Mindanao unrest pushes rental demand in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines - The ongoing unrest in Mindanao has somehow benefited Cebu in terms of rising residential rental demand, as more and more residents from nearby provinces have already decided to take temporary shelter in Cebu.

Rent.ph president Anthony O. Leuterio said yesterday that the rental online portal is now getting increasing inquiries for short-term home rental requirements, whether apartment, house, and condominium mostly from Mindanao.

In recent years, due to the robust tourism sector growth as well as the remarkable growth of the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and other industries, Cebu’s rental sector have been very good, Leuterio said.

And recently, the demand further increased with inquiries mostly from Mindanao residents who want to take temporary shelter in Cebu.

The unrest in the one-million people city of Zamboanga has closed schools and businesses. Hundreds of houses have caught fire during the fighting. Authorities have accused the rebels of deliberately starting the fires.

According to Leuterio, because the rental demand in Cebu is on a high level, most owners, and landlords are now also demanding for long-term lease contracts, while short term stay deals are not attractive for them.

The problem now is, this temporary shoot up for residential rental demand cannot be well served, because of the landlords’ preference for long term (at least one-year renewable) contract.

Rent.ph, which recently got its patent registration from the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), is so far the largest online rental solutions portal in the Philippines. It has spread is rent managers all over the key cities in the Philippines.

According to Leuterio, Rent.ph is receiving an average of 300 to 400 inquiries for home rental requirements a day in Cebu.

At present, the standard rental rate for condominium for instance, is pegged at one percent of the total value of the unit, the rate exact rate however may increase depending on the availability of facility and furnishings in the unit.

Aside from the increasing short-term rental demand from Mindanao, Leuterio said home rental requirement is also rising from the foreign markets, specifically those who are planning to stay in Cebu for longer time.

He said some tourists are now also opting to rent a house or condominium to cut cost rather than staying in a hotel for weeks or months. This development also led to the increasing demand for more condo-tel type of accommodation in Cebu.

Most foreign vacationers stay for as long as one month to three months, making Cebu as their temporary home-base while they explore the different tourist destinations in the Visayas, or even Luzon.

Currently, Rent.ph has 600 accredited rent managers all over the Philippines. The company has also developed its own training module to equip rental solution agents with necessary specialized skills on this new innovative profession.– /JOB (FREEMAN)