This high demand will keep pushing up property values. This is why now is the right time to invest in the Philippines so OFWs can enjoy the huge potential returns of property investment.
DUBAI: With the Duterte administration’s “Golden Age of Infrastructure” well underway, developers say overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) would be better off investing their money in real property because of the higher yields it guarantees.
“Properties across the Philippines that are strategically located near or beside these infrastructure projects are now experiencing higher demand from investors,” Ericka Lizette M. San Luis, property specialist at Ayala Land International Sales, told The Filipino Times in an overseas call from Manila.
“This high demand will keep pushing up property values. This is why now is the right time to invest in the Philippines so our kababayans can enjoy the huge potential returns of property investment,” San Luis said.
Agreed, Dubai-based Miguel C. Bilan, Jr., international sales and operations manager at Sta. Lucia Realty, in a separate interview, saying property owners in areas where these infrastructure projects will be built will directly benefit from it.
Surge in prices
“Property, specifically land prices in those areas will certainly surge, that is why I am recommending to those who wish to invest in real estate properties to take advantage of the time and invest now because when these projects are already in place, the cost of properties can potentially double or even more,” Bilan said.
He added, “As far as prices of future real estate properties is concerned, I think buyers will have better options by then between property investments within Metro Manila or property investment in other areas with most likely lower and affordable rates.”
Bilan said the Duterte’s administration’s push for decentralization of infrastructure from Manila to the provinces is an advantage to OFWs. “It’s a fact that there are a lot of OFWs from the provinces who have decided to invest in properties in Manila because there are limited property investment options available in their areas,” he said.
He said the lack of infrastructures in some areas in the Philippines has been one of the reasons why development there is very slow. “No investor would consider investing in an area where accessibility is problem. Pres. Duterte’s program to build more and more infra-projects is a very welcome development to the property sector because this would mean that real estate developments as well as businesses can now expand to other growth potential areas,” Bilan said.
Opportunities
Gino Macapagal, SMDC sales director, for his part said the massive infrastructure program of the Duterte administration will definitely benefit the property sector because, for one, it will ease up the traffic problem of Metro Manila; another is that residential developments will be more accessible with new road networks connecting different cities and provinces.
“Provincial projects are less expensive than projects in the city. Clients can buy and live in the province and work in the cities with the help of faster road networks. With all these expansions, the real estate sector will grow even further because its connects people to different cities and provinces conveniently and quickly,” Macapagal said.
This, he stressed, will create more business opportunities in terms of property appreciation and rental income because more people can easily access different parts of the country.
“The market dictates the movement of property prices. For those who don’t know, real estate always appreciates in value. I recommend everyone to invest in real property now because the prices will not wait for you; you buy and wait for it to appreciate. It will continue to rise,” Macapagal said.
He said OFWs who invested in SMDC developments a year ago are now enjoying higher value of their property, especially in the Mall of Asia area where prices, he said, have doubled.
Value
Gabriel “Billy” Dominguez, Green Circle Realty president whose company sells affordable quality homes in Cavite, summarizes into three, the benefits OFWs can have from the infrastructure projects: accessibility, strategic location and, most importantly, value for money.
“It’s a big boost to the real estate industry,” he said, noting at least three road network projects that would put Cavite on the real property map: the Cavite-Laguna Expressway, Muntinlupa-Cavite Expressway and C5 extension.
Cavite has been noted to be one of the housing boom areas in the Philippines today.
To put things more vividly into perspective, San Luis said that with the growth trajectory of the economy, property prices will increase further.
“We should not wait for lower rates or more affordable units now. We have to invest as soon as possible so we can benefit from this economic boom,” San Luis said.
Growth
She cited as an example, a studio unit in Ayala Land’s ARCA South in Taguig which was being sold for Php 2.5 million in 2016 and is now valued at Php3.8 million or approximately a 52% growth in two years’ time following approval of the Mega Manila Subway Project, making ARCA South (FTI Taguig Station) just one subway station away from the NAIA station.
Vertis North located beside Trinoma in Quezon City, is another notable development, San Luis said, because it is strategically located, connecting three major public transportation — the LRT 1, MRT 3 and MRT 7.
“There are also proposed subway stations covering the development. The demand for residential condominiums and office spaces in this development has dramatically increased when the infra projects of the government were introduced,” she said.
In the North, the ongoing expansion of Clark airport has brought more and more big developers in the province of Pampanga, San Luis further said; and in the South, she added, ongoing roadworks for CALAX has pushed property prices upwards as well.
The projects
The Duterte government has approved $6.05 billion worth of infrastructure projects in 2017 under its “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program. At least six projects will start implementation in early 2018 as confirmed by Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia. The projects up for construction as cited by Inquirer.net include the Clark Airport expansion; the first phase of the Metro Manila subway; the North-South railway connecting Los Banos in Laguna to Tutuban in Manila and to the Clark Freeport; the Kaliwa water supply project to ensure supply to the metropolis; the Cavite flood control project; and the 130-meter first phase of the Mindanao railway to connect Digos, Davao City, and Tagum.
Where to invest – choices from north to south of the Philippines
Northern Luzon offers prospective growth areas for vertical and residential housing growth. Lamudi, citing the real estate think tank Colliers, noted that developers of industrial parks are moving toward the north, as seen in DoubleDragon Properties Corp.’s recent acquisition of a 6.2-hectare lot in Tarlac, as well as Xu Liang Dragon Group’s 3,000-hectare mixed-use special economic zone in Pangasinan. Xu Liang Dragon Group, reportedly ows China’s biggest economic zone in Xiamen province.
There is also Ayala’s 31-hectare industrial park in Pampanga, and Filinvest’s 100-hectare industrial estate in Clark Green City.
These developments will not just encourage businesses to operate outside Metro Manila, but also increase employment opportunities in the provinces up north, which will attract relocators looking to work and live away from the metro but not too far from it, said the Lamudi report.
“Hence,” it added, “an investment in a condo or house, particularly one that is built close to or within the compounds where these industrial complexes are located, would be beneficial if you are looking to either sell or lease, or even relocate yourself.”
Colliers also predicts an increase in the development of 3- and 4-star hotels in resort destinations, specifically in Bacolod, Cebu, Palawan, Bohol, Iloilo, and Davao, the Lamudi report likewise stated.
“This would be an opportune moment to invest in a condo unit that you can lease out to tourists. Considering that hotels and resort accommodations are often priced high and more travelers are learning the ropes of budget traveling, rentals that are on the lower end of the price scale would be quickly taken up, especially if located close to the most popular tourist sites in these provincial locations,” the report said.
Colliers also noted that regional airports in Bacolod, Bohol, Iloilo, and Davao are up for expansion and that developers should consider building hotels in said areas, another thing to consider when buying an Airbnb-bound condo.
