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Camella Homes

Discussion in 'Expat Section' started by Laceman, Sep 10, 2017.

  1. Laceman

    Laceman DI Junior Member Veteran Air Force Army

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    Thinking of buying a home in one of their subdivisions. Any experiences or opinions to share. Not necessarily about Camella but any builders of homes in subdivisions here in the Philipines. Concerned mostly about quality of build and honesty in their transactions. Thanks.
     
  2. hawk263

    hawk263 DI Forum Adept Blood Donor Veteran Army

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    I looked at a couple of subdiv developments when I first arrived, 6 years ago. The plots were tiny - I figured I'd need to buy 3 or 4 plots to have anything like a garden. The rooms were also pretty small. I can't really comment on build quality, but some of the doors I saw were very poor quality. I would definitely consult an attorney before signing anything.
     
  3. Dave_Hounddriver

    Dave_Hounddriver DI Forum Luminary Highly Rated Poster

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    3 expats I know have homes in Tiera Alta subdivision. The lots are bigger than most. The quality of build is better than most, and yet they still complain it is not up to western standards. The builder is Phil South and they have other subdivisions for the lower end market at places like Azumi subdivision and a few others. In my opinion they are as good as it gets for local, mass produced subdivision houses. There are a handful of western builders who do private contracts to build you a house but they are hard to find, expensive, and usually overbooked already if they are good.

    My opinion of Camella is "low end builders" based on chats with others who have bought from them.
     
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  4. OP
    OP
    Laceman

    Laceman DI Junior Member Veteran Air Force Army

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    Thanks.
     
  5. Dr. Shiva

    Dr. Shiva DI Senior Member

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    Something I would like to know is the quality of condos in the Philippines. Because they are much more expensive than houses with lots. For that prices we could expect much higher quality. But I fear that this seems not to be true.
     
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  6. DELETED-shotshapers

    DELETED-shotshapers Guest Guest User

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    Don't waste your money on those sort of buildings, those sub division are going to be the ghettos of the future, quality of those dwellings are poor poor, and nothing will be maintained once the builders have left, philippine standard houses are very very small indeed, if you were a single man, then maybe would be for you, most of those units will be purchased with Pag-ibig, and no picking your neighbors........would suggest buying a single property with one fence, pay the extra, will be easier to sell too if and when the time comes, especially if you fancy yourself as a bot of a gardener
     
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  7. Dutchie

    Dutchie DI Senior Member Showcase Reviewer Veteran Army

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    If you consider buying a house anywhere in the Philippines, there are many pitfalls.
    • Even to the layman's eye it is pretty obvious that many Filipino's either don't appreciate good quality finish in a house (meaning windows, kitchen, bathroom) or they've never seen something beyond mediocre quality finish.

    • Builders just want to build cheap and fast, so they can sell at "market price" and still make a nice profit. The apparent lack of building standards in the Philippines makes it easy for builders to cut corners while building and use low quality materials.

    • Will buyers have a say before/during the building phase, can they opt for other than standard finish.
    • When buying in a subdivision, pay attention to things beyond your own house and lot.
      • How is rainwater dealt with, is there a proper drainage system
      • Has a Home Owners Association been established and does the Association own the roads/streetlights inside the subdivision.
      • Will there be guards / wall around the entire subdivision.
      • How high will the monthly "subdivision dues" be.
    • I won't touch on legal pitfalls of buying real estate, plenty information around about those.
     
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  8. Dr. Shiva

    Dr. Shiva DI Senior Member

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    There are many good books about real estates and its many traps available. Check your book store. One recommentation goes to the books from Edward L. Tan.
     
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  9. ChMacQueen

    ChMacQueen DI Forum Patron Highly Rated Poster Showcase Reviewer Veteran Army

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    I'd avoid Camella like a plague. However many of these subdivisions are trash as well unless your in an upper/rich class one then potentially difference. Camella however are very shoddy builders as far as wiring, plumbing, and other materials. You can't buy lots and build your own house anymore and it MUST be one of their builds. Every room is very small as is the lot. I've asked multiple times if I did buy a Camella House if I could change the interior layout so when built I'd have fewer rooms but they would be bigger and the kitchen and living room would be bigger and they say only after its paid off in full however their would likely be structural issues making that very difficult.

    Like said though most of these subdivisions when built may look nice day #1 but after sold no more repairs happen and very few owners maintain their houses. Within 5 years its like a ghetto and you may not even have that security guard anymore because half the owners aren't paying association fee's anymore or those fee's walk off.
     
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  10. Dr. Shiva

    Dr. Shiva DI Senior Member

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    I saw once someone selling his Camella (I'm not 100% sure about that) house for 4 Mio PHP. The buying price was around 2.5 Mio PHP for the same model. But the worst thing was, that the house was in a bad condition. Several walls had big (!) cracks fixed with cement. Not every Camella house have to be in a such shoddy condition. (Seller is crazy to ask for 4 M for a shoddy house.)
     
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