Moving /renting a house in the Philippines - Location & Lease (P.1)

Moving house is a headache - no matter what country your in! But when your an Expat it can be twice the fun!
Here is part 1 to helping you move house in the Philippines:

1. Location, Location.
If the price is too good to be true, ITS A FLOOD AREA or by a shanty town.
Try these sites:www.sulit.com.ph, www.olx.com.ph, www.locanto.com.ph, www.ayosdito.com.ph,

Some known flood areas: Cainta,(some areas of Pasig) Rizal, Old Manila (again Im sure others can add to this)

You have the top listed "foreigner" areas:
The Fort, Rockwell, Makati, Ortigas, Taguig etc.. but these places can also be quite overly expensive.
Some decent places you can also try (but be selective neighbourhood by neighbourhood) is:

Pasig
San Juan
Paranque


Your best bet if going for condo living is to look for the ever-popular villages springing up everywhere now, with several guards on patrol and nice ammenties. (DMCI I can recommend)
Im sure there are many who have other areas to add??

Average price ranges you should expect (varies on area):

Studio, furnished - 10,000 php monthly.
1 bed, unfurnished - 10,000 - 13,000 php
2 bed unfurnished - 13,000 - 16,000 php

If it costs more than that you are being ripped off.


Once you have established location, now comes:

NEGOTIATING LEASE TERMS:

Rental agreements here in the Philippines are very different from Australia. When living in a condo, your electricity bill, cable, water bill will usually all be on the condo Owner's name, not yours. Most places will also charge about 2,500 to 3,300php per month for parking if you have a car.
A legit agreement should be signed and stamped by a Justice of Peace. They "witness" your signature even though the owner just takes the lease to them after you have signed it.That is normal practise here - however, dont move in unless you have that!

Don't be shy to negotiate! There are hundreds and hundreds of empty places in Manila - owners are deseperate to rent out, espically to Expats. You can expect the Owner to cover the association dues, but all other costs are yours. Ive managed free parking and cable before, so try your luck!
Any extra requests you have will usually be accomodated, so ask at this point - if you want airconditioning, water heater etc.
Most will try to lock you in for a year, but Ive found they usually end up taking what they can get.

Just take your time, really check out the surrounding neighbourhood. You want to be sure your time spent there is comfortable. Some areas are more prone to beggar children or has surrounding shanty towns. Your best bet is to always live somewhere that has one or more guards.
That said, check their rules at the condo (guest visiting, pool hours etc) - many times it can be difficult to even be able to have a guest come over!
Manila can be a great place to live, just keep your wits about you