It is important to have a guide to buying farmland. Take it from me who has recently bought a property in Guimaras Island, Philippines. I wish I knew some of the things I do now.

Not that I regretted buying the farmland we got. I don’t. But if I was equipped with more knowledge that a buyer should have, I know I would have been wiser with what questions to ask and what expenses to consider.

Looking for a Property

My husband and I were actively looking for a property in Guimaras even before COVID temporarily paralyzed the world. On my vacations, I would go check out some properties in Guimaras. There was a property I liked and my husband approved. It was near the barangay road and had a water source already in place. I also liked the landscape as it was a hilly property. I am partial to hilly properties since it gives you a lot of room for imagination. Unfortunately, this did not push through because COVID didn’t allow me to go home as scheduled to process the documents.

When going home became possible again, I sought out properties to visit. Schedules were made even before I went home so I was able to arrange my schedule well. After several properties, my husband and I agreed on a hilly property located in the municipality of Sibunag in Guimaras. It is a 2.7-hectare property gently and gracefully rolling on hills.

Why Guimaras? Guimaras Island has always been on our radar because of its proximity to Iloilo, my hometown. Also, it has a great potential for investment because of the plan to connect Iloilo to the island through the much-awaited bridge that would make travel to and from the island more convenient. The plan has always been there. Ilonggos have been waiting for a long time and have been looking forward to it especially now that the plan is more concrete than before.

What to Look for and Ask When Buying a Farmland

Land Title. This should be a clean title. There should be no encumbrances and free from liens and other issues. Guimaras has many properties granted to families through CLOA or Certificate of Land Ownership Award. This is a government-issued title that represents land redistribution in the Philippines. While most agents will tell you that acquiring title for this land is doable, we opted not to take this chance. This will take a long and tedious process and we didn’t want that kind of headache.

Updated Capital Gains Tax. Make sure that payment for capital gains tax is updated. If not, as was the case with the previous owner of the property we bought, I had this settled with the agreement that the payment cost would be deducted from the total cost of the land. Submit the title under your name to the municipality so the next Capital Gains Tax will already be under your name.

Land Boundary. This is very important when the property is as raw as the properties in Guimaras. Check the barangay roads especially when the property passes through newly-established roads. Also, boundaries with neighboring lands should be clear that’s why you need to hire a geodetic engineer to re-survey your property. I even had a joint survey conducted with the geodetic engineer of the property beside ours.

Existing Structures in the land. Structures will add value to the property. But not all structures will. A rundown structure should not be considered. Are there existing valuable trees and plants? Is there electricity and water? The property we bought was as raw as it gets. Many trees are standing on one side of the property but overgrown grasses are on the other side. It looked like a jungle the first time I saw it. There was hardly a path. But I saw the potential of the rolling hills and I loved it.

Are you willing to spend on land improvement?

This was the aspect I didn’t give much thought to because I didn’t have much knowledge of buying a property as raw as the one we got. Although we still don’t have a clearer vision of what to do with the land, we want to make it look better and improve its land value. These are some of the things we needed to work and spend on:

Clearing the property. When I mentioned above that it looked like a jungle the first time I saw and explored it, I meant it. We had to decide to have it cleared out so we could see the landscape properly. Some property owners in Guimaras bulldozed their lands to clear their property very well. I opted not to because there were many young trees and I didn’t want them gone. Of course, you have to know what you want to do. Beside us, a subdivision is being planned and lands have been approved for sale as subdivision lots so the owner used a bulldozer to flatten the land and clear it of trees. Provision for subdivision roads is also in place.

In our case, none of that is necessary so we had men manually clear it of overgrown grass and bushes. That entails a budget for the daily wage of six people.

Perimeter Fence. The perimeter fence for a 2.7-hectare property does cost a lot. But it is worth it. It establishes a clear boundary. Our caretaker has a physical boundary of the area he works on and the neighbors also have clear references when it comes to territory.

Big Costs to Consider

Water source and electricity are two important considerations I wish I had some knowledge of.

Water source. Honestly, I didn’t think much about this. I know I should have. This is a good learning experience if I am to consider buying another property. Water is life, they say. Without water, we couldn’t grow trees and plants we planned to grow in this land. Of course, searching for water sources and digging for deep wells cost some money, too. Failure to search for water sources is part of the natural process but it leaves a dent in your pocket. I am thankful that we finally found a location for our deep well.

Electricity. I knew there was no electricity on the property we bought. As I said, it is as raw as it gets. But I didn’t how the system worked. For the first time, I learned that electricity posts supplied by electric companies are only for national and barangay roads. Households connected to the post installed by the electric company. If your property is far from the provided electric posts, it is your responsibility to buy cables wires, and posts. These will depend on the distance to the nearest electric post. You will also consider the properties where your cables will pass through so it is important to ask permission and coordinate from the affected neighbors.

I had electric cables and posts installed and got an authorized agent to process our application for electricity. Before I forget, it is necessary to have an existing “house” for approval. We had a very basic “nipa” built just to satisfy this requirement. In Guimaras, approval for electricity supply takes weeks.

These are just a few of the important things to consider when buying a property. I hope this helps. You can share if I miss out on other important details in the comments below.

If you are interested in following our Farm Journey, you can check out my YouTube Channel: Guimaras Farm

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