City Lights Garden targets retirees

City Lights Garden is now eyeing the growing retiree market in the country as a potential target market.

This after it tapped banking institutions for easy financing access for buyers that helped disposed easily its Phase 2 projects composed of Towers 3 and 4 with 216 upscale condominium units.

At pre-selling stage, City Lights Garden already disposed 45 percent of the Phase 2 project, said assistant sales manager Cecille H. Canturias, during the open house held recently.

Last August, City Lights Garden topped-off its third tower while interior works were undergoing and the construction of the fourth tower is at the 17th floor. Canturias said the turn over of units to its owners is expected by second quarter of this year.

Based on positive sales last year, City Lights is quite optimistic to sell at least 60 units this year through their brokers and easy financing scheme provided by their partner banking institutions which now include the Bank of Philippine Islands, Development Bank of the Philippines, Philippine National Bank and Banco de Oro.

PNB, for one, is tapping overseas buyers through its “Own a Filipino Home Loan” program in its branches in Europe, Middle East and in other Asian countries.

City Lights Garden is optimistic that with the help of these banking institutions they will be able to tap preferred clients or the top depositors of banks especially mixed-market segments composed of Pinoy balikbayans, dollar earners or the OFWs and especially the growing foreign retirees market from Japan, America and Europe who intends to stay in the country for good and invest.

On the other hand, local investors are likewise eyed as potential clients at a given ratio of 50 percent domestic and 50 percent foreign buyers. This, Canturias said, only proves that the local market in Cebu has grown sophisticated and now considers buying upscale housing investments such as condo units.

City Lights Garden started their development in 1997 during the Asian crisis but they were able to finish construction of their Phase 1 composed of Towers 1 and 2 despite the financial uncertainties and during the first quarter of 2006, they started the construction of Phase 2 development composed of Towers 3 and 4 which is said to be more upscale than the previous project.

City Lights Garden is a project development by a Singaporean-led Syntech Properties which has allocated about P1.3 billion for its Phase 2 project with total investments now breaching P3 billion including the Phase 1 development which is now 100% sold.

Syntech operates under Who Hup Group, a Singapore-based company which has also undertaken several property developments and investments in Australia, China, United Kingdom, Thailand and Malaysia. – Rhia de Pablo