7 – Finalize Your Purchase Timeline

After all the assessment that I made, when did it occur to me that I should buy a house? Or would there be a right time to follow for this?

In my case, I have already worked for the past 7 years of my life and I can say that I have saved well. Make sure that when you want to go for a serious investment, you still have a certain amount of money left in the bank for emergency use. Follow step 2 in this blog in knowing your budget. If there is still enough money for you to afford your other luxury like dining out, movie, spa, and travel, then you can say that maybe it is time for a portion of your income to go into something tangible and for life.

Having a house is really a part of my maturity plan. I planned to have money saved in the bank, insurance, investment, house, and business. I was inspired before to have a business first that would be used to pay my monthly amortizations for the house. However the current setting here in the Philippines made me compare the amount dedicated for paying rent to the amount of monthly amortizations in having my own house. For practical reasons I chose to have my own.

Since I was a small kid I always hear the elders say that, “I used to buy food with a few centavos.” And I also heard them say that, “That hacienda was only bought for a few pesos.” The fact is, prices go up, it could go down but it will always be up. So, I grabbed the chance of buying my place at age 27, when the amortization does not seem that big yet for me and I know in the future would seem smaller.

Again, you should know your purpose of buying a house. If your goal is just to have a rest house it may not be that urgent but if you would plan to use it later on for business, then maybe it would be great to purchase one now and minimize your investment cost. You would always have the option to get foreclosed properties. But, in my case since this would be my first house purchase and I plan to use it as my primary house, I just want to avoid some bad vibes from its history hihi.

Later on I would show you some model houses I have been that inspired me to have mine. :-)

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6 - Preferred Financing Scheme

Below are sample financing schemes, taken from sample computation, these do not constitute part of any information and subject to change without further notice.

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5 - Own Plan or Through A Developer? + Required Documents :-)

One more thing to consider is how you want to have your house. Would you like to get your own piece of land and get a good house design from your own architect? Or would you like to get a ready house from a developer?

GENERAL RULE

Resources / Budget :
OWN PLAN = If you personally know an architect and a contractor
DEVELOPER = If you have limited network for house construction

If you would be getting from a Developer, I would like to share the required documents so you can prepare ahead. :-)

IN-HOUSE REQUIRED DOCUMENTS


* IN-HOUSE - Initial Requirements
1- Latest Proof of Income
2- Complete Information in Buyer’s Information Sheet
3- Reservation Agreement (RA)
4- 3 pieces recent 1x1 I.D. Pictures
5- Marriage Contract, Birth Certificate, Or Separation Papers (if needed)
6- Community Tax Certificate or Number
7- Complete Post Dated Checks for Equity and Amortization
8- TIN
9- Contract to Sell (CTS)
10- Deed of Absolute Sale
11- Insurance Forms
12- Credit Investigation Form

* IN-HOUSE – OFW (Additional Requirements)
1- Initial Requirements
2- Job Contract
3- Passport
4- Special Power of Attorney (SPA)
5- Valid I.D. of Attorney In-Fact
6- 1 piece I.D. Picture of Attorney In-Fact
7- Attorney In-Fact Information Sheet
8- Residence Certificate of Attorney In-Fact

* IN-HOUSE – Self-Employed (Additional Requirements)
1- Initial Requirements
2- Affidavit of Income
3- Business Name and Permit
4- Passbook with 3 months Maintaining Balance
5- ITR

PAG-IBIG REQUIRED DOCUMENTS


* PAG-IBIG - Initial Requirements
1- 3 pieces recent 1x1 I.D. Pictures
2- Membership Status Verification Slip (MSVS)
3- Counseling (pro-friends and PAG-IBIG)
4- Valid ID with Picture
5- Residence Certificate or Cedula
6- Marriage Contract, Birth Certificate, or Separation Papers
7- TIN
8- Proof of Billing Address
9- Proof of Income (for more than 750,000 loan amount)
        • Certificate of Employment with Compensation
        • ITR
        • 3 Months Payslip
10- PDC for Equity, Monthly Amortization, & RPT
11- Confirmation Letter / MA Schedule
12- BIS
13- RA Form
14- Addendum to CTS
15- Disclosure Statement (FLH 150)
16- Certificate of House and Lot Acceptance / Completion
17- Contract to Sell (CTS)
18- Deed of Absolute Sale
19- Promissory Note
20- Loan Mortgage Agreement
21- PAG-IBIG Housing Loan Application Form
22- Deed of Reconveyance
23- Deed of Assignment w/ SPA

* PAG-IBIG - OFW (Additional Requirements)
1- Initial Requirements
2- Job Contract
3- Passport
4- Special Power of Attorney (SPA)
5- Valid I.D. of Attorney In-Fact
6- 1 piece I.D. Picture of Attorney In-Fact
7- Attorney In-Fact Information Sheet
8- Residence Certificate of Attorney In-Fact

* PAG-IBIG - Self-Employed (Additional Requirements)
1- Initial Requirements
2- Affidavit of Income
3- Business Name and Permit
4- Passbook with 3 months Maintaining Balance
5- ITR

 BANK REQUIRED DOCUMENTS


* Bank - Initial Requirements
1- Dully filled up and signed application form
2- ID Pictures
3- CTC
4- Marriage Contract (when applicable)
5- Photocopy of (2) Valid ID’s
6- Proof of Billing (UCPB)

* Bank - OFW (Additional Requirements)
1- POEA Contract for sea-based workers
2- Consularized Certificate of Employment for land-based workers / Original COE with e-mail address of the person who issued COE for verification
3- Consularized Special Power of Attorney (Bank Form)
4- Copy of latest passport
5- Proof of Remittances (Robinsons)
6- Contract of Employment (Robinsons)

* Bank – Locally Employed (Additional Requirements)
1- Latest copy f COE indicating salary, position, and length of employment
2- Latest ITR
3- Latest one month Payslip (Robinsons)
4- Credit Card Statement for the past 3 months (Robinsons)

* Bank - Self-Employed (Additional Requirements)
1- Certificate of Registration with SEC or DTI
2- Current Business Permit
3- Audited Financial Statement (3 years)
4- ITR (3 years)
5- List of trade references (at least 3 names with contact numbers of major suppliers / costumers)
6- Bank Statement (latest 6 months)
7- Credit Card Statement for the past 3 months (Robinsons)

* Bank - Self-Employed Professionals (Additional Requirements)
1- PRC ID or equivalent
2- ITR for the past 3 years
3- Bank Statement (latest 6 months)

* Bank – If From Rental of Property (Additional Requirements)
1- Notarized Lease Contract
2- Copy of TCT / CCT

*** ALL DETAILS APPEARING HEREIN ARE FOR BLOGGING PURPOSES ONLY, DO NOT CONSTITUTE PART OF ANY INFORMATION AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT FURTHER NOTICE ***

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4 – Ready For Occupancy (RFO) or Pre-selling?

Now, it is time for you to define your needs further. Would you be needing a house urgently or could you wait a little more?


Some houses in the village are already built,
and some are still under construction


If you urgently need a place to stay there is the Ready for Occupancy Option (RFO) which gives you a chance to move in right after you pay a certain amount.

If you are the type who wants to have a house for investment purposes or for future plans, you could consider having a house at pre-selling stage. This option is cheaper than the first one since you have to wait for the house to be built which also gives the developer ample time to construct paid houses. You have to constantly check the construction stage though, since the developer would promise a scheduled turn-over for these houses based on your first equity payment date.

In my case, I chose to purchase a house at pre-selling. Here are some of my considerations:

1- No need to pay a huge amount of down payment, since I have the option to pay the equity for 12 months installment. This makes payment not too heavy in the pocket.
2- Have time to save money for house embellishments. Examples: gate, tiles for the flooring, balcony, garden.
3- Think of a nice interior for my own space and canvass for furniture.
4- Prepare myself well for moving in. Like thinking of a business to start with or looking for a new job near my new house.
5- Research on what I need to have a good turn-over for the house.

Forgive me for being such a control freak hihi. I am just very particular on these stuffs since this is going to be my first house. I hope I can share these traits with you so we can all have a smooth purchase. :-)

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Live a Little (Hong Kong – Macau Trip)

I have been gone for 3 days. Our family just had a Hong Kong – Macau Trip. The trip was generally enjoyable, it was just pretty tiring from my waist down though hihi.

Fly high :-)

This was my third time to go to Hong Kong. Maybe I have not been there as often as others have, but I can say that I am already familiar with the place and if given a choice I would look for another destination. However, this trip is not about my personal fun. My goal was to let my relatives enjoy Hong Kong since it would be their first.


P'Noy greeted us with a headline upon arrival

Our flight was scheduled on Oct 12, 2010, that was last Tuesday. The plane departed Manila at 10:00am, and arrived Hong Kong at 12:05pm. We have also settled some necessaries before the scheduled trip. We chose Ramada Hong Kong Hotel. The manager advised us that we can avail a shuttle service from the airport counter at 140HKD per person. Good thing the guy in charge of the counter that time told us that we could lessen on cost by availing a car service for 700HKD which is perfectly fine for 7 persons. And things turned out well. For starters, we enjoyed the ride.


Hotel shuttle service driver

In the itinerary that I made, we just have to leave our things in the hotel and proceed to our fist stop, Hong Kong Disneyland. We reached the place at 1:30pm. Then we ate lunch, had rides, and watched the parade and the shows. After the fireworks at 8:00pm, we headed back to the hotel, had trouble walking and took the taxi, had dinner at a Chinese restaurant at the ground floor of the hotel and slept to charge our batteries to end day 1.
 

Arrived HK Disneyland at 1:30PM

On our second day, my itinerary is Macau in the morning until noon and Ocean Park right after. At least we were able to have brunch at San Malo, visit St. Paul Ruins, Sto. Domingo (St. Dominic) church, and Venetian Hotel in Macau. We had to maximize time since my relatives would be leaving Hong Kong early in the morning of third day. The second day is one heck of a cram. Funny, we have to walk and shoot pictures quickly to maximize the day.



Turbojet ferry to Macau

 


St. Paul Ruins

 


Ocean Park from afar



I would charge everything to experience, and save the memory of having a trip with my loved ones. Like what they normally say, better travel with your loved ones than have a brand new car. True :-)

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3 – Define Your Location

After finalizing your budget, the next thing you need to know is the location of your house. This is very crucial especially if you are planning to have the house for everyday living.

Below is an example location:

Since I am planning to use the house for everyday living, I considered the following too:

• Hospitals
• Churches
• Job / Business Opportunities
• Banks
• Police Stations
• Fire Departments
• Schools
• Malls
• Restaurants


• Others
- Is there heavy traffic in the area? If so, are there alternative routes? Are roads being built to abate travel difficulties?
- Is the area accessible to public utility vehicles?
- Environment : Is it peaceful? Is there fresh air?
- Is it near my hometown? My family?

Again, these are just few of my considerations. Please share your own. :-)

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2 – Know Your Budget

And so I have decided to buy a house. Now, do I have a budget for this? How would I know if my earnings are sufficient for my purchase?

It would be so easy if things would be settled in cash. However, if it would be applied into any financing scheme, capacity to pay would be investigated.

As a responsible buyer, it is a must to assess oneself. To put it simply, below is a helpful formula:

• Down Payment: Compare to your cash on hand, or savings
• Monthly Amortizations:

NET INCOME (Net of income deductions, example: taxes)
Less: Living Allowance (Portion allotted for life’s pleasures)
        Current Monthly Expenses (Inevitable expenses, example: food)
        Debts / Commitments (Current and Long-term Obligations)           
________________________________________________
TOTAL CAPACITY
(Monthly amortization should not be more than 40% of your monthly Net Income)

Try to explore more on your daily budget as there may be other things that you could consider for your own.

Now do your homework and finalize your purchasing budget in mind. :-)

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1 – Purpose of House Purchase

Foudation of having your own house

 
When I first thought of having my own house, the first thing that I thought about is why I want to buy a house. Is it just a need or a want?

NEED

• I am currently staying in an apartment. Owning a house would give me a stable place to stay.
• I need a place that could be very accessible to my work, or is very accessible to job and business opportunities.
• I also need to start early in purchasing my own house, since I want to avail of my benefit in PAGIBIG financing. And, starting early could give me more options in the term of the loan that I would be getting.
• I need a house to help me be more independent, in the Philippines, since we have strong ties with our immediate family we normally prefer to stay intact until we settle down. I still am for this, however, having my own house would let me take care of my own house responsibilities.

WANT

• I want a house that I could design according to my own personality.
• After work, I want a place where I could totally relax as I could modify it for my own comfort. 
• In the future I want to have a place to call my own, a product of my own hard work.

These are things that first occurred in my head while thinking of having my own house. It is really MORE OF A NEED than a WANT.

But, who wouldn’t want to have one anyway? :-)

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Choosing Your House



Piled hollow blocks shot from one of our developer's communities - Picture taken by GiNG

 

The real challenge is how to choose your house. I made a basic list for this, just 7 things I thought about for my own. I hope this helps.


1. Consider the purpose of your house purchase, for everyday living or relaxing?

2. Know your budget.

3. Define your location (proximity to work, environment).

4. Check if you urgently need one (Ready for Occupancy -RFO) or you can avail units at pre-selling stage.

5. Choose whether you want to have a house of your own plan, or purchase it from a developer.

6. Decide on your preferred financing scheme (cash, in-house, PAGIBIG, banks)

7. Finalize your purchase timeline.


I am just scheduled for an early company fun run, but I definitely love to share my opinions for each.


Tata! :-)

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Buying A House

House, asset or expense? Whichever way you put it, I just bought one. And that’s it. Whether it is something that could add to my net worth or actually make a long list in my expenses, it is something that I have already bought for as long as I am still young and able to pay.


I remember when I was little that I used to draw nice pictures of houses on where I want to live in. And, at my age I think it is about time.


Now, that I am 27, I think it is a good number to start acquiring my own property. Of course I still dream of spacious houses with lots of amenities as I have drawn it in my younger years. However, I have to be more realistic and practical for my first house (yes, I still am planning to have my dream house soon, hihi).


Condominiums are growing in number, and there are lots to choose from in the market today. Amidst its proximity to the metro and amenities, I still am inclined to having a house and a lot. I still am the type who prefers to have a garden and a gate instead of a lobby and an elevator. I guess it is just a matter of how you see yourself living years from the date you acquired your house.


As I pass by the malls, salesmen and women hand over brochures of houses with their floor plan, which really intrigued me each time. Then, I found this affordable property which I have shown my brother for opinions. And then, the discussion went on. We talked about the location and its worth. At the end of the discussion, I realized the initial house I saw is really not its worth. But that did not stop me. I browsed through the net, looked deeper in advertisements and forums, and got more inspired to have a house.


One sunny morning, I got up and invited my parents to spend the day with me for my official house search. We have a house in Cavite which made my search easier since we do not have to go back in Manila by the time we are tired. Plus, Cavite is really my target location since it is the closest thing to Manila. I know the pollution would be lesser, flood would be more avoidable, and the price would not be as much as within too.


TIP #1: Immerse yourself to your dream!


If you really want it, get yourself in it. Feel what it is like to have your own house. Go to model houses. Through this your dream would be closer to you. This could also help you know what you really want.


I went through different model houses and got excited each time. The interior is a plus factor. And, having all the concept of living in mind, it helped me identify which house would make me happy.


I would guide you further in my next articles. :-)

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