8 in 10 UAE Filipinos want to buy property back home: Survey

Armed with a higher purchasing power, a surge in consumer confidence and improved financial literacy, more Filipinos in the UAE are planning to buy properties back home.

This according to a survey conducted by New Perspective Media (NPM), organisers of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition (PPIE), which reveals that 78 per cent of participating Filipinos intend to buy properties back home within the next two years.

The figure has gone up substantially compared to NPM’s 2014 survey, which showed that less than half (43 per cent) indicated interest to invest in properties within the same period.

The latest survey also showed that the number of those who plan to invest in a property within a year has more than doubled to 46 per cent compared to 22 per cent last year.

This year, the survey revealed, a majority of the respondents still opt for the PhP2 million (Dh167,000) price ceiling.

Those who indicated a preference to buy high-end properties costing above PhP5 million (DH417,000) almost doubled, from 7 per cent in 2014 to 13 per cent this year.

The survey of 1,000 respondents shows that 60 per cent prefer to buy house and lot; 30 per cent opt to invest in a condominium and 10 per cent intend to invest in lots only.

PPIE, the largest international Philippine property exhibition in the region, was held on October 23 and 24 in Dubai.

The exhibition saw 23 participants including eight of the country’s leading property developers as well as banks and other brands offering investment opportunities to the growing Filipino base in the country. The UAE is currently home to about a million overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

“The Philippines’ strong economic performance during recent years continues to push its property market upwards and international industry experts agree that now is the best time to invest in real estate,” said Karen Remo, NPM Managing Director.

“Investing in Philippine property today is ideal for Filipino and international investors as prices are likely to soar substantially in the coming years,” Remo added. “Our survey confirms a substantial increase in investment appetite and this is in response to positive forecasts of good investment returns in the Philippines, which is one of Asia’s most steady economies.”

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects the Philippine economy to grow by 6.5 per cent this year after posting real GDP growth rates of 6.1 per cent in 2014, 7.2 per cent in 2013 and 6.8 per cent in 2012.

This year, the forecast has already translated to a 6.61-per cent q-o-q increase in housing prices in the country during Q2 2015, according to the latest report of Global Property Guide.

Colliers International echoed the same positive output in its Q2 2015 housing report. The firm pointed out that properties located in the Makati Central Business District benefitted the most.

According to property consultancy firms Jones Lang LaSalle and Colliers International, Manila’s residential property recorded the maximum price growth among Asia Pacific cities during the last three months of 2014.

Property prices in the Philippines are being supported by continuously improving economic conditions. The expanding offshoring and outsourcing industry as well as the positive economic outlook is expected to continue to support leasing and investment demand, which in turn is slated to support rent and price growth for the next several quarters.

Anna Tatlonghari, General Manager, Ayala Land International Sales said: “The income created by overseas Filipinos has allowed millions of people in overseas Filipino families to spend more and live better lives. This consumption has contributed directly to the country’s GDP, 70 per cent of which is accounted for by consumption, according to experts, and remittances are estimated to comprise nearly 10 per cent of the country’s GDP – one of the highest contribution rates in the world.”

UAE boasts the third highest number of OFWs in the world behind the United States and Saudi Arabia. Adding to that, the Philippines is the fourth largest recipient of official remittances after China, India, and Mexico.


 

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