BIG Problems Building a House in the Philippines!

We might have taken on more than we can handle with this Land & House project in the Philippines. It's proving to be very tricky to oversee the project and find trustworthy workers at the moment. So the search continues! Also our house plans have completely changed, more on that soon.

Our names are Jmayel, Sacha & Story. We traveled to the Philippines Siargao island and fell in love with island life, now we want to make that life more permanent.
Follow us on this journey :-)

👨‍👩‍👧 NEW HERE? WE'RE A FAMILY FRIENDLY VLOG
Sacha, Jmayel, Story & Poppy are a Vegan family currently living in the Philippines. Creating a peaceful vlog about travel, family and life.

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[midlifewanderings]

Hello Jay. When we built our house in Southern Leyte, we were on site everyday. We provided them snacks at 10am and 3pm and made sure we had a cooler full of water for them. Perhaps you can hire a "manager" to hire men to come daily and to 'manage' the daily grind, i.e., buy the daily snacks. Just a thought.

[ergiesalas]

Mr. J, it is tradition here that you provide snacks 10 am and at 3 pm. Any biscuits and bread is appreciated. And drinking water to drink anytime and glasses to use. Your land is bit far, consider also their transport fare agsinst their wage. If you'r paying them 500 minus 100 fare, minus the food expense then very little is left. Usually, thats the reason some workers doesnt show-up because when they sum it all, they get paid less. They just dont mention it to you.

[aydapadistudio]

Hi Jay, I am also residing in a province near where you’re located (migrated fr Manila). Based on my experience, sometimes, they just have a lot of other responsibilities that they can’t show up at work. It doesn’t help that a lot of them don’t have phones, so it’s harder to get in touch them. Ex: A gardener we hired who would often not show up. Then we found out it’s because he also has to help his mother tend to their house while she works, and to take care of his child at the same time. Or sometimes, it’s really the “hayahay” culture (taking it easy on life). Usually but not always, those who are a bit older (40y.o. up) tend to be more reliable, just based on our experience. Giving them snacks at around 3PM is also a good motivator. It’s the culture 👨🏽‍🌾 👩🏽‍🌾 Hopefully, this would help you understand and work around their culture to get the results you want.

[Melissa-sylk]

Do not be disheartened. Hiring good, experienced, consistent, professional workers is not the easiest, even in Manila, more so in more rural areas. Do consult with owners of the establishments you patronize around GL to get recommendations for the services and people you need that are tried and tested. Although a sense of urgency is sometimes lacking in the mindset of workers, know that things will get done eventually. You have a lovely plot of land and though it may take a while, your dream home will be sitting on it in the near future. All the best.

[doughilditch]

Hi Jay, we know exactly how you feel. My wife Tess and I moved to Mindanao from the UK 14 months ago. We are currently building a house in the Bukidnon. A modern house in a traditional design using traditional materials

[nelsonlomod]

Its always good to be present on the site when you want to have something done.

[mdc]

Don't rush things, enjoy the process, It's a life long journey.

[fernandoesteban]

A lesson learned. You build with your environment, get local advise, adapt your expectation to what is possible and available, and what is adapted to the weather and environment of Siargao.

[rommeloracion]

You have to provide power tools like weeds bush cutter to enjoy clearing process faster, and clean you need to have like two bush cutter to enjoy cutting it, and do some landscape on it too!.

[craighowat]

If you live in tropical place...its easy to grow the weeds and grass...compared in cold place..and that's the reason we have ma8ntenance t9 cut the grass..but lucky you have bamboo that you can used in your house..etc etc etc..

[elestehorn]

If you are building a house in the Philippines, you should be present always during the construction or even clearing the land, alwys on the top of the workers. What I had done when I had the extension of my little house was, I did it on contract, put a deadline on the job that they are going to do.

[hiyasminauguis]

Hello Jay Sacha and Story and poppy, it is hard to find the right person to work on your land, hoping that everything will be fine in the right time, good luck to your project, God bless you all always.

[axizcorp]

If the end result of the Cubo design didn't turn out the way you expected it, you can always go for the conventional concrete.

The concrete you mentioned that was blown down by Odette is really strong because the structure is very near the sea and the first 2nd wave of the storm will be really destructive. The place you aquired, the terrain will somehow lessen the impact of the wind storm. Try to get ideas about the structure from Batanes islands or Catanduanes islands. Theyre the strongest structures you can get ideas from because they're prone to typhoon very often.

[myparadiseonbantayanisland]

I've lived here for 7 years on Bantayan Island and all my workers always show up on time and put in a full day of work. They are very reliable, however I am always on site and ensure they do the work as I want it done. If not supervised by someone who knows exactly what your requirements are they are unguided and may not perform exactly what you want.

[verlindaallen]

Lots of great advice here within the comments. Realize " moving & building" are one of the biggest stressors in life. Everything is going to be alright ❤❤❤❤

[CasaLobo]

My friendly advice is to immerse yourselves more in the community. I'm sure 3 years on the island has led you to having several friends who are able to help you in securing the services you need. Learning the local language (even just basic) is a big help as well to establish some sort of connection and lessen misunderstandings. Anyway I wish you, sasha, story and poppy all the best!

[donaldhester]

OK, well, first of all, my wife and I own property on Panoan island where Liloan is located. We have had lots of work done on a property that my wife now owns. The Filipino labor can really surprise you if you help them out. The very first thing you should understand is that you need a well known skilled person that you negotiate with to get a project done. From that point forward, he will contract his own labor force. The contractor may need help with certain things. Most likely, he lives day to day on very little money and has no money to hire people or pay for the food they need to work. In the Philippines, you need to provide these workers with everything they need to survive, including hungry family members. They expect, but never ask, for MARIENDA. Marienda at 11 am and at 3pm every day is a small lunch and dinner on site. Also, provide sacks of rice to help feed family at home. You need to alow your workers to set up a dirty kitchen and bahay kubo (bamboo house) for break times and shelter. Provide coconut coal and the cheap small local made grills for cooking or anything else they need. In orher words, a home away from home while on the project. This means you need to have WATER, temp outhouse, etc. Also, any tooling or power equipment required is a must. You may need to supply other things, but talk kindly with the boss that you hired. Those guys can do some amazing things if you back them up. Then, they will also always be available for future contracts. Anyway, they tend to hire out of there own family and friends, and they are surprisingly good at building stuff.

[kwalsh]

I wasn’t sure how I felt about the land since it wasn’t on the beach but I just love it since you’ve just shown this perspective. It’s so beautiful and peaceful. ❤

[lovingkindness]

Hi Jay and Sacha! No matter how many adjustments you make or even if you keep changing things right up until construction is finished, it is understandable. Your safety and satisfaction are definitely a priority.

[leslieonabudget]

Hoping for the best in your house building just keep your head up. Also, the wind rustling the leaves of the bamboo tree is soothing