The condo lifestyle is one of sheer convenience. Condominiums are generally situated in a central location so you’re bound to have everything you’ll need within walking distance. In fact, you might even be lucky to have everything you need within the compound because many condominium developments offer a mix of residential and commercial spaces for rent in Manila. Whatever your reasons may be for choosing to live in a condo in the Philippines, it really has so much to offer in improving how you live from day to day. The only real downside to opting for condo living over traditional real estate in the Philippines is that it could get expensive. You do get what you pay for, after all. Still, this doesn’t mean that living within a more modest budget is impossible in a condo in the Philippines. Tweak a few things in your lifestyle and you’ll be so surprised at how much you can save you’ll be wishing you did this sooner.
The independence quotient
With close family ties deeply ingrained in the general Filipino population, it is not unusual for many not to leave the nest until they are building a family of their own. Many would even choose to stay at home and grow their family where they grew up. This is why choosing to be on your own deserves its own merit. You’re stepping outside of your comfort zone as it is so pat yourself on the back for getting as far as avoiding condo buyer mistakes and landing a good unit to live in. But even when you’re ready to be on your own, if you’re like many Filipino children, you may not exactly know how to do that. It’s a wake-up call for a lot of “independent” young adults because it’s only then that they realize how truly cared for they were when they were still living with their families. But don’t worry! Anything is possible if you put your mind into it. It may take some easing into but you will have to learn how to do everything yourself if you want to survive living in lifestyle homes.
Hallmarks of adulthood
Now that you’ve mustered the will to be independent and rely solely on yourself, here are two main areas that will require your attention:
Your food
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You need food to survive. Period. If you must cut back on costs, cut back on something else. No one should be subsisting off instant ramen. That’s for college kids! Sure, you can maybe do that in a week, but you’ll eventually ruin your health and that may end up costing you more than what your good condo unit did. The solution? Prepare your own food. Before you start lamenting that you have zero cooking skills, know that you can make your own food without actually involving any form of fire or heat. That at least should effectively prevent you from burning down your unit. You will need a refrigerator though and a bunch of online recipes. Preparing your own food, even if it’s just sandwiches and salads, will dramatically cut off a chunk of the money you spend eating out in restaurants so you’re going to start to see the savings trickling in. Sandwiches and salads are extremely easy to make and you use just the ingredients you like so they’re always customized to suit your tastes. Not to mention that you’ll also be cutting back on preservatives and processed food items so you should be able to see your weight drop as well without endangering your health.
Your bills
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At some point, you may have wished that bills simply paid themselves. Bills are perpetual reminders of your real estate lifestyle responsibilities so you don’t exactly roll out the red carpet when they arrive. Still, you have to be mindful of your bills so as to prevent inconvenience in the future. Bills normally arrive every month so just take note of billing cycles so you’ll know when one is arriving. If you don’t want to concern yourself with keeping tabs on when your bills will arrive, plus to save on the hassle of paying for them, you can enroll your utility bills online for automatic payments. These are done on a schedule so you can trust your bills will be paid exactly when they have to and you only need to trouble yourself with an initial setup to make this happen. Aside from fulfilling your role as a responsible adult, paying your bills in time will also let you save on extra costs because you get to avoid surcharges and reconnection fees.
The art of budgeting
With a good idea where your money should be going, you can now get started on making a condo budgeting basic checklist. Your aim is simple: do not go beyond your set budget. To make way for emergencies, set aside money for miscellaneous expenses. You are also free to move around money if you have to. Scored a grocery deal? What you saved on your weekly grocery trip can go towards your bill (or that lovely pair of shoes you’ve been eyeing!), for example. Just as long as you don’t spend more than what you can afford, that would be great. To make sure you save money, automatically deduct a portion of your budget so you already have something set aside before you even start spending. Need to buy something for the condo? Turn to a condo lifestyle magazine for tips and hacks on how you can use alternatives to save on costs.
Living it up
Condominiums are essentially built with lifestyle communities in mind. They’re not just places you go home to sleep in; they’re places you can live in. Living in a condo forces you to live in a certain way so you have to learn to adapt to make it work. Fortunately, it isn’t as hard as it sounds. Yes, depending on your personal ways, you may have to do a lot of work to get used to the independence and the responsibilities of a condominiums lifestyle, but it will be all worth it in the end. Let living in a condo empower you to grow to become a person you (and your parents) can be proud of.
