Wow! My first thought was he's crazy! The more i thought about it, i would consider a small container myself. Im just afraid of tax at customs to "grease" palms...I suppose having so much detailed documentation and a trustworthy shipping/brokerage company made all the difference. Great interview sir! Very interesting and informative! Thanks!
We moved here in Luzon Province of Nueva Ecija from Texas last October 2019 and we shipped most of our personal belongings, stereo with speakers, lots of nice kitchen and bathrooms stuff, 10 unique nice curtain rods, a high end dining table with thick glass, 2 divider from Expo Design Center / Home Depot Company and a very heavy antique safe deposit, total of 38 jumbo BALIK BAYAN BOXES, my husband and myself pack it nicely, the shipping company picked it up. We have the small container, we did not get insurance and we paid less than $20,000. Delivered in good condition before Christmas 2019. I have a DUAL CITIZENSHIP❤ my husband is American and we DID NOT PAY TAXES❤️ we as a BALIK BAYAN are intitled for ONE TIME SHIPPING FREE TAXES❤❤❤❤❤ and the best thing is my husband LOVE living here in our BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY Philippines🇵🇭💖🤩
He should post all the companies, timeline,s and prices he used in the transfer process. This is valuable information for someone thinking of doing the same thing.
Good on you sir. My wife and I also moved and in the Philippines and shipped our household as well from Washington state. I retired from the US Army and had the army shipped our household in the Philippines and established our home in Angeles City.
Planning, planning, and goals go a long way in paving the way to financial freedom. Not always, but mostly. Just a random thought. You probably knew this already though.
That pretty well covers everything a person needs to know.. Preparation is 90% of the process . Hands and eyes on from beginning to end... What a great video.
Mike you are an excellent interviewer. You’re very thorough and focused on the questions. Sean seems like a wonderful person with the best attitude for the Phillipines. I’m very happy for him. I personally am a minimalist and a slow traveler. I was the opposite and everything I carry is in a carry on so I can explore SE Asia. Thank you Mike.
I appreciate that! Some like to travel and travel light and enjoy the life they have. Others want to build a new home and enjoy life differently. Any way any thing you do just enjoy your life and be safe
Same here. I'll have a personal under-seat, and an overhead carry-on. I'm ok with starting from scratch and leave the USA life behind. I can see where not wanting to leave a lifetime of things behind and not wanting to buy it again.
Great interview Mike. He really brought what he needed. The lawnmower, washer and dryer, etc. Naturally, I’m wondering more about this man. Who is he, how did he retire young? He’s leaving a lot on the table by not contributing to SS all these years. What about his family? Does he have parents, siblings, how do you just pack up and leave them? I’m just inquisitive by nature.
I did the same. To get new goods are too much hassle in the Phil's. Suppliers locally are either overpriced or local stuff do not lasts!! Customs are not interested with used furnitures. I agree I detailed every box. I brought my memories of great life abroad which I worked hard for long years. I thank God for those.
The container thing is actually pretty clever, I thought about it myself.. If you bought one, you can keep it, and use it as workshop - and when there is Typhoon season, you have a very safe (compared to filipino housing) storm shelter next to the house. And, if you should move again, you just put everything in the container again.
Most of our personal items will be sent in a Balikbayan box on a cargo ship or in our luggage on the airplane. I see Sean’s point though. Often times you can’t get the same quality for furniture and appliances that you can get in the states. Although, they do have nice things at the S&R stores now so maybe the quality of goods available is starting to improve. As we don’t have a lot of high end furniture and appliances in the states, getting a container doesn’t make sense for us. We’ve been planning our move for several years now, so we’ve been trying to avoid making expensive purchases. Thank you to Sean for providing the information as it will help people to decide whether to get a container or not.
One thing you need to look out for with electronic appliances is the power supply. U.S. uses 120V while Philippines uses 240V, need to look at each appliance and make sure it is 120V/240V 50/60Hz. If it is then you can just use an adapter on the plug, if it's not (Only shows 120V 60HZ) then you'll need a transformer and that will drive the electric bill up a lot.
@@ejtaylor73 I know a guy that converted his entire house in the Philippines to 110 because he wanted to use appliances from here. I’ll have to ask him how much his electricity bill is.
My husband used balikbayan boxes when he moved here 6 years ago. He call it home now. We went there last year to visit his family for 6 weeks but on our 4th week he said i missed home which is the Philippines.
Been thinking about this. Fill a 40 foot shipping container & ship it. Better still, a tiny home built into a container that is also filled with my goods... I owned/operated a moving company back in 90's and can easily pack, load and negotiate shipment from A to B. However, $30K to ship my (8X9X40 container) entire actual house and personal belongings seems very well worth the price...
Been fantasizing about it for a couple of years. (tiny house built in ship container or ship container with tools & materials to build house - I'm a building contractor now and I used to own/operate a shipping/moving company back in the 90's) My first visit to Philippines/CEBU will be June 2024 - Been planning that for 2.5 years. Need to arrive & get a deeper plan together. @@mikesphilippineretirement
I know I am going somewhere when I retire. At first I thought "get rid of everything" then I thought. "hey I bought this stuff over the years because I had wanted, needed, found it useful etc" so I will just end up re-buying at lot of it. This video helped.
Oh my goodness! Thank you for the useful and good information. By the way, I am a new sub. Since we are moving to the Philippines in a few days for GOOD, we did our research also including for my husband's visa. We are also using shipping container. This interview gave me more detailed information regarding how to ship properly. Kudos to you Mr. Mike and Sean for the well informed interview. Yes, Mr. Sean is correct for those who are moving in/immigrating to the Philippines be patient and the key work is ADJUST. As a Filipina, I did the same thing coming over to the good Ole USA.
Different strokes for different folks, I came with a backpack and rented furnished places, once I settled in a area, I bought furniture, for $30k I could have bought a condo cash. Makes zero sense but hey good luck.
Wow, hes the 2nd person I watched in youtube that brought his stuff to Phil. Theres Filipino couple as well from California decided to move in Ilo-ilo. Same thing, get a shipping company and a reliable company that help them ship their dogs. It maybe expensive but i agree with him, thats why they had it planned for years, save the money.
@@mikesphilippineretirement yes, crazy. most people want to have less when they move to a different country. like downsize and have less material items. still an interesting story.
How could it be Crazy? I'm a retired Filipino living abroad, and I'm seriously considering shipping most if not all my personal belongings I accumulated for over 40 yrs that has meaningful value. Just call me Sentimental, who valued things that hold dearly to my life. New things don't mean anything until you possess it for a long period of time...
Really enjoyed this particular video Mike. Excellent job and great to see a man on a mission who's well clued up and sincere. Awesome Mike. Thank you for bringing this particular topic to us
I am glad that you had Shawn as a guest. I was always considering shipment but hesistant because it´s not easy to find valuable references for this kind of import. Much appreaciate and thank you for asking the good questions again. Also- once his family starts the housebuilding project, will they create a RU-vid channel for it? If this kind of question is not welcomed, just ignore it. I respect the rules even the unwritten ones :)
Interesting interview Mike. We are moving there next year and we are bringing some of our stuff but we're doing it two boxes at a time with the balikbayan box. And yup my husband is bringing the lawn mower and even the grill/smoker which he will start dismantling here in a couple of days since it's getting cooler here now and put it in balikbayan boxes. I know when we get there we will also have our house full of boxes waiting for us. I can tell Shawn is very excited to start their new life in the Philippines. So happy for them. Thanks Mike.
I can't wait to get rid of everything ! 17 acres and home, equipment, tools ect. Im bringing a couple suitcases of clothing and a bank account in America. I never want to be tied down again. 😜🤣
This is the way you want to go about it if you're going to go that way but me. I will sell everything I own in america.... If I was going to make the move. I don't think I would want to bring anything I got from America to another country. Maybe my car if anything. That's about it..... The house, the land and all the other products and the house. They can be sold off and exit. I'm gone LOL.,,,, But yeah, in my container would be my car. That's it, LOL.,,,,ohhh,,,,lol,,,,😂😂 Might as well think about buying a scooter too, might as well get that.😊😊 Then the exit is on...😂😂😂 But I'm not leaving without my social security. Not going to happen then I will Come....😅 I think I got Less than 18 months.
I live 2 hours from the port of Jacksonville FL so I can pack and drive what I want to bring once the time comes. My wife is friends with the company that shipped the balikbayan boxes so our price will be a lot less. Also, we do not need a 40 foot container for will sell most everything and start over. I will not need my tools, tool boxes or yard equipment for labor is cheaper. We look forward to down sizing.
Its good to have to system voltage (110v & 220v) especially having US 110v appliance. Ensure that the house service entrance (feeder to the building/house) is fed by a pole mounted transformer with a center tap (neutral), to properly obtain a 110v. Most service entrance in Philippines are line to line (220v) with ground/earth.
110volts is low for most USA motors. 117v to 120 v. For proper voltage.. motors on 110 v overheat quickly. 13 years in PH. . Best to leave electric stuff in USA and buy 240 v
Just a possible clarification to one of your closing statements. There is difference between values and attitudes. I would argue that traditional, western values are very sound and should accompany those who believe in and practice those values, wherever they might go or be. Attitudes should probably be adjusted to more easily transition to the society and culture in which some might find themselves. Apart from those thoughts, another good video...Thank you!
I tend to agree. There is nothing wrong with ‘western’ values, although in such multicultural countries as Canada and the US, there can be differences in values. For example, many cultures value education. Filipinos also highly value education. So nothing wrong with bringing that value. I think this comment was said light heartedly, not to be taken seriously. More than anything, don’t bring your western ‘baggage’ with you.
@@mikesphilippineretirement You can find them in Manila and Pampanga. Yes they are not cheap, but definitely not $29,000. My brother buys Dewalt brand in Pampanga. There are a lot of foreigner in Pampanga so businesses cater to them. Western products and food are available there.
It would cost more to buy everything here, I know that for a fact since we furnish condos and we spend much much more than that. Am sure all his furniture are good brands.
We just moved to Southern Leyte. After living in Singapore for over 20 years and accumulating lots why throw it or give away. Just over SGD 10k for the lot delivered and as a balikbyan no taxes. Some stuff to buy for our new house build but if you are not rich it’s worth the fun of packing and moving it. The dog a separate more difficult thing but sorted. Not a deal for single mingle folks.
I believed he did a lot of homework to do those things. Thats tedious but hope its worth it bringing all his stuff in Philippines. Good luck to him! Its amazing work!👍🇧🇭🇵🇭🙏 The last part is nice...after formalities in interview, you have a casual conversation!👍😊
We have been planning for three years.. purchased our lot.... in Batangas.... LIPA... we are using a 20' shiping container. We have been taveling to the Philippines every X'mass season, except 2020 due to COVID. We have mailed over 30 Balikbayan boxes to reduce our overall HHG volume due to the duty-taxes on HHG imported. With a SRRV we have a total cap of $7500.... All 30 BB boxes are already in-country.... This type of content is very informative for us. Especially since we are PCS'ng (Jun24)... We are retirng from the SF "Bay Area" California. I have three quotes, none of them exceed 8k.... but my packing is completed by me.... 24 years of military moving over seas and endless supply of information put out in YT, it only makes since.... anyway, thank you for the video format, very much appreciated.
This was the perfect video I was looking for regarding this subject. I am planning a similar shipping container move, but, to Palawan. This was very informative. Thank you for this !
You don’t need to be dual in order to buy a property. A former, natural-born Filipino can own a property in the Philippines, subject to limitations prescribed by Philippine Republic Act 8179. Residential property up to 1000 sq meters of urban land or one hectare of rural land.
Not the choice for me. I can replace things easily, and I tend to be a bit minimalist these days anyway. Not knocking his decision. Maybe those things are really important to him, but wow, I once put a 3 bedroom house into a storage shed and left it forever because I didn't want yo drive it 1500 miles. 😂
I arrived here in Dumaguete in Nov 2022. Sold everything but did bring my dog. It was a nightmare. He is a Rottweiler and 150 pounds. Cost me at least $6000. He didnt arrive in the best shape. Had an importer here that charged for everything once he got here. Would never bring a dog anywhere again. FYI
Nice, I would love to know what company he use, abd how much it cost for 20x40 Looking forward to build our home to just bought a land in Mindanao and were excited.
We will do the same thing coz my husband had a lots of tools to bring in the Philippines! I will bring some of my furniture to specially all my Knickknack from Japan.
Hi Your video bringing USA house hold goods. Our Cebu holiday home We shipped 20 feet container from New Zealand the main thing was I did not want hollow block kitchen. Sent Chinese made flat pack kitchen all new electric appliances Inc 5 aircons leather 3 pice loung. Separate boxes 15 balikbayn as well. Every item arrived and no damage. Used Crown Relocations door to door. Cebu customs were slow but the duty was reasonable. Interesting as we did similar shipped from New Zealand our power is 230 volts 50 hz. Cost including insurance USD ten thousand plus customs and extra cost for 3 week at cebu port shipping container hire. And cebu custom brokers fee. Would I do it again probably not.
Wrong info said by interviewee. Former/ex Filipinos can buy real estate in the Philippines without being dual citizens house and lot or residential/ agricultural land only but limited to 5K square meters for residential lots.
Could have just bought several step down transformers ( 220v to 110v) and place them by the outlet. Most of my tools are battery powered so I have charging station with transformer in workshop.
Thats 45k in Australian dollars, for the Philippines its a fortune. You must have patience and balls of steel to deal with the whole process. I just sold everything in Australia and brought my bank account. Sure the products sold here only last a few years. Like over 20 years we have had 5 rice cookers, 3 new king mattresses, changed cars 3 times, a whole stack of kettles, 2 microwaves, 2 ovens, 5 portable ovens, 4 printers, about 15 mobile phones, 3 vacuum cleaners, 3 water pumpers for flooding, 6 stereo units, 4 TVs, 3 fridges. Basically the heat, ants and humidity kills a lot of the electrical equipment over a short period of time. You can see this guy pays attention to detail coming from the US but that trait can bring you down there.
Good work. You guys mentioned shipping and insurance cost. How about the tax charge at the port? BTW. Sometimes the U.S. Philippines embassy conduct remote sessions for dual citizenship
A natural born citizen and becomes a U.S. citizen, you’ve given up your Phil. Citizenship. For $50 you can acquire dual citizenship. As a dual citizen you have all the right that a Filipino has. I am a dual citizen now.
Please protect your home where not home. Theft has been rising in the Philippines since COVID. Also, I hope this is permanent because 29k for moving is expensive to move back. And it probably will cost more. One positive point of bringing your furniture is that the build quality in the Philippines is poor. Have a safe and happy life in the Philippines.
I don't even know if I should say this but just the same voltage supply in Phil's is 220v so if you accidentally plug in a 110v device its going to be a little ugly.
I undesrstand that you bring your stuff to PH appliances are expensive here but make sure that you don't break your items because of wrong voltage. USA brands are 110 volts and most houses in the PH are 220 volts. You can have your house voltage have 220 and 110 volts. that's what we have in our house rather than buying converters
My husband and I did that too year 1990, and it was 40 foot container, with all of our stuff. We paid for the freight, and of course the fees in the customs... it was good, but was expensive.
The man had good sense to do that. Granted you can get a lot of the things you'll need there, but not everything. My famiy moved here and did the same thing. We packed all my art, books, antiques, family heirlooms, furniture, all our household goods, sheets and linens and so on, also cost us about 29,000. Usd. Unlike him though we built our house 🏠 here well in advance of arrival, 250 sq meters snd paid cash as we went. So mow we have a grand house 🏠 all paid off, a dependable car and motorcycle 🏍️ all paid off. All only major expense we have to deal with is food and electricity. It was yhe smartest thing I ever did. Can live on less then my modest SSI, can even set some aside. Every morning I rel ax in my porch as ask: "How are the other 74 million domestic terrorists are managing?" And close with "Thank God I got out when I did." Good luck to all you poor souls trapped in crazy "Bidenland."
I built a home in The Philippines when I was married and we had the home wired 120 and 220 for same reasons but to me we did not ship our stuff most stuff in usa is from china anyways but wish them the best
I understand if someone has high quality furniture and wants to keep it in the new country. However, I think the whole process is a waste of time and money. It is also possible to get good goods here in the Philippines. I once inquired about how much it would cost if I wanted to ship my motorhome from Germany to Davao. The costs for customs are far too high (in my case around 8,000 euros). That's why I gave up on it. These are certainly very personal decisions. But I did well emigrating to the Philippines with light luggage.
What shipping company did he use. can it be stored on the Philippine end for any amount of time and what might the storage fees be? Then what are the expenses to move it to any particular island?
They' should have just established a airbnb business in their hometown then start from scratch here in the philippines. 29k usd just a bit more and you could buy a decent lot in philippines.
DIY built my 3200sqft 2br house, 1month every year for 5 years. Built the double deep 2car garage witd BR and bath first to house the caretaker and storage for all my materials and tools. Shipped all my tools including jackhammer, air compressor, planer/joiner, bench top planer. table saw, miter saw, rebar cutter/bender, washer, dryer, welding machines, etc. etc. All thru Balikbayan boxes. Fr the beginning, the tools are hard to come by but lately most of my tools were readily available locally. If you already own your goods, yes, maybe worth to ship. But to buy and ship, recommend buy locally. Frames and artifacts with personal attachments definitely Shipped. Furniture, beds and cabinets, buy locally Thanks, Retired USN
Im making the move too but I m selling everything, I simply dont want to own anything anymore it just weighs you down. I want to be a minimalist because world war 3 is so close now and you need to be mobile, you might have to escape to south america if war breaks out in Asia
@@mikesphilippineretirement yes but they are all globalists including China and Russia and the Philippines and Taiwan are in the cross hair, the Phils is because of the new US bases being built there and their disputes in the Phillipine sea..
I'm selling everything and will hold on to my cash not only because of China, but also because of the civil war being foolishly stoked by many here in the U.S.
God i hope you answer this. I'm moving to Mindanao in a few months and have 2 old chi and a cat i need to move. I have a million questions. What airline is best for moving pets? Some have horrid reps. Cost, what pet certifications and how much do they cost? How hard is the certification to get?
Hello Mike, going to do same thing this veteran did. Is there any more information that could be provided about moving company/broker. Any information, even basic to help get me started. My pinay wife and I are 34 months out to retiring fully and headed to southern Luzon to grow old with her kids! You are one of the few vloggers that has consistently good, pertinent and useful content. Thank you for the work you do! Mike and Gina from Maryland…😂
@@mikesphilippineretirement Family relation does not matter. unless a person has Philippine blood in their body, they cannot own land. That's the way Philippine law is written.
