Posted on March 13, 2013 10:18:10 PM [ BusinessWorld Online
]
PHILIPPINE REALTY & Holdings, Inc. (PhilRealty) is set
to begin work on its P20-million townhouse project in La Union this year, a top
company official said recently.
“For our San Fernando (City) project, we are already going
to start building the model units. We are already getting contractors. Once we
have the model units, we will begin getting the development permits and
licenses. We can start building in about two months,” Amador C. Bacani, PhilRealty
president, said in a telephone interview on Wednesday last week when asked
about the company’s plans for a horizontal project in San Fernando City, La
Union.
“The seed capital shouldn’t be too high. Initially, it
should be P20 million or something for the model units and initial site
developments there,” he added.
In November last year, Mr. Bacani told reporters that
PhilRealty has nearly completed plans for a townhouse development on a
3.3-hectare lot in San Fernando City, to consist of roughly 236 units measuring
60-80 square meters each.
“For the townhouse project, we will make it affordable. It
will have four units abreast unlike other developments that have 10 to 20 units
in a row. There will be a lot of open spaces between clusters so it would not
look like ordinary row apartments,” Mr. Bacani said.
Mr. Bacani cited accessibility as the site’s primary
attraction.
“San Fernando is not only the capital of the La Union, but
it is also the regional capital of Region 1 (Ilocos Region). All the government
offices are there. You also have the SCTEx (Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway)
extension, TPLEx (Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway) set to pass there all
the way to Rosario, La Union,” he said.
He added that currently strong economic growth is fueling
consumer confidence. “So far, the way I think the economy is behaving, there is
a lot of confidence. And normally when the economy is strong, people have more
to spend, especially for big-ticket items like housing. In the provinces,
that’s very important,” Mr. Bacani said.
PhilRealty, incorporated in 1981, has been engaged in
development and sale of residential and office condominiums as well as lease of
commercial and office spaces.
It is best known for Pasig City developments The Alexandra
condominium complex and The Philippine Stock Exchange Centre (Tektite Towers).
PhilRealty’s loss widened to P9.1 million last year from
P4.37 million in 2011, as revenues shrank by over a third to P264.75 million
P395.37 million, while costs and expenses declined by over a third to P273.12
million from P398.71 million. -- F. J. G. de la Fuente
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