Stop buying the skyline. Buy the title.
The Philippines gives a foreigner what Vietnam and Bali won't: real, perpetual, in-your-name ownership of the unit — a CCT, no clock. But you can't own land, and foreign ownership is capped at 40% of a project. The math the brochure skips. $39 instant PDF. No email gate.
Price in USD · local tax added at checkout (e.g. 10% AU GST)
Buying more than one market? All four playbooks — $99 →
The Receipts
What this Playbook is built on.
// Deal Walkouts
3 live walkouts: a Bay Area oversupply unit, a BGC trophy, a Cebu Business Park long-let. Which one survives the math.
Inside the PlaybookProject Foreign Cap
40%
Verify Before You Reserve
Sections
8
All Math Written Out
The Deliverable
What’s in the $39 Playbook.
8 sections. Every formula written out. Built for the foreign buyer underwriting a Philippine condo — not the brochure browser.
01 · Why the Philippines isn’t Thailand, Bali or Vietnam. Perpetual CCT unit ownership in your name. No land, ever. The 40% project cap. The one model the other three can’t match.
02 · The 5-step underwriting framework. Pull, purge, deduct, overlay, score. A wall of listings filtered down to the one or two that survive.
03 · The cost stack. Every line the headline price hides — including the new-vs-resale 12% VAT swing and the negotiated 6% capital-gains line.
04 · The legal traps. The full 40% cap, title verification at the Registry of Deeds, the DHSUD License to Sell, and the anti-dummy nominee trap — each as a diligence checkpoint.
05 · 3 live deal walkouts. A Bay Area oversupply unit, a BGC trophy, a Cebu Business Park long-let. Two kills, one close. Every step shown.
06 · Yield math, vacancy & currency. Gross asking vs net to your account. Vacancy assumptions, the AUD/PHP exposure on a long hold — modeled, not assumed.
07 · Money in / money out. The BSP registration that is the repatriation key — why the money-out plan must be built before the money goes in.
08 · The region scout. Metro Manila, Cebu, Clark and Davao — where the framework points, and what changes city to city.
The Numbers
The Philippine Condo Net Yield Math.
The brochure quotes gross. The bank account pays net. The cost stack is where the gap lives — and where the VAT swing hides.
// The deduction stack · numbers worked twice in the PDF
The PDF works the stack twice on the same BGC unit — bought new off-plan vs bought resale — so the VAT swing is visible in the net.
// Three questions you’re already asking
Read this before you click.
Is this AI-generated?
No. I read the legislation first — the Constitution, the Condominium Act, the amended lease law. Then I underwrote the listings. AI cannot stand at a Registry of Deeds.
Not in the Philippines yet?
The framework is region-agnostic. Section 08 covers Metro Manila, Cebu, Clark and Davao — where the math points and what changes city to city.
What qualifies you?
Independent researcher. No commission, no affiliate, no developer pay. The PDF is the only thing I sell.
// Ladder Up
Want me to apply this to your shortlist?
Playbook = framework. Custom Report = framework worked on your specific units, your budget, every cost-stack line and the 40% cap checked.
See the Custom Report — $339// The standard behind it
The same underwriting that filtered 1,000+ listings down to the ones that survive the math — pointed at the Philippine condo market.
18 months of research. The legislation read before the listings. Independent, commission-free, sold direct. Verified-buyer reviews appear here as they land on Gumroad.
The Philippines Property Buyer's Playbook
8 sections. Every formula written out. The CCT and the 40% cap, the 5-step framework, the cost stack with the VAT swing, the legal traps, 3 walkouts, the yield math, the BSP money-out, and the region scout.
// Instant PDF · 7-Day Guarantee · USD price · + local tax (e.g. 10% AU GST)
FAQ
Other questions
Can a foreigner really own property in the Philippines?
A foreigner can own a condominium unit outright and perpetually, evidenced by a Condominium Certificate of Title (CCT) in their own name — but not land, and only up to 40% of any single project's floor area. Section 01 walks the model in full, with the three land-access routes and what none of them is.
What is the 40% cap, and why does it matter first?
Foreign ownership across a whole project cannot exceed 40% of its floor area. If a building is already at the cap when your transfer reaches the registry, the CCT cannot issue in your name. Section 04 makes “confirm the headroom in writing before any reservation fee” the first checkpoint — a buyer-diligence step, not a country critique.
How do I get my money back out?
Section 07 is money in / money out. The key is registering the inbound funds with the BSP at the time the money goes in — that registration is what underpins an orderly repatriation later. The exit plan is built before the entry, not after.
Is this legal advice?
No. Independent research only. Engage a licensed local lawyer and your accountant, and verify title at the Registry of Deeds, before any closing.
// The research behind the Playbook — free
- Buying a condo in the Philippines as a foreigner — the full reality check
- The 40% foreign cap, explained
- The Anti-Dummy Law — why workaround structures fail
- The CCT — the title document that matters
- Philippines condo yield: gross vs net
- The 5-step due-diligence framework
- BGC, underwritten
- Makati, underwritten
- The free SE Asia Ownership Map (PDF)