Philippine developers focus on investments, ignoring political issues

Developers in the Philippines are choosing to ignore the current political situation in the country. Instead, they are concentrating on making the property sector an appealing place for investment. This information comes from Joey Bondoc, a research director at Colliers Philippines, during a media briefing on Tuesday. Bondoc mentioned that their clients have not shown any worries about the political turmoil, which includes the trial of former President Rodrigo Duterte at the International Criminal Court. He believes that developers are focused on making the Philippines a strong investment destination, despite any “political noise” around them. Analysts also believe that local political issues will not significantly affect the stock and bond markets. Investors are more concerned about the global trade war. Meanwhile, Colliers reported that developers are providing attractive promotions for ready-to-occupy units to cope with a surplus of housing in Metro Manila. These promotions offer discounts of 15 to 30 percent on total prices for cash payments, with some developers allowing little to no down payment. Bondoc noted that certain developers do not require any initial payment to move into a ready-for-occupancy unit. According to Colliers data, as of December, there were over 26,300 unoccupied housing units in the National Capital Region. Of these, a significant portion falls within different price ranges, targeting various income segments of the market.