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THE real-estate unit of airline and tobacco tycoon
Lucio Tan has entered the “affordable” or lower middle income
segment as it distances itself away from the weakening US market,
traditionally the target of some of the country’s property
developers.
In a briefing, Danilo Ignacio,
Eton Properties Philippines Inc. president, said that the company
has created a wholly-owned unit called Belton Communities Inc. (BCI)
to handle housing projects geared toward the lower end of the
market. Eton however would still undertake high-end projects.
“Eton is selling well right now
but the only blip in the (local real-estate industry) is the US
market,” which has softened of late as the Americans continue to
be hounded by the subprime mortgage mess and the slowing economy,
Ignacio said.
The Eton executive added that the
firm’s small sales team abroad has stopped its road shows in the
US and is focusing on selling to Filipinos working in Singapore,
Dubai, Europe and Australia. However, Eton still continues to tap
the markets in Hawaii and Guam as these territories are somewhat
insulated from the sub prime mortgage problem of the mainland, he
said.
Ignacio said the company’s
revenues would not be sorely affected by the absence of the US
market since only 20 percent of total sales come from overseas. It
also helps that Eton has a “very lean” foreign sales force and
strong local presence, unlike other firms that have large exposures
to the US market that are now hurt by the increasing
cancellations—from 20 percent to 50 percent—by US-based buyers,
he said. These Filipino-American buyers usually preferred
residential projects within the Makati CBD and Fort Bonifacio areas.
Two months from now, BCI would
start building its first project named North Belton Communities that
would cater to first-time homeowners and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs)
and their families. The newly launched residential project would
rise from a 13.8-hectare property along Quirino Highway near Tandang
Sora in Novaliches, Quezon City.
The initial phase of North Belton
is The Manors, 14 medium-rise condominium buildings that would be
contained within 3.3 hectares of the township. For P1.2 million, or
a monthly amortization of P8,600 plus 10 percent equity, buyers can
own a two-bedroom 30-square-meter unit through bank financing.
Bianca Manor, the first to be built among the cluster would be
completed by June 2009 and would house 100 units, or 20 units per
floor.
The next two phase would also
involve medium-rise buildings with 2-bedroom 40-square-meter units
and townhouses. The last to be built is the commercial center that
would be located in the 3-hectare frontage of North Belton.
Ignacio said Eton would be
looking at the large landbank of the Lucio Tan group and see where
North Belton can be replicated if the first project proves
successful. One candidate, he said, is the property that the group
owns at the end of the Light Rail Transit 2.
--Likha C. Cuevas-Miel
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