At 26, Ria Atayde is feeling the itch to move into her own place soon.
"My first investment, I want it to be the place where I am going to stay for maybe five to ten years siguro.
"That's what I’m working towards now—my own place," she told PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal) at the event of Simple Skin in Bonifacio Global City last November 21.
She continued, "I still live with my parents, so the goal is to be able to live the lifestyle I’m used to without having to depend on them."
The daughter of Kapamilya actress Sylvia Sanchez and businessman Art Atayde knew that leaving the kind of life she is used to would be easier said than done.
"I grew up a little bit more privileged than a lot of people, I guess, and I think it's sometimes a bit harder because I have standards I know I want to meet.
"So, that's what I'm saving up for just to be able to sustain that," she said.
LIVING WITH BROTHER ARJO
Ria initially toyed with the idea of joining her brother, Arjo Atayde, when he moved out of the family home.
In fact, they had already agreed on a living arrangement, but she had a change of heart.
In hindsight, the ABS-CBN actress felt it "weird" if the two of them would move out of the family home at the same time.
She said, "I feel like it would be hard for my parents to process that we want to grow outside of their house, without them, but together?
"I feel like it's not what I want my parents to see also. And aside from that, Arjo and I have like lived our lives together forever.
"Literally all 26 years of my life have been with him, constantly together... we're so used to seeing each other around.
"Like, we're each other's comfort zones, for sure, definitely."
But Ria then felt more certain that she wanted to live on her own.
"Maybe when I move out, I want to learn more about myself, to become more independent, and I think living with my brother wouldn't fulfill that purpose completely for the both of us.
"I mean, initially we planned to live together. We really did. Like we were so set, we're like, 'Okay, it's more cost effective. It's smarter!'
"Then I was like, 'No. You're just going to make me utos every thing.'
"He's older, but I'm the one who’s always been a little bit more responsible when it comes to us. He's very chill as a person, and I’m very OC. So a lot of the stuff, I'm the one who organizes stuff for us.
"So, if we live together, imagine? And I want to be a little bit more stress-free na parang no one is depending on me. I’m okay!"
NOT QUITE READY
Ria acknowledged she still has a long way to go before she can fully achieve her goal.
She said, "I'm pretty independent naman in a lot of aspects, but I don’t know.
"I feel like living alone is a huge deal. I mean, I'm not ready right now.
"I'm not financially ready yet, but that's the goal.
"I like din kasi the relationship I have with my parents and my family...
"It's a healthy amount of dependency naman. It's not like I make utos all the time.
"We're all our own people naman."
She wants to be emotionally ready, too.
"It's just like, I guess, living alone, spending on your own, that's a different story.
"I think that's a feat for somebody, di ba?
"I don't know, I'm just not ready. I'm scared. I love my parents too much to leave them also.
"Why fix what isn’t broken din naman, di ba? But I also feel like I need to [move out].
"We're also at the age din kasi, I feel like slowly, it's going to have to transition to that. That's the reality.
"In our culture kasi, it's normal to live with our parents, pero I don't know.
"There's some sort of fulfillment to know you can be okay with your parents and be okay on your own."
What sort of home is Ria looking for?
"Honestly speaking, I feel like a condo is the most realistic.
"Realistically speaking, condos are the easiest to maintain for somebody who is going to live alone.
"I don't know... I'm trying to figure out what to invest in."