RESIDENTIAL property prices in Metro Cebu declined slightly year-on-year in the second quarter, even as the number of housing loans in the area recovered from the previous quarter, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
The BSP’s Residential Property Price Index (RPPI) showed Metro Cebu residential property prices fell 0.2 percent year-on-year in the second quarter (Q2) 2026, reversing the 9.4 percent increase recorded in the first quarter. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, however, prices rose 2.4 percent, following a 1.3 percent increase in the previous quarter.
The slowdown in Cebu came as residential property prices outside the National Capital Region (AONCR) declined 2.7 percent year-on-year in second quarter marking the first annual contraction for the broader area. The BSP said the decline was broad-based, although prices across AONCR still posted moderate quarterly growth.
In Metro Cebu, the median price of all types of residential property stood at P4.17 million during the quarter, according to the BSP. Condominium units had a median price of P4 million, while houses had a considerably higher median price of P4.99 million.
The Cebu figures contrast with the national trend, where condominium prices continued to rise. Nationwide, condominium prices increased six year-on-year in Q2, marking the fourth consecutive quarter of annual growth, while house prices declined 4.1 percent.
Within AONCR, Metro Cebu was among the areas that continued to post quarterly price growth. Metro Mindanao recorded a 2.1 percent annual increase and 2.7 percent quarterly growth, while Balance GMA posted a three percent annual decline and a 1.2 percent quarterly contraction.
Housing credit
Despite the annual decline in Cebu property prices, housing credit showed signs of improvement in the second quarter.
The number of residential real estate loans granted in Metro Cebu increased 12.4 percent quarter-on-quarter in Q2, reversing a 7.7 percent decline in the first quarter. However, loan availments remained 8.1 percent lower year-on-year.
The recovery was more evident in condominium financing. Loans granted for condominium units in Metro Cebu rose 30.6 percent quarter-on-quarter in Q2, although they remained 8.7 percent below the year-earlier level.
Loans for houses, meanwhile, declined 6.5 percent quarter-on-quarter and 24.9 percent year-on-year in Metro Cebu.
The BSP data suggest that the Cebu residential market entered the second quarter with softer annual price growth, but with a quarterly recovery in both property prices and overall residential lending.
Nationwide, residential property prices grew just 0.4 percent year-on-year in Q2, the slowest pace since the RPPI series began in the first quarter of 2019. The BSP said sustained price growth in the NCR was largely offset by the first annual decline in AONCR.
The BSP defines Metro Cebu in the RPPI as covering the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, Talisay, Naga, Carcar and Danao, as well as Cordova, Consolacion, Liloan, Compostela, Minglanilla and San Fernando. / KOC