Real Estate leaders share optimism, challenges in the industry
FROM THE role that Internet plays in the real estate sector to what’s in store for the commercial and residential property developers targeting the POGO market, the recently concluded Lamudi’s Outlook Media Roundtable Series 2019: An Excellent 2018 for Philippine Real Estate and Raising The Bar in 2019 offered a glimpse of the trends that defined Philippine real estate in the past year and what the future might hold for the sector.
Lamudi’s Chief Executive Officer Bhavna Suresh moderated the roundtable discussion, with members of the panel sharing their insights and views on a range of topics about the country’s real estate sector. The roundtable’s panelists were Christophe Vicic, country head of JLL Philippines; Janlo De Los Reyes, JLL Philippines’ head of research and consulting; Steve Chien, regional controlling principal of Keller Williams; and Elizabeth Ventura, president, and executive director of Anchor Land Holdings, Inc.
As the Internet continues to evolve and advances in mobile technology make communication and information dissemination more efficient nowadays, members of the panel believe that trends in digital marketing have helped them communicate their products and services to their clients.
Elizabeth Ventura of Anchor Land, for one, noted that not only are they able to educate their clients better about their property offerings, but the projects that the company itself ventures into have become more viable because of the information that they get about their prospective clients and the feedback that they receive from them. “We rely on feedback mechanism so we know what buyers want. When you’re very clear with the needs of the clients, you can properly plan your projects,” Ms. Ventura said.
She noted that Lamudi, Philippines’ number one online real estate property platform, will continue to play a more critical role in strengthening the relationship between property developers like Anchor Land Holdings and property seekers who use the online platform in their search of properties to buy and invest it.
Ms. Suresh said she is very happy with Lamudi’s search traffic figures, noting that on January 2019 alone Lamudi, has seen an average growth rate of 40% week on week in terms of search activity.
For Steve Chien of Keller Williams, Lamudi’s growth in the last five years has been admirable. He credited the property portal for playing a pivotal role in the real estate industry and in helping generate interest among individuals who wanted to become potential real estate agents.
The research head of JLL Philippines also shared Mr. Chien’s sentiment. “We want to harness the technology so we can do a better job,” Janlo De Los Reyes told the panel. JLL Philippines country headChristophe Vicic believes that technology has impacted everyone in the property development sector.