Megaworld ups Global City investment to P65B

Business Mirror - Megaworld Corp., the flagship property arm of billionaire Andrew Tan, is increasing its investments in a 15-hectare mixed-use complex called Uptown Bonifacio by 44 percent to P65 billion over a 20-year period. 

Uptown Bonifacio, located within Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City, will feature up to 18 towers, offering a total potential development of 500,000 square meters of residential space, 400,000 sq m of office space and 90,000 sq m of retail space, a statement on Tuesday showed.

Senior Vice President for Marketing Noli Hernandez said the upgrade was made to reflect a more positive
outlook for real estate in the Fort Bonifacio area. For instance, sales for an all-suites condominium in the development, dubbed Uptown Ritz Residence, have been brisk.  

Uptown Ritz units are expected to fetch P8 billion in sales, once fully taken up.  

Aside from retail attractions, Uptown Bonifacio will have a P12-billion, 140,000-sq-m corporate block with four towers set along Megaworld Avenue, the district’s main avenue.

The upcoming corporate block will be constructed under the Berde (Building for Ecologically Responsive Design Excellence) rating system. Its office buildings will showcase cutting-edge architecture, double-glaze glass walls, sky gardens and a lagoon.

Megaworld shares rose 0.89 percent to P2.26 each on Tuesday, giving the builder a market value of almost P58 billion.

For more details on Uptown Bonifacio, you may e-mail reby_ramirez@yahoo.com or contact her at 0922.883.9308 / 0916.4044.555 / 0919.699.3572 / 4044-534.

For latest update on real estate development and its RA 9646, the Real Estate Service Act of 2009, visit www.ra9646.com.

Megaworld pledges to buy unsold Empire East shares

Businessworld - MEGAWORLD CORP., the middle-income property unit of business tycoon Andrew L. Tan, has pledged to buy shares of subsidiary Empire East Land Holdings, Inc. that will be left unsold after an upcoming stock rights offer.

“In connection with the one for four preemptive stock rights offering of Empire East, Megaworld, as the major and controlling stockholder of Empire East, has committed and undertaken to subscribe to its rights offer entitlement and to any rights offer shares not taken up by other shareholders,” the disclosure read.

“This will ensure that all 2.6 billion rights offer shares will be subscribed,” Megaworld added.

As of end-June, Megaworld held a 47.28% stake in Empire East, equivalent to 5.02 billion shares.

Empire East shareholders last month approved the preemptive stock rights offer, wherein the company will offer one new share for every four shares held by existing stockholders, in a bid to raise funds for land banking, project development, and general corporate purposes.

Proceeds from the stock rights offer, expected to amount to approximately P2.6 billion, will be used to fund Empire East’s estimated P3-billion capital budget this year.

The stock rights offering is expected to commence sometime in the third quarter, earlier reports showed.

Earlier this week, Empire East inked a joint venture with the Japan-based Okada Group for the development of a P45-billion upscale condominium complex in the Bagong Nayong Pilipino Entertainment City, firming up its foray into luxury property development.

The developer is also one of many firms interested in the 120-hectare, state-owned Food Terminal, Inc. agri-indsutrial complex in Taguig City that is slated for bidding next month, having floated a P14-billion unsolicited offer for the property last year.

Empire East’s first-quarter net income rose by 48.13% to P34.71 million versus year-ago levels, supported by an uptick in the company’s real estate sales.

Total revenues went up by 23.88% to P700.08 million, while costs and expenses expanded by 24.52% to P672.33 million.

Megaworld shares plunged 4.87% to P2.15 yesterday, while those of Empire East fell by 3.37% to 86 centavos each.

For more details on Megaworld and Empire East projects, you may e-mail reby_ramirez@yahoo.com or contact her at 0922.883.9308 / 0916.4044.555 / 0919.699.3572 / 4044-534.

For latest update on real estate development and its RA 9646, the Real Estate Service Act of 2009, visit www.ra9646.com.

Megaworld creates RFO division

Philippine Star - Megaworld Corp., the country’s largest residential condominium developer, has created a Prime Properties Investment Group (PPG), a marketing division that exclusively handles all completed projects and ready for occupancy (RFO) properties.

Megaworld PPG vice president for sales and marketing Donna Racho said the group is set to change the RFO landscape by offering free interior design services to all buyers.

 “Through the years, there is a specific segment of our market that prefers RFOs more than pre-selling projects. And these buyers are usually the most sophisticated ones who want to personalize their units - from the cuts to the designs and furnishings. This is what we will be offering to them,” Racho said.

Racho explained that Megaworld has pre-selected the units that will be reserved as RFOs even during the construction phase. This, she said, would allow the company to forecast its inventory for pre-selling separate from RFOs.

The division will be on top in providing “unparalleled” after-sales services to Megaworld unit owners. It established an exclusive interior design team, composed of seasoned home designers, to address the needs of buyers who want to personalize their units. At present, clients may choose from Zen, Contemporary, and Modern Victorian designs for their units.

“We base our designs on their personality, lifestyle, color preferences and mood preferences,” said Megaworld PPG senior design head Fernando Buenavista.

Clients may also request the group to select, negotiate and purchase their preferred furniture, fixtures and appliances that suit their needs and budget.

Megaworld PPG may also assist RFO unit owners who want to lease or re-sell their properties. It will also ensure the safekeeping and maintenance of the units in the absence of the unit owners.

“This isn’t just all about revenues. We want to create a long-lasting after-sales service to our most valued clients. We want them to remember Megaworld. And the next time they want to invest for a property, Megaworld will be top of their minds,” she explained.

For more details on Megaworld projects, you may e-mail reby_ramirez@yahoo.com or contact her at 0922.883.9308 / 0916.4044.555 / 0919.699.3572 / 4044-534.

For latest update on real estate development and its RA 9646, the Real Estate Service Act of 2009, visit www.ra9646.com.

Megaworld Cebu project declared special ecozone

Mactan Newton, Megaworld Corp.’s 16-hectare township development in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, has been declared a special economic zone.

Proclamation No. 407, signed recently by President Aquino, put the enclave under the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).

Republic Act 7916, also known as the “Special Economic Zone Act of 1995,” grants owners of and locators in ecozones certain privileges, including tax incentives.

Foreign investors meeting the required amount of investments in the ecozones are granted permanent resident status, including their spouses and dependents, or children under 21 years old.

The PEZA is also authorized to issue working visas renewable every two years to foreign executives and other aliens working or doing business inside the zones.

Mactan Newtown is expected to be home of some of the top business process outsourcing (BPO) companies in the country.

The five-story One World Center in Newtown, which is already completed, is fully equipped to meet the requirements of BPO offices. Four upper floors are for office spaces.

Another BPO-ready building, Two World Center, is now being constructed.

“Megaworld sees the growth opportunities of the BPO industry in Cebu. With this, we expect new BPO companies coming in as we offer the most modern BPO offices in this side of the country,” says Jericho Go, Megaworld’s first vice president for business development and leasing division.

For more details on Megaworld projects, you may e-mail reby_ramirez@yahoo.com or contact her at 0922.883.9308 / 0916.4044.555 / 0919.699.3572 / 4044-534.

For latest update on real estate development and its RA 9646, the Real Estate Service Act of 2009, visit www.ra9646.com.

Tan, Okada forge P45-B real estate deal on Entertainment City

RAPPLER - The upcoming casino-entertainment project in the reclaimed Manila Bay area is paving a way for different deals between and among local and foreign companies.

The latest is a P45 billion-worth deal between two existing franchisees: the Andrew Tan and Kazuo Okada groups.

On Monday, July 16, Andrew Tan-led Empire East Land Holdings disclosed that it has formed a joint venture with the Okada-led Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment Inc. and Eagle 1 Landholdings Inc. for the exclusive development of the high-end residential component of the Okada-led integrated resort.
Empire East will "take the lead with a majority stake in the development of a 12.95-hectare luxury residential resort condominium project in Entertainment City Manila. The high-end project will comprise more than 25 residential towers in several phases."

Real estate project
Empire East was previously the affordable arm of the group of Tan, who chairs Alliance Global. The main property unit of Tan is Megaworld Corp.

The casino-entertainment project, however, has made Empire East rethink its strategy.

"Empire East will compete with all the developers in the market including Megaworld. This is healthier rather than limiting ELI (Empire East) into one segment of the market. The market is very active now. ELI wants to have a piece of the high-end market as well," Empire East president Anthony Charlemagne Yu said in a statement.

Part of the P45 billion-worth Empire East residential project at the Entertainment City will be in the $4 billion total investment of the Okada group in the area.

Business deals
Tan-led Alliance Global, which has formed a deal with Malaysian casino firm Genting Berhad Lt, and Okada-led Universal Entertainment, are two of the 4 groups awarded by the casino regulator Pagcor the right to develop and build complexes at the Pagcor Entertainment City.

Previously, the Okada and another real estate developer, the Gokongwei-led Robinsons Land Inc., are mulling a deal for the retail component of Okada's project.

Australian billionaire James Packer and Macau casino mogul Lawrence Ho have previously inked a deal with the Belle Corp., which is led by the Philippines' richest man, Henry Sy.

The fourth franchisee is Enrique Razon-led Bloombery Resorts.

Each franchisee is required to invest a minimum of $1 billion into their respective projects. Okada had promised to pour in $4 billion. 

For more details on Empire East projects, you may e-mail reby_ramirez@yahoo.com or contact her at 0922.883.9308 / 0916.4044.555 / 0919.699.3572 / 4044-534.

For latest update on real estate development and its RA 9646, the Real Estate Service Act of 2009, visit www.ra9646.com.