Six Highly Urbanized Cities With Homes Under Php1 Million

Wazzup Pilipinas!

These cities outside Metro Manila have what it takes to give you a spacious home that fits your one-million-peso budget.

Many assume that buying a home in a highly urbanized city (defined by the National Statistics Office as having a minimum population of 200,000 and an annual income of at least Php50 million) is expensive. But it looks like this is not the case. According to data from MyProperty.ph, the following are highly urbanized Philippine cities that boast urban yet laidback lifestyle, great culinary tradition, buoyant economies, and most importantly, affordable real estate.

DUMAGUETE CITY
Photo by Mike Gonzales via Wikimedia Commons

Dumaguete City, nicknamed the City of Gentle People, is located in the province of Negros Oriental. This city is accessible by air via Sibulan Airport (aka Dumaguete Airport), which is located in the general area of the city. If traveling by sea, it can be reached via daily ferry transportation to and from neighboring Cebu Province.

This city is also the home of Asia’s first American private university, Silliman University, which makes Dumaguete a popular college town in the Visayas region.

According to the 2014 Retire Overseas Index released by Live and Invest Overseas, Dumaguete is one of seven best places to retire in the world. The index, which was cited in an article published in Forbes magazine, singled out Dumaguete’s beaches, affordable real estate, and good health care facilities are major draws.

So if one plans to relocate in Dumaguete, he will be delighted to know that houses for sale in the city are some of the most affordable. MyProperty.ph data shows that depending on the area, a two-bedroom house may cost as low as Php410,000.

Most Sought After Location In The Philippines For Land

Wazzup Pilipinas!

If you own either a residential lot or a raw land and plans to sell it, then your property better be in Quezon City, Tagaytay, or Baguio to get as much inquiries as possible.

In a recent data analysis conducted by global property website Lamudi Philippines, these three cities, plus Davao and Antipolo, are the top five most searched by property-hunters researching land for sale online. Wrapping up the top 10 were Manila, Taguig, Pasig, and Dumaguete, with Las Piñas and Marikina tied at the 10th spot.

According to Lamudi, what is interesting about its latest data analysis is that half of the top 10 most searched cities are located outside Metro Manila. Tagaytay and Baguio are the second and third most searched cities, respectively, and many of those researching about available land for sale in these areas are probably real estate companies looking for potential new areas to develop, or private buyers looking for available lots to build their own vacation homes. Tagaytay and Baguio are both tourist hotspots popular during the summer and Christmas seasons.

On the other hand, Davao and Antipolo are cities with high population (1.45 million and 677,740 as of 2010, respectively), and both are popular with buyers looking to buy land on which to build their home. Ninety-five percent of all land for sale in Antipolo listed in Lamudi are residential lots, while in Davao it is 67 percent.

Michelin and Nissan Secure Fourth GT500 Title in Five Years

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The N°1 NISMO-run Motul Nissan GT-R were forced to start the Motegi GT 250Km Race, final round of Japan’s 2015 Super GT Championship, from 12th on the grid after an extremely wet qualifying session. Even so, drivers Ronnie Quintarelli and Tsugio Matsuda were determined to finish at least fifth and, above all, ahead of the N°12 car (Yasuda/De Oliviera) which began the weekend with a three-point advantage over the Nissan squad in the Teams’ standings and two points clear in the Drivers’ classification.

Prior to the start, the staff at NISMO and its partner Michelin Motorsport were tense and extremely focused on their mission since success in Super GT is as much a question of prestige as it is an indication of technical supremacy. It is this that drives the Japanese makes and the four world class tyre brands which are active in the championship to dedicate such significant technological resources to the series.

Despite facing competition from three local tyre makers, Michelin has risen to the challenge in style in recent years to claim three of the past four titles, including the 2014 crown with NISMO and Quintarelli/Matsuda.

The track was wet and the weather overcast for the start of this year’s Motegi GT 250Km Race but brighter sky was visible on the horizon and the local forecasters predicted sunshine before the chequered flag. As a result, the crews faced a mixed bag of conditions, making tyre versatility a potentially crucial factor which boosted Michelin’s hopes of a strong result.