Hoping to find ‘home’ in Sona

Stakeholders from the property, construction and other related sectors are hoping that President Duterte will address key issues hounding the real estate industry, as he delivers his third State of the Nation Address (Sona) on Monday.

In particular, industry stakeholders are looking to hear some bold pronouncements about the administration’s plans for its ambitious Build, Build, Build infrastructure program, ease of doing business initiatives and the country’s massive housing backlog, over the next four years.

Noel M. Cariño, national president of the Chamber of Real Estate and Builders’ Associations Inc. (Creba), said he is hoping that Mr. Duterte will secure and mark as urgent the passage of a bill creating the Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as address with great urgency the plight of some 5.8 million homeless Filipinos who aspire for decent homes in peaceful and productive environments.

“To date, no meaningful and comprehensive sustainable solutions have been successful to stop the growing number of homeless Filipino families. Land and home prices have all gone up in areas and centers where jobs are found,” Cariño added.

Addressing homelessness

Similarly, Suntrust Properties Inc. president Harry M. Paltongan said he is hoping that Mr. Duterte will “acknowledge the issue on homelessness and give a marching order to the (Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council) and all housing agencies to prioritize finding solutions on these.”

This issue, he noted, should be on similar billing as the administration’s Build, Build, Build infrastructure program.

Paltongan is likewise hoping that the President will “mandate the national government and local government units to identify all idle non-productive lands and do joint ventures with private developers to solve this problem; mandate departments and agencies affecting housing to focus on this issue and cut unnecessary processes; restore VAT exemptions on housing; (and) mandate the promotion of industrialization in the countryside.”

“There are now indicators, and as confirmed by the Department of Trade and Industry and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority that foreign investors are holding back and present investors are not expanding. Needless to say, the homeless need to have jobs to be able to acquire homes,” Paltongan said.

Wilcon chief operating officer and SEVP Rose Ong, for her part, simply wanted to hear “from the President his economic agenda and the progress of his Build, Build, Build program.”

For Willie Uy, chair of the Subdivision and Housing Developers Association Inc. (SHDA), he is hoping that Mr. Duterte will “give full support to Pag-IBIG’s government-to-government initiative for housing loan transactions.”

“This would mean enhanced inter-agency cooperation as the HDMF will handle the application and processing of requirements with the Bureau of Internal Revenue, Land Registration Authority and the LGUs. Hopefully, with our President instructing these agencies to support this unprecedented initiative, friction costs will be greatly reduced and the loan process will be speeded up,” Uy explained.

Colliers International Philippines, one of the leading real estate services provider in the country, meanwhile listed five items in its wishlist for the President’s Sona on Monday namely, the Build, Build, Build program; the government’s decentralization thrust; liberalization of more economic sectors; greater push for manufacturing and exports; and ease of doing business.

“As we approach the midway mark for this administration, Colliers Philippines is seeing sustained growth in the property market. The gains are trickling down to key real estate sectors such as office, residential, hotel, industrial and retail,” Colliers said in an e-mail to the Inquirer.

“We are seeing challenges ahead but we believe that developers can maximize opportunities with the conducive business environment. Over the medium to long term, we see developers benefiting from the government’s infrastructure and decentralization push supported by solid implementation of reforms benefiting economic segments such as manufacturing,” it added.

Infra build-up

Colliers stressed that the fulfillment of the government’s promise to build crucial infrastructure projects across the country is crucial for the property sector. Infrastructure is expected to provide access to property that could be redeveloped into mixed commercial, residential, hotel or leisure, and industrial estates.

The same projects also helped the government bring economic opportunities in areas outside the country’s capital.

Colliers further urged the government to aggressively push for decentralization, as it pointed out that outside Manila, there are several locations already groomed for the influx of more businesses including Pampanga, Tarlac, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Bacolod and Iloilo.

Rising investments

According to Colliers, a more open economy is likely to result in more foreign investments flowing into the Philippines, of which property development is expected to be among the major beneficiaries. The easing of foreign ownership restriction in the retail sector, for instance, should result in a more dynamic retail landscape in the country.

It also noted that promoting the country’s manufacturing sector, which contributed nearly a fifth of national economic output, may also attract more firms to set up shop in the country. And having more manufacturing and export firms means more pronounced absorption of industrial space, thus benefiting the country’s industrial hubs such as Cavite-Laguna-Batangas and Clark in Pampanga.

Lastly, the government’s enactment of the Ease of Doing Business Act will foster “an environment that is conducive to business will play a major role in attracting potential investors to locate in the country.”

“The Philippines is becoming a key real estate investment destination in Asia. Several Japanese companies have formed partnerships with local developers while a number of Chinese firms are now looking at the Philippines as a viable investment destination. The Philippines can become more attractive globally and the strict implementation of the law will help the Philippines improve its global competitiveness ranking,” Colliers added.

Meanwhile, Monique Pronove, CEO of Pronove Tai International Property Consultants, said she is hoping for “the President to allay the current environment of uncertainty in the business sector and support initiatives to retain the country’s competitive advantages in the IT and business process management sector.”

Pronove pointed out that the 50-percent drop in office take up by IT-BPM companies can be attributed to the proposed changes in the existing incentives enjoyed by this sector, which has caused uncertainty.

Pronove also added to her wishlist the following:

Ensure stable and predictable business environment by implementing policies consistent with his 10-point economic program, particularly in continuing and maintaining current macroeconomic policies including fiscal, monetary and trade policies;

Ensure the relevance of Peza and speed up approval of Peza proclamations;

Simplify process for PPP projects and to drive investors to focus on countryside infrastructure development; and

Open up the economy by easing foreign ownership restrictions to more than the current 40 percent in the condominium market (all sectors i.e. residential and office).