Book Lloyd Chua story – retireabroadhub.com

"I have been the newcomer and the local in the same country. Let me show you both sides of the move.."

Talk it through with Lloyd, born in the Philippines, raised in Toronto, and back in Metro Manila for the last 12 years.

$ 50 / 40-min call

One-on-one video consultation with Lloyd Chua. Book a time that works for you.

Lloyd shares personal experience and general information, not legal, immigration, tax, or financial advice. Please confirm anything important with a qualified professional.

MeetL Lloyd Chua

A quick hello before you book

Lloyd’s story

was born in the Philippines and raised in Toronto, and when I moved back to Metro Manila 12 years ago I arrived the same way you would: with a foreign passport, foreign habits, and a thousand questions. I have been the newcomer and the local in the same country, and both sides of that experience go into every call.

The first thing I help most people with is the question everyone asks: how not to get scammed. Rentals, contractors, agents, offers that look too good because they are. I will show you how things are supposed to work here, so you can tell right away when they are not.

From there, a session covers whatever your move needs. What different neighborhoods actually cost and feel like day to day. How banking, visas, and healthcare really work for foreigners, not how they look on paper. And the honest difference between the Manila you see online and the one you will wake up in.

If your plans include working remotely or running a business, I can help you think that through too, drawing on my own business here and my consulting work with expat owned companies.

And when you arrive, you will not be starting from zero. Through Expat and Friends, the community I founded and organize, retirees, US veterans, digital nomads, and business owners help each other build real lives here, from finding an honest contractor to reading a lease properly. There will be a seat waiting for you.

“Know how things are supposed to work before you commit to anything, and have people around you who have already made the mistakes.”

— Lloyd Chua, Philippines Guide · Metro Manila

Why book with us

Why book a call with our Costa Rica guides?

Carefully Vetted

Every guide on Retire Abroad Hub has been carefully vetted. We verify lived experience, assess communication skills, and ensure they can provide honest, balanced perspectives , not sales pitches.

Real Lived Experience

These aren't consultants reading from a script. The guides have personally gone through the visa process, navigated bureaucracy, and built actual lives in the new country. They know what works and what doesn't and share their expirience.

Pick Their Brain

This is your chance to ask the questions you can't find answers to online. What does banking really look like? Which neighborhoods should you avoid? How hard is the bureaucracy? What do people get wrong? Ask anything.

Honest & Unbiased

No Sales pitch, no real estate upsells. Our guides are paid for their time and knowledge , that's it. You get the truth, including what's difficult, frustrating, or not ideal about living in a new country.

In our call we can cover

Whether the Philippines is genuinely the right fit for you, from someone who has seen it as both outsider and local
How not to get scammed: rentals, contractors, and the offers that look too good because they are
Cost of living and neighborhoods, and the difference between Manila online and Manila in real life
The practical side of settling in: banking, visas, and healthcare, and what actually trips newcomers up
Years of experience helping retirees, US veterans, digital nomads, and business owners find their footing here, through the Expat and Friends community he founded
How to build your own circle from day one, so the Philippines becomes home and not just a place you moved to

Thinking about the Philippines?

Get the full picture from someone who has lived it from both sides. Book a call with Lloyd and leave with real clarity about your next step, and a community waiting when you land.