Its not income if it is coming out of your savings. Money from the sale of a home is not taxable if your net profit is less than $250K. Which for me will just about be on the edge of what I paid for my home and what I could sell it for. So not taxable as income.
Most people who sell a home when they retire buy another smaller home or condo. They don’t have the option of finding super low rent like you can overseas.
The spelling of “Philippines” can be confusing; a way to get it straight is “one L, P and 2 Ps”.
You may want to look into gated communities in Davao; here’s one big company: Camella Davao - House & Lot for Sale in Davao City, Davao del Sur
It looks like Qdenga, a dengue vaccine safe for people who haven’t been infected before, is on the way:
Dengue vaccine - Wikipedia
Very helpful links. But I don’t believe that non- citizens can own land in the Philip Pines. 
I think you need citizenship or that your wife can own the land while the man can only own they home. But still, there should be detached condo type places to be had.
My plan is to live in hotels, resorts or air bnb’s for the first year. Get a lay of the land sort of thing.
Huh. Didn’t realize that. We’ve always owed, so I’m familiar with all the forms. And I find it’s worth the piece of mind to have an accountant keep track of it all.
Mrs.Duality is from the Philippines. Our plan is to spend Winters there. I’ve been there at least 24 times during the past 32 years, for 1 to 3 months each time. I wouldn’t want to spend the entire year there. The weather would get too boring and other disadvantages would start to become too much. These include the horribly awful traffic, pollution, endemic corruption, power outages, and the difficulty in finding good help.
The foremost advantage of living in the Philippines is the low cost of labor and the attendant low cost of living. The legal minimum daily wage for unskilled labor is less than US$10. An hour massage is about $7 including tip, or $10 at a tourist trap.
The snorkeling is half the reason I want to live there. It’s some of the best in the world, but you need to go to a Marine Sanctuary. All other places have been destroyed by pollution, overfishing and dynamite fishing.
Never been to Davao but everyone says it’s safe.
Our land is in the province of Bohol, on Panglao Island. It’s very touristy, on the way to becoming overdeveloped. Malls, beaches and a decent hospital are all within 15 minutes. Top notch hospitals and shopping are 2 hours away (via fast ferry boat), in Cebu City. There are plenty of other expats and international restaurants.
I’ll be PMing you with a link to an Expats’ forum.
Thanks for the feedback and the forum info, I am now signed up.
I know that it is hard for most people in the states to truely appreciate how hot and muggy it gets in the Philippines, worst than Alabama in August (been there, done that). I’ve been to Tokyo in the summer and its brutal. I imagine a city with less infrastructure to control trash and sanitary systems could be quite annoying.
You should give Bohol a chance. There is much less litter than in Cebu and the air is very much less dirty. The municipality of Dauis (where our land is) is less corrupt than the norm. The Dauis government has gotten at least 2 “Good Housekeeping” awards in recent years from the national government, for having “transparent accounting practices”.
We don’t have anti-burglar bars on our windows. Never had a problem in 10 years.
There is very little nightlife in Bohol. What there is, is mostly at Alona Beach and is mostly Koreans. The provincial government strives to provide a family-friendly tourism experience. There are the regular police and the Tourist Police.
The superior nightlife of Cebu is only 2 or 3 hours away.
The best advice would be that you should be honest with yourself. Are you going there to retire and actually meld with the local community or be a sex tourist?
Or to be a full time SCUBA diver, snorkeler and/or freediver? Or to drink cheap but excellent beer and rum and smoke cheap cigarettes? Perhaps to use the Philippines as a base to explore the rest of Asia? Lounge around at the numerous beaches? Why restrict yourself- do it all!
@Chingon , you are thinking small. Open your mind!
I have no need to go there to be sex tourist, I don’t think think any of my input has even suggested such a thing. And I don’t drink anymore, that lifestyle is in the past.
I am well aware of what many expats go there to have one last party time, and more power to them if that is what they want out of the end of their life.
Myself, I am looking to retire in a relatively rich lifestyle compared to the states. Enjoy simple things like cooking my own food, enjoying local activities and attractions, and meeting a local woman to share a simple but enriching lifestyle. I’m not looking to do foolish things as I’m experianced enough not to continue to engage in the foolish behavior of my younger years.
The first quote (and an earlier one about the “pretty women” there being a reason to chose the Philippines) very much suggests such a thing.
You’re 63, looking for a partner between 35-50, so 28 years younger than you at one end of the range, because you deserve someone ‘pretty’ and not ‘too old’. You’re choosing a destination because there are social and economic factors there that will make that quite easy for you. That’s privilege and a version of sex tourism. Using the dire straits vulnerable women are in there to achieve your privileged fantasy. At least own it.
I don’t think that’s what’s usually meant by “sex tourism”. That usually describes people selling multiple sexual partners.
I know a guy who was very explicit about seeking an Asian bride (and he settled on the Philippines as the last of Asia he targeted) because he was “more competitive” in poor patriarchal Philippines than in the US, and he thought he could attract a “more competitive” spouse that way. Younger, prettier, better educated, more submissive… He succeeded, too. He was certainly leveraging his comparative privilege for access to sex, but I’d use words other than “sexual tourism” to describe him.
(His marriage to an attractive young doctor seems to have worked out okay. I think they both walked into it with open eyes, understanding the deal they were making.)
I’ll concede to your greater subtlety and nuance. What term would you suggest?
Quite simply its called personal preference and two adults making a mutal decision.
We would be doing what men and women have done since the beginning of time.
Sex tourism is about men going there to hook up with multiple young women in a short period of time. Often exploited into prostitution. Don’t put me that catagory please, its insulting.
These types of judgemental statements are another reason I am leaving. Some notion that there are certain rules and norms that must be applied or you are labeled something derogatory.
Mrs.D has a cousin or 2 she would like to set you up with. Seriously.
Another way to kill time in the Philippines is to do some charitable work. My fave charity is one that does some looking after stray dogs and does low cost spaying and neutering. Paraphrasing Mark Twain, the more I learn about people the more I like dogs.
Its my understanding that rabies is a major issue with feral dogs in the Philippines. Do you also give them the rabies vaccine?
Sometimes, especially prior to adoption.
That’s defensiveness, not logic. What’s wrong with societal norms per se? Sure, they can be bad - I’d argue that the societal norms of the Jim Crow era were terrible, as are norms that act against empowering women.
But not all norms are bad. Stealing, beating children, urinating in the street - all kinds of things violate societal norms, for good reason.
Older men marrying much younger women doesn’t violate societal norms anyway. It happens all the time, as you yourself note. Personally, I pity people whose economic circumstances or prioritization of physical characteristics lead them into relationships where shared values and intellectual/emotional compatibility are secondary to more cynical calculations. But if it works for you, okay then.
Well I am limited to what I can state in this board without being long winded and boring. I’m not seeking a mindless bimbo. Lets just leave it at that.