PLC International Marketing Networks will host a global agent conference for their Lancaster Brand of Philippine Condotel investment sales in Manila and Cebu this November 2008

Beth Collingz, Sales Director of PLC Global and lead partner with Pacific Concord Properties Lancaster Brand of Condo Hotel developments in the Philippines said the PLC Global Agent Conference 2008 is the first and only dedicated hotel investment conference being held in Manila and Cebu that will bring together lead marketing partners from around the world to discuss investment opportunities, markets and condo-hotel developments in the Philippine market.

The four day conference, which begins on Friday November 14, at the Lancaster Suites Condo-Hotel in Manila before moving to Cebu the following day, features the theme “Making successful hotel developments and investments in the Asian hotel market” and will give our marketing partners the opportunity to experience the Lancaster brand of Condotels first hand.

The PLC Global Agent Conference will provide delegates with an unparalleled insight on the trends shaping hotel investment markets in the Philippines. With over 6 hours of structured networking opportunities designed into the program, this is the only opportunity to meet the key officers of Pacific Concord Properties said Collingz.

Co-host and guest speaker, Ronald Lim, President/CEO of Pacific Concord Properties Inc, will present a segment on Condo Hotel Investments in the Philippines using PCPI’s own condo-hotel developments as basis. Lim will discuss the Philippine Condotel Concept that he authored and implemented with emphasis on Condo Hotel Investments for institutional investors and for the retail market as alternative retirement pension plans and the Lancaster Brand of Philippine Condo Hotels – Lancaster Suites Manila, Lancaster – The Atrium Manila and Lancaster Cebu Resort Residences.

With huge investments flowing into infrastructure and as the Philippine government increase promotional efforts to encourage tourism, interest in hotel developments for business and leisure travel are hitting new highs. Investors and developers now have a unique opportunity to capitalize on the growing demand for hotels and hospitality services, and the returns on investments.

Condo Hotel Properties are being snapped up by agile investment funds as rents soar in the country. Investment Fund Managers and Private Investor Clubs tap their deep pockets to purchase real estate investments in the Philippine Condo Hotel market amid a marked shortage of Hotel rooms driving expected ROI through rental returns upwards of 14% per annum said Collingz.

"Rents which we thought we would get in two years we're getting now". Collingz expects rental income to rise 12.5 percent in the coming 6 months after gains of as much as 30 percent since June 2007. UK based Private equity units of banks and investment clubs, driven in part by the current strength of European currencies in international trading, are being attracted by returns in the Philippines as much as double those in the United States and Europe, are purchasing significant blocks of real estate for investment trusts for Asian commercial property.

"There are large amounts of capital now chasing increasingly limited investment-grade real-estate opportunities in Asia," said Collingz. "We are in the closing stages of packaging the investment of private-equity real estate funds for new Condo Hotel developments in Manila and Cebu, with expected rental returns which continue to grow at a rapid pace."

With funds raised for commercial property deals in Asia having doubled in each of the past five years, Collingz sees the market value of Condotel investments in the Philippines reaching new heights in 2008/9 as more developments come on line. Rising demand for homes, hotels, short and medium term rental accommodation, offices and shopping malls in the Philippines, home to a population of almost 80 million and with a significant number of the more than 10 million returning overseas Filipino ‘Baby Boomers’, is fueling rents.

Residential rents in Metro Manila rose 26 percent in six months to June 2008, their highest quarter-on-quarter increase in more than a decade, as more and more IT companies set up shop in the Philippines. Companies like Texas Instruments are investing $1B in expanded operations in the Philippines. High-end rents rose some 15 percent from a year earlier, said Collingz.

As property prices soar, Collingz projects that Rents in the region are set to effectively jump 12.5 percent per annum over the next five years, compared with 5.3 percent in the United States and 4.7 percent in Europe. Yields from 8 percent to as high as 14 percent ROI on rental income property contrast with the 4 percent to 5 percent that private equity firms get in the United States and Europe.

"People are in general looking to shift fund flows relatively towards Asia," Collingz said. "It already has had a profound impact in markets where there's a lot of this money chasing the same assets." As the Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong markets become saturated, the Philippines will be the next real estate market to attract substantial overseas investments. Lower prices and retirees’ spending money are also directing foreign attention to residential condominium hotels in the Philippines, which in turn is driving up more construction.

“A lot of this interest is being driven by the relatively cheap market prices here compared to Europe and the easy payment options available for condominium hotel developments” Collingz said. “The buyers gain rental incomes that on today’s purchase prices give a projected ROI of some 8 to 14 percent depending on the mode of payment for the unit” she said.

Guest speakers at the conference include representatives from the Philippines Retirement Authority detailing the benefits and application for the special Philippine Retirement Visa and the Philippine Department of Tourism.

The Congress is also an opportunity to meet up with Ronald Lim and representatives of PLC Global and find out how you can tap into the high-yielding investment opportunities in hotels, investment returns for alternative condo hotel models and the economic outlook for one of Asia’s hottest markets.

For further info on the PLC Global Agent Conference and Philippine Condo Hotel Investment opportunities please do not hesitate to contact us:

Beth Collingz
PLC International Marketing Networks
Pacific Concord Properties Inc.,
Manila Head Office
Shaw Boulevard, Mandaluyong City.
Metro Manila. Philippines
Phone: Manila [632] 717 1958
Fax: Manila [632] 718 1828

Pacific Concord Properties Inc.,
Cebu Branch Office
Lapu-Lapu City, Mactan.
Cebu. Philippines
Phone: Cebu [6332] 340 0721
Fax: [6332] 495 4938
EMail: plcsales@pldtdsl.net
Web: http://www.lancastersuites.com [Lancaster Condotels]
Web: http://www.plcglobalpinoy.com [Lancaster Condotels]

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