New additions set in property awards

MANILA, Philippines - As the traffic woes in Metro Manila persist, developers continue to explore various opportunities in the residential market to be able to offer the market better qualities of life.

This is a trend that the judges of the annual Philippine Property Awards has observed.

The PropertyGuru Philippine Property Awards, the country’s biggest and most prestigious real estate awards program is set to run on its sixth year in 2018, and with the latest edition of the awards comes a brand new set of awards categories, in line with acknowledging the emerging market conditions in the Philippines.

RGV Group of Companies vice chairman and Philippine Property awards chairman of the judging panel Dr. Jaime Cura said the independent panel of judges decided to make changes and further diversify the categories of the awards system to recognize the continuing emergence of innovations in design, production, and marketing among Philippine developers.

“To us, this is proof of their sensitivity to local market conditions and their courage to try new strategies and new products outside of the tried and tested,” Cura said.

Among the new categories to be added to next year’s awards are the Best Township Development and Best Township Design, where the judges will be looking for the project’s smart city principles, sustainable design and carbon-emission management system, among others, as the popularity of and demand for such integrated community developments in and outside the capital rises.

Tajara Leisure and Hospitality Group Inc. president Cyndy Tan Jarabata, part of next year’s judging panel felt the growing need for developers to provide a “true township” development that goes beyond the Live-Play-Work concept.

“You need to be able to create an atmosphere where people should be really able to live and commuting back home should not be tough,” Jarabata said.

In addition, the awards will also give accolades for Best Alternative Housing Development, to recognize owner-managed housing projects intended for transient workers, students and the elderly; Best Mid End Condo Development (Metro Manila); and Best Affordable Condo Development (Cebu).

For the Best Alternative Housing category, Jarabata said given the congestion in Metro Manila creating longer commute time for workers, people are looking for housing development that can give them better lives by offering short travel time to and from their workplace. 

“If you look at BGC where land prices are outrageously high, where do workers now live and stay if they still have to travel to Quezon City. There’s no quality of life,” Jarabata emphasized.

She added: “If you look at how we live in this lifestyle, you have the co-working, the co-living. It’s really the least travel that you can actually do [offers] the best quality of life.”

With the addition of the new categories, the sixth Philippine Property Awards will have around 36 awards categories.

“For more than half a decade, the annual Philippine Property Awards has recognized outstanding examples of world-class property development across the country. Every year, the number grows,” Cura said. 

“We feel that we should recognize and encourage such innovations and sensitivity to market conditions to prove that the Philippine property market continues to be a standout in this part of the world,” he added.

In the previous edition of the Awards, the judging panel also introduced several categories reflecting the growth of the domestic market, such as Best BPO Office Development, Best Mixed Use Development, and Best Universal Design Development. The said categories remain for the 2018 edition after being well received by local developers.

PropertyGuru Aisa Property Awards founder and managing director Terry Blackburn, expressed that the addition of the new awards categories make the Philippine Property Awards more inclusive.

“With the addition of new categories to make the awards program more inclusive, the Philippines Property Awards upholds its reputation of fairness and transparency for all, to celebrate the achievements of the country’s dynamic real estate industry,” Blackburn said.

Nominations are now open for the public until Feb. 16, 2018. Eligible entries for the Developer, Development and Design completion categories will be accepted until Feb. 23, with the final shortlist of nominees announced on March 28, 2018.

Shortlisted nominees will be honored as Winners or given Highly Commended distinction at the sixth annual gala dinner and awards ceremony of the PropertyGuru Philippines Property Awards, set on Friday, April 27, 2018, at the Fairmont Makati ballroom.

 The black-tie gala will celebrate the successes of the Philippine real estate sector with 300 of the country’s key senior industry figures from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao gathering under one roof.

Apart from the nominations, a new Real Estate Personality winner will be chosen by the editors of PropertyGuru Property Report, and will be revealed before the 2018 gala dinner.

Winners of the the Philippine Property Awards will represent the country against other markets in the regional Asia Property Awards.The regional winners will be announced on the night of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final to be held in Singapore on Nov. 8.