SMDC to sell bargain house and lots

Residential property developer SM Development Corp. (SMDC) is preparing to diversify into provincial areas and begin offering “economic” house and lots to address the huge housing backlog in the country.

“We would like to offer the cosmopolitan lifestyle to as many Filipinos to allow them to live in lifestyle districts anchored on the synergies of SM’s property developments,” SMDC executive vice president Jose Mari Banzon said in a press statement.

SMDC, a subsidiary of property giant SM Prime Holdings, is expected to launch its first economic housing project in Central Luzon in 2017. A commercial development will rise right beside the planned gated community.

Based on its 2015 resolution, Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) defines “economic” housing as those priced at P1.7 million or below.  The price ceiling was adjusted from P1.25 million earlier, taking into account higher prices of raw land, land development, construction materials and labor costs.

With the government seeking to spur development in the regions, SMDC said it is “aligning” its expansion plan to help narrow the huge gap in the Philippine housing sector with a reported backlog of over 5.5 million.

To help address the gap, SMDC is also building medium-rise buildings (MRBs) outside Metro Manila. These planned MRB developments will mostly be located in SM’s mall complexes to give residents the convenience of going to a supermarket, department store and other dining and entertainment venues just a stone’s throw away.

“The key is to make our offerings as affordable as possible and at the same time, give our residents luxury-like living in all our developments,” Banzon said.

Last October, SMDC launched Vine Residences, located within the complex of SM City Novaliches. The condominium project has a central park with sunken gardens, swimming pools, a nature’s park and a camp site.

SMDC launched during the fourth quarter its very first MRB project outside Metro Manila called Cheer Residences within the SM City Marilao complex in Bulacan.

“The market remains huge especially in the affordable segment. SMDC’s main strength is its ability to make good its promise to deliver homes in prime locations,” Banzon said.

Prior to the aggressive entry of SMDC into the housing market in 2007, Henry Sy Jr., the eldest son of businessman Henry Sy, had a vision to make housing more affordable for Filipinos without sacrificing quality. This gave birth to SMDC’s aggressive move into vertical housing development. In just 10 years, SMDC was able to launch a total of 28 projects.  It has sold more than 83,000 units to date.