Nowadays, a 360-perspective of property is what you need to get the right investment in the right place. Especially when financial markets seem to be crashing in the US and elsewhere. It’s not only about figures on paper: we’re talking about learning about what’s out there by really doing your fieldwork. We talk to people, get insights, see their triumphs and their pain in their tumble with the stock markets. We find the right investments, weed out the bad ones, know the truth from the lie about titles, mortgages, buyers, sellers. When battle-weary investors get to pull out their money in time, they run to a sound property investment and plunk it back right in. They say it’s their safe harbor while waiting out the recession’s worst.
Are the Philippines and the Pinoy OFW Affected?
The Philippines, my local and foreign customers say, seems to be less affected if you will go by the relatively calm, even upbeat demeanor of its residents. People here are still shopping: the malls are still alive with the buzz of buyers, the higher-end restaurants still have their queues of diners, albeit shorter lines than before. People still have smiles on their faces. Just go to the Fort and to Alabang Town Center especially during weekends. A report in the Inquirer claims that BPO office spaces being built to date are committed til 2010. Hence the expats, they say, are still staying, if not flying in frequently to set up their new offices. Companies are still hiring–but they’re now scouting for the creme de la creme who may have been displaced but the latest shakeout in the industry.
Reality is we are definitely getting the spillover effects: there are companies closing their manufacturing facilities, impending layoffs by the thousands, expats going home, Pinoys coming back due to retrenchment. We are affected; but somehow the Filipino demeanor now is: “been there, done that.” We are no strangers to hardship, hence we know how to look for opportunity where other people see none at all. Or as my grandparents used to tell me, when someone loses his job he goes to the province and plants camote (root crops). In this process he not only survives–he even sometimes flourishes, gaining health, some wealth and more wisdom at that stage.
Now, if that Pinoy expat loses his cushy position in a key multinational company in Europe or the US, the proverbial place in the province may be a comfy house or condominium in Metro Manila when he’s repatriated. His camote is a distributorship opportunity in partnership with other high-powered executives who have pooled together their separation/retirement pay or golden stash to create jobs, seek markets, stimulate the economy. It’s bite-the-bullet time. And while they wish to conserve their cash for the long haul, they are not risk-averse if there is in fact a good property buy to grow their money in while making the best of this global recession.
The buyers have been active, still, and even gung-ho. We’re not talking about buyers of cheap properties alone. You’re talking about buyers looking to invest anywhere from P1M to P150M. They’re on the scout, and it’s not just for the foreclosed property. The renters are definitely still renting, though their taking shorter term rentals in these key areas.
It’s true that in any market, for one with deep pockets, the proverbial ‘good buy’ is a relative term. If you can buy a Pacific Plaza Tower , Fort Bonifacio Global City condo in the Penthouse level for P28,000,000 , that is definitely an extremely good buy.
The prime Alabang villages and commercial areas, Makati and the Fort Bonifacio Global City have been my areas of concentration. With the global recession bringing both crisis and true opportunity for the quick and the cautious, property investment coupled with excellent timing on when to come in may result in your getting the best security for your money. As a client says, “Nowadays, you only sit on two secure investments: if it’s not gold, it’s in property.”
It is our business to make our expertise and years of exposure to these markets work for you. Do e-mail us if you want to discuss what’s out there now.
On Buying and Selling Residential Properties
The classic term “buyer beware” holds: check all details before you make the purchase or lease decision. Weigh the implications of cash or bank financing purchase, or creative financing options. Check the terms of lease contracts. For the investment, some of the processes which you can choose to do on your own are : title verification, seller/ owner qualification, property viability, bank financing investigation, among others.
If you are selling your property, make sure that your title is clean, or at least mortgages are updated. Prepare copies of the title, location plan, lot plan, tax declarations, a description and picture of the property for sale to facilitate inquiries. If the other owners listed in the title are based abroad, make sure that these owners give the Philippine-based co-owner or entrusted individual a copy of the authenticated Special Power of Attorney (SPA). This certifies that the other Manila-based co-owners or his authorized representative are duly authorized to execute a sale transaction for that specific property, and to sign for and in behalf of the co-owner based abroad. Authentication is done at the Philippine Embassy in the foreign-based owner’s country of residence.
On Choosing A Real Estate Broker or Agent
But is doing this on your own worth your time or the hassle? If not, the next best option is to get a trusted relative to do this. You can also deal with a licensed agent or better yet, a licensed property broker. Property agents from reputable developers are given a license to sell as part of a project sales team and thus, have good product knowledge about these condo or housing projects. Beware of an agent claiming to be licensed yet offering houses for re-sale. His license does not encompass this right, and he may not have sufficient knowledge about documentation and financing for re-sale properties.
However, if you wish to consider more options for purchase a broker can advise you on both the project and the re-sale properties in the same. A broker may have one or more strengths : area specialization, project specialization, or a product specialization–be it in condominiums, re-sale or private developer houses, or industrial lots. Further, there is that valuable ‘inside-information’ that comes with having specialized or lived in that locality for a long time.
Ask trusted associates for referrals. The person doesn’t have to be a know-all. However, a licensed broker may be more aware of the nuances of Philippine property laws and transaction practices, and access to local information on properties in the neighborhood. Trust your instincts. You can sense if he asks the right questions, looks in the right places for answers about the property and its financing. The broker especially should show effort to protect your property investment interests.
Ask the broker about his credentials and his experience. The latest requirement of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is that licensed real estate brokers should be members of accredited realty associations or boards. This is to ensure greater ethical and professional compliance in the practice. Ask too if your broker is updated in his licensing and is a member of good standing with the declared realty board.
Maintaining a Third-Culture Perspective
For foreigners and Filipino expatriates returning to Manila, I bring a third-culture perspective in providing real estate services . I’ve lived abroad for 4 years as a trailing spouse to an Expat Pinoy. I’ve experienced first-hand what it means to do home search and lease, moving houses and countries, doing local and international school search and to be immersed in repatriation processes. There is a need to get a flavor of the local community, and an even greater need to find support groups to help displaced, trailing spouses settle quickly in the new country. These processes raise a string of needs unique to this multi-cultural community of home buyers and lessees. We understand that the house search for a home in “move-in” condition may be the result of a progressive, global career move. So we strive to develop multi-cultural sensitivity to make your home search as hassle-free as possible for you and your loved ones.
What I bring to the search for the ideal property is a keen need to understand the customer’s preferences, a desire to satisfy his investment needs. It’s about sharing qualified, not limitless choices to arrive at that perfect match. I designed this blog’s information architecture for both information search and knowledge sharing. Please feel free to share what you know about real estate and investing. . . or on what you want in finding a home away from home. In the end, it’s all about satisfying your investment need and learning more from the process.
this is a terrific blog. lots of useful info that i have not yet read or seen elsewhere.