Been waiting for announcements for this year's Blogapalooza and it's finally here!

Bloggers can now register here! So excited for this year's Blogapalooza because they've got a bigger venue for a more exciting and fun-filled event for bloggers and businesses. To check out my experience in last year's Blogapalooza, please visit my blog post here!

I had always been a very ambitious child. From when I was still playing bahay-bahayan  with my siblings and cousins, I always see to it that our "bahay" is as fabulous and intricate as it can get. We don't just simply place a blanket on top of anything that will serve as our bahay's foundation. We don't just put in random things to accessorize our bahay. Everything must be done right and with a purpose. The blanket's color must match our mood for the game - are we playing bahay-bahayan as someone trapped in the wilderness, are we playing as a make-believe "family" (complete with who will act as the father, mother or child), or are we playing a game of "fort/castle wars"? That's how intricate I was when it comes to choosing/building homes.

As a young adult, choosing a house is no longer a child's game. This is some serious business that needs lots and lots (and lotssss) of things to consider and to think about. After finally graduating and finding the first job, the next step would be to find a place to save for. A few years of handling and managing my own money made me realize that saving becomes easier and more realistic when I know what I am saving for. And incidentally, just how convenient it is to have found a platform where I can begin my quest for the perfect home easily! Here is where Property24 comes into picture.

Property24.com.ph is the fastest growing property portal in the Philippines. They provide an effective online platform for leading Real State Developers, Agencies and Brokers that allows them to showcase their property listings to a wider audience of qualified prospective Buyers.

Just how helpful is Property24?

Registration is so easy! You can sign in using an existing e-mail address or (more conveniently) using your Facebook account. 

Finding the perfect home has never been this convenient! With a few clicks, you're now closer to finding your perfect home without the hassles of traveling. You can even look up houses located as far as Baguio or Davao without the need of actually getting yourself in those places. Photos of the properties, prices and other information are included in the listings for your convenience.

Now that you know how to work your way around the website, it's now time to look for the perfect home! On that note, let me show you my top 5 dream houses that I've found on this website. It took me quite a while to come up with this list because, as I've mentioned before, I give all the attention I have when it comes to houses. So, read on and find out why these houses made it to my list:

1. House and Lot in Casa Milan, Fairview, Quezon City

Having lived in Quezon City for all my life, I have always considered the City of the Stars as the best city in Metro Manila (no offense to the other 15 cities). The primary reason for this are the TREES. I've been to other cities in the Metro, and Quezon City is undoubtedly the greenest one. Let's just hope that it stays that way, and that every city in the metro give adequate space for these lovely greens to grow at. I've picked this house in Casa Milan because it is located in Fairview (my favorite part in my favorite city). I'm a nature enthusiast, so I'm all for this house because it is so conveniently located near La Mesa Ecopark (the jungle in the city!) It also has a very calming aura that I'd have no trouble sleeping on the floor if the house is as serene as this place!

2. Condo in Mandaluyong/Pasig (Sheridan Towers)

3. Condo Unit in Baguio City (Outlook Ridge Residences)

4. House and Lot in Ilo-ilo City

I love Visayas! It has an all-year round festive mood and everyone is just so sweet and friendly! This is also the place where my relatives (from my father's side) live so all the more that I could get closer to my family's roots. Again, the assortment of greens surrounding the house is a very big plus for me. The combination of colors (blue, white and accents of green) looks very pleasing and relaxing to look at. Also, living in this part of the Visayas means more opportunity to attend those colorful fiestas we all studied about (and memorized) in elementary Social Studies!

5. House and Lot in Davao City

Who wouldn't want to live in the fourth safest city in the world? I've never been to any part in Mindanao but if I am given the opportunity to travel here, I would definitely visit Davao first! I've always been intrigued about Davao, and I specifically want to know just how safe living in Davao is. I wonder, can I leave my dream house open and unattended without fears of burglars getting in? I also chose this house because it's white (the only other color I like aside from, you guessed it, green) and it exudes a very serene aura.

First things first: if you're taking the LET (Licensure Examination for Teachers) this September 2015, take note that you only have TWO DAYS left before the deadline of application, which is on FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015. I know, I know, it really is something to panic about, especially if you still have requirements to complete. In my case, I actually had doubts if I'll make it to PRC's deadline of application, because I was not sure if my TOR would be released in time for the deadline. (My university's graduation was held on the last Sunday of June 2015, and clearance/TOR processing starts after graduation). Luckily, I was able to get my TOR on the last week of July, which gave me at least a week to panic and rush and cram for the LET application. As a way of saying thanks because I have successfully applied for LET (I applied 5th of August), through this blog post, I'm sharing my experience in the hopes of helping fellow LET applicants with their application process.

I.  ONLINE APPLICATION

BEFORE you go to the PRC office for application, make sure that you've accomplished the online application (visit http://www.prc.gov.ph/online/application/apply.aspx to do this) so that you won't have to line up for this in PRC. The PRC officers won't process your application if you haven't accomplished the online application yet.

II.  REQUIREMENTS

Although searching for the needed documents online is recommended, I find that this sometimes causes confusion. I arrived at the gates of PRC at around 6 am - and there was already a looooong line of applicants. Mind you, you'll be applying with exam takers of different professions (like Accountancy and Engineering for instance). While waiting for the gates to open, vendors around the area (carrying pastes, pens, brown envelopes, etc) will offer you their merchandise. Here's my tip: do not buy anything from outside vendors if you don't want to be hassled once inside PRC. Don't be swayed by the vendors' sales talks, "Ma'am/Ser glue at brown envelope para sa board application kailangan niyo po yan". Glue will be provided inside PRC, and you won't need the brown envelope at all (I learned this the hard way). TAKE NOTE: This is for LET applicants only, I'm not aware of the guidelines for other professional board exam takers. Here's a list of all the things you'll need:

1.   2 pieces passport size pictures - white background with complete name tag (doesn't matter if your surname or first name is written first, as long as you have your complete name at the bottom of your passport picture)

2.   documentary stamp - (priced at around Php 21) You can also buy one inside PRC (ground floor, near the entrance gate). Outside vendors sell these for more than Php 30.

3.  TOR - original and photocopy/xerox (Please, please make sure that your TOR have "FOR BOARD EXAMINATION PURPOSES ONLY" remarks because otherwise, the PRC officers will tell you to return with the correct TOR).

4.    birth certificate - original and photocopy/xerox

5.    marriage certificate - original and photocopy (for married applicants only, of course)

6.   community tax certificate/cedula - no need to photocopy this, they won't get it anyway, you just need to copy your cedula number on the forms to be given during processing

7.   white window envelope - do not buy from vendors outside PRC because the PRC officers will reject those bought outside (You can buy this for about Php 25 on the 4th floor of PRC. In my case, someone sold these while we were waiting in line for Step 3 on the 3rd floor.) It looks like this:

As far as I know, and according to my experience, these items are all that you need. You might hear other applicants mentioning about their NBI clearance but fret not because those are for other board applicants.

III.   PROCESS

My classmates/friends applied yesterday (Aug 4, Tuesday) and I kind of pitied them because they went at the PRC office at 8am and finished at 5pm. IMAGINE THAT. But by some stroke of luck, I managed to finish everything in about two hours. I arrived at the PRC office at around 6am. They opened the gates at around 7am. We were ushered to the 3rd floor (one stop processing: all the steps were done on that floor, we didn't have to go to any other floor unlike what happened to my friends). I guess I was lucky that on the day I applied, they decided to hold the application process on one floor only (for all the steps).

Step 1 (PRE-ASSESSMENT): The PRC officers will collect one of your passport photos for scanning. You will also pass the original and photocopy/xerox copy of your TOR and birth certificate (and marriage certificate if you're married) for pre-assessment. In this step, they will check if the original and xerox copies of your documents are exactly the same. They will get only the photocopies of your documents (you get to keep the original copies). You will also be given a form (roughly the size of a 1/2 index card). It looks something like this:

While waiting for Step 2, make sure that you accomplish your form completely and correctly. For the "Profession/Board Of" near the upper right corner, you may write either TEACHERS or LET/ELEM (for BEEd) or LET/SECONDARY (for BSEd). There's a glue and stamp pad (for your thumb mark) available in the room where you will process your application so there's no need for you to bring/buy paste.

Step 2 (PROCESSING): Wait for your name to be called. Once called, they will give another form to fill out (this time on a long bond paper which is stapled together with your photocopied documents). For your guidance, they will mark the areas you need to accomplish. In this form, you will need to paste/glue the documentary stamp (it's indicated naman where you need to put the documentary stamp - it's on the bottom left of the form) and you will also need the help of the stamp pad again for your thumb mark. 

Step 3 (PAYMENT): Once you've accomplished the form, proceed to Step 3 (Payment). Just wait in line. You'll pay Php 900 (for first time takers). I'm not sure how much you'll need to pay if you're a repeater.

Step 4 (ISSUANCE): HURRAY! You're on the last step! :) For this step, just wait for your name to be called. They'll give you your Notice of Admission (NOA) slip. Before leaving the room, make sure that all information printed on your NOA are all correct. During my application, one applicant complained of a mistake in her NOA because although all the other info were correct (Name, Exam name, Exam place, etc), a different photo was shown on her NOA. So always make sure to double check your NOA before leaving the PRC. The NOA looks like this:

If you have other things to add to this blog post, or if you have inquiries and other related comments, please feel free to comment below! :)