CPG sets sights on office leasing, affordable housing

Property developer Century Properties Group Inc. (CPG) said it will focus on office leasing and affordable housing in the next few years.

Jose E.B. Antonio, the company’s chairman said, these two segments are expected to corner about a third each of the company’s revenues in the future. The remaining will still be contributed by sales from its high rise developments.

“The affordable housing continues to be buoyant because of the unmet demand for affordable housing in the Philippines. And office leasing continues to be very vibrant considering the fact that despite the realignment of office spaces the vacancy in the industry remains to be very low at a single digit rate

of 5 percent,” Antonio said during the company’s annual stockholders meeting conducted online.

“Our locations are ideally located both for these companies to continue expanding their operations,” he added.

For the first half of the year, the company saw the combined net income contributions from the two business segments jump to P225 million or 42 percent of the total net income of P546 million, compared to 29 percent a year ago.

Its combined revenue contribution is at P1.27 billion, or 28 percent, from 15 percent last year, the company said.

Antonio said while there might be some perceived softening in the market due to prevailing economic sentiments, the company sees affordable housing demand to continue as it serves the need of a real market or the first home buyers.

“The same is true for office leasing, especially for projects located within developments that are ecosystems in themselves, such as our project in Century City, Makati, where we have residential, office and commercial establishments,” he said.

The company has focused on these two segments as it is running out of condominium units to sell and so far, there are no more new high-rise developments in the pipeline.

Company President and CEO Marco R. Antonio said the company will continue to diversify its portfolio towards the original goal of balanced contributions from affordable housing, commercial leasing, and in-city vertical developments businesses.

The company’s affordable housing brand, Phirst Park Homes, announced in July that it is launching its seventh community development to be located in Magalang, Pampanga later this year.

The company posted reservation sales of 1,548 units worth P3.12 billion for the first six months of the year from its six projects in Tanza, Cavite; San Pablo and Calamba, Laguna; Pandi, Bulacan; and Lipa and Nasugbu, Batangas totaling 97 hectares.

For commercial leasing, CPG will end the year with about 137,000 square meters of gross floor area. Earlier last week, it announced the buyout of the 40-percent stake of its joint venture partner Mitsubishi Corp.’s newly-completed Century Diamond Tower in Makati. The company has bulked up its recurring income assets threefold since 2017.

“We will confront challenges as innovators. We will maintain business resilience with an eye towards growth. And we will view the world with an evolved vision towards sustainability,” Antonio said.