Wazzup Pilipinas!
To say that Metro Manila’s real estate landscape is fast
evolving is quite an understatement. For instance, no one would have guessed
that Ayala Triangle was the site of the Philippines’ main and only
airport—Nielsen Field—in the 1930s, before its destruction during World War II
and subsequent redevelopment in the 1950s.
To give examples of more recent real estate “rebirths,” many
residents of Metro Manila still remember Bonifacio Global City and McKinley
Hill before they were, well, Bonifacio Global City and McKinley Hill. The
244-hectare Filinvest Alabang, in addition, was once a vast pastureland before
the late 1980s, and Rockwell Center once
housed a thermal power plant operated by MERALCO.
Because the real estate industry’s appetite for new land to
develop is insatiable, a growing number of master-planned, mixed-use projects
are currently being constructed in many parts of Metro Manila. One can describe
this building boom to be quite intense as every project that completes means
more shopping malls, office towers, residential condos, and lots and lots of
leisure areas add to the capital’s ever evolving real estate landscape.
Mixed-use projects will soon shape Metro Manila’s real estate landscape.
Whether you call them townships, mixed-use estates, or
live-work-play developments, these real estate projects have everything people
need: master-planned, centrally located, transit-oriented, and are teeming with
activities 24/7.
South Park District
Developer: Avida Land
Location: Alabang,
Muntinlupa
Size: 6.6 hectares
A project by Ayala Land subsidiary Avida Land, South Park
District will soon rise on the former site of Nestlé factory along National
Road in Alabang, Muntinlupa. According to Avida Land, two high-rise residential
condominiums are currently underway in South Park District: Avida Towers Altura
Towers 1 and 2, with the first tower scheduled for turnover sometime during the
fourth quarter of 2016, and the second during the second quarter of 2018.
Aside from these residential components, Ayala Malls will
open South Park Mall during the fourth quarter of 2016, which will boast 49,000
sqm of retail space, while the South Park District Corporate Center, a
12,000-sqm office tower to be built atop the mall, will be completed during the
fourth quarter of 2017.
At present, South Park District’s Central Park is now open
to public, which features interesting sculptures by artist Greg Yuson, and BAGA
Manila, a barbeque held from Thursdays to Sundays. According to Avida Land,
prices of condo units in Avida Towers Altura Tower 1 have already increased
approximately 6.03 percent since launch, indicating positive interest among
property buyers.
Vista City
Developer: Vista Land
Location: Between the
cities of Muntinlupa and Las Piñas and the provinces of Cavite and Laguna
Size: Approximately
1,500 hectares
Touted as Vista Land’s most expansive project to date, Vista
City, situated on an area shared by the cities of Las Piñas and Muntinlupa and
the provinces of Laguna and Cavite in southern Metro Manila, promises to be a
complete community comprising vertical and horizontal housing, BPO offices,
shopping malls, and even educational institutions.
According to Vista Land, the project’s retail component—Evia
Lifestyle Center—is complete, which boasts an air-conditioned courtyard with a
sky ceiling, high-end cinemas, and an indoor glass atrium.
Vista City’s residential components are also quite
comprehensive, representing the company’s three brands targeting different
market segments: Brittany’s Portofino Heights, Portofino South, and Amore by
Portofino for upscale property buyers; Crown Asia’s Ponticelli Gardens and
Ponticelli Hills for mid-end to high-end homebuyers; and Camella’s Cerritos for
starting families.
Furthermore, Vista Land is developing Vista Hub situated along
Daang Hari South, which is being earmarked as the south’s foremost business and
IT park. Construction of its initial 10-hectare is well underway and will
eventually house BPO companies. Another feature of Vista City is Palazzo Verde,
one of Metro manila’s most sought after wedding venues.
The mixed-use projects future components include more office
spaces, health and medical institutions, schools, sports facilities, and a
hotel, while Vista Land’s residential components have already launched new
phases of its residential projects.
McKinley West
Developer: Megaworld
Corporation
Location: Fort
Bonifacio, Taguig
Size: 34.5 hectares
Located just beside Forbes Park and the Manila Polo Club,
McKinley West, in keeping with other Megaworld projects, is inspired aesthetic
wise by modern and traditional European architecture.
This project, which sits on the former JUSMAG property in
Fort Bonifacio, is expected to be fully developed over the next 10 years
(Megaworld announced that it has earmarked Php45 billion for the project’s
development), which when completed will composed of residential (condos and
house and lots), IT parks and BPO offices, retail centers, and schools, among
others.
The project’s first condo component—St. Moritz—was launched
in 2015 and patterned after London’s One Hyde Park apartments. According to
Megaworld, from Php190,000 per square meter, prices of St. Moritz units have
already soared to Php215,000 per square meter in just a little over a year
since its launch. The company also revealed that residential lots at McKinley
West Village are now commanding prices of Php200,000 per square meter in the
secondary market. Lots in this upscale project have selling prices of just
Php70,000 per square meter when it was launched in 2010.
Arca South
Developer: Ayala Land
Location: Upper
Bicutan, Taguig
Size: 74 hectares
At 74 hectares, Arca South is perhaps Ayala Land’s largest
project inside Metro Manila since Bonifacio Global City. Soon to rise on the
former FTI Complex in Taguig’s Upper Bicutan area, the estate will sit next to
where East Service and C5 roads meet and will also feature a transport terminal
dubbed “South Integrated Transport System.” According to Ayala Land, this
section of Arca South, which is a multi-modal terminal, will facilitate
organized transfers of some 4,000 buses and approximately 160,000 passengers
expected to pass through the terminal daily.
Arca South’s residential components are doing quite well. In
fact, according to information obtained from Ayala Land, the estate’s
residential sales have already reached 70 percent, with three of the company’s
real estate brands—Ayala Land Premier, Alveo Land, and Avida Land—together have
sold over 1,000 units just a year after the projects’ individual launches.
These Ayala subsidiaries’ residential projects in Arca South are Arbor Lanes,
Veranda, and Avida Tower One Union Place, respectively.
In addition to these projects, excavation and construction
have also begun for Ayala Malls, the Arca South Corporate Center, and Seda
Hotel Arca South. The projects’ commercial lots are also fully sold, and
according to Ayala Land, commercial land appreciated by 39 percent in less than
a year since the project was launched in 2013. In addition, the company
announced that it will invest Php80 billion for Arca South’s first five years,
after which the estate will boast a built area of approximately 870,000 square
meters.
Circuit Makati
Developer: Ayala Land
Location: Brgy.
Carmona, Makati City
Size: 21 hectares
Dubbed as Makati’s newest entertainment district, Ayala
Land’s 21-hectare Circuit Makati sits on the former Santa Ana Racetrack in
Barangay Carmona along the southern banks of Pasig River. This mixed-use
project will be anchored by the real estate giant’s various brands: Alveo Land
for residential, Ayala Malls and Offices, and Ayala Hotels.
Although still under construction, several sections of
Circuit Makati are now open to the public, including Circuit Lane and the
400-sqm black box theater Power Mac Center Spotlight; Globe Circuits Event
Ground, a two-hectare entertainment venue that can accommodate up to 10,000
spectators; and sports facilities Mountain Dew Skate Park, Gatorade Chelsea FC
Blue Pitch, and Urban CityKart Racing.
Ayala’s high-end residential subsidiary Alveo Land has
already launched two high-rise condo projects in Circuit Makati: Solstice
Towers 1 and 2, which are scheduled for turnover in August 2018 and January
2020, respectively. Aside from Solstice 1 and 2, structures under construction
in Circuit Makati include the Stiles Enterprise Plaza, Ayala Malls Circuit, and
Seda Hotel Circuit. According to Ayala Land, when completed Circuit Makati will
boast approximately 9,000 condo units, 130,000 sqm of office space, and 250
hotel rooms.
Alabang West
Developer: Megaworld
Corporation
Location: Brgy.
Almanza Dos, Las Piñas
Size: 62 hectares
Currently being developed by Megaworld subsidiary Global
Estates Resorts, Inc., Alabang West is a 62-hectare residential and commercial
township (the real estate giant’s largest in Metro Manila) that is
strategically located close to Alabang’s leisure and commercial districts
(although the project itself is within the jurisdiction of Las Piñas City).
Alabang West’s highlight will be its Beverly Hills-themed
lifestyle concept, complete with a 1.3-kilometer commercial row inspired by
Rodeo Drive. According to Megaworld, almost half of the 788 lots made available
during the project’s launch in 2014 were sold between October and December of
that year. The company added that land prices in Alabang West rose by 25 to 30
percent in early 2015 from the township’s launch in 2014. Further, Alabang West
is just one of several real estate projects in southern Metro Manila that will
benefit from infrastructure developments in the area—namely, the
Muntinlupa–Cavite Expressway (MCX) and the Cavite–Laguna Expressway (CALAX).
Vertis North
Developer: Ayala Land
Location: North
Triangle, Brgy. Bagong Pag-Asa, Quezon City
Size: 29 hectares
Dubbed as Quezon City’s very first central business
district, Vertis North is a 29-hectare prime property located between EDSA,
North Avenue, and Mindanao Avenue, just across from Ayala’s TriNoma Mall.
Makati Development Corporation is currently undertaking the land development of
the estate, as well as construction of Avida Towers Vita, a three-tower high
condo scheduled to be turned over in March 2017 (Tower 1), September 2017
(Tower 2), and February 2018 (Tower 3); High Park, a high-end two-tower condo
by Alveo Land, which will be turned over in the third quarter of 2019 (Tower 1)
and 2020 (Tower 2). Aside from these two residential components, Ayala Hotels
is also building Seda Hotel Vertis.
Vertis North is expected to boost the city’s economic
development. Ayala Land has announced that it is investing Php65 billion for
the project, which when completed will have approximately 45 towers and
buildings composed of offices, shopping malls, hotel, and residential
condominiums. The project’s first retail component will open in late 2016.
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
