24/09/2012
When Jenny Chua's house was flooded and inundated during Typhoon Undoy several years ago, her family finally decided that enough was enough. She sold her 200 square meter house and lot and moved to a 38 square meter condominium in Ortigas Center. Her family decided that they had experienced enough life threatening floods and realized the huge cost of building and rebuilding their house after every catastrophe.
"Our family realized that if we moved to a condominium, we will have more money left over to pay for more basic things like food, shelter and education for our kids. Furthermore since Ortigas is in the middle of Metro Manila, we were able to sell our two cars and we now live a more healthier lifestyle since everything including our office and our kids' school are now all walking distance from our condominium. Should we need to go to the different parts of Metro Manila, we now take the MRT train and LRT train or hail a taxi cab if needed. this means less traffic and more quality time with my family and friends" says Jenny Chua.
"Furthermore part of the money we got from selling our house and our two cars, we spent on "Interior Decorating" our condominium from affordable items in Our Home in Shoe Mart Megamall. The bulk of the money we placed in a time deposit for the college trust fund of our kids and on another condominium which we know lease out to augment our two incomes. The third income now allows us to travel at least once a year." says Jenny.
According to Jenny, these were the reason's they decided to move to condominium and how they made the transition:
No More Mortgage. Jenny Chua have no more mortgage on their house, which can be freeing both financially and personally. "My life is less expensive, which gives me more time to enjoy it," says Chua, who now goes biking, malling, walking, and grows organic herbs in her small kitchen garden.
Lower Utility and Maintenance Bills. A smaller condominium will result in a smaller utility bills since less places to light up and less things to fix.
Less Clutter. A smaller condominium pushes the homeowners to cut down on their possessions, but that means they have fewer belongings to maintain and spend less time searching for lost items. "It's amazing, we just don't need all that room or that much stuff and we no longer need a maid to clean our mess since there is no mess to begin with," says Chua.
More Quality Time for Family and Friends. " Our kids entertain their friends in the condominium swimming pool during the weekends or meet their friends in Shoe shoe Mart Mega Mall or Robinson's Galleria after exam week. We treat or friends in nearby restaurants or coffee shop and removed the hassle and bustle of driving in Metro Manila."
In a hindsight Jenny says, "Growing up, most of my friends' parents were never around to enjoy their houses because they were working all their lives in order to pay for their house."
