Vol. XXII, No. 70 [ BusinessWorld Online ]
Friday, October 31, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
DAVAO CITY — This city’s residential property sector can barely keep up with the growing demand for condominiums for sale and for rent despite the global economic slow-down.
One of the companies benefiting from the property boom is Filinvest Land, Inc. Divina C. Sagalang, senior sales director of Filinvest, said condominium units continue to "sell like hotcakes."
"I think the market is captivated by the newness of condominiums," she said. Filinvest’s One Oasis Davao condominium has been nearly sold out.
The plan, she said, is to build six five-storey buildings in one compound. The two buildings are almost finished while the four are scheduled to be constructed next year.
"The 120 rooms for our first building were already sold out. For our second building, there are only about nine rooms remaining," she said in an interview.
A unit in the third and fourth buildings will cost P60,250 to P61,250 per square meter.
Ms. Sagalang said most of the buyers are Filipino workers working abroad, outsiders, and middle-income Davao residents.
Councilor Peter T. Laviña, chairman of the commerce and trade committee, cited residents’ changing lifestyle. He noted that from the sprawling backyard offered by subdivisions in the city’s suburbs, the trend now is looking for spaces near work, schools and malls.
"Real estate investors are bullish on the Davao market and in the past two years, we have been experiencing the growing trend of mid-rise and low-rise condominiums," he said. Davao City, he added, has reached "the critical number of consumers of 1.4 million, some of whom are looking for a second house."
Among the potential buyers are the nearly 10,000 expatriates from 90 foreign countries, as well as high-income families from neigh-boring regions.
To date, there are 19 condominiums being built in the city and more projects are in the pipeline. This year alone, the Linmarr Towers, Eco4000 and Magallanes Residences of the Consunji Group, and One Oasis Davao started construction.
Most major developers like Ayala Land, Filinvest, Crown Asia and the Consunji Group are now active in Davao City. Last year, the City Engineer’s Office approved 18,557 building permits, three times higher than a year earlier. As of October applications have reached 19,531, generating P16.725 million in income for the city.
But Rose Marie B. Taasan, regional coordinator of the Housing Urban Development Council, said condominiums do not address the city’s housing backlog, now estimated at 40,000. "Not everybody can afford a condominium unit especially the poor. Fortunately, we have other programs for that, like our community mortgage program," she said. — JBE
