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I've been debating between going to Vietnam or The Philippines for at least a few months. The plus to Vietnam is apartment rentals are easy and cheap (~300/month for a nice 1BDR) and the plus to Philippines is the girls have way better English ability. The problem I'm finding is that there aren't many good options for foreigners wanting to rent an apartment by the month. All the places I find require you to; stay minimum 1 year, pay a hefty security deposit, pay first and last months rent, etc. and it all becomes quite pricey for such a poor country.

Am I looking in the wrong places? Vietnam is simple, no extra fees, minimum stays, very cheap. The Philippines seems like a headache when it comes to renting.

Can anyone point me in the right direction? I am looking into Davao or some city in the area, and not coming up with much options.

collide wrote:I've been debating between going to Vietnam or The Philippines for at least a few months. The plus to Vietnam is apartment rentals are easy and cheap (~300/month for a nice 1BDR) and the plus to Philippines is the girls have way better English ability. The problem I'm finding is that there aren't many good options for foreigners wanting to rent an apartment by the month. All the places I find require you to; stay minimum 1 year, pay a hefty security deposit, pay first and last months rent, etc. and it all becomes quite pricey for such a poor country.

Am I looking in the wrong places? Vietnam is simple, no extra fees, minimum stays, very cheap. The Philippines seems like a headache when it comes to renting.

Can anyone point me in the right direction? I am looking into Davao or some city in the area, and not coming up with much options.

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If Davao is your target city in Phils. it's quite easy. There are cheap places which will rent to you month by month (like under US$250), just ask Will N. Dowd. I even found daily place in an excellent location with modern A/C rooms for just US$13 a day!

from my research in the past online there are apartments with no contract or only 6 months but the less of a contract the more likely they will be more expensive per month and/or require 2 or 3 months worth of rent up front. kind of a bad rap since you may not like the place or have a problem there as a foreigner in a strange country.



thats why ive always opted for te hotel option cause i dont want to deal with searching for an apartment for the right place, signing contracts or paying money upfront, and paying utilities, and dealing with nosy or weird neighbors and not being able to leave easily or even switch rooms.

so i just stay at a hotel that charges me a reasonable rate. I factor in everything and its about the same cost as a furnished apartment anyways but much better since it doesn't have the draw backs above. only drawback is they wont have a kitchen and most wont allow cooking so youll need to get a stove and cook in private, i clean the room myself.

try airbnb.com they rent by month an days.....good luck

also, sulit.co.ph..they have monthly rentals without deposits

Thanks for the info. If anyone is interested, I found this: http://junanddellapartment.com/

$400 USD per month for a room with no deposit or security fees. Pretty good deal I guess, but I have a feeling since it's aimed at foreigners they are probably overcharging. The rooms are really small. I don't want to stray off topic too much, but look at the kinds of apartments you can get in Vietnam for $300 a month: http://cvr.com.vn/?q=search/viewGallery

I would have expected the same from Philippines. I'm still leaning towards Philippines just because of the English level there.

The old adage is just as true in PI as in the US. It often depends on how desirable a city and neighborhood is. Just as in ur home country you have to shop. A friend just rented a fairly large, secure nice apt. With aircon in Dumaguete for under $200. Another guy I know rents a house juSt off the beach in provincial Cebu for $200.

If u want a deal, online may not be the best way. BTW, plenty of people will be flexible on the price and terms also.

Expat sites for apartments will overcharge. $400 is too much unless it's a luxurious apartment. You have to have locals find deals for you. Then you can get closer to local prices. Have you tried Sulit.com.ph? It's a popular Filipino marketplace website in English and may have more reasonable prices.

I'm interested in this same topic. But only for Manila & possibly Angles -- or however it's spelt -- City.