Tapping the potentials of real estate and tourism

MANILA, Philippines – A strong public-private sector partnership is needed to fully tap the potentials of real estate and tourism as twin engines of growth for the Philippine economy.

Philippine Real Estate Festival (PREF) president and CEP Rosemarie Basa said that it is generally acknowledged that more than 60 percent of the tourism industry consists of real estate. This includes hotels and resorts, convention, exhibition and conference centers, retirement villages and communities, wellness and medical centers, and other leisure and entertainment facilities and amenities.

On July 29 to 31, 2010 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City, leading practitioners in tourism-related businesses and industries from the Philippines and the Asian region have been invited to take part in this year’s festival, which has a theme “Global Tourism and Real Estate Development: Sunrise Industries for the Philippine Economy.”

She pointed out that there are still untapped areas of activity that can boost both the tourism and real estate sector.

For instance, Basa explained that real estate projects, particularly those involving condominiums in the Philippines, should be marketed to foreigners who will be encouraged to buy partly for investment purposes but largely because they see themselves coming more often to the country as a tourism destination. “After all, it can be cheaper to own a condominium unit than get a room in a hotel, depending on how often you visit the Philippines. Now if they only come here once in a while, they can probably enter into some sort of time-sharing,” she said.

She added that the development of the Philippines as a major tourism destination will augur well for the tourism sector.

In the real estate sector, she noted that two major industries constitute its most vigorous contributors. These are housing and new towns development and tourism development.

“It is generally acknowledged that the housing and urban development industry has been a significant driving force of our national economy during most of this decade. However, the Philippines has yet to tap the full potentials of this industry as an engine of growth. The country has been unable to break past the four million mark of foreign tourist arrivals. This pales in comparison with the steady and consistent growth of the tourism industry in our neighboring countries,” Basa said.

She said that Malaysia is registering more than 20 million tourist arrivals a year. Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore have been scoring between 10 to 18 million. Vietnam is notching more than six million and there are signs that Laos, Kampuchea and even Myanmar are already on the list of favored stopovers. Outside of ASEAN, China, Hong­kong and Macau continue to draw tourists in double-digit millions as they have for several years.

“It is unfortunate that while Laos, which has a population of six million, has tourist arrivals of around two million a year while the Philippines, which has a population of 95 million, only has around three million visitors each year,” Basa pointed out.

Basa emphasized that the Philippines can break the four-million mark, but it needs a national effort. “The public and private sectors need to get their acts together. The newly enacted Tourism Act of 2009 provides the newest policy and legislative initiative in this direction. Tourism is a veritable engine of growth. Much like housing, it has a multiplier effect that benefits many sectors of the economy. It makes real sense for our economic managers to give top priority to tourism-related investments on our economic agenda,” she said.

She added that local governments will have to take a more active role in playing hosts to investors and tourists while the national government will have to give priority attention to essential infrastructure needed to facilitate travel, transport, and communications, and ensure basic facilities for clean, comfortable, safe and secure lodging according to global standards.

Basa stressed that world-class promotion strategies and practices have to be utilized in drawing global attention to the Philippines and this is the reason why PREF has given special focus on tourism development in its fourth run this year.

PREF will also be holding a three-day special property sale that will serve as a venue for prospective property buyers to be apprised, gain access, and buy quality realty assets at discounted prices, with fund matching support services.

President Benigno Aquino III will be delivering the keynote address at the PREF 2010.

Among the speakers and topics lined up during the three-day event are Tourism Undersecretary Vicente Romano III who will talk about developing Philippine real estate with an eye to global tourism; Jones Lang La Salle Leechiu COO Lindsay John Orr who will give an overview of the local real estate market; Quantum Group (New York) managing director Arun Savkur who will discuss practical strategies in finance and infrastructure for emerging markets in real estate and tourism; San Miguel Properties general manager Karlo Estavillo who will talk about new communities for the new Filipino; Century Properties chairman Jose Antonio who will share views on developing real estate for modern lifestyles; Globe Asiatique chairman Delfin Lee on reengineering low cost and social housing, and Robinsons Land general manager Henry Yap (today’s challenges in developing new communities).

Also to grace the event are SHFC president Fermin Arzaga who will discuss the Community Mortgage Program as a response to the housing backlog for marginalized groups; CREBA Land CEO Jaime Cura on how to tell if the title to one’s property is genuine, Pag-Ibig Fund CEO Jaime Fabiana on how to avail of housing loans without overextending one’s self, RESA Professional Regulatory Board chairman Eduardo Ong on the new RESA Law, Funds Management marketing specialist Rick Bernie Kawulia (sourcing global funds for emerging real estate and tourism markets), European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines retirement and healthcare coalition manager Marc Daubenbuechel (business opportunities in the retirement industry), and Citizens Crime Watch founding chairman Jose Malvar Villegas on housing for CCW and other groups.

There will also be an Asian symposium on model projects and best practices in real estate and tourism development which will be attended by Thailand Ambassador Kulkumut Ayudhaya, Laos Ambassador Leuane Sombounkhan, Cambodia Charge d Affaire Tith Sarunreth, Australian Trade Commissioner Ross Anthony Bray, and China Tourism Commercial Counsellor Wuzheng Ting.