By Jun Sanchez*

THIS entry is based on the study this author made on the survey released this April by the National Statistics Office on all types of private building construction in the Philippines. The study focused on residential construction since it is meant for prospective Pinoy homeowners and residential developers.

The survey is based on the number of building permits approved by the local building officials in all cities and municipalities in the Philippines; the projects are described as “started.” No figure was given as to how many were finished, still in progress or discontinued. The study shows that:

• Residential projects account for 70% of all private construction in the Philippines. Of which, 85% are single houses, 3% are duplex/quadruplex/townhouses, 9% are apartments and 3% are condos.

• Residential projects have a short boom-bust cycle, i.e., growth cannot be sustained. It’s moderate for single houses and apartments but for townhouses and condos, the cycle is volatile. They enjoy massive growth for a year or two only to plummet later. Condo construction has been declining massively since 2005, indicating a glut in this segment. This, however, is a national trend and does not classify projects into Class A, B or C.

• Apartment construction grows steadily indicating that there’s a growing demand for it from Pinoys who have yet to own their homes.

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INVESTMENT manager Ryan Osea gives INQUIRER.net a tour of two of F1 City Center’s model units.

Video taken by INQUIRER.net online videographer Janie Christine Octia during the F1 City Center grand launch at MC Home Depot in Bonifacio Global City.

By Alex Vergara
Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines–When Butch Nayona and Sylvia Bautista hired the services of architect Dante Aguirre to design their respective condo units sometime ago, the two accomplished singles had a number of requirements that were quite similar.

Nayona and Bautista have yet to meet each other, but like thousands of nameless, faceless executives based in Metro Manila, they work long hours in the office. Since both live alone most of the time, they have precious little time to spare fussing over minute details.

In short, they each wanted a practical and functional place to come home to at the end of a long, hard working day. Yet their tastes and personalities couldn’t have been more different.

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By Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines–Paramount Hotels & Facilities Management Inc. has been appointed by a unit of SM Investments Corp. to manage the group’s beach club in its eco-tourism project in Nasugbu, Batangas.

Costa Del Hamilo Inc., the developer of the beach club and a subsidiary of SMIC, appointed Paramount to manage Pico De Loro Beach & Country Club in Hamilo Coast.

Due to be operational in the third quarter of 2008, Pico De Loro Beach & Country Club is an exclusive membership club featuring resort, recreational and leisure facilities, SMIC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange.

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By Elizabeth Sanchez-Lacson
Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines–Eton Properties Phils. Inc., the property arm of the Lucio Tan Group, launched on Monday its second condominium project in Greenbelt, Makati City, which targets professionals working in the central business district.

Eton president Danilo Ignacio said during the launch that the 34-story Eton Parkview Residences is on Gamboa Street behind the Asian Institute of Management.

The project will offer 230 all-loft units. A one-bedroom unit ranges from 40 to 57 square meters, and will sell at about P3.6 million.

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