Lease land- how and where to find options

TerryRSA wrote:

Hi everybody

If you want to lease land instead of buying, where to find information on possible land leases available.

Where?  What type? To be used for what?
At (south of Puerto Princesa) Palawan I have some contacts, who can be interested in solving it for you, if you can reach agreement about the conditions.
Perhaps in some other places too, but I havent asked these others if they can be interested.

Elsewhere than I have contacts:
If its a location where sellers have big problem to find buyer, I have a solution idea you can offer the seller.

To have in mind when making offers, most Filipinos think very short ahead     If they would get chance to chose, then many would chose geting half as much now instead of the double in a few years...

Thanks, Coach. Type: To build a house. Lease period 50 years. Area. Batangas or Tagaytay. Palawan is attractive but seems to be in the Hurricane belt, I stand to be corrected. :-)

Terry, the wife/GF's family and relatives would be a good source as they are boots on the ground.   Just do your own due diligence on prospects they show you. 

Lamudi website is also another option.

TerryRSA wrote:

Thanks, Coach. Type: To build a house. Lease period 50 years. Area. Batangas or Tagaytay. Palawan is attractive but seems to be in the Hurricane belt, I stand to be corrected. :-)

Typhons are verey SELDOM in Palawan.  I believe this recent was only the forth since 1964.
The Typhon Belt go from  Samar to Manila have more than that per year          Tagaytay/Batangas is close to Manila so many more typhons there too.

Btw a foreigner with wife from Batangas, moved from Batangas to Palawan because they found the violent risk in Batangas to high.  (I dont know which part of Batangas they moved from.)

There is a titled lot for sale in Quezon, Palawan* close to where we are, but this for sale is at highway coming from Narra.  Around 4 km to town so close but not so closed so get disturbed.
Only 300k PESOS per hectare, but I dont know how big it is yet.   ((PERHAPS we/other can be interested in  part of it if its biger than you want.)) Perhaps it can become a good investment to gain of too from the rest of the lot. We dont know yet, because we got to know of it recently and havent checked it yet.  If lucky its the lot with a small hill there to get an extra nice view from.

(*  Its in/close to Pinaglabanan, which become a funny name if translate to Swedish = Tortoure-Happy-Banana   

Gardo Fuentes wrote:

Terry, the wife/GF's family and relatives would be a good source as they are boots on the ground.   Just do your own due diligence on prospects they show you.

Well. Some foreigners have been lucky with wife's family, but for many it has been very bad,
so I would probably settle ELSEWHERE than where wife's family is...

Gardo Fuentes wrote:

Lamudi website is also another option.

Almost never. Almost all prices at Lamudi and Carousel are much higher than what can be found elsewhere, which have made I have even stoped looking at these two, but I check LOCAL Facebook groups with adds with real estates.

But if having someone local to ask, then they can find many which arent in adds just by telling they have buyer, then tsismis  (=gossip) can solve the rest   

E g we asked ONE and soon we got contacted by around 20, who want to sell, just in that and neighbour baranggay.
((We have bought one of them and will probably buy one more of them if they get documents in order DENR has messed up big about it even  given it a lot number which was allready occupied and when they "corrected" it, then they did other mess   
Later we got sell offers from some more, which we are checking now for other investors,
(plus we want one more for ourself if DENR dont solve the mess they did good enough.)

>Terry     or others 
If anyone want a HUGE* BEACH lot* I got to know of one in Quezon, Palawan when we looked for other type of lots by these are at oceanside of them we checked. This beach lot cost only 500k per hectare.  No road but my business partner have contacts so you can probably get a by baranggay approved dirt road done very cheap.  (Or a gravel/concrete road but such cost much more by needing much material.)

By its huge, if several are interested, you can split it       and split costs for road and electric line too.

*They are two beach lots beside each other with similar wide beach, but one of them is around double as big by it start much closer to the highway.  By we were interested in the other land type there we didnt ask sizes, but by eye messure I guess around 35 and 20 hectares.  I dont know if the beaches are any nice though by we didnt check the beach lots, but at satelite I can see there are NOT wide sand beach. But if its a narrow sand beach thats kind of BETTER by then it add chance  you get it for yourself    
(Shore lines 30 meters above highest tide belong to the government so they are public buy there are much better beaches for the public to reach elsewhere

Hi Terry
I leased a lot of residential land for 25 years in Paranaque, Metro Manila, about 75m2. 10 minutes from the Airport.   I paid 1.2 million pesos for land and I built 2 storey house that cost me additional 3.8 million pesos..similar houses in the area are sold for 8 million PHP. My total cost for lot and house was about 5 million PHP..Good luck for your search.

Thanks, Terry - great information- appreciate the effort. Do you have a 25 year right of renewal?

Yes, I have. I have also the building permit , occupancy permit, water and electricity , building tax are all under my name.  I have the right to renew for a further 25 years but I believe this may not work and debatable if tested by court, because it would be seen against the constitution of the country..However,  25 years is good enough for me.  Regards, Dodi

dodi1000 wrote:

Yes, I have. I have also the building permit , occupancy permit, water and electricity , building tax are all under my name.  I have the right to renew for a further 25 years but I believe this may not work and debatable if tested by court, because it would be seen against the constitution of the country..However,  25 years is good enough for me.  Regards, Dodi

Why would 25 + 25 be against the constitution??

Thats common.
Big companies have long time leases of Agricultural land but I dont know if any have extended.

The parlament discussed (close before covid) if they would skip the max time, but I havent heared of any result of that discussion.

Hi, my understanding after seeing a good Attorney and read court cases is that for residential lots the lease is 25 years.  Even if the lease agreement stated 50 years there were court cases endorsed that the initial lease would be limited for 25 years for residential lots.  Any further extension would not be automatic, would be subject to a new lease agreement and mutual negotiation and concurce by both parties.  Regards,  Dodi

If you are looking for such an arrangement, I would recommend Subic Bay. They have somewhat liberal lease laws (leftover from the yanks)

Why would you risk capital in the Philippines, when you can rent? Tying yourself down to a fixed address, in the Philippines, subject to biased law, seems risky to me.

If owning property is your game, my suggestion is to have a secure investment in a 1st world country and live off the rental returns. If you are rich, like to live dangerously, purchase property in the Philippines...

If only all budding dewy-eyed expats seeking to relocate to these islands were to take your sage advice Daytripper life would be so much easier.

Some people just don't listen..

Daytripper wrote:

If you are looking for such an arrangement, I would recommend Subic Bay. They have somewhat liberal lease laws (leftover from the yanks)

Why would you risk capital in the Philippines, when you can rent? Tying yourself down to a fixed address, in the Philippines, subject to biased law, seems risky to me.

If owning property is your game, my suggestion is to have a secure investment in a 1st world country and live off the rental returns. If you are rich, like to live dangerously, purchase property in the Philippines...

Well. Hard to rent if as I wanting to live far from  neighbours in other than hutrs     because there are (almost) no nice houses far from neighbours offered.
One of the few I have seen  - but for sale not rent - had no close HUMAN neighbours but a huge piggery just beside!!!         belonging to same property.   How stupid can people be...

That Nigerian Prince never emailed me back...

@TerryRSA  Hi Terry, I have a big chunk of land available for lease or sale in the Philippines. My dad passed away and left multiple properties for us and I am currently away and residing in Canada. Were looking into leasing the property or selling it too.

Interested where is the property

its in the Luzon area, Rosario La union along the highway. Im in Canada right now so please message me on whats app at ***

@LadySkinner1 ***

I'm interested also nikki, send me a private msg here and I will look at the details. Already in La Union not far from Rosario.

Cheers, Steve.

I have sent you a private message, nikkijadelagpey.

Yes and you ask for my email and cell number? You think I'm stupid?

@bigpearl Sorry im not asking for ur information. I was giving you my information. And i dont think youre stupid. Maybe just a little rude mate?

@nikkijadelagpey I have a question for the forum. Is there any such thing as in other developed countries as fair market housing value? I have been here in the Philippines for over a year. I have looked at many houses and property every time I see a house or property that I am interested in they always give me a ridiculous price for it without any paperwork saying the property is worth even a quarter of what they are asking. I then go and look at the tax value and it’s even less than a quarter of what the asking price is. It seems they think its worth whatever they say. Now is it the same for the whole country or is it only in the pangasinan area?  Can anyone help me with this problem, I would be great fully Appreciative for an answer to this conundrum

Is there anything that vaguely resembles a fair market housing value in the Philippines anywhere or is it as I have been seeing whatever they think it’s worth???!!

Is there anything that vaguely resembles a fair market housing value in the Philippines anywhere or is it as I have been seeing whatever they think it’s worth???!!
-@rlmcar55

Where is enzyme Bob when ya need him. He seems like a well informed expat on many concerns

Is there anything that vaguely resembles a fair market housing value in the Philippines anywhere or is it as I have been seeing whatever they think it’s worth???!!
-@rlmcar55

Market value refers to the actual value of your property when placed at sale on the open market. It's determined by buyers and defined as the amount they are willing to pay for purchasing the home.

And fools rush in where angles fear to tread, Do your research and do it well. All countries are the same.

Cheers, Steve.

Is there anything that vaguely resembles a fair market housing value in the Philippines anywhere or is it as I have been seeing whatever they think it’s worth???!!
-@rlmcar55
Market value refers to the actual value of your property when placed at sale on the open market. It's determined by buyers and defined as the amount they are willing to pay for purchasing the home.
-@Jackson4

Well yes in a perfect fungible market place like the USA or the UK. Here the secondary market is opaque and nowhere as near as transparent compared to the west. This is especially true of houses as opposed to condos. In a big condo development there will be a high churn rate and many units will be ubiquitous hence easier to price.

rimcar55 said . . . Is there anything that vaguely resembles a fair market housing value in the Philippines anywhere or is it as I have been seeing whatever they think it’s worth???!!

Where is enzyme Bob when ya need him. He seems like a well informed expat on many concerns

*****************************

I've been digesting this thread. . . .

Unfortunately I don't know a thing about real estate in the Philippines or anywhere else. I was fortunate to have married a Filipina in the Manila area who owned the house we live in, it was her parents house.

I've been learning on this forum about real estate and thankful I don't have go through what many of you are experiencing.

One thing I learned is don't invest in real estate of someone you met online unless you can afford to lose your money, life savings and self esteem.

Great and honest answer Bob.

A question to the OP if I may?

Your bio shows you as coming from the US so are you buying the property in a Filipinos name?

As for the value of property it's worth what one pays for it and not what the seller necessarily wants, as for tax values yes even in Australia 25 to 30% of the real market value, same here in PH.

Like you rlmcar55 we looked for over 3 years and while we looked and procrastinated the prices went up,,,, as they do. Best to study the market long and hard, google and FB market place works.

Good luck and don't get disheartened,

Cheers, Steve.

@rlmcar55 Hey, thats a good question. While real estate property in Philippines is hot especially in the city centers, either you are buying from an individual or from a real estate corporation you have to always be aware of the zonal value of the property. Usually, buyers and seller negotiate until they meet a deal. However, if the seller does not show you the primary papers or documents such as, the original land title and the real estate tax declaration along with his or the owners valid government I.D. then I'd call that a red flag. As a buyer, you should always be careful as some people sells a property owned by a family member without the family member knowing. This will cause you problems in the future however if papers and documents were all legally signed you should be okay, but if papers were butchered or faked then youre in trouble. So theres that, hence there is a fair market value and you just need to negotiate. My dad ran his real estate business before he passed away so I learned from him and observed a lot of things. Right now, the properties I'm selling were his properties he left behind and its too much for us to handle. They're all titled though so if you need one. Let me know.

Oh and by the way, you can get a properties zonal value from either a bank or go to https://www.bir.gov.ph/index.php/zonal-values.html (which will then give you a list of zonal values based on location, and prompt you to download the file for it) or call/visit your nearest BIR office to get the information.

Hope this helped?

@rlmcar55 Sorry, this thread doesnt allow me to put a link but check the internet under BIR. They will give you a zonal value for a property according to its location.

I also have 1,000sqm raw land in Quezon province.

I'm looking for leasing the property.

@rlmcar55

While there is no set valuation standards, especially when dealing with a real estate agent/broker, there are a few things that make the value higher, or lower, and these are generally similar everywhere.

1)  Ocean front is expensive, as expected.

2)  Within the cities/towns/villages, it is more expensive. 

3)  Road frontages on well-traveled highways, and such, have commercial value, and will be more expensive.

4)  Distance from towns/cities should relate to the cost. For instance: 5 km from city should be less expensive than 1 km from city, and 10 km away, even less.

5)  Water, electricity and mobile signal availability affect value.

6)  Sloped land is less useful, and thus has less value than flat usable land, and the steeper it is, the lower still the value. 

7)  Overlooking, or land with a great view, is considered more valuable (Please also consider the possibility of land slide from storm water and earthquake, and also possible high exposure to typhoon risks).

8)  Sub-divided land with existing roadways, water lines, sewer, electric and/or available fiber internet, is more valuable because the buyer won't need to do those things (but, you don't know who your neighbors might be later.)

9)  Gated communities are surely more expensive, but also have restrictions to consider.

10)  Title in hand, with government issued picture ID, is worth more than "title available", and "rights only" and "tax declaration/tax dec" properties often have zero value.

11)  Be wary of any house/land that was awarded by the government for low-income purposes, because it is illegal to transfer such "rights", by sale, rent or lease.

12)  If money is tight, or expected to be later, don't buy a condo. When you tire of it, you lose your ass on the sale, if you can sell it at all.

13)  River front or creek front property is usually more expensive, but has higher risk of flooding and loss of property improvements.

There are many delusional people, influenced by other non-similar sale prices, or even worse, mis-led by greedy real estate agents. FB marketplace is usually NOT the best place to look, because people who don't know the value of the land, and want to sell, will usually assume their land is as valuable as the outrageously priced properties "per sq meter", for completely different property types.

If at all possible, deal with attorneys who have dual citizenship with the US and Philippines, or similarly with your own home country. Many of the attorneys in the Philippines are as crooked as thieves.

@TerryRSA I have a 560 square meters lot in an exclusive subdivision in Sto. Tomas batangas. Its near a mall, hospital, slex exit and the town proper. reach out if you still haven't found a place to lease.

@TerryRSA Hi! I have a 560 square meters bare lot in an exclusive subdivision in santo tomas batangas which is around 45 mins from manila. the location of the property is near a mall, hospital, town proper and a few minutes from the SLEX exit. Reach out if you haven't found a place. cheers!

@Enzyte Bob

If you are the type of person who enjoys going to court to defend your property after purchasing, and by experience it really is fun defending against fzmily members with their adverse claims, and it only costs maybe $2k for a good attorney (they will offer to settle the claim for $3k which is really their objective), this is the place for you. I wish it didn't have to happen but there is no title insurance here and you buy at your own risk; relatives of the seller will come out if the woodwork once a foreigner's spouse has purchased the land. Peoplr here are allowed to make trivial claims agaibst your purchase but your land is worthless with their adverse claims attached to the deed. Still, I took it as a challenge, taking it up at the barangay and Regional Trial Court, suing thd register of deeds to remove the meritless adverse clains on the deed and you win because you are right. The only want to settle and hope you want to just clear the deed with no problems. Maybe that is the best way if you are living back home but we moved here, sued, had fun fighting them and won. It is not like any real estate process you havr experienced in the western world. Of course, never soend on land more than you can afford to lose.

@danfinn

Interesting points Danfinn and my hat off to you for standing your ground. Just when you thought you had heard it all. It seems as though it's a permanent 'open season' on any foreigner or expat in the Philippines. Being ripped off on a minor purchase you can live with but any major capital investment even if you go through a 'trusted' lawyer can be a potential minefield. To quote Donald Rumsfeld ' there are knowns, unknowns & known unknowns' lol.

My neighbour here in the UK owns a property in Dauin and will be flying out for the first time in 7 years this  July. He wants to offload the property but is finding it difficult to find a buyer. The situation is compounded by the fact that the black sheep in his Filipina wifes  family has been living there for that time and the place is a tip. It's a dichotomy as since his wifes mother passed away they really need someone to be there full time to look after the property. I came up with a brilliant solution. The plan is to allow the Russian vlogger Alex Kosh (a charming gent who I have met) to stay there gratis with his Filipina wife and newly born son. A lovely family guy who will look after the place and not take it for granted like his brother (womanising, cockfighting, piss artist) in law.