Exploring leisure gateways up north, down south
Central and South Luzon are among the regions seeing an aggressive development of upscale and luxury residential projects, including those that cater to the leisure market.
Leisure-themed developments continue to proliferate in these regions, driven by improving access to and from Metro Manila, rising purchasing power, expanding manufacturing operations, and the gradual revival of the travel and tourism sector.
Pampanga’s booming leisure market
Colliers believes that property investors and developers should take advantage of rising demand for real estate projects in Pampanga, including those that are leisure-focused.
In our view, Pampanga is well-positioned to capture interest from local and foreign investors as it is among the most visited provinces in the Philippines.
Its leisure market is greatly benefiting from the expansion of Clark Airport and the seamless connection brought about by Skyway 3 and North Luzon Expressway (NLEx).
Its leisure market is also benefiting from the fact that Pampanga is part of Central Luzon, which remains an attractive hub for manufacturers and other industrial locators. The growth of manufacturing operations in Clark and other industrial parks in Pampanga is seen to help stoke demand for leisure-centric properties, including golf communities, from expatriates.
Developers and investors should thus be quick in launching new projects and acquiring properties in Pampanga. At present, the province has seen the launch of more massive masterplanned communities offering active lifestyle and high-end amenities geared toward the upscale and luxury markets.
This is a clear indication that more and more residential projects in Pampanga now cater to the high-end market. And despite prices that mirror those in Metro Manila, these projects are performing well.
Batangas’ humongous potential as a leisure hub
Colliers believes that big-ticket public projects such as North-South Commuter Railway and South Luzon Expressway Toll Road 4 (SLEX-TR4) should compel developers to launch more leisure-oriented masterplanned communities in Batangas.
Developers are likely to tap into the demand by launching more house-and-lot (H&L) and lot-only projects geared toward the leisure market. Both national and homegrown property firms are also integrating office and industrial developments with these leisure- and resort-themed projects.
Lian, Lipa, and San Juan are among the locations deemed viable for leisure-themed projects.
Maximizing the tourism sector’s recovery
From the beaches of Batangas to the golf courses in Clark and other parts of Pampanga, we are optimistic that these destinations will remain popular among local and foreign travelers, given the improving connectivity in these regions.
In our view, golf communities with vertical residential developments are likely to garner interest from local and foreign travelers (including retirees) while horizontal projects within these estates are likely to corner take-up from domestic travelers and investors.
What to expect beyond 2025
Colliers believes that developers should cash in on the thriving demand for resort or leisure-oriented properties outside Metro Manila. While these projects are already popular, the pandemic further highlighted the need for leisure-themed residential enclaves.
Colliers also sees the revival of demand for golf communities, with developers launching such projects in growth areas like Pampanga and Batangas.
As of end 2024, leisure-themed projects or those located within golf communities in Pampanga have total contract prices (TCPs) of between P5.6 million and P21.5 million, with average prices ranging from P162,000 per sqm to P206,000 per sqm. These projects have take-up rates ranging from nearly 60 percent to 99 percent, almost sold out.
Meanwhile, in Batangas, these leisure-themed developments have TCPs ranging from P3.2 million to P17.9 million, with average prices of P70,000 to P316,000 per sqm. These residential developments are already 55 to 100 percent sold.
