MEGAWORLD: The Philippines’ No. 1 Residential Condo Developer and BPO Developer and Landlord

Megaworld Corporation emerged as The Philippines' No.1 residential condominium developer from 2000 to 2011 —over a decade—in a study conducted recently by CB Richard Ellis. According to the firm, Megaworld cornered a 16 percent share of the market, rolling out more than 40,000 residential units with a total aggregate saleable area of about 1.9 million square meters.

The CB Richard Ellis study is supported by a report released earlier by Colliers International citing Megaworld as the No.1 residential developer from 2010 to 2016, based on the number of residential units completed and their saleable area. The figures solidify Megaworld's continued leadership in the tightly contested condominium market.

"Megaworld has the distinction of being recognized by two international real estate services firms as the No.1 residential condominium developer," said Megaworld Senior Vice President Francis Canuto. “This is a testament to the company's dedication to address on a large scale the Filipinos' need for quality homes in the very best locations."

New condo inventory

In 2011 alone, Megaworld added to the market new inventory from eight new residential projects in Metro Manila and the Visayas.  Most of these projects, located in Megaworld's live-work-play-learn townships and mixed-use communities include One Eastwood Avenue in the 1 6-hectare Eastwood City in Quezon City; 101 Newport Boulevard and Belmont Luxury Hotel in the 25-hectare Newport City in Pasay City; One Uptown Residence in the new 16-hectare Uptown Bonifacio in the Global City; Tower 1 of The Viceroy in the 50-hectare McKinley Hill in Fort Bonifaclo, Taguig City; and the second tower of Manhattan Heights, the third phase of the 5.7-hectare Manhattan Garden City at the Araneta Center.

The 31-story Greenbelt Hamilton in the Makati CBD and Eight Newtown Boulevard, Megaworld's first luxury residential project in Mactan, Cebu, were also among the developments put on stream last year.

The Megaworld Group aims to launch 11 residential projects by the first half of 2012. It is also looking to target an even wider range of customers through the properties of its subsidiaries, Empire East Land Holdings Inc. and Suntrust Properties Inc.

Stronghold on BPO office space

Megaworld also maintained its top position as a provider of business process outsourcing offices in the past decade.  In a study by Colliers International, Megaworld concluded 2010 with the biggest share in the BPO office market at 30 percent.  Colliers also said that the developer has the largest supply pipeline until 2015.

With its ever-increasing portfolio of BPO offices, Megaworld is set to meet the real estate needs of the growing BPO industry. The Business Processing Association of the Philippines estimated that the country, a preferred outsourcing destination, can expect 300,000 square meters of new office space demand per year through 2016.

To ensure continued growth, Megaworld has set a P25-billion capital expenditure program this year to complete ongoing projects and develop new ones.  MegaworId is currently developing over 40 residential and BPO office projects in Metro Manila.

Megaworld posted a net income of P8.15 billion in 2011, up 60 percent from a year earlier on strong real estate sales, higher leasing income and non-recurring gains from the sale of shares. Consolidated total revenues, which include real estate sales, rental income, hotel income and other revenues, rose 39.3 percent to P28.6 billion from P20.5 billion the previous year. The bulk of revenues came from the sale of condominium units and residential lots totaling P1 5.9 billion or an increase of 21.2 percent from the previous year's P13.1 billion. Meanwhile, rental income grew 42 percent to P3.8 billion largely due to the completion of additional leasing properties and continued demand for office space from BPO companies.