Realtor bullish about demand

By Mia A. Aznar

Thursday, April 12, 2012

IF AN industry player is to make an assessment, Cebu will be home to more foreign retirees in the coming years.

As Cebu promotes itself as a second home destination, four condominium towers have already sold out to foreigners even before completion, said Realty Options president and chief executive officer Samuel Lao.

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Lao, who is also past president of the Society of Cebu Realty Firm Inc., revealed that a four-tower project by Megaworld in Lapu-Lapu City has been sold to Japanese and European retirees.

Lao, who was a guest speaker at Tuesday’s 888 News Forum, said the units were marketed outside of the country to retirees seeking more bang for their buck.

He said three of the towers were sold to Japanese retirees while the fourth tower was
marketed to Europeans.

He noted that European retirees can enjoy much of their retirement pensions in Cebu because of a lower cost of living compared with European cities. He said the average monthly pension of 1,000 to 1,500 Euros a month, about P60,000 to P90,000, goes a long way if spent here.

Lao said that with the help of the Philippine Retirement Authority, Cebu will attract more tourists, especially retirees.

This, he said, will further drive growth for the local real estate industry. He credits the real estate boom in Cebu to the continued remittances from overseas Filipino workers, increased tourism activities and the continued rise of business process outsourcing.

A report from the Cebu Investment Promotions Center (CIPC), which was taken from Colliers International’s Cebu Real Estate Market Report, stated that Cebu had 4,511 residential condominiums as of December 2011. The same report stated that 2012 will add 1,317 units while 1,961 units will be added in 2013.

The growth of business process outsourcing (BPO), Lao said, has allowed more buildings to be built and given residents more job opportunities. He added that the presence of all these companies is attracting residents from other provinces to migrate, fueling the need for more residential spaces.

“All this money is circulating in Cebu.”

Lao also said that entrepreneurs have cashed in on the phenomenon by buying more properties and leasing them to tenants because it earns more for them than just parking their money with the bank.

“In fact, we are even seeing new players in real estate. Instead of just buying one or two units from new developments, local entrepreneurs are becoming developers themselves.”

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on April 12, 2012.