By Anonymous | April 30, 2014 [ Malaya.com.ph
]
The presence of a strong business
process outsourcing industry continues to make the Philippines as an attractive
investment destination for properties despite the presence of much larger
markets in the Asia Pacific region.
Property consultancy firm Jones Lang
LaSalle chief executive officer Alastair
Hughes said while the Philippines may be a “small dot” in comparison to other
investment destinations like London, New York, and Hong Kong, it is still a
“big dot” in the global real estate investment work when it comes to the
offshore and outsourcing world.
“It’s a small dot and a big dot. It’s
a very small dot in terms of international direct investment. But it is not a
small dot when it comes to the BPO sector which involves some of the biggest
sector in the world. It’s a very big dot when it comes to that,” said Hughes.
David Leechiue, Jones Lang LaSalle
country manager, said the country needs
to undergo more reforms like allowing foreigners to own land.
Leechiu also noted that policies
stipulated in the country’s labor code is also ripe for amendments.
Lindsay Orr, Jones Lang LaSalle chief
operating officer, said the office segment of the property sector is poised for
further growth given projected expansion of the BPO industry, expected to hit
1.4 million in the next four years, from the current 960,000.
“So that’s another 400,000 employees,
which at an average of 6 square meters of work space per employee would mean
that the Philippines will need some 2.5 million sq.m. in the next four years,”
said Orr.
The office segment is seen to be
flooded with a supply of 1.4 million sq.m. of office space, which is lower than
the projected need.
This is expected to be beneficial for
office space rents that is seen to grow between 4-5 percent a year for the next
five years.
Prime office space in Makati current
fetch at P1,200 per sq.m.
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