Philippine residential condo sales hot with OFWs and balikbayans!
06/04/2006
Statistics from Colliers International's latest property market indicator cite the sales for the high-rise residential segment of the Philippine real estate industry to be up by 83% as of end-February. Colliers attributes this sharp sales rise to developers tapping the overseas market for mid-income condominiums.
Colliers' quarterly research report in the Philippines cited that discussions with developers revealed that the current pre-selling residential developments derive, at the least, 20% of their sales from the overseas market.
It further said developers that actively market and spend for roadshows every quarter are said to achieve as much as 40% of project sales from this market.
Eric Soriano, ERA Philippines country president and CEO, said that he concurs with the indicator, saying that the sector is in an "up-cycle" due to offshore sales and aggressive pricing of developers.
"Interest-free payment terms take-up rate, however, is high in the Php2 million to Php5 million price point in high-rise buildings," he added.
He cited offshore contributions are now up from 15% to 30%.
Lucille M. Valley, first vice president of one of the country's top real estate firms said that 20 to 30% of residential condo sales come from the OFW market such as Italy, Japan, US, London and Dubai.
In January 2006, a report from one of the country's most widely-circulated newspapers cited developers and real estate firms believe more money from OFWs will be pouring in this year.
Soriano agrees, stating that he believes the iceberg for OFW markets runs "very deep."
Statistics have shown that education and real estate are still top priorities for any OFW provider.
The Colliers property market overview (citing market conditions at April 2006 and market forecast to April 2007) indicates that remittances from overseas Filipino workers in the first quarter of 2006 reached an eight-year high of US$2.8 billion, up by nearly 15% year on year.
The government expects remittances to increase by 9% this year and reach US$11.8 billion. |
