Saturday, December 6, 2008 [ sunstar.com.ph ]
ARCHITECTS in Davao City are optimistic about the continued housing boom in Davao City despite the global economic slowdown.
Speaking in Friday's edition of the Kapihan sa PIA, United Architects of the Philippines (UAP) Davao Chapter president Agatha Valencia said they are bullish about the construction industry in the city.
Valencia said that based on the actual units of houses and buildings being built, the city is still experiencing housing boom, propelled by remittances of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who consider real estate as a good investment option.
She said that OFW earnings are spent on building houses for their families.
"That is why we see residential projects everywhere," Valencia said.
She also said that Davao itself is an attractive location for investments or for simply relocating. Add several advantages like being typhoon-free, peaceful, and with a lower-cost of living compared to Manila or Cebu as the drawing factor.
Valencia also said that architects from Davao City are also in demand abroad. She said more than half of the UAP-Davao architects are already overseas, particularly in the oil-rich Gulf States in the Middle East.
Architects in the Middle East are paid from an average of $2,000 to as high as $5,000 a month.
UAP Davao vice president for programs Marissa Castillo said some overseas companies are asking local architectural schools for their graduates.
She said Davao architecture graduates are comparable to the best – proof is the high passing rate of the local architecture graduates in the board exams.
Davao's passing rate in the architectural board exams are pegged at 50 percent compared to the national passing rate of 15 percent.
Aside from overseas employment, some foreign companies, particularly from the United States, Korea and Japan, are also eyeing local architecture graduates for their outsourcing needs.
