Building a House in the Philippines

Just remember you are in the Philippines and not much is transparent and clear. Suggest you get the designer / architect from the municipality on a private assignment cost approx 35K for a full set of drawings fully approved. Use a local contractor, let him recruit as he needs for the various jobs, concrete, flooring, tiling, plumbing, electrical etc etc etc. Be hands on everyday on the progress. Provide the lunch, merienda, drinks and water that is the norm not part of the price. Most of us comes from a full integrity compliance way of working, unfortunately here it's the opposite, and that is how the wheel turn in PH. We are only tiny fish in a very big pond, try to make waves, it will not be noticed, rather create attitudes that you do not want.

Agree aklokow, we did the same with the Municipal engineer and draftsman and including council fees was about P25K and we have not had an inspection nor problem as well the municipal rates never rose with the extra value we put in here.

Architects and builders wanted P100 to 150 for the plans and municipal fees on top and then wanted around 10 to 15% of the build cost on top.

Cheers, Steve.

When building a house in the Philippines, it helps to hire a local designer for the permits and a contractor familiar with the area. Keep an eye on progress daily and provide meals for the crew, as it's expected here.

We are building small private resort

Architect ( from local Municipality)

he charges 73K for full set of drawings

the permits will kost about 20-30K

we have our own team of workers

6:00 to 15:30

we provide snack at 9:30

Lunch at 11:30

snack at 15:30

they get end year bonus and 1x yearly outing with their family

we are fortunate to have this loyal and hard working team 👍

When I expanded my business to the Philippines 5-6 years back, coming from the US where I always worked with local contractors and designers, the change was stark. Everything you mentioned rings true, especially the need for hands-on management and looking after your construction crew. Also, the street numbering here can be a maze, which made choosing to buy address plaques crucial to ensure clients find us without getting lost.

    Maybe should note, we've no relationship with pinoyeplans.com (yet :-)They've just got things together. Also, wifey came across this elsewhere:Grider: "I built our house in the Philippines. Once we had bought the lot in the location that we wanted, I set about looking at several houses in the same subdivision, asking who had built the ones I liked etc. Having benchmarked several house builds, I then sat with their architect, engineer and builder to discuss my plans. At that point I returned to Dubai awaiting their feedback. The architect sent me a few basic designs, and once I had selected the one closest to my ideas, we set about fine tuning it. He sent me full drawings, which I modified as I needed. Finally, we had the design sorted. The engineer and builder were on board throughout. At that point they sent me a projected cost and timeframe for the build. Again this was fine-tuned. On my next visit here, we finalised everything and made a contract with a lawyer. Everything was detailed in the contract, including the size of rebar, roofing struts, electric cable, concrete mix ratios ......... every detail. The full set of drawings were also included in the contract, which was 36 pages, together with the agreed payment structure which was based upon relevant milestones in the construction being met and approved. Up until that point I had not paid a single person.The agreed contract price included everything, architect fees, blueprints, engineer fees, temporary power connection, City Engineers Office approval and upon completion, inspection by the City Engineers Dept to sign off on the build and issue of the Occupancy Permit.I visited 4 times during the build and never saw anything that caused me concern. The house was built within the agreed time, within the agreed project price, and to my complete satisfaction. Throughout the build I was sent over 400 photos and videos from the builder. A good friend plus our new neighbour, a fellow Brit also monitored progress for me.I am now building a second house, beach house this time in Samal, its about 80% complete and again, so far so good.It doesn't have to be a disaster, but I suspect that if I had decided to go the route of choosing a builder and paid a daily rate plus materials and used family to oversee, then things may have been a lot different. Also I did not go cheap. The builder has a solid reputation and his company have been involved in many large projects as well as building private residences.--        -@PalawOne

Thanks for the info

I am following this post and appreciate all of you and the comments, thank you, it is helping me.  I too am considering buying property here, and have recently seen a place that has both mountain view on the one side, and ocean on the other, it's on a sort of peak.  My concern however is if a home could be securely built on what looks like a lot of hardened mud over decades, and on top of that some of the land is steeply sloped.

If there is solid rock underneath I think I would consider this more seriously.  Does anyone hear in Philippines know of a good civil engineer, or someone experienced with building homes on top of hills.

@hongkongvancouver21

Welcome to the forum, hope you enjoy.

Little info about yourself/location but if you are not a Filipino citizen you can't buy land here, if your wife is Filipino then it can go in her name.

As for building on a hill top talk to the locals, Barangay and Municipal office, they will advise and possibly recommend an engineer to suit your needs. Look into typhoons and earthquakes in the area you are looking at.

Good luck.

Cheers, Steve.

If there is solid rock underneath I think I would consider this more seriously.  Does anyone hear in Philippines know of a good civil engineer, or someone experienced with building homes on top of hills.        -@hongkongvancouver21

Welcome hongkongvancouver21:

There are many companies in the Philippines that can help you build in the terrain you are describing. They test the ground to find the stable subsoil. Downtown Manila top soil is filled with silt, so they dig deep for foundation. They also use sheet piles because the water table is high.

I guess my message is 'yes' there are construction companies that can help you build in the terrain of your choosing. You may pay a pretty penny but expensive is relative. I don't think getting your own civil engineer yourself and self build is a good idea.

Also, if you see buildings around your lot that seemed to have been there forever, that will a clue for buildability in the area.

You would not need to find solid rock for a small building. You will need a stable soil base. Tall buildings are the ones that drive piles to the bedrock for foundation because of its weight.

P1 - Hope all is well.

Your original post in 2022 says you're thinking about building another house. Did you build it?

Jackson writes,
P1 - Hope all is well. Your original post in 2022 says you're thinking about building another house. Did you build it?  -@Jackson4

Hi Jackson,

Yes, we are nearing the end stages of our Palawan farmhouse now. Maybe 2-3 months?  We started preparing all of the hardwood timber we need from our property in January.

These photos were taken this morning ..

Cheers, Jackson

Looks fantastic P1, keep up the good work and don't let the frustrations get to you. Many of us have been there.

Cheers, Steve.

Nice location with trees & shrubs. ....and away from neighbors too. Looks good!

Thanks chaps

Here's the farmhouse site in January. The site was

levelled with spades, and with tamaraw and plough

With the wet season everything should be complete

with rice fields and an all green farm again this Xmas 

@jozica

Hi,

Your comments on how you ensured the specifics of your home build was very informative.  I have purchased a home to remodel, it's on a solid mountain, and I'm waiting for the engineers to complete their structural analysis.  I'm reworking it and adding a floor.  I am looking for a solid builder, however the search systems here are not too user friendly, so my search continues.

If you think that your builder may be interested, please share their contact info.

Thanks

Tim

Hi, Your comments on how you ensured the specifics of your home build was very informative. I have purchased a home to remodel, it's on a solid mountain, and I'm waiting for the engineers to complete their structural analysis. I'm reworking it and adding a floor. I am looking for a solid builder, however the search systems here are not too user friendly, so my search continues. If you think that your builder may be interested, please share their contact info. Thanks  Tim        -@tim00

,

Again quoting that which was posted above ..

"Finally, we had the design sorted. The engineer and builder were on board throughout. At that point they sent me a projected cost and timeframe for the build. Again this was fine-tuned. On my next visit, we finalised everything and made a contract with a lawyer"

Yes Tim, it's usually much better if your architect / engineer and your builder are well known to each other and have worked together before, and so you're all on the same page from the start. And even better, try to swing your local government engineering professionals on to your team also. You really need to communicate early and well with all of them for relatively trouble-free results. Spend time in the area. Ask for local, responsible, well respected citizens to help as local-fixers (a thousand peso each) and utilize them. Get your neighbours on-side early and so you enjoy pleasant vibes for life. For living happily in the Philippines, one major secret is being friendly with neighbours.

Happy trails Tim

@hongkongvancouver21 a fellow hongkonger to this forum? welcome! we are also looking for land to buy in the Philippines. We have a Filipino relative whom we will partner. Good luck to you, and us!

@pnwcyclist greetings - may I ask which province? I’m a retired Canadian architect and my wife is a Filipina/ Canadian nurse. We are looking to build a smallish house ( easy to build and easy to maintain) for a 6 month on/off reside. From your comments you seem to have your head screwed on correctly! ( a compliment btw).

we are not looking at a large parcel - just large enough for 60m2 house.

any suggestions for areas to look? I realize this is a loaded question but basically any areas that tickle your fancy so we can take a look. Not too far out of civilization but somewhat rural and safe.

cheers

@PalawOne

We are building as we speak a two storey building dual purpose house or restaurant, can share the details and cost if you are interested. I do now to bore the forum if the subject has been discussed in enough detail.

Cheers

Andre