# Palawan Builders



## FilAmNight (Feb 23, 2021)

Hello fellow expat community. Me and my wife are at the point to where we are starting to look at property, specifically in Palawan. She is dual citizen and can buy land. Even though we are years away from retirement, we are going to purchase our retirement land now. We are doing our research and I wanted to ask the community if anyone has any information for a list of reliable, good and honest (or as close to) a home builder/contractor in Palawan or has personally had a good experience with one?


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

You need to look around at previous work, 99% of builders in the Philippines are cowboy builders at best. You need to be there on site the whole time they are working. The vast majority of filipinos wouldn't know good workmanship if it bit them on the rear so any recommendations will just be their mate down the road.


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## Lunkan (Aug 28, 2020)

In which part of Palawan? 
(I have ordered a simple house for the workers, but that's not built yet. I know some reliable people but they are used to build just simple and their good references are from other work than building, and I guess you want a harder to build house than a hut  But I know a foreigner, who perhaps know by he is involved in organicing of different projects at Palawan, but I believe he is in quarantaine now by a local "suprise" change of rules when he was in "wrong" place, I haven't heared from him in a week and a planned meeting between him and my business partner got postponed.)


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## FilAmNight (Feb 23, 2021)

@Gary D - that's what I was afraid of. I wouldn't let anyone build without us being on site, I've read on various places that they'll try to hit you with "wrong materials that what was ordered or they need overtime" to complete a project. Looks like I'll just have to make my own plans and build myself with some hired help maybe.

@Lunkan - we haven't settled on a location yet but I want to be within a 2 hours drive from Puerto Princesa and would like at least 5 hectares of land.


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## Lunkan (Aug 28, 2020)

FilAmNight said:


> @Lunkan - we haven't settled on a location yet but I want to be within a 2 hours drive from Puerto Princesa and would like at least 5 hectares of land.


 If you don't know
/South cost less, but you would need to look up so not becoming downstreams a mine. Some rivers have got serious polluted from mines.
/Except it seem Aborlan have decided to not have any mines anymore (?)
/North cost more, some parts a lot much more, going for tourism instead of mines. 

*LOOK UP*! When paying taxes and fees at the transfer oof real estate, then it's NOT counted at the PAID price if the "zonal value" is higher than the paid price. In some places as e g Taytay the "zonal valuing" is ridicilous at some parts *10 times* higher than owmers have *probem* to sell at!!! While in the south parts I checked the valuing is relevant.


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## Zep (Jun 8, 2017)

Yeah best if you do not build until you come here to stay. Likewise do not buy land based on pictures, you need to see for yourself and be here.


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## fmartin_gila (May 15, 2011)

Search for 'Good Building and Design in the Philippines'. put out by International Strategy for Disaster Reduction. I have it downloaded on my computer. Gives good building info since there really seems to be no building codes here(or nobody complies if they do exist).

You might also search for Bob Hammerslag's blog. He built a house in Tigbaouan about 8 or 10 years ago and documented his experience quite well.

Fred


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## FilAmNight (Feb 23, 2021)

@Zep - I don't ever plan on purchasing or doing anything without either myself actively being there or my wife. That I know for sure!

@fmartin_gila - Thank you for Bob's blog information. I'll definitely be looking into his postings to get better information.


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## cvgtpc1 (Jul 28, 2012)

My Philippine Life – A foreigner shares his Philippine experiences



Another house build blog I refer to.


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

FilAmNight said:


> Hello fellow expat community. Me and my wife are at the point to where we are starting to look at property, specifically in Palawan. She is dual citizen and can buy land. Even though we are years away from retirement, we are going to purchase our retirement land now. We are doing our research and I wanted to ask the community if anyone has any information for a list of reliable, good and honest (or as close to) a home builder/contractor in Palawan or has personally had a good experience with one?


Hello there..... having been to the Philippines a number I need to agree with my fellow members commenting on this....craftsmanship is somewhat questionable. That said, we are in the same position, just now waiting for the end of lockdowns before we also move to palawan....what we will do is ship a container home, as segments, to the Philippines. These are well built, insulated and fitted out to the owner's specs.... besides NOT being affected by mold (always a problem in that climate) are insect/critter proof and will NOT be eaten by termites....🤭....we will use a home built from shipping containers, just some food for thought.....all the best


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## Maxx62 (Dec 31, 2013)

FilAmNight said:


> Hello fellow expat community. Me and my wife are at the point to where we are starting to look at property, specifically in Palawan. She is dual citizen and can buy land. Even though we are years away from retirement, we are going to purchase our retirement land now. We are doing our research and I wanted to ask the community if anyone has any information for a list of reliable, good and honest (or as close to) a home builder/contractor in Palawan or has personally had a good experience with one?


I don't live in Palawan, but I just wanted to share some very general information about building a home over here.

There are good quality builders over here, but, as you can imagine, the construction industry here is a little bit different from what you'd see elsewhere. 

A few years ago my sister-in-law (dual citizen) built her home over here, and in her case she was able to hook up with a pretty good construction outfit by going through her architect. Her home isn't a mansion, I think that it would be equivalent to a three bedroom 1,500 square foot home back in the states, and it is probably one of the closest to western construction standards I've seen over here. On the downside, I think that the expense of building her home was in the neighborhood of $65,000 - $70,000 (USD) when you convert the Pesos, and the stress associated with dealing with the various issues which kept cropping up was so great that it caused her husband to have a heart attack, which eventually killed him. So dealing with construction people over here is completely different from dealing with them back home. Also, she did have to have some remedial work done over the years, (mainly electrical stuff) but she doesn't have any cracks in her walls, and her floors are all level.

No in my case, here is a complete rundown on some of the mistakes my wife and I made while building our house in 2012.

We relied upon my wife's relatives to find a construction crew for us.

The foreman hired by my wife's other sister didn't know how to read an architect's drawing. 

Too many workers were hired, the foreman didn't know how to supervise or keep track of hours.

The foreman didn't know how to order supplies in advance, so sometimes he would come to us and say he was out of cement, and then the crew would sit around being paid while we waited for another truckload to be delivered. 

A lot of our construction people were shabu (Breaking Bad crystal meth) addicts, and as a result, they were not able to work without their fix. Right now there is a bit of a crackdown going on in regards to shabu addicts, so if you're a foreigner, you probably don't want to be associated with such people, and probably best to keep them at arm's length. 

Theft was a huge huge problem during the construction of our home, and I would estimate that probably 15% - 20% of the materials purchased to build our home were stolen by our construction workers. 

Ready mix concrete isn't available over here, so when a house, a sidewalk, or a wall needs to be built, the locals mix their own concrete by mixing cement, sand, and gravel. There are at least two problems with this. Number one, most of the locals I've dealt with don't know or care about properly mixing concrete, and they almost always do not use the right proportions of cement, sand, and gravel to make your concrete, and they typically use way too much water, which causes cracks when drying. Also, the sand and gravel we ordered was contaminated with soil, which is a typical problem over here. The problem with soil is that it will dissolve and will flow out of the concrete when it gets wet in the rain. This will cause whatever has been built out of the soil contaminated concrete to literally melt and dissolve within a few short years. 

Here is what I should have done:

I should not have relied upon some dingbat housewife to find us a good construction crew. There was an old carpenter who lives in our barangay, but my mother-in-law didn't want us to use that guy because she was worried that her own daughter would be offended, if we didn't go with the people she recommended to us. So family politics caused us to make a poor decision which cost us a lot of money. 

When you first meet the foreman, make it clear to him that you are still in the planning stages, and that you haven't actually made a decision on when you're going to start building. In our case, we had a casual conversation with the foreman recommended by the second sister-in-law, and somehow a miscommunication occurred in which he thought that we had agreed to hire him, and he showed up the following Monday morning with his crew, even though as that time we didn't even have our blue prints ready. 

If possible, find a good carpenter, and have him make you a good set of molds to make your own concrete hollow blocks. Most of the hollow blocks for sell over here are complete garbage, and in some cases, about fifty percent of the hollow blocks we received from supplier would fall apart in our hands when we tried to pick them up. Also, this gets back to making sure that you have someone who really knows how to mix concrete. 

All in all, I think that our construction cost was just below $40,000 USD, and in the last few years I've spent a lot of money fixing mistakes here and there. But as our house sits today, I'm pretty much happy with it. Also, if you go with a simpler design, it will keep remedial repair costs down in the future.


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

Maxx62 said:


> I don't live in Palawan, but I just wanted to share some very general information about building a home over here.
> 
> There are good quality builders over here, but, as you can imagine, the construction industry here is a little bit different from what you'd see elsewhere.
> 
> ...


Yes....this is a newly build concrete block wall, we had done on Bohol.....NOT confidence inspiring...🤭🤭🤭


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## Maxx62 (Dec 31, 2013)

Bmmnz said:


> Yes....this is a newly build concrete block wall, we had done on Bohol.....NOT confidence inspiring...🤭🤭🤭


That's not actually too bad, compared to some other stuff I've seen around here. Just so long as they do a good job on making the upright support columns, then you should probably be okay. I'm guessing that someone is going to come along later and put a one inch layer of finishing cement on it?


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Maxx62 said:


> I don't live in Palawan, but I just wanted to share some very general information about building a home over here.
> 
> There are good quality builders over here, but, as you can imagine, the construction industry here is a little bit different from what you'd see elsewhere.
> 
> ...


Hi Maxx, A great post telling us of your experiences, lots to learn and my fears of employing family members for our renovations and extensions, "the big picture and ramifications" I have tried to hammer the problems home to my partner for a long time, don't think he believed me until he read yours and some other posts on problems and fall out employing family. Well done getting your home built through trials and tribulations.

Cheers, Steve.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Bmmnz said:


> Yes....this is a newly build concrete block wall, we had done on Bohol.....NOT confidence inspiring...🤭🤭🤭


Welcome to the forum Bmmmz, enjoy.
Aside from the shoddy masonry work (vomit) the plumbing is well and truly up the Khyber Pass and the installers must be still in Kindy. 6 or 12 months and the toilet, tiles and slab will be jackhammered out to remedy the faulty plumbing, blockages just to save 2 pvc fittings and a half decent job. What for less than 200 pesos creating a major disaster. Onsite every day to coach the inexperienced along and to watch the more experienced, slap.

I'm still learning here and I'm a tradie from Oz.

Stay safe.

Cheers, Steve.


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

bigpearl said:


> Welcome to the forum Bmmmz, enjoy.
> Aside from the shoddy masonry work (vomit) the plumbing is well and truly up the Khyber Pass and the installers must be still in Kindy. 6 or 12 months and the toilet, tiles and slab will be jackhammered out to remedy the faulty plumbing, blockages just to save 2 pvc fittings and a half decent job. What for less than 200 pesos creating a major disaster. Onsite every day to coach the inexperienced along and to watch the more experienced, slap.
> 
> I'm still learning here and I'm a tradie from Oz.
> ...


Yes... totally agree with you....and they definitely also had NO intention to fill the gap around the pipe.... imagine the late night visitors....haha.....we will be moving to palawan this year and my house will absolutely be a container home. Can't imagine anything better suited to the Philippines....


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## FilAmNight (Feb 23, 2021)

I really do appreciate everyone sharing their experiences and words of wisdom. I kind of knew it's going to be an uphill battle with building a house there. I do like the container home idea and will have to look into that. Does anyone have any input to ICF homes (Homes built like lego's and then poured concrete in the form known as Fox Blocks, I was looking at this and was considering shipping the materials there and building myself. There are companies that will give you 100% complete blueprints that have everything (IE electrical, plumbing,......I plan on going with solar and wind for electricity). I'm doing tons of research on all of these

Again thank you. I am soaking up all the information you guys throw at me.


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

FilAmNight said:


> I really do appreciate everyone sharing their experiences and words of wisdom. I kind of knew it's going to be an uphill battle with building a house there. I do like the container home idea and will have to look into that. Does anyone have any input to ICF homes (Homes built like lego's and then poured concrete in the form known as Fox Blocks, I was looking at this and was considering shipping the materials there and building myself. There are companies that will give you 100% complete blueprints that have everything (IE electrical, plumbing,......I plan on going with solar and wind for electricity). I'm doing tons of research on all of these
> 
> Again thank you. I am soaking up all the information you guys throw at me.


Check these out......can be ANY size.... earthquake proof, hurricane proof, insect proof.....👍👍👍


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

Bmmnz said:


> Check these out......can be ANY size.... earthquake proof, hurricane proof, insect proof.....👍👍👍


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

Bmmnz said:


> View attachment 99171


Very nice looking unit. The first thing I noticed was that it's not in a tropical setting. I don't know why but it reminded me of an old war film where one of the POW was locked in a hole in the ground with a tin roof.


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

Gary D said:


> Very nice looking unit. The first thing I noticed was that it's not in a tropical setting. I don't know why but it reminded me of an old war film where one of the POW was locked in a hole in the ground with a tin roof.


This company has clients from, I believe, 11 different countries....from Canada to the Caribbean and all parts of South East Asia....so not sure WHERE this particular one is located. Still, with up to 5 inches of spray foam insulation, as well as being typhoon, earthquake and insect proof, I think they compare VERY favourably with whatever else is used as housing....😁....they are also, of course, relocatable...which adds a new dimension to the term " moving house"...haha


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

Are they available in the Philippines as if not the import duty could be truly eye watering.


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

Gary D said:


> Are they available in the Philippines as if not the import duty could be truly eye watering.


You might be right there....I have been trying to find out how much the import tax and related fees might be, but nobody really seems to know....have emailed several custom brokers, but nobody has even bothered to reply..... probably in the "too hard" basket....😁


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Container homes are very popular in Australia with many great designs, I agree with Gary though, import, duty and tax costs will be prohibitive. Try these local companies in PH. Google also.






Patented Luxury Container House | Smarthouse


Patented Luxury Container House




tinyurl.com













Container Living PH


We upcycle freight shipping containers and use them as the primary building material for homes,... Paseo de Roxas, 1226 Makati, Philippines




www.facebook.com





Cheers, Steve.


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## Maxx62 (Dec 31, 2013)

Bmmnz said:


> Check these out......can be ANY size.... earthquake proof, hurricane proof, insect proof.....👍👍👍


I could see how a structure like that could be earthquake proof, but hurricane or typhoon proof? I suppose if you anchored it down securely, then it would have a good chance of survival, but after experiencing Haiyan a few years back, I'm not sure that anything can be truly typhoon proof. At the very least I'd say that you'd want to build a foundation about four or five feet high to put that on, to deal with flooding, and maybe put an A-frame type roof so that the sound of the rain doesn't drive you crackers, then maybe it would be alright. But I wonder how it will hold up the salty air and humidity? I've seen some locals living in old shipping containers staked three or four high in the port area. I think that some of those shipping containers have been there for twenty years, so maybe they can hold up the comment here.


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## Maxx62 (Dec 31, 2013)

Maxx62 said:


> I could see how a structure like that could be earthquake proof, but hurricane or typhoon proof? I suppose if you anchored it down securely, then it would have a good chance of survival, but after experiencing Haiyan a few years back, I'm not sure that anything can be truly typhoon proof. At the very least I'd say that you'd want to build a foundation about four or five feet high to put that on, to deal with flooding, and maybe put an A-frame type roof so that the sound of the rain doesn't drive you crackers, then maybe it would be alright. But I wonder how it will hold up the salty air and humidity? I've seen some locals living in old shipping containers staked three or four high in the port area. I think that some of those shipping containers have been there for twenty years, so maybe they can hold up the comment here.


I meant to say hold up to the climate here.


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## Maxx62 (Dec 31, 2013)

bigpearl said:


> Hi Maxx, A great post telling us of your experiences, lots to learn and my fears of employing family members for our renovations and extensions, "the big picture and ramifications" I have tried to hammer the problems home to my partner for a long time, don't think he believed me until he read yours and some other posts on problems and fall out employing family. Well done getting your home built through trials and tribulations.
> 
> Cheers, Steve.


Well, I think that I'll write a book titled Stupid Mistakes I Made While Building My Home in the Philippines. If can help others avoid making some of the costly mistakes I made before I knew better.


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

Bmmnz said:


> You might be right there....I have been trying to find out how much the import tax and related fees might be, but nobody really seems to know....have emailed several custom brokers, but nobody has even bothered to reply..... probably in the "too hard" basket....😁


When they don't know or can't show you in writing the cost, that means you wouldn't want to do this would be my reply and I don't think I'd even want to ship anything other than a Balikbyan Box to the Philippines but I have heard from Expats on our forum that they were able to send ship their household goods at an extreme cost that I'm not sure was worth it, don't ship chain saws or guns you'll end up with some major problems.

I would have zero trust in custom brokers "Customs" also, in fact I wouldn't trust anyone here, so if you've spent time in the Philippines you know that you would want to avoid any Government agency unless absolutely necessary. 

I'll bet that you could probably go down to the port and purchase these shipping containers, in fact I just performed a search and you can purchase those in the Philippines and I did find a spot on Palawan through Facebook, here's the link Palawan Container Van Corporation


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

Maxx62 said:


> I meant to say hold up to the climate here.


Containers are built to last at least 40 years in trans-ocean shipping, exposed to salt air/water......but when used for housing they will get several additional coats of paint, plus they probably won't get bashed up as much as on a container ship, so should last a LOT longer...... There are some container homes, built in the 1960's, that are still around.
The ones that I have seen personally had steel plates cast into the top of the concrete foundations and the containers welded to those plates, this probably could be even more reinforced if one was in a typhoon prone zone, I guess......


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

I agree 


M.C.A. said:


> When they don't know or can't show you in writing the cost, that means you wouldn't want to do this would be my reply and I don't think I'd even want to ship anything other than a Balikbyan Box to the Philippines but I have heard from Expats on our forum that they were able to send ship their household goods at an extreme cost that I'm not sure was worth it, don't ship chain saws or guns you'll end up with some major problems.
> 
> I would have zero trust in custom brokers "Customs" also, in fact I wouldn't trust anyone here, so if you've spent time in the Philippines you know that you would want to avoid any Government agency unless absolutely necessary.
> 
> I'll bet that you could probably go down to the port and purchase these shipping containers, in fact I just performed a search and you can purchase those in the Philippines and I did find a spot on Palawan through Facebook, here's the link Palawan Container Van Corporation


I totally agree......also, one of the websites I looked was VERY unspecific about import taxes.....anything from nothing up to about 65%....not helpful.
Thanks a lot for the link.....I didn't know there was someone in the Philippines already doing these.....much appreciated......cheers


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

Bmmnz said:


> I agree
> 
> I totally agree......also, one of the websites I looked was VERY unspecific about import taxes.....anything from nothing up to about 65%....not helpful.
> Thanks a lot for the link.....I didn't know there was someone in the Philippines already doing these.....much appreciated......cheers


You could have a concrete home including the roof made out of concrete and it would withstand any typhoon or severe weather and if done correctly the labor costs would be minimal even the building cost, but for sure you'd have to supervise the entire operation.


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

I 


M.C.A. said:


> You could have a concrete home including the roof made out of concrete and it would withstand any typhoon or severe weather and if done correctly the labor costs would be minimal even the building cost, but for sure you'd have to supervise the entire operation.


I agree with regards to the structural integrity of a concrete build....under the right circumstances, such as a proper construction.....the only thing I don't like about a concrete build is that in a tropical climate it will almost always be "damp".... Whereas a container home will be bone dry and MUCH healthier to live in.....but there is, I guess, always a compromise to everything


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

Containers may be designed to last 40 years but don't forget container homes are converted end of life containers.


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

Gary D said:


> Containers may be designed to last 40 years but don't forget container homes are converted end of life containers.


Probably correct in most instances....but the company I was inquiring with actually ONLY use brand new ones....fresh from the factory, never used for shipping.


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

Bmmnz said:


> Probably correct in most instances....but the company I was inquiring with actually ONLY use brand new ones....fresh from the factory, never used for shipping.


I don't think you'll find brand new ones here but I hope it works out for you, have you thought about the incredible heat we have to deal with? I do understand that you'll probably have insulation but dang it gets so hot at times.


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## Lunkan (Aug 28, 2020)

Container home shiped from Australia or what?

I have a container home built for that from start. - Well. It was a health centre at an oil platform  which I bought from a bankruptcy and changed so got bathtub and washing machine in it too. 
But I sold it (in Sweden) because to expensive to transport to Phils. (I will bring just a few boxes.)

Concerning custom fees I don't know if they count it as "luxury" as e g cars or not. Risk for that. IF they count it as "luxury" then the custom fee is very high. VAT I suppouse 12 %. 
AND there is a risk it will be mess in the custom adding huge STORAGE fees...

So I WOULDN'T import a container home. There are container homes they make and sell in Phils.


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## HKJeffB (Mar 17, 2021)

Bmmnz said:


> Yes... totally agree with you....and they definitely also had NO intention to fill the gap around the pipe.... imagine the late night visitors....haha.....we will be moving to palawan this year and my house will absolutely be a container home. Can't imagine anything better suited to the Philippines....


I've decided that outside of nipa huts, containers are the way to go. I've become pretty interested in Cubo out of Manila. They seem to be pretty flexible, reasonable in price and I like the construction method and appearance. These are a bit cozy but sounds like they are flexible and will design to suit.


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## Bmmnz (Sep 8, 2020)

Hi....I hadn't heard about the CUBO homes, thanks for sharing.....they look great and are super cheap.... little small for just one unit, but combine a couple, or more, will be a good way to go....food for thought.....thanks


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## HKJeffB (Mar 17, 2021)

Bmmnz said:


> Hi....I hadn't heard about the CUBO homes, thanks for sharing.....they look great and are super cheap.... little small for just one unit, but combine a couple, or more, will be a good way to go....food for thought.....thanks


That was what I was thinking. Three of them configured in a U around a small courtyard would allow for 2 decent bedrooms with bath & closet plus a nice central family room & kitchen. Looks great but I've reached out to them multiple times without response so maybe just a "good on the interwebs" type business.


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

We went to a City Mall near us in Sta Cruz Laguna and in the back was strip of two story container homes but I was told they were offices, so what a surprise to see that.


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## Lunkan (Aug 28, 2020)

M.C.A. said:


> We went to a City Mall near us in Sta Cruz Laguna and in the back was strip of two story container homes but I was told they were offices, so what a surprise to see that.


It isn't very rear. 
Now I don't find the cheap ones among my many notes but here is link to an exclusive producer in Phils Patented Luxury Container House | Smarthouse


(If I haven't told- My container home is fouldable out to almost 3 times the noirmal width sstill having electricy and water pipes done allready., 
/It was built to be a medical center at an oil platform (Producer of these special made went bankruptcy.)
/Then it became an office and dressing room for workers in a fur farm. (They went bankruptcy too.)
/Then I bought it for 8 000 usd including a rather long transport and extended my house with office, storage and changed to a bathroom with washing machine and dryer (But I didn't went bankruptcy


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## PascalPeeters (Apr 9, 2021)

HKJeffB said:


> That was what I was thinking. Three of them configured in a U around a small courtyard would allow for 2 decent bedrooms with bath & closet plus a nice central family room & kitchen. Looks great but I've reached out to them multiple times without response so maybe just a "good on the interwebs" type business.


I contacted them through facebook this week. 
They are 'sold out' for 2021, but put me on 'priority list' after i submitted details of our project. (i was also planning 3 cubo in U-shape).


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## virginiapaddler (Dec 27, 2021)

Gary D said:


> You need to look around at previous work, 99% of builders in the Philippines are cowboy builders at best. You need to be there on site the whole time they are working. The vast majority of filipinos wouldn't know good workmanship if it bit them on the rear so any recommendations will just be their mate down the road.


I'm very offended by your comments.. And I just pray that you don't spend any time around any wonderful Filipinos. *snip**


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

virginiapaddler said:


> I'm very offended by your comments.. And I just pray that you don't spend any time around any wonderful Filipinos, Because you sir are a prick


It doesn't appear that you live here but you are correct the Philippine citizen is friendly, that's a true and an undeniable statement but... and oh but.

Gary D and many of us have had the unfortunate experience of dealing with home repairs and construction issues (living here over a decade) and this issue is not only for Expats but citizens living here.

It's an endemic and very real issue and so Gary actually relating is sharing his experience, it's not meant to be hurtful it could be thought of as sarcastic candor, to be politically correct or woke will not help anyone who plans on making this their final stop, it won't help you in any way, once that plane touches down you'll experience that epiphany moment, if you happen to only be a tourist, then you really won't have a grasp on real-life issues and also the many hiccups you'll experience.

Are you planning on making a trip here at some point? is there anything else you'd like to say in your first post, okay... Lets see how this goes, hopefully with dialog.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

virginiapaddler said:


> I'm very offended by your comments.. And I just pray that you don't spend any time around any wonderful Filipinos, *snip*


Welcome to the forum, hope you enjoy.
Off to a good start with your first contribution, good luck.

Cheers, Steve.


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## mlc11kenney (12 mo ago)

How is permits and on those container homes? Is it a headache getting permits for this?


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## Lunkan (Aug 28, 2020)

mlc11kenney said:


> How is permits and on those container homes? Is it a headache getting permits for this?


 It seem to be headache to get any permit  (E g it took 5 months to get a common small business registered!!! And we havent got the 4th permit, so we arent allowed to start working still...)

I dont know if any difference by they are movable,
but I dont recomend to have container home in the Philippines* anywayt by they are hot even in a cold country as Sweden. 
(I have one made to be a building from start. A medical centre for oil platforms, which I bought from a bankruptcy. It has some foam insulation built in between roof and cealing, but get hot in Swedish summers anyway. And to cold in winters 

*Except perhaps IF you can avoid needing building permit by that and/or if plan is to have possibility to move it later.


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## art1946 (Nov 30, 2017)

*virginiapaddler

Why are you offended when someone makes a comment on the Filipino workmanship. I know from experience how they are there. I lived in Tagum city and had them to run internet lines into my apartment and they never used a tape to measure. the cable was running down my wall crooked. I made them rerun it straight. 

I also had a electric line run into my apartment so I could had a hot water heater install in my shower. Every time I turned up the heat it would blow all my electric in the apartment. I went in the attic and this stupid Filipino had spiced the wire into the main electric line and didn't run it over to the breaker box. I am a class "C" builder in the USA and I know better then that. That could have cause a fire. Sometimes had to wait for it to cool off before I could reset the main breaker. I left for the USA a bout 3 months later. 

Art*


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## art1946 (Nov 30, 2017)

I believe I bought the water heater at citi hardware and he install things for them. An employee even recommended him. He was there and talked to me about installing the heater with line. What a crock of crap these Filipinos do. We could have had a fire in the attic while a sleep.

art


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