferred if a foreigner cannot own land?

First to your children if they are Philippino citizens. If not, then to your parents, then siblings, on down as long as they are citizens. Not to your husband.

hi gud day your hasbund being a foriegner as of this very moment cannot own land in the philippines but there are some lawmakers who are pushing for some ammendmends of the constitution to allow foriegners to own land in the philippines i hope that it will come  to reality soon cause it will give us wider market as a real property agent but if in case you suddenly die your   husband wil be given ample time to dispose  the property

If you are married to a Filipino your spouse can purchase land and a house. You can purchase a condo but as others have advise, I would not do so without what they call here your representative (Filipino spouse). Even then it can be and probably will be very stressful. Be very cautious where you buy. Some developments may allow things in the community that an American would find quite disturbing.

I have lived here in Davao City area for the past (almost five years) and have come to the end of my nerves along with missing my US family not to mention US customs and just everything American. My wife and I own over 5,000 sq mt's of land. I spent four of the five years building our own house. It is not complete but we are returning to the US anyway. True there are plenty of scamers but you can minimize some of your concerns by talking to the local government and people that live in the area you are looking at.

We are looking for buyers ourselves but because of scams it is difficult to sell as well as buy.

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(Moderated: Please post in the section jobs in the Philippines)

Neatgifts wrote:

We are looking for buyers ourselves but because of scams it is difficult to sell as well as buy.

AGREE

(There is no reason to moderate this one)

mmh, with all due Respect to the fellow posters, but I have stopped reading the string of argumentative comments, so please forgive if I am repeting some else's advice.

Certainly Foreigners can not own any Land, only Condominiums or Ownership of Houses on leased properties are legal.
Lease, if done correctly, can be arranged between 25 years to 50 years, with a favorable renewable "automatic" option at the end of the lease period.
Many (smart) expats do this and aquire Property this way.
Also many Companies, even when legally allowed as Corporation, choose to rather Lease their properties.
A Lease, done by a good legal lawfirm (check the yellow pages, the larger ones are easy to find and are always a save bet) is 100% save, even safer then Ownership, as Land titles can be fought in court ( only "Torres" titels are 100% waterproof and those are as hard to find as Gold on a beach), but a Lease is not "fightable", even when the Title is questioned and ownership changes. (Thus the need for a good lawfirm to draft the paperwork and do the pre-checks)

The marriage option is similar, one can let the spouse (if available) buy the property and then draft a lease contract. Even when foreigner, a spouse is ALSO mentioned in the Title AND he has certain rights through his marriage, such as- the property can NOT be sold by the wife without signature, he inherits in the legal Framework, as well as there is an automatic 50% property right, in case of legal separation etc.
If a House is build, the foreigner should add it under improvements and register that the house has been build from his sole funds. Thus guarantees "just" compensation in case of separation or annulment of marriage.
Alternatively one can draft an "Usufructu" agreement of the entire property, which guarantees full use of property until the end of the natural life. In the sad case that the Missus deceases earlier..or runs away.
Again- this must be done by a good Law Firm.

Then add the Lease or Usufructu into the land Title and no worries anymore.

Currently the Philippine Goverment (or better, it's lawmakers) work on a minor Constitutional change to allow Foreigners to own residential lots in a certain size, it is expected, that this law will pass within the legislative period of the current President.

Last, but not least, one can apply for a (dual) Filipino Citizenship, this has become easier lately and does NOT require an (expensive) Attourney.
basically one has to be a permament resident for 5 years (married) or 10 years (unmarried, i.e. retiree visa) and then can write an Application to Bureau of Justice.
more and simplified info here :

http://traveltips.usatoday.com/apply-fi … 01969.html
It sounds complicated, but as a matter of fact if one lives 10 years in the Philippines, he does fulfill all the requirements through his natural way of live. (The property Ownership is done when married to a Filipino, who owns the property, the law and procedure before the 1986 consititution was different, therefore one must not wonder about the strange paragraph in the article. As mentioned, the current Government works back toward this prior solution) 

And don't say it's not possible- I've done it all.

I hope that help's a bit and give People a changed perspective from the ever repetitive unproven "Pub Rumours" spread around since I am here. (1985, since 1998 nonstop)

you can't  buy a land in philippines if you are are not married to a filipina. like me. my husband is an american and the land he bought is under my name and it says married to. i can suggest you  rent first .

You can not acquire dual citizenship here unless you were born as a Filipino...No way can foreign Caucasions become dual citizens unless born in the Philippines...

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There is a not so well known property law in the Phil.It is named,Acquiring Land by Succession.Foreigner being married to a filipina.  They purchased land in the wife,s name .The wife dies. The title of the land will go to the surviving spouse of filipina,even if he is a foreigner.He will have complete control of the land .He can sell it,or develop it anyway he wants.If he chooses,not to sell the land,it will go to the filipina,s family when he dies.How do i know this? It happened to me..The clear title,with my name on it.is in my hands.

cont Me scher D expiranze!! Skype (rudvikros)

I only have Ym it is [email protected]

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vetretreat wrote:

You stated in case of the Filipino's death the family would step in, claim and take the land...By making such a statement you yourself are POSTULATING...Even though it could possibly happen the Expat has many ways to protect oneself...Of those are a long term lease and if the Expat is over 60 chances are good he would pass before the lease would expire...Even family members cannot break the lease without just cause...Also the Filipino spouse can draw up a Will and in addition give the Expat POWER OF ATTORNEY stating upon death the Expat will have full authority to sell said property...And if the Filipino spouse makes a Living Trust naming the Expat the sole executor of the estate it would virtually handcuff any other family member from stepping in and claiming the property...Also, after getting permanent residency as a result of marriage the Expat can own a house 100% up to 1000 sqm and have rights to sell...Another thing which is possible; the Filipino spouse can even name all children by either her or her husbands previous marriages to receive equal shares of the said property upon sale even if the children are of foreign citizenship...Even under Filipino law children of a marriage are first in line should their parents pass including the children of the foreign spouse should they be named in the Trust...I believe most other family members would never risk their funds to hire a lawyer to fight to get something which belongs to their dead relatives children and even if they had no children as long as the Expat has a Lease in force, Power of Attorney to sell land described on the Deed and is Executor of the trust with him being sole beneficiary it would be financial suicide for the family members to go after it...

I know your reasoning behind what you have said is to protect Expats from falling into a financial nightmare in the name of love...But even IN LOVE...WHERE THERE'S A WILL THERE'S A WAY...

I say to all Expats who wish to make their spouse and children (should there be any) happy by giving them the opportunity to own property after your demise; is to take the appropriate legal steps to protect oneself from being scammed in the name of LOVE like Ramblingroads has stated...

Thanks for the info.

I have properties here in the Philippines under my name which I had acquired prior to getting married.  My American husband and I have also acquired a piece of land after he and I moved here. We are in the process of building a house there.

I do want my husband to have ownership and have full control of all of the properties if I pass away before he does. Nice to know that he could have at least our house and lot (less than 1000 sqm) without any problems since he is a permanent resident.

I am definite my parents would not claim any rights to the other properties. My siblings, on their own, would not think of going after them. But their spouses, especially my submissive brother's spouse and in-laws which I liken to vultures and also control him like a puppet, might push my siblings to stake their claim at them. 

I will look into drawing up a living trust, will, and power of attorney.

I bought 1 acre and Built a House it's a Beautiful Lot ... it's in My Name and My Philippine Girl , But I Had a 25 x 25 = 50 year Lease signed documented registered and stamped by the authorities , it's my Home and if needed I could sell the Lease. But I am so Happy Living there with Her and our young Daughter .. When i pass on , even if we Parted My Daughter and Her would inherit all , even if i sold the Lease , they could claim the home at Lease Expiry ....

hello we are currently selling our house. are you still interested?

Very entertaining off subject rants. My wife and I enjoyed and got a few good laughs!

istvan555 wrote:

There is a not so well known property law in the Phil.It is named,Acquiring Land by Succession.Foreigner being married to a filipina.  They purchased land in the wife,s name .The wife dies. The title of the land will go to the surviving spouse of filipina,even if he is a foreigner.He will have complete control of the land .He can sell it,or develop it anyway he wants.If he chooses,not to sell the land,it will go to the filipina,s family when he dies.How do i know this? It happened to me..The clear title,with my name on it.is in my hands.

I have been told the same in a recent conversation with a Local Bank Executive dealing in Real Estate for his firm.

Good .. That's nice to know ... Always dot the I's and cross the T's , but sometimes we can miss , However i hope i am safe with that ... Love living here !! , we don't need any worries , but try and keep up with all the Philippine Laws and keep on enjoying the Lifestyle on these Beautiful Islands ... And Happy Smiles

amaglow2 wrote:

Good .. That's nice to know ... Always dot the I's and cross the T's , but sometimes we can miss , However i hope i am safe with that ... Love living here !! , we don't need any worries , but try and keep up with all the Philippine Laws and keep on enjoying the Lifestyle on these Beautiful Islands ... And Happy Smiles

My wife and I are here permanently, unless life decides otherwise. We also did our exhaustive homework for four years before deciding on an area in which to live. Her family being from Cavite province in Luzon.
We researched power reliability, proximity to services, water, phone service, etc. We created a very short list and began further investigation making use of family, friends, phone calls, the internet and visits to public offices, etc.
Based on our budget we settled on area in a cool climate and met numerous times with the owner of the property and made absolutely no monetary exchanges until we had all questions answered and proof on paper shown and verified.
Our home is nearly complete and although I hope to be around for many years to come, if not, my wife and her wonderful family will have a home and a nice place to visit and relax in what is considered to many a "vacation area".
Patience, perseverance and resourcefulness has paid off.

Peace from our home to yours
Jim and Terry
Silang

I agree 100%!!

I also live in Tagaytay/Cavite area and am very pleased with the location.  Perhaps in 1-3 years I will have the land I want (Crossing to Alfonso areas) and start the path of the design/build/enjoy my own home.  Best to you and your family.

Calif-Native wrote:

I agree 100%!!

I also live in Tagaytay/Cavite area and am very pleased with the location.  Perhaps in 1-3 years I will have the land I want (Crossing to Alfonso areas) and start the path of the design/build/enjoy my own home.  Best to you and your family.

Nice area. We are just over the Tagaytay border about 8 minutes from the Rotunda. The area air is cool and clean and much less traffic and there are some deals to be had coupled with a cool head and patience.
Best of luck with your family's dreams of a new home in the area.
Jim and Terry

Yes Good to hear this it's encouraging .... we built a nice 3 story home in Northern Samar , isolated , but friendly, markets and shops, good  roads and not too far to city's both directions , but I will have to put on solar , because of blackouts and have a good boar and rainwater tanks and elect pumps , with Islands and sandy beaches close by ... started building in 2009 ... our Paradise ..

Hello to everyone here, i am new here, your topic are interesting..i live here in the philippines..i love helping expat that are searching to invest properties in the philippines..i hope lots of you guys wanting to know more how to become an investor in the philippines.

good to read your post i live here in cavite too

Investor in the Philippines?No thanks.