Cebu Residential Property Market Flexes Stable Prices

Residential prices in Cebu will remain stable this year, Colliers International Philippines forecasts, as reported by Sunstar. According to the property expert, should there be price increases, they will be minimal. Developers will consider the current challenges the market is experiencing amid the pandemic. For this reason, promos, including discounts and extension of downpayment terms, will be available. These strategies will remain popular to push inventory and entice buyers.

The property consultancy firm, however, noted that the price increase will happen as the market becomes more optimistic. Various factors influence this sentiment, including the outsourcing sector’s projected recovery, the immunization program, and the resilient interest. 

Colliers noted that prior to the pandemic, the prices of house and lot and lot only projects in Cebu were already increasing. Tapered off by the global crisis, property values could go up again as the market gains confidence. The increase, however, may not be as fast as in the pre-pandemic era.

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Stable Demand

In the first three months of 2021, affordable to mid-income developments flexed strong take-up for both condominium and house and lot projects in Cebu, according to Colliers. These are developments priced between P1.7 million and P6 million. 

Mid-income condominium projects represented 38 percent of both launches and take-up in Metro Cebu. This points to the “rising purchasing power of Cebuano end-users and investors,” Colliers said. 

The consultancy firm adds that this market segment will deliver 37 percent of the 6,563 units slated to be finished this year, accommodating further the strong demand of property seekers. 

Some 813 condominium units were sold in the pre-selling market in the first three months of the year. The figure is a decline of 28 percent quarter on quarter. 

Meanwhile, in terms of lot-only developments, luxury projects represented the majority of the absorption. These are properties priced from 2.4 million and up. Local investors and overseas Filipino workers drive the strong appetite for this price segment in areas outside Cebu City, Colliers reported. Bigger open spaces and proximity to the capital city are what they are after.

Lamudi’s trend report titled One Year Later: Are Property Seekers Buying Again? showed that the demand for houses flexed resilient strength in the second half of the year, as the property type represented the biggest share of both pageviews and leads. The preference for open areas, multi-purpose spaces, and extra storage likely contributed to this positive trend, Lamudi said.

Infrastructure Boom

In a separate report from Philippine News Agency (PNA), Colliers noted that the big-ticket infrastructure projects in Metro Cebu will further drum up interest for residential condominiums. They believe that the roads and bridges soon to be completed will pull more developers and investors into the property hotspot and compel them to buy parcels of land around such infrastructures.

Colliers mentioned two major projects that will help improve property demand in Metro Cebu. Cebu Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) is one, the P30-billion project that connects mainland Cebu to Mactan Island. In the latest update from Manila Times, the infrastructure is already at 70 percent completion. Slated to be finished by the end of the year, it will welcome motorists in the first quarter of 2022.

Currently, the construction team is working on the main bridge deck and the stay cables. Some 152 meters have yet to be completed to connect the main span. Meanwhile, 36 out of 56 cables are now in place.

The four low-lying bridges, which offer access to the fishing ground, are nearly finished. On the other hand, the pedestrian footbridge, which runs 200 meters long, is already complete. Once the bridge is open, it will provide pedestrians safe access to the sidewalk of the Cebu South Coastal Road.

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Another project Colliers mentioned was the Metro Cebu Expressway. According to the Department of Public Works and Highways‘ project description, the infrastructure, which is also called Cebu Circumferential Road, is proposed to extend 74 kilometers connecting Naga City and Danao City. 

As it links the north and south, it’s expected to address traffic congestion in Metro Cebu, especially the central business district. 

The P28-billion initiative will have three segments. The first is the road from the Minglanilla-Talisay boundary to the Mandaue City-Consolacion boundary, which extends 26 kilometers. The second segment runs from the Mandaue-Consolacion boundary to Danao City, almost 30 kilometers long. Meanwhile, the third stretches from Naga City to the Minglanilla-Talisay boundary, about 17 kilometers in length.

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Article and Photo originally posted by Lamudi last June 3, 2021.

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