Life requires changes and perhaps you are in a situation where your existing home no longer suits your family, your lifestyle or your wallet. Purchasing your second home can be a crucial step to long-term prosperity. As you know, a home can be a wonderful investment that provides enormous financial gains as well as additional benefits, and a good home purchase can truly provide a savings plan that you simply cannot get when you are renting. Whether purchasing your second home means buying a bigger house, acquiring a condominium or simply moving to a new area, as a seasoned home buyer you know the importance of making the right choices now to save you money in the future.

Should you continue to rent or consider buying your own home? Deciding which is right for you requires careful consideration. While apartment living may have become tiresome, and you may be sick of paying out money to live when you could be investing in a nice home, the freedoms and joys associated with home ownership need to be weighed against the financial costs or gains. The truth is that purchasing a home is probably going to require going into debt. And, it is also going to mean taking all or part of your nest egg and using it to make a down payment.

To make a sound financial decision on whether to continue to rent or to buy, the first step is to determine whether you have enough cash on hand to make a down payment of at least 5%. Next, youll want to calculate all the additional fees and costs associated with purchasing a home. These costs include origination fees, property taxes, closing costs, maintenance or association fees, sales commission costs and if applicable, mortgage insurance. Once you have this information gathered, youll want to combine it with the purchase price, interest rate, the term of the loan, expected home appreciation and inflation rates. Once you have a clear picture of what buying a home would mean in terms of financial gain, youll want to measure that against the cost or gain of staying in an apartment. In other words, if you took the same amount required for closing and down payments and invested or saved them instead, how would your financial gain look when compared to making an investment in a new home?

As time has gone on, the value of your home has probably gone up, and this gives you access to equity that you can use when making your new home purchase. This means you are in a solid position to purchase a new home. And, if your income has also increased during this time then you can also look at accelerated repayment options to additional savings to your purchase. So, depending on your circumstances, now may be the time to consider purchasing a new home to ensure you are getting the most value for your money.

While there is probably never a bad time to buy the right house, it is vital that you take the time to careful consider your finances if you want to make sure that you do get the best buy. One of the keys to making a good second investment is finding the right mortgage to fit your circumstances. Whether you are looking at a fixed, variable or convertible mortgage, what you want to know is that youre getting a competitive rate from a reputable agent or broker .

As someone who lives down south of Metro Manila (think 1.5 hours stuck in the van or car when traffic is bad, and 3 hours when it”s just horrible), I”ve often found myself thinking of renting out a condominium unit in Makati, since the biggest and probably busiest business district in Manila today is Makati (although Bonifacio Global City is giving Makati a run for its money).

Often, to get to a decision I would write down the pros and cons of making such a move, so before I do jump the bandwagon and live out on my own, let”s list down the WHYs and WHY Nots of such decision shall we?

Why Not?
Because living alone in a big city is scary. And you”ve never tried living alone
Counter: but this will teach me independence which in the long run will build character.

Why Not?
May be expensive “” especially with the rental rate of most condominium units in Makati

Counter: renting out is not an option really, it”s better to buy or rent to own “” and there are a lot of condominium units and/or real estate properties in Makati allowing such terms.

Why Not?
Because you”d be living alone and security cannot always be relied upon
Counter: but Ayala Land, one of the biggest developers in the Philippines, promises and follows through on its promise of safe & secure living in its abodes. Should you ever doubt that? Hmm, don”t think so.

Now, for the WHYs…

Why?
Because living in Makati will make it easier for you to go to work, especially if you work in Makati. In fact, even if you do work somewhere up north, you”ll always be opposite the traffic rush during the morning. Most people go to Makati “” while you, if you work in Ortigas, will have an easier time since you”ll be going out of the city.

Also, remember, it takes you a while to get up in the morning, and since you”re not a morning person, living in Makati will give you more time to spend on yourself. Maybe now you can eat breakfast. Maybe now you won”t always be late for work!

Why?
Because investing NOW is better than later. You won”t be asking or scolding yourself why you didn”t invest now. What to invest in? How about a condominium unit? If you don”t want to live anymore in Makati you can always sell it or rent it out.

Why?
Proximity to most cities in the Metro. You are just a 15-30 minutes away from other business districts. And night spots. And malls. And what girl doesn”t love to go to the mall (whether it”s for buying or just window shopping). The metropolis is your oyster and it”s just a few steps away from your condominium!

I know there are various reasons to buy and not to buy a condominium unit in Makati. In fact, I can think of a few more but the ones above are the most salient points.

According to many experts, condominiums are known as some of the best types of housing in the Philippines today, particularly in today’s modern competitions. The reason why is because of its many benefits which can easily conform to what is in-demand in today’s modern trends and lifestyles. Here are some of those benefits:

Accessibility to Business and Commercial Districts One reason why condominiums had gained a lot of popularity in the Philippine market is because of the luxury of accessibility that these types of modern housings are known to offer for modern Filipinos.

Most condominiums in the Philippines are found in business and commercial districts, such as in Makati City, Eastwood, Ortigas Center, and many other popular business and commercial districts in Metro Manila. Its location made it easier for its residents to access their workplaces and businesses while avoiding the usual hassles of rush hour both in the morning as well as in the afternoon. This made condominiums a popular home for executives as well as business owners.

Maintainability, Security, and Facilities of Condominiums Another reason why condominiums had gained a lot of popularity is because of its collection of amenities. Condominiums, according to many experts, became popular because of its own maintenance and security personnel that assure their residents that their living spaces are properly maintained while ensuring them of their safety within the compound.

In addition to that, condominiums can also offer a number of luxuries facilities that made these types of Philippines properties for sale even more popular and unique, such as swimming pools, gyms, and sports complexes.

Other than just luxuries, these facilities can also help in relieving the stresses of their residents through swimming, working out, as well as through sports.

New Payment Terms There are also a number of new condo Philippines today that can offer residents a new payment term that made these modern types of housings even more popular. This is because many of these new condominiums can now be bought and paid in installment, making it more cost-efficient compared to renting in an apartment unit.

Condominiums for Families Other than in the city, there are also a number of condominiums which are found in the outskirts of Metro Manila. These types of condominiums are known as condominium complexes, and part of what made these types of condominiums popular is with its environment and facilities, which is much more appropriate for growing children.

High Rise Condominiums (HRCs) can be defined here in Center City Philadelphia as buildings between ten and thirty stories tall. There are a number of options for that buyer here in town- from the existing buildings, to a slew of new construction projects already under way. The primary benefit of an HRC that most buyers will hone in on is security. Generally speaking, a twenty-four hour front door man is on premises to insure some type of buffer between residents and the street. A doorman also helps to take delivery of packages, and someone to make sure that guests are announced prior to arriving at your doorstep. So HRCs with their sense of security are certainly a selling point for many buyers in town. Also, many buyers choose high rises because on the higher floors views can be very nice. For those who travel a great deal, HRC living can be just the ticket as the building does maintain itself regardless of one’s presence. In addition, many HRC buyers see their living situation as being one that is fully managed: from hallway cleaning, to building maintenance, these buyers prefer to have it all done for them. For a price higher condo fee, they see this trade off as a positive benefit.

HRCs tend to have higher condo fees because they have more services. They tend to have the doorman, the elevator, the elevator man, the parking garage, the parking garage attendant, and some even return your videos and walk your dogs. Most of the time, HRCs are -full amenity buildings,- meaning parking, swimming pools, community rooms, ATMs, restaurants, barbershops, drugstores, etc. So the convenience of a high rise certainly makes it attractive for a lot of buyers. A lot of buyers aren’t interested in paying these high condo fees however warranted or justified they may be for the services that the building provides. A number of other buyers may not like the individuality, or the architectural elements or details, in some of the newer high rise buildings. Additionally, sometimes pet policies can keep people out of HRCs, as in most of the big high rises do not allow dogs. High condo fees, lack of individuality, and pet restrictions could be considered drawbacks to HRCs.

Examples of high rises in Center City can be found in two popular squares – Rittenhouse Square and Washington Square – and lately we’ve seen a lot pop up in Old City and the Art Museum area as well. The -newness- is another appeal for buyers in Philadelphia for two reasons: the newness itself, and also because the newer buildings benefit from the ten-year tax abatement. And the newer buildings all seem to be offering available parking with the units (usually at an extra cost). Some high rise buildings are exclusive in nature. Marked by a majority of larger sized units, some of the HRC’s have no studio units and a severely numbered amount of one bedroom units. These buildings have a tendency to be higher priced in nature, and generally in very strong perceived locations. Other HRC’s have a general mix of studio, one and two bedroom units. It should be no surprise that these buildings are generally lower in dollar per square foot prices, and cater to the -masses- as far as unit availability is concerned.

High rise living is very popular with a fair number of condo buyers. And will continue to be attractive as some of our lives become more complicated, mobile, are shared between (for some of us) more than one place where we call -home-.

Several weeks ago, Scott Jacobson published an article in Slate on “The All-Kale Diet: Kale of Duty.” Although intended as a bit of humor, there is much to recommend this vegetable to everyone interested in good health.

The first great reason; Kale or borecole is a form of cabbage, albeit closer to wild cabbage than the cultivar and is arguably one of the healthiest vegetables known. 250 grams [about one cup] of kale contains approximately 5 grams of fiber [13% of RDA], 102 mg of Vitamin C [142% of RDA], 179 mg of calcium [17% of RDA], 2,037 micrograms of Vitamin K [1925% of RDA, and the list goes on and on.

The second great reason; Clinical studies, as reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, have shown that generally speaking, an increase in consumption of vegetables lower the risk of chronic diseases, or at least minimally slow their onset. Studies have also indicated that a diet rich in Vitamin K, such as kale, can significantly reduce the overall risk of cancer. Additionally, other studies show that diets that include foods in the brassica group, such as broccoli, cabbage and kale can support elimination of toxic estrogens. These estrogens, found in plastics and pesticides, are the kinds that promote breast cancer. These health benefits seem to be very good reason for increasing ones consumption of kale.

The third reason, kale is easy to grow and has an extended growing season. Kale is, of course, available in your neighbourhood grocery store and farmers market, but growing your own is also very easy. If you have a garden, it can be one of the first seeds you sow in the spring and one of the last crops you can harvest in the fall. Even in the heat of summer, if you have a protected area in your yard, kale could be grown, but it does like the cooler weather best. If you live in an apartment or condominium with space at a premium, you could grow enough in a window box or pots to have it with a meal once or twice a week. If shopping for kale, look for firm, darkly coloured leaves and stems; leaves range from dark green to red. It will keep for up to five days in a refrigerator in plastic bags as air tight as you can get them.

The fourth great reason is eating more is so easy. Kale can be eaten raw by simply cutting it up and adding it to your green salad. We like it with heavier salad such as taco salad where we have added black beans and meat. Kale can be cooked like spinach, chopped and added to soups or stews or it can be roasted with salt and pepper and eaten like chips. Getting a bit more ambitious, it goes great in eggs, with quiche, or in a stir fry. My friend adds baby kale along with fresh fruit to her good morning smoothie to power up her day. Our Kale is just about ready to pick and so are the strawberries, so where is that blender? Yum!