Retirement in Philippines

YES..THATS A GOOD AMOUNT BUT U NEED A MONTHLY INCOME LIKE RETIREMENT.....SO YOUR MONEY WILL NOT GO DOWN TO NOTHING....

I am only 52yr at moment and have £26.000 so far. Would have more if not keep paying for boyfriend holiday too. Will only have British state pension coming in. Am learning Tagalog now and hope to donate a week holiday to work with Manila's street children project next year.

YES,,THATS A NICE PLAN....I TAUGHT SCHOOL IN THAILAND FOR 10 YEARS....I KEEP $25,000 IN MY SAVING BANK AND LIVE OFF MY MONTHLY RETIREMENT MONEY....$1320 ..THATS ENOUGH FOR ONE MONTH IN THIS COUNTRY...MY RENT IS 5000 PESO HERE IN CEBU...A 2 BEDROOM PLACE...

The issue is that you will not start receiving UK State Pension until you are at least 67 years old. So you will have to live off your £35k for over 15 years unless you get a local income. It is possible in some countries to put funds on fixed term deposit and get some monthly or annual income from that souce. You would need to check out was interest rates are being paid in the Philippines to work out what income you will get. A good preparation would be to take a course to become a qualified English Language teacher. Then you will be able to probably find work. However, Philippines might not be the best place to consider relocating to for quite a few reasons.

I fancy staying in Metro Manila but what I've seen since last year property will be too expensive. Love the Ermita district. Mabini street I had great fun with the girls. Needless to say they not earn any money that night. Was told by taxi driver that Legazpi was being encouraged.

Not bloody retiring tomorrow.😀 But would like to clear off before 65yrs old. Before this dump drags me down!

Please see my posting above with some ideas.  You do need immigration visas to stay in foreign countries and you would need to look up this aspect. It would be best to move into an English teaching job as that means you will get a work permit and a salary. Others can comment on whether you can live in the Philippines as a tourist for years on end. Normally there is a maximum length of time you can stay and then have to leave and re-enter unless you arrange immigration.

If you wait until that stage you may qualify for a retirement visa.  However, with so many years until you plan to make the move, the rules are likely to change in every country, so its not possible to say whether you will legally be able to stay in any country at that stage.

accrington wrote:

Is it possible for single English woman to retire on a savings of £35.000?

If my math is right you will have a savings of 1.7 million pesos.

Provided you will have an income of over 50,000 pesos a month. The savings will just increase with time.

Now understand this is renting at a reasonable rate and avoiding playing big shot with a car and trying to purchase a Condo. These are things that get many in trouble.

I say this often, you are going to be in the Philippines. This is by and large one of the safest places to live. Once you arrive register at the local PNP (Philippines National Police) get an extend stay hotel or hostel. Talk to Pinoy school teachers,nurses, and office workers. Visit their homes and observe how the live. It should be the same as career professional live where you are from. Quality of life I'm talking not amenities. Their homes have nice furnishings and their lifestyle is not at all different from you. So be willing to live among them so you can enjoy the benefit of having financial freedom.

Then after you have been here a while at that point you should consider making large purchases such as a car or house or even a condo. Right now it wouldn't be advised.

I would suggest starting in a medium size city. Stay away from tourists spots and large cities like Manila unless you are employed or own a business.

Study the map. I'm in the biggest region yet this site doesn't have a forum for it. Go figure. There are islands in the south that have a very good economic climate.

If you don't know already how to drive a motorcycle do try and learn. Another option is the scooter. All automatic and great on gas. Either one will set you back 1k or better.

Tip number one...only buy new, whatever it is. Even then you my end up with a problem because they don't know what warranty is here...lol

You can inbox me for more information.

So if Anoyanoy(ha ha) Aquino is austed as they were discussing on CNN Philippines do you think it could get better?

You are talking about your life in the Philippines in 15 years time. Anything can happen in that time and there could have been 3 different presidents. So its impossible to predict the future. The only problem with such a long-term plan is that your £35k may not be worth the same as today (up or down in value in real terms) especially  if inflation takes over there. That may happen because ASEAN comes into force soon.

What about buying a property there before? Saw a lovely house in a condo in Legazpi for £11.000.

Gravitas wrote:

You are talking about your life in the Philippines in 15 years time. Anything can happen in that time and there could have been 3 different presidents. So its impossible to predict the future. The only problem with such a long-term plan is that your £35k may not be worth the same as today (up or down in value in real terms) especially  if inflation takes over there. That may happen because ASEAN comes into force soon.

ASEAN has been in force since 1967...Why would it now be the cause of inflation?

accrington wrote:

What about buying a property there before? Saw a lovely house in a condo in Legazpi for £11.000.

£11.000 = 720,000 pesos

Be very careful with what you see advertised here as the photos rarely resemble the reality.

Also, make sure you have the right Legazpi.  Legazpi City, Albay (400km to Manila) or the Legazpi area in Manila

One advert that I saw stated: " We have 18 properties for sale for: legaspi towers 300 manila, priced from PHP 30,000."  But looking into the advert we get more like: " 82sqm, 1 bedroom, newly renovated - PHP 3.5 million"
A 2 Bedroom place 120 SM in Legazpi, Manila was PHP10 million

It was Bicol region. Would not do anything silly. One property just needed glueing back together.

ASEAN Economic Community is due to come into force this year.

You can look up the details Vetretreat. Basically (a) a single market and production base, (b) a highly competitive economic region, (c) a region of equitable economic development, and (d) a region fully integrated into the global economy. Its going to be interesting times, as migration is also supposed to be opened up (cant see that actually happening).

With such lack of economic parity in the region its going to be an interesting experiment.

IMHO it is NOT realistic to retire anywhere in Asia with savings of only £35K. Living off of the Basic State Pension is 'doable' but remember - if you become an expat you will in all likelihood relinquish your rights to FREE NHS Care should you need to repatriate to the UK for health reasons. The UK is getting very hot on this subject and £35K would soon disappear in an emergency. You do not seem to have enough money to buy a Condo/House (via Company setup) so people talking about his here is stupid. You can rent without the capital outlay quite cheaply (circa 15,000 Peso pm - Upwards) dependent upon the area you wish to live. Any safe/expat orientated place in Metro Manila - Forget it, you CANNOT afford it. Rental prices are astronomical - and will remain that way for a long time. In the provinces/retirement islands of .PH yes you can rent for less, which would be within your budget. Upon retirement you would have to be crazy to actually WANT to live in Manila.
Your Basic State Pension will be enough to live modestly on most islands here (I know - I actually live here) and yes you can extend your visa and 'play the system' to live here longer term without issue. You will of course receive an extremely warm welcome in .PH and find it easy to get to know the locals.  If you wish to know more - send me a message. Best of luck.

I have £35k now and am saving £4k each year. Depending how many times I holiday there. Some people complaining about the exchange there. Go back home then. Places I go they have nothing and are delighted to see you. Can do without those sort.

Quite comfortably.  That is nearly 2 1/4 M pesos, I support a large family on a little under 2M pesos and have three daughters in one of the best schools in the Visayas.

Of course as long as you have a pension.
Contact me if you need any advice as very few western women are here.
Norman Allard

mtcretired wrote:

Quite comfortably.  That is nearly 2 1/4 M pesos, I support a large family on a little under 2M pesos and have three daughters in one of the best schools in the Visayas.

I am interested in how you do that with capital of just 2M pesos.

I spend nearly 1M pesos ($A28,000) each year, but having to sacrifice some comforts. And that is just for 2 of us, no kids etc.

I've always thought that 2M pesos "per year" would give a decent level of comfort, with having a car, decent house, etc.

But then, I suppose living a western lifestyle here does cost nearly the same as in the west.
It does depend on what level of comfort we are looking for.

Good money management I guess. We do not own our own home, but we do own a 2005 Isuzu SUV, 1999 Nissan and a 2013 150cc Yamaha Boxer motor cycle. And as I said our three daughters attend University of Cebu. Plus I help my wife's family some, especially Mama and Papa. And yes we eat out (me, wife, three daughters and son and his wife) at least 3-4 times a month. And I make ministry trips to other islands at my own expense.

mtcretired wrote:

Good money management I guess. We do not own our own home, but we do own a 2005 Isuzu SUV, 1999 Nissan and a 2013 150cc Yamaha Boxer motor cycle. And as I said our three daughters attend University of Cebu. Plus I help my wife's family some, especially Mama and Papa. And yes we eat out (me, wife, three daughters and son and his wife) at least 3-4 times a month. And I make ministry trips to other islands at my own expense.

I am really curious now, how much do you spend per month on average, to cover everything ?  And do you rent a place ?

I've met and spoken to others who spend way more than I do, and make me feel like I am always on a budget, but now I am beginning to wonder...

Monthly budget, rent 20K, electric 5K-6K, cable and net just over 4K food 15K-20K, School tuition just under 10K

Mai1984 wrote:

5000 usd a month in the Philippines will give you this lifestyle:

I wish I could retire on 5,000 usd a month

That's twice what I lived on while working

Accrington, I know Brighton, England very well, it's a really nice place to live and so I find it strange that you call it a dump, obviously your life is not happy at present and so I don't imagine you will be any happier in the Philippines. Peter.

BRAVO!   . It's all about attitude   

accrington wrote:

What about buying a property there before? Saw a lovely house in a condo in Legazpi for £11.000.

Don't buy property too soon. Make sure this is where you want to be. Condos(and there is millions of them) are easy to buy, almost impossible to resell.

Foreigners cannot buy land and house.

Keep your hard earned in your pocket, you can only buy land in a Philippina's name. Rental is very reasonable.
Fools rush in.

I have being considering reinterment in the Philippines now for 2 years.  And have explored many aspects involved with this.

One aspect I have come across is that you need to calculate is how many times of the year you wish to return to your country of origin.  This can be your biggest non rent cost, in can be in fact much higher than your rental depending how many times a year you wish to go to your country of origin.  The other is medical insurance, my thoughts are that I will self insure setting aside about $7,000 (AUD) a year, that if not used in one year will be used later in life.

Two of the biggest financial risks I see are: currency fluctuations (depending on where your money is drawn from) and the yearly increase in the cost of living in the Philippines.  Inflation can be up around 3.5%

I have seen many variable amounts of money that you need to retire in the Philippines posted on numerous sites, my thought is that after you decide if you want to live in the true province or a city, then there are three types of lifestyles that can be taking up depending on you.  They are; 1) a single male living the life of a single male here    2) living the life of a single person with out all the bars, and 3) some one wishing to raise a family here.  -  As stated consider your living location and life style first and then budget, budget and budget again, to understand how much it will cost.

Many kind hearted people will post how much it costs them to live here, however you do not know if they are living in a nice house, or in a Nipa.

I know for Australians that there are other considerations when doing a budget the big one is access to old age pension.  I will not cover these here.

pej1111 wrote:

Many kind hearted people will post how much it costs them to live here, however you do not know if they are living in a nice house, or in a Nipa.

That is so true.

pej1111 wrote:

I know for Australians that there are other considerations when doing a budget the big one is access to old age pension.  I will not cover these here.

The cost of buying pesos with A$ is scary, as it changes...

Cost to buy 100,000 pesos

A$2,173 May 2011
A$2,857 May 2015
A$3,125 Sept 2015

Hope it doesn't maintain that trend...

Well said Minchie.
Dinky

yes

For me, I tend to weigh out all cost compared to what it cost for the same at home, my monthly pension, for the time being equals a little more than 92000 pesos. At home, I could survive but only survive, here I live extremely well, eat well and still save 27000 a month, I could not do that at home. Or have the company I have here.

I have retired here and want to know if l can recieve my Australian  pension here

Where in cebu do you get a 2 bedroom place for 5000p?
Jim Docherty

davidseaman wrote:

I have retired here and want to know if l can recieve my Australian  pension here

Hi David,

Not sure about Australia but in UK you can and I think the laws are still fairly similar (at least the ones that make sense).

I have some friends who get it paid from the UK straight into their Philippines bank account.

Cheers

WintergolfinPI wrote:

Accrington, I know Brighton, England very well, it's a really nice place to live and so I find it strange that you call it a dump, obviously your life is not happy at present and so I don't imagine you will be any happier in the Philippines. Peter.

According to the Stray Cats there's a rumble in Brighton tonight, maybe that's what she is trying to avoid.