Cebu Retiree Write to Ilshat

Terms of Service

The Cebu Retiree · ceburetiree.com

In plain English: We sell one service — Soft Landing, $2,000. You pay $1,000 to start, by bank transfer on an invoice from Ilshat. Only then does Valery begin the apartment search. No money goes to any landlord before you have stood in the apartment. The second $1,000 is due the day you sign the lease and move in. If nothing suits you before you fly, or you change your mind, $800 of the first $1,000 comes back and $200 stays for the search work already done. Fourteen days of support follow your arrival. Questions? Email [email protected] before paying.

1. Agreeing to these terms

These terms cover ceburetiree.com and the Soft Landing service arranged through this site. By using the site or booking the service, you agree to them.

2. Educational information, not professional advice

The site and our emails provide practical educational information about living in Cebu. We are not immigration lawyers, tax advisors, financial planners, doctors, or government officers. Nothing we publish is legal, tax, immigration, investment, or medical advice. Rules, prices, availability, and local conditions change; confirm important decisions with the relevant authority or a licensed professional.

3. The service — Soft Landing

Soft Landing is a turnkey arrival service for Cebu: your apartment found before you fly, someone meeting you at the airport, moving in the day you land, and fourteen days of support after that. One service, one price: $2,000. It covers Cebu City and the towns around it; most searches are on Mactan, in Lapu-Lapu City. A place out in the province is possible, at a price we agree separately. It works in five steps.

  1. Contact. You write or book a call. Ilshat replies personally within 24 hours, by whichever channel you chose — email, phone or video call, or WhatsApp. Nothing is paid at this stage.
  2. Agreement, then deposit. First we both sign the written service agreement. Then you pay 50% — $1,000 — by bank transfer (Wise or a named account), on an invoice sent by Ilshat. The name on the invoice matches the person on the call. Only once this is paid does Valery start the search.
  3. Before you fly. Valery finds 5–10 apartments that fit your budget and area, sends photos and video of each, and negotiates price and terms with the owner. You pick one; Valery agrees the move-in date and the owner holds the unit for you. By default, no money goes to any landlord before you fly. The lease, the apartment’s own deposit, and the first month’s rent are all handled on arrival day, in person.
  4. Arrival day. You are met past customs, driven to the apartment, walked through it, and the lease is read line by line before you sign. You are met whatever time you land — 2 a.m. included — with no hotel night in between. The second half of the price — $1,000 — is paid this same day, once the lease is signed and you are in.
  5. Fourteen days of support. Valery is reachable by phone or WhatsApp, and meets you in person when it matters, with a written arrival sheet covering taxis, groceries, the visa extension office, the nearest hospital, and topping up a SIM.

4. Money, refunds, and what is not included

  • Agreement: signed by both sides before you pay anything.
  • Deposit: $1,000, paid by bank transfer on an invoice matching the person on your call.
  • Second payment: $1,000, due the day your lease is signed and you have moved in.
  • Refund: if, before you fly, none of the apartments suits you, or you change your mind, $800 of the $1,000 deposit comes back; $200 stays for the search work already done.
  • Not included: visa fees, the apartment’s own deposit and rent, and flights.
  • We are paid once, by you. We take nothing from a landlord on a rental.
  • If an owner changes the agreed terms after we have a deal, we walk away and find you another place, at our own cost.

We do not raise the agreed price or add work without your written approval.

5. What we can help with — and what we cannot guarantee

We can help prepare documents, attend errands, and explain local processes. Landlords, banks, utilities, government offices, and other providers make their own decisions. We do not guarantee their approval, timing, availability, price, or performance.

We do not file visas or represent you before government agencies.

6. Rentals and buying a home

For rentals arranged through Soft Landing, you pay us once, for our search and hands-on work. Nothing from landlords on rentals.

If you are planning to buy rather than rent, we can also help: a short-term place to stay while you look, price ranges by area, vetted agents, and Valery beside you at viewings. This is a separate, smaller offer, not the Soft Landing service.

7. Your responsibilities

You are responsible for giving accurate information, reviewing documents before signing, making decisions on time, maintaining valid travel and identity documents, and paying agreed third-party costs directly when required. You remain responsible for your housing, immigration, medical, financial, and travel decisions.

8. Our responsibility to you

We perform our own work with reasonable care and according to the steps above. We are not responsible for events outside our reasonable control or for the acts of landlords, banks, government offices, utilities, transport companies, or other third parties.

To the fullest extent the law allows, our total liability is limited to the amount you paid us. This does not remove any right that applicable consumer law says cannot be limited.

9. Problems, changes, and contact

Email us first at [email protected]. Most problems are fixable quickly, and we would rather fix them than argue. We may update these terms as the business changes; the current version and its date remain on this page.

Last updated: September 24, 2026