A VISIT TO HENRY & MELISSA'S HOUSE (House Building in the Philippines)

Today, as promised, we visit with Henry & Melissa (Magapi-Balete, Batangas). If you remember, Henry & Melissa were the very first to visit at Villa Feliz. The friendly couple give us a tour of their lovely house as well as a chat on their experiences during the build.
Music:
Title: Done Running
Title: Big Screen
Title: TFB9

[@itorapadas]

One of most beautiful houses on youtube that was built by an expat in the Philippines. Congrats to Henry and Melissa!

[@thewholeworldisbeautiful]

He can be kick out of that house and land at anytime.

[@yolandac5936]

Henry and Melissa's house is built for a big family and it appears they're just starting a family. James and Ness are empty nesters and yet their house is big. Both houses are impressive. Thanks for sharing!

[@JEDI938]

What a beautiful home Henry and Mellisa! Drone shot was exceptional!

[@rasputinswalloper475]

It's a magnificent house, it just needs the help of an interior decorator to fill the spaces and make it feel a bit warmer. I love the pool and beautiful gardens. And congratulations on the new baby.

[@totsysmith4640]

That house need nothing in it !! They have a young child, who need all the space

[@roselee4445]

I'd say Norwegian likes open type

[@valentinoreyes2960]

The most beautiful house I ever seen so simple and clean not over loaded with decorations...

[@Val2073]

Impressive house. It looks like it has everything I want in a home. Love the pool and all the brick landscaping.

[@villasisbacag]

You never cease to amaze me. I can’t wait to go house searching in the Philippines. Keep the videos coming!

[@nondompom]

Lovely vlog. Lovely people. Europe meets America, meets Asia. The open plan house has a fabulous feel to it, the open staircase being the spine. It's good to hear about the positives and the negatives. This helps people like myself, when it comes to building our own places. The house is beautiful. Well done. Thanks for allowing us to peak around. Salamat

[@travelbugmimi7560]

Hey James and Ness! Your friend’s house is big and also beautiful, but I still prefer your home as it has personality and very cozy. But both homes are unique in their own ways. As the saying goes, “to each their own

[@Zyxwvutsrq]

Stunning place! Almost a sanctuary surrounded by beautiful lush greenery- visited Batangas for the first time last year and absolutely should have paid attention to the houses on the trip to Anilao (Mabini). Kudos to the very well produced video!

[@tessbolella8743]

Beautiful homes! My parents are from Tanauan, Batangas. I just retired and plan to visit soon. We still have our vacation home in Balele, Tanauan and a few hectares of what used to be coconut plantation and orchard. My sisters and I are planning to sell them since we have no plans of retiring in the Phils. All our children and grandchildren are deeply rooted in the U.S. and we do not see any of them wanting to live there. However, I do love watching you guys build your dream homes.

[@MyPIDream]

Thanks for the comment Tess. We had our choice of where to call home for retirement and for us, the Philippines was the answer. Mainly because we our retirement funds go much further here and it just seems much less stressful than our life in the US. To each his/her own I say. Good luck and thanks again for watching and commenting!

[@asandmyfil-amhubby9666]

One of the comment's i read that this house is oe of the most beautiful i agree it mesmerized me Thank you for sharing

[@aleksandr678]

You can plant any fruit tree in the ground except apples. 😅 You can only find high quality orange seedlings in North Luzon in my Province. The Province (Nueva Vizcaya) is the best producer of citrus/orange in the country. The rootstock sprouts any kind of orange. There is another rootstock today that when grown is only as tall as a human. This is called Trifoliate.

[@josefinacanullas8636]

Wow congrats to you Mam Mel and Sir Henry your so much bless 💖 So beautiful and wide space house.

[@lovelymom3389]

What a beautiful house! I like the sprawling loan and the pool so cool. A blessed couple Henry and Melissa. Their house is like a hotel. Areal view is amazing! Thanks James and Ness for sharing your friends' house.

[@Cons2911]

Lovely house. Each have their own charm. I like the garden as you have a variety of fruits too. This house is big wow

[@winkystreegan6244]

Whoa! so spacious! I love this house it's so classy...the garden is huge like a leg in golf..what a gorgeous home. .. Im so jealous ...she's so lucky to have a husband build her a house like that..

[@alexlovesusagreecephilippi7599]

I am not sure whether your viewers know this... Lipa is near Tagaytay which is one of the foremost tourist attraction spots in the Philippines! Gorgeous mountaintop views in Tagaytay, many early morning bicycle riders going uphill or downhill taking in the stunning views or the dreamy morning mist of earthy paradise. Great cow’s milk and meat (=bulalo in Tagalog) in Tagaytay too! Be a little wary though of the ever-present threat of a volcanic eruption from nearby Taal volcano (=second most active volcano in the Philippines). In any event as some of your viewers noted foreigners (non Filipinos) are not allowed to buy land... unless you become Filipino yourself (not so easy to do). But as a foreigner you can own a condominium unit in your name… many condominium high rises in the Philippines including Tagaytay offer units for sale to foreigners inside veritable self-sufficient perpendicular resorts complete with pool, gym, balcony, bird’s eye views, shops, restaurants, parking and the like. Either way… whether you rent small apartment or own a gorgeous mansion your lifestyle is basically the same because there is only so much space a human being needs for happiness. After all we are what we think (cogito ergo sum) so let your thoughts become as beautiful as the nature that hugs you even if you live almost a peripatetic life (wandering around like philosophers of old). Thank you for the absolutely gorgeous views and well done videos.

[@MyPIDream]

Our long time subscribers have followed us several times to Tagaytay for vacation and shopping. Yes indeed, its a beautiful location with lots of rentals and apartment/condo units that foreigners indeed can purchase if they are interested. Time share units are available as well. Thanks for sharing this info.

[@gooblio]

My general contractor did my plumbing too. Leaks and a block pipe had cement in it. I had to watch every step and all the work everyday. I caught lots of costly mistakes. One worker started tiling the bathroom before the plumbing was finished. Just one example of many. I did all the engineering and design for my house and built the house mostly to western standards.

[@stephendunn2860]

My wife is Filipina. We are looking at Lipa as we may retire soon. Thank you for the videos. Very informative and helpful

[@MyPIDream]

Best of luck!

[@MrCarmelo1204]

awesome video.... love it... living the dream in paradise. I am here now In the desert of California, Palm Springs. from Chicago.... 2.5 more years and plan to venture back home and do the same. what an inspiration to see you building your beautiful house. most importantly, you both love music. would love to jam with you when time comes. I will live in ilocos norte where I came from.., and that is where I plan to build a house with a big back yard and a farm. thank you so much for sharing your experiences in paradise.

[@nonibaris6060]

Milo The Desert Rat of Palm Springs where in Ilocos Norte I’m from Laoag...

[@geemeister3342]

The drone footage was spectacular. The view to the sea was really gorgeous.

[@bertlacatan1620]

I thought James house is huge but Henry and Melissa’s house is even huge. Both couples need at least 8 kids each to fill up those voids and make it more lively. Both houses are awesome! Nice drone shot. The surrounding is so green and very refreshing!

[@rauldempaire5330]

Woow !!! This is how the good expats live in the Phillipines.... Glad I found this Channel! Kudos on that House!

[@CrookedJoeBiden]

It’s always comforting to having good neighbors being close with each other.

[@MrSafetyForever]

What a genuinely beautiful residence! Take Care

[@clintgenosa9542]

And the home owner too is geniunely very friendly, i've always wanted to have neighbors from different country and share each others' culture.

[@whynot2734]

what a nice mansion a lot of pesos for this place wow new baby way to go henry this is heaven on earth

[@archangel1669]

The house is huge! But it didn't lose the warm and cozy feel. 😍

[@daledemary7654]

Fantastic episode... I have been thinking of Davao because my fiance is from Mindinao but you have me rethinking (the location) my own PI dream. Thank you soooooo much. Cheers, Dale from NY

[@labellevictoria6731]

What a beautiful house and the drone footage is absolutely amazing.

[@MyPIDream]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@Tatavlog]

Wow big house, wide bed rooms and beautiful view so relaxing place

[@garrettimes4548]

The Lightning and flock of birds were very well choreographed. ;)

[@annadrino4937]

Very nice house!! I appreciate you going over some issues you experienced when building your homes. I’m in the process of building as well. Great tips!!

[@genefereespinosa1408]

Hi good Afternoon Sir, Wow nice your house Take care in bless you.

[@spurlworld]

Beautiful home! You guys are so blessed, I'll be there soon! Keep up the excellent work!

[@garrettimes4548]

Nice visit would love to see more of your neighbors. Henry's must be on several parcels to get that long driveway.

[@Tony-tk8tg]

Best advice for any 1 thinking of building in the pi. Keep it simple and ground floor only if ur getting older Forget about under ground parking By enough land to do a lowset house with parking

[@MyPIDream]

Got to think about the golden years. Good advice Billy.

[@emmanupac5922]

Nice vlog. It’s entertaining & informative for people considering to retire in the Philippines. I was born there then I moved to the US after college. I used to not consider retiring in the Philippines , but KZbin vlogs like this gives us a perspective of how life in the Philippines is now. It’s good that you show the pros & cons. Watching your videos make me want to retire in the Philippines in the future. I’m 50, so that will be in about 15 more years.

[@MyPIDream]

I always wanted to retire in the tropics. Remember Gilligan's Island? I really thought that was paradise. The Philippines fits my definition of paradise. Inexpensive, 365 days of beautiful weather and the #1 reason, the people here. Good luck and if you're thinking about this area let me know. I can give you some references for starting your goals.

[@waynetywater7267]

I have lived in the Philippines for awhile, someone cut your mango leaves, lol . You have a nice place. take care Wayne

[@bsraeder]

Why would someone cut them?

[@KarimDMan]

@@bsraeder My brother, I would have said it was leaf cutter ants BUT those cuttings are too straight and perfect. Just like what Wayne said, you got someone cutting your mango tree leaves. I would say that you should install some video surveillance cameras on your property.

[@pscoolguy]

That kind of stuff happens a lot in the Philippines. Jealous locals can't stand someone else (especially expats) to have what they don't have and they will, kill, steal, or destroy what you have.

[@westakahashi5487]

Crab mentality. He needs some dogs.

[@bensan7836]

@@bsraeder ww awa

[@larsskjelbred7822]

Very beautiful house, lot of planning and work has gone into that. As a fellow Norwegian it's cool to see. I also have a house in Philippines but it's nowhere near that standard

[@bebz-themusiclover6712]

Wow i really love the house too huge and beautiful looks like a resort 👍🏼😱

[@larryschore]

Great Video! Two beautiful homes, and the drone footage was amazing! Best Wishes to you Wayne.

[@MyPIDream]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@dawsoncreekinthephilippines]

Wow what a beautiful home, but so big wow. love the pool and master bedroom. Great drone shots.

[@KJWEBMEDIA]

Wow Nice house - not to mention the nature and views around it - Great drone footage,, Congrats to Henry and Melissa.. been watching you for a while and finally did subscribe. ☺☺

[@TheOnjie25]

You both have beautiful house and great exchanges of information.

[@abritishexpatinthephilippines]

Great video, mind boggling house, certainly a project and a half...

[@MyPIDream]

And imagine, this was completed in 12 months.

[@garrettimes4548]

Sad they will have to tear up concrete to correct plumbing. :\

[@thodeus]

Nice house. Yes I agree that is too big for a couple.. but its their dream house so its okay.❤️

[@georgegrimes6917]

Well, That's a real beauty. We have stopped apologising for the size of our build after your video of David and Rhea's house, and yours sort of sneaked up on us in the videos at it gets larger over many videos. But now I don't have any guilt for expat excessive construction syndrome. The drapes were very effective in making 6 meter square rooms seem reasonable. Also the very high ceilings up to 4 meters keep things in proportion. If that were 8 foot ceilings it would look big enough for a car parking lot. That open balcony area really added something as well. My first thought in the beginning of the tour was it would be a great backdrop for an art museum like paintings or statues and a mobile over the balcony area. Great entry door. That looked like a poured epoxie floor in the great room. Nice because you can buff out any scratches from sand blown into the house being walked on whereas tile is only the glazing having color. Noteworthy was the lack of clutter most people share their house with. Either they don't have a lot of stuff or the storage rooms are as scaled up as everything else. We have 98 LED lighting fixtures on ours and 177 recepticles and light switches. No telling what it would take in those large areas for lighting. Not sure about the cost but P30M pesos is probably close plus the land cost. We figure 5 cubic feet of concrete per bag of cement, or 8 bags per cubic meter, 3 feet of rebar minimum per square foot on walls and floors and 14 linear feet of rebar per foot of columns and beams. And then.... theres all that tile and window area. However there aren't a lot of interior walls or A-frame roof complications to deal with. george and aurora

[@MyPIDream]

Great comments and I'm sure Henry and Melissa will enjoy your critique!

[@anythingeverything6012]

Nicey house. Congrats Henry and Melissa. Well done MY PI DREAM!!!

[@journeytrials]

wow that's a beautiful house, gives me some ideas for my build, I also worry too about who can I trust and cost. The materials, I also will do a solar panel on mine, but I definitely want a modern house look.

[@justinviper7149]

Your house is so big.beautiful with natural soroundings.

[@jogarga-waters3838]

Batangas is really a beautiful province. We would always have our conventions there in a few of the resort hotels in there when I was still working with Motortrade.... and we usually have it in the month of February and March so it was always cold really.... and yes we had in Nasugbo.....

[@mikemikie8312]

Hello James & Ness , I like very much Henry & Melissa's house ,love the style of build big rooms and plenty of space I love it , they certainly have a beautiful home and the views are amazing thanks for showing this house may they be blessed with long life together a great family home .:)

[@boat6868]

Wow, very nice house. It is massive. Would like to have been able to see their view of the water. I like his metal roof. Very simple and should give him no maintenance problems.

[@abritishexpatinthephilippines]

Long run colour steel is very popular here in the Philippines for that reason easy maintenance

[@simonassouline45]

Beautiful House, must have cost a fortune to build it! Wealthy people!

[@PinoyFX]

$1 is 50X more in the Philippines !!!

[@pamelahall361]

Lovely house designed and the outdoor grounds around the house especially the front entrance is beautiful.

[@ronifajardo6227]

PHILIPPINES is the best , Thank you Henry ♥️🇵🇭

[@gerardobrown5967]

Masterfull..tanks for charing.

[@seeyah156]

I really like the location of Henry house and the open rooms are great.

[@fridahorme5698]

My husband and I plan to retire in the Philippines, two years from now. A three bedroom amakan house is our dream house!! It will be beautiful I'm sure. Your houses are absolutely gorgeous!

[@MyPIDream]

You can do it! Best wishes for your dream house!

[@jenhigala]

Wow great job nice video guys I like it

[@alaskapinanay]

My retired Air force husband and I are looking forward to retire in the Philippines. I love watching your videos since you started building your beautiful house. 😁 Hi from Alaska.

[@MyPIDream]

Thanks for watching all the videos and good luck on our retirement. Go Air Force!!! 🛫

[@wayneseymour1]

Hi James Hi Ness , Been behind on episodes but catching up. You and Henry are so right about the subcontracting of work .But here is an interesting bit on the Plumbing not only in the Philippines will they use smaller than the AGS(American Graphic Standards) standards pipe sizes but many other countries I have lived and visited do the same. Cuba,Colombia Honduras and Nicaragua., these I know first hand do the same and expat home owners suffer if they dont catch it and correct it.

[@JCizzleSoCal]

Henry and Melissa’s compound is absolutely gorgeous and perfect! Thanks for sharing.

[@danidelacruz-m4s]

What a beautiful place to live in.😍👍

[@Andresyatco_tv]

I was born and raised in the Philippines I wanna say thank you for choosing to live in my homeland Philippines xoxo

[@MyPIDream]

Thanks Andrei. I'm grateful to be given this opportunity to retire in one of the most beautiful countries in the world. Beauty in both the country and its people. 🇵🇭

[@constructiongeneral7349]

Thank you for sharing the design and construction challenges.

[@catsung5884]

❤️❤️❤️

[@gm_nl6182]

Hi you mentioned about the pipes that locals use. What size did you use for your house?

[@monito24ful]

Man he really did amazing that so big and elegant

[@gamaydragondreamssd1033]

Love the video, im going to be going over lots of your videos. We are a few years from building but the ideas and your information on troubles and solutions are great! Found me a new channel to invest time in! Great videos keep them coming ! We cant wait till we can build!

[@MyPIDream]

Thank you sir. There's tons of little helpful nuggets in the video series. I hope you find some tips helpful in your build. Good luck!

[@brentcrude8161]

Great ideas today. Outside terraces without columns make me nervous, though...

[@juvyq4782]

New subscribers here. Beautiful house with a great view! My dream house. Thanks for sharing the video 👍

[@josephrobi6806]

That is a big house. Spectacular view the bay. They have taste. The fence very nice 👍 swimming pool dolphins 🐬. Many rooms. Now the negative part is the entry parking vehicles 🚗 are not level not practical, I just wonder why it is like that. Also missing elevator in the house if money is not a burden to get. Knowing stairs are not friendly, getting older. Third negative I would like to see one section of the roof with a Veranda walking and relaxing looking at the view. Over all beautiful house. The price tag probably 10 to 12 millions pesos. That is just my opinion thanks for sharing your house. I also love the désigne of your stairs going up to the second floor. I wonder who thought of the print of the house was it the owner or the engineer?

[@SugarDad5555]

Very nice house. But I will always prefer 2 to 3 off-the-grid tiny houses in a huge lot since tiny houses are easier to clean.

[@runningman2198]

Noth Ing2do plus won’t be throwing up the I’m wealthy flag in a country impoverished.

[@delconagher12]

Kaya sila nasa Pilipinas dahil mura labor. Magkano lang stay in na maid at driver, pati hardinero. 500 a day kayang kaya nila yun. Isang kain lang sa labas sa bansa nila yun.

[@SugarDad5555]

@@runningman2198 I'm also afraid of house ghosts. I want one big leap and I'm out of the house.

[@Shygarshop]

Nice house, I excited to build our dream home in the Bukidnon we just bought a land over there.

[@MyPIDream]

Best of luck!

[@WordNeedGOD]

Nice house James.. Good aerial view

[@lisagalindez8606]

I loved the length of the drone footage.

[@Landmantx]

Great Episode! Loved the house tour and drone footage.

[@louisrobertson365]

i watched MY PI DREAM for years an years i love it love it love it , even before u build your dream house in LIPA CITY , i'm a huge fan of philipines from the country to this lovely people from the lovely island , u an your wife are wonderful u did some great video an i'm a great fan of video is one of the best video on youtube , everyday i cannot wait to watched more an more is LOUIS from LONDON

[@MyPIDream]

Wow, that's certainly a wonderful comment Louis. Thanks so much! Stay safe out there and we'll continue to push out more content that'll hopefully keep your attention.

[@sweetrelinda7896]

Wow so beautiful house and I think so very expensive too

[@IamMagsB]

beautiful house but I still prefer your house, so serene and design is so homey and relaxing and your wife is such a sweet classy lady. I specially liked your awesome drone flights!

[@patmosher8884]

Wow looks like it could be a hotel

[@michelleb4940]

I hated papayas all my life until I had a fresh one from a tree in our yard. I miss the PH mostly for the sunshine and fresh fruit. Hello from MN!

[@ronifajardo6227]

Your place is so beautiful and so peaceful , I ♥️the scenery. Be safe our friends

[@mebar1353]

Beautiful place and layout

[@jvvalencia861]

That’s a magnificent looking house, or should i say mansion hehe

[@papa_made]

Wow, the house looks great.

[@cloudviewphilippines7017]

Absolutely beautiful houses

[@25ayda]

I love the house very big and minimalist .😍👍

[@sergea1138]

A very nice house for sure, I like having space for each room. but just to big to my standard :-) Anyway I enjoy it

[@fauxmanchu8094]

Lovely home with beautiful views everywhere. 💙💚❤️💛💜

[@TravisGinther]

I love the video James. I love the door in Henry's house especially the one with the woven wood. I envy Henry and his house. I love the drone footage. U should do a video calmination on all the drone footage over the yrs.

[@bettygumilao3236]

Hello James and Ness, I'm one of your avid followers since the foundation of your house. I just want to let you know that I love all your plants and enjoy watching all your blogs. It's very entertaining and encouraging. For this reason, I'm considering going back home and do a lot of planting again. We pray, we'll pass soon over this NCovid19. We are victorious, In JESUS' NAME. God bless. Happy holiday!!!

[@MyPIDream]

Hi Betty and thanks for being part of the MPID family. Yes, we will be victorious for sure. I like to look at the positive. I'm getting so many of those little chores out of the way that I would have put off 😉. Stay safe and God bless!

[@geraldg6542]

Henry and Melissa have a beautiful house 🏡

[@laynefischer2021]

Henry’s house is a wow look at that , the marble and the size , no roof over the balcony the gardens! Did really see look like a golf ⛳️ green . Definitely like your house 🏠 and garden more .its the Philippines blend in don’t try be a knob .. everyone to there own ...

[@edwardannable5468]

James that is a beautiful house is the pool all one depth because in the from the Drone footage it looks only 4to5 deep

[@MyPIDream]

Pretty sure it's a graded depth pool.

[@harsep]

I liked when James asked Henry do you use the pool? Hehe

[@rinainlondon8]

I’m happy to discover ur channel

[@renelumbang2044]

Well, you guys having a good time down there n it look like u guys enjoying ur retirement in the Philippines. I'm jealous right now.

[@stephenksiazek812]

I worried their house may be to small! Lol. Very nice. 👍

[@johnandmariainmindanao]

Beautiful house. We are building our house also in Kidapawan City, Mindanao, but it will not be like this. I do not think our budget will allow us to build as elaborate as this one. Great house. We have watched your videos before retiring here and seen your build in Villa Peliz. Your house is beautiful as well.

[@MyPIDream]

As I always say, it's not the size of the house, but the size of the love inside. You'll be just fine! Good luck!

[@kevinnashskitchen3517]

😁👋

[@danicadoroy3526]

Wow!! It’s such a huge house. ❤️😇

[@marijolivitzky372]

That beautiful spacious house, if it's in the US, if it's up for sale the price probably would be around 3.5 M$ maybe more because it's built in a huge property. The house is really huge, it's like a mansion in Beverly Hills, California.