[ bworldonline.com ]
PROPERTY prices increased slightly in the last three months of 2018, marking the smallest increment in over a year.
The latest residential real estate price index (RREPI) of the Bangko
Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed that home prices edged up just 0.5% in
the fourth quarter, coming from the 4.4% pace recorded in
July-September and the 5.7% climb seen a year ago.
Townhouses and condominium units led price increases during the
period, while the price tags for duplex and single-detached homes even
slipped compared to the previous year.
The RREPI measures the average change in home prices across building
types and locations, allowing the central bank to closely monitor the
real estate market and detect potential bubbles.
The BSP currently limits a bank’s real estate exposure to
20% of its total loan portfolio, which includes both residential and
commercial properties.
Townhouse rates saw the biggest hike that quarter, increasing by
11.4% versus the 8.1% climb it posted back in October-December 2017.
While that marked the fourth straight quarter of double-digit increases
in townhouse prices, it was the slowest in a year.
Condominium prices inched up by a mere 0.6% nationwide, the slowest since at least 2016.
On the other hand, duplex units saw prices slashed by 3.7%, while single detached or attached homes also saw prices drop 1.9%.
By location, home prices in Metro Manila grew by 1.6%, versus a 0.8%
decline in housing costs in the provinces. Duplex prices in Metro Manila
plunged sharply to just a third of their value compared to the fourth
quarter of 2017 while condominium rates were flat. Townhouses offset
this drop with a 19.4% rise in prices, together with a four percent
price increase for single homes.
Outside the capital, duplex prices surged by 23% year-on-year,
although this accounted for a small share of the total. Townhouse prices
rose by seven percent, condominiums up by 6.1%, while the cost for
single homes — the top choice in the provinces — dropped by 2.7%.
“[T]he decline in prices of single detached houses outweighed the
increase in prices of duplexes, townhouses, and condominium units,” the
BSP said.
For the entire 2018, the cost to acquire homes rose by an average of
2.9% in the Philippines, easing from the previous year’s 3.6% climb.
About 75% of the home loans were used to acquire new properties, half
of which were for condominium units, 39.8% for single detached houses
and roughly a tenth for townhouses. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez
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