Firm opens retail strip, pursues expansion in Cebu

AMID spiking interest rates and inflation, property developer Pueblo de Oro Development Corp. is confident of logging growth this year as it pursues its expansion plans in Cebu.

By the fourth quarter of this year, the company is set to launch its four-tower condominium project named Pueblo de Oro Storeys inside its 27-hectare township in Lapu-Lapu City that will have a total of 450 units.

The units at this low-cost project are priced from P2.5 million to P3 million. This is the latest residential project to be accommodated inside the township, which already houses three house and lot projects, namely La Aldea del Mar Cebu (1,517 house and lot units), Park Place 1 (480 units) and Park Place 2 (244 units).

After the condominium project, Pueblo de Oro will build a townhouse project in Carcar City, south of Cebu. Pueblo de Oro Townhomes Carcar is a 10-hectare modern economic housing development that will offer 920 house and lot units in Canasujan, Carcar. This will be introduced to the market in the first quarter of 2024.

Ronald Allan Uy, vice president and general manager for Visayas, said the company is allotting P2 billion this year to fund the condominium project in Lapu-Lapu City and the townhouse project in Carcar, Cebu, among others.

“Developers are bullish on the market but are also prudent in spending. We are all racing to bounce back but we are also moving cautiously,” he said.

Retail strip launched

On Friday, April 14, 2023, Pueblo de Oro Townscapes Lapu-Lapu formally opened its commercial hub named Pueblo de Oro Townsquare. This three-level retail strip houses a 24/7 convenience store, fashion boutique and pharmacy, salon and wellness center, a restaurant and cafe and a laundry service.

Uy said the retail strip will not only cater to the needs of the residents in the township but also the nearby community in the area. This commercial component beefs up the amenities of the township project.

“This not only saves time and money for the residents, but also supports the local businesses and economy,” said Uy.

On a macro perspective, Uy said they have confidence that the sustained inflow of overseas Filipino remittances should propel the growth in the residential and retail sector beyond 2023.

Data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas showed that personal remittances increased by 3.6 percent to a record high US$36.14 billion in 2022.

“In our opinion, these remittances will continue to be a major demand driver for affordable to mid-income residential units with prices ranging from P1.6 million to P6 million. For this reason, we have established a dedicated international sales team to expand our reach and better serve the needs of the overseas Filipino workers market,” said Uy.

The international sales team has a presence in the United States, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, Canada, Japan and New Zealand, among other remittance source countries of the Philippines.

Moving forward

Due to the scarcity of land in Cebu, Uy said the company is open to entering into joint venture (JV) partnerships with landed owners. In fact, Uy said negotiations are already underway for potential JVs in Lapu-Lapu and Mandaue cities.

The company will also focus on building horizontal projects and are eyeing expansions in other provinces in Central Visayas like Bohol.

Pueblo de Oro is the real estate arm of ICCP Group, which has stakes in investment banking, venture capital, industrial estate development, township development, and exposition facility complex management. (KOC)