Creative Lifestyle you can OWN at IBP

More than just a business township of opportunities and financial center, Iloilo Business Park, the 72-hectare mixed-used commercial complex developed by Megaworld, the country’s leading real estate developer transformed the old Iloilo airport property in Mandurriao district into a bustling lifestyle, leisure and entertainment destination. Talking about lifestyle, you can live with excitement, and creatively in this promising township…

1. Health buffs are here

You know what they say about health buffs? They can’t resist getting physical and it is making them feel good especially if they have the perfect place to do it. Iloilo Business Park has all the stunning visual scenery that will attract health buff to come and enjoy the place – wide spaces, close-to-nature ambiance, huge buildings and fresh air. From jogging, walking and even biking, the township dedicates a Bike Lane along the Megaworld Boulevard to ensure safety and friendly spot for those wanting to enjoy the rest of the day. Iloilo Business Park and the City Government of Iloilo holds the annual Iloilo Bike Festival to attract bikers and sports enthusiasts.  

2. Selfie all you can

Sure, “selfie” is today’s “in thing” in the social media world. People snap photos everywhere and post it online especially if the place is relaxing and enjoyable. No need for a ‘selfie’ guide in Iloilo Business Park because the whole township is stunning and abundant with exciting scenery to do it. Celebrate friendship, bonding and get-together with friend or acquaintances in coffee shops, restaurants and retail shops at the Festive Walk Mall and Street of Festive Walk. Celebrate success with careers and business meetings in BPO buildings and international hotels like Richmonde Hotel and Courtyard by Marriot. Be impressed with the Iloilo Convention Center’s amazing architectural design outside or experience classy events happening inside it. In front of the biggest McDonald’s branch in Panay, a huge IBP logo emblem is always ready to accommodate your instant ‘selfie’ snaps.

3. Create your leisure list

When Iloilo Business Park is in full swing very soon, this vibrant township will be teeming with non-stop and endless reason to visit. You can create your own “leisure list” for blogging or social media posting either as a frequent visitor or a township resident to enjoy your day with your company, friends or acquaintances. For day visitors or residents, you can create your leisure guide starting with a healthy jog or walk in the morning, breakfast in any restos in the Street Festive Walk, shopping or movie watching at the Festive Walk Mall in the afternoon, business meeting at Richmonde Hotel or watch a concert at Iloilo Convention Center in the evening. For nightlife enthusiasts, you can start the fun right after work at the Festive Walk Mall with friends, chill with them in any bistros at the Street of Festive Walk and conclude it with a karaoke escapade with them.  

Artists Perspective of One Madison Place, The Palladium and Lafayette Park Square

4. Careers are fun here

You can mix career life and endless fun by living in Iloilo Business Park. Since IBP is officially the biggest BPO center in the region, there are various multinational companies such as StarTek, Transcom, Reed Elsevier and many others envisions to hire competitive local work force. The hospitality service and tourism sector will greatly benefit with the opening of the Street of Festive Walk, Festive Walk Mall, Richmonde Hotel and Courtyard by Marriot Hotel. These significant employment surges in the township will create opportunities and at the same time, expand IBP’s leisure and entertainment offering. Those working for the call centers can now enjoy the perks and privileges of first-class leisure and fun available in the township. They can also live and enjoy a classy lifestyle with their IBP’s residential towers offered by One Madison Place, Lafayette Park Square and The Palladium.

5. Own the Cultural Pride

As Iloilo Business Park makes its recognizable mark as the township venue of the APEC 2015 ministerial meetings from Sept. 21 to Oct. 6 through Iloilo Convention Center, the commercial and economic ambiance will surely inspire foreign dignitaries and delegates to envision the township as a possible investment hub in the future. These economic visions create a sense of pride among Ilonggos and local businesses to consider the township as Iloilo’s future face of bright opportunities. As the city government continues to promote its campaign slogan – “I am Iloilo” – the same resonance of passion creates ownership, pride and embracing of a new culture for Ilonggos. Local or abroad, Ilonggos are now recognizing Iloilo Business Park as a must-visit center of a new lifestyle to own.

Chasing the Blue Hour and Photography with Felipe Uygongco

“For me, photography is both passion and art,” says Felipe Uygocongco, an Ilonggo photographer whose extensive work in photography captured most of Iloilo’s beautiful landmarks, tourism sites, hidden gems, and vibrant faces of people for the last five years of his triumphant return to photography. His interest in photography started during his early days in high school and college. Back then, he mastered the use of point-and-shoot camera, a very ordinary gadget that never failed to evoke his interest in photography.

“I’ve always been a lover of beautiful images and visuals that speaks about different stories,” he continues. After college, he decided to dedicate his life in their family business, his career elevation and soon had his own family to take care of. But his inclination for photography never slowed down and remained intact in his heart.

Iloilo Business Park Head of Sales and Marketing, Jennifer Ann Palmares-Fong presented a token and certificate of appreciation to Felipe Uygongco.

“Photography has always been there inside me, waiting for the right time to bring it out and express it,” he uttered with confidence. After decades of dedicating himself with his career, business, and family life, he decided to pursue his passion for photography.  It was more than five years ago when he decided to make photography his most anticipated retirement hobby that awakened the slumbering artist inside of him.  Once again, he learned to appreciate the beauty of natural scenery and places that he  visited around the world through photography.

“Light makes photography work. Using it and embracing it is making more than just art,” he said. For him, photography is about creating balance and harmonizing the light that creates a visual story. For most of his time as a photographer, he is a storyteller who always waits and chases the “blue hour,” the period of twilight each morning and evening when the sun is a significant distance below the horizon and the residual while indirect sunlight takes a predominantly blue hue. When most people in their retirement years pursue the life of comfort and stress-free lifestyle, Uygongco still has the burning passion to chase the hard life of a photography artist whose flair is to satisfy the heart, seeking the thrill of adventure and difficulties, all in the name of perfecting a craft and achieve true artistry.

“I had to wear thick clothes just to keep myself warm during our photo shoot sessions in cold countries abroad. Sometimes, when you love to do something, there’s no obstacle that you can’t get through. Everything becomes easy when you’re willing to do it right,” he said. Constantly, he keeps on learning and developing his skills, trying to discover a lot of techniques and apply it with his craft. Together with his group of photography buddies, they are striving to hone their skills and travel as much as they can. The closest photography subject in his heart is capturing the images of Iloilo’s culture, landmarks, people and heritage, from the old buildings in Calle Real to Iloilo River and a lot more.

“Iloilo Business Park is a picture of progress for Iloilo City these days. As a photography artist, it is a challenge for me to capture the visual scenery in this township that started to open a gateway of world-class opportunities and strong infrastructure developments not only in the city but the whole Region VI,” he further enthused. With great enthusiasm, he immediately agreed to accept the invitation in taking part in Iloilo Business Park’s photo exhibit event entitled “La Fotografia: Capturing the Progress of IBP” weeks ago. With confidence in his craft, he showcased the vibrant side of the township through his stunning photos during the exhibit last September 19, 7pm at Richmonde Hotel Iloilo. His seven exhibited photos grandiosely presented Iloilo Convention Center, Richmonde Hotel Iloilo and other scenery in the township that defines the vivid concept of Iloilo’s glorious economic rise.

“We Ilonggos have come a long way from a sleepy city into a progressive rise as the original ‘Queen City of the South.’ Aside from considering these photos as part of my life’s greatest work and journey, let these images tell you how great it is to be an Ilonggo,” he spoke with sincerity, concluding his speech with a spark of vigor in his eyes.

Investment Strategies and Tips for Condo Buyers

Condominiums are sprouting from everywhere in the Metro. Thanks to the developers who are capitalizing from the low interest rate, and from the cash flows of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) abroad and the employees of the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector.

As a newbie condo buyer, it maybe easy for you to join the bandwagon and buy seemingly desirable condo property that is offered to you. Whether buying a condo is primarily for the purpose of residence or as a mean to generate passive income by renting it out, having a good condo strategy would give you a well-defined course of action. Below are some of the best condo investment strategies that you can apply if you are thinking of buying a condo.

Location is the key. The main advantage of a condo over house and lot is location. You’re investing in a condo because of it’s location, bringing you into a more convenient lifestyle. It may be near from your place of work or located in a prime location where you can cater to a lot of potential tenants. Since condos are mostly located near commercial areas, go there during rush hour traffic. Chances are, the estimated travel time in the marketing brochure you have seen will not take into account heavy traffic. Remember that you will need to travel during rush hour and travel time to and from your condo should be an important consideration.

Apart from the issue of traffic, try to pass by the location during heavy rains and check if flooding is an issue. In addition, aside from the location of the condo building itself, you should also consider the location of your unit within the building. If you work on the graveyard shift and need to sleep through the day, pick a unit on the upper floors so you can isolate yourself from the street noise. Units which are near the elevator or the garbage chute are cheaper for a reason – elevators opening and garbage plummeting down the chute make a lot of noise. Choose wisely not only the location of the building but your unit in the condo building as well.

Financing your condo. How are you going to pay your condo that you intend to buy? Are you going to pay in cash or borrow money for it? In answering this question, take note of your cash reserve and cash flow. Buying in cash can help you get a much better price because most developers offer significant discounts as an incentive for you to do so. However, make sure that you have enough cash reserve to fund your expenses in cases of emergency. Unlike paper assets such as stocks and mutual funds, a condo is not easy to sell and requires time to liquidate.

Meanwhile, if you are considering borrowing money from the bank to buy your condo, make sure that you have strong cash flow to pay for the monthly amortization. For those who are buying it for the purpose of renting it out for passive income, check the amortization amount versus the potential rental income. You may want to buy a condo with a significantly lesser monthly amortization amount than the potential monthly rental income for it to be a self-liquidating investment.

That being said, you should also consider the lower end of your average monthly cash flow before taking on a loan.  A good gauge would be to have a surplus of about 10% to 20% of your average monthly cash outflows after subtracting the monthly amortization on the condo. Why? Not at all times, your condo unit is guaranteed to have a tenant as there may be times when your unit will be vacant.  If you are able to save about 10% to 20% after subtracting the monthly amortization, you’ll have enough funds to cover for amortization during vacant times and to provide for you and your family’s needs.

There are other costs. You should be concerned not only to your monthly amortization but also to other expenses associated in owning a condo. Condominium buildings will also charge you monthly or annual condo dues for the maintenance of common areas of the building. This cost will vary depending on the size of your condo unit, and the type of services and amenities available to unit owners. Aside from condo dues, as a real estate property owner, you will also need to pay for annual real property taxes and insurance.

In addition to the monthly or annual costs, there maybe one-time payments needed that must also be considered when buying a condo. Most contract to sell will normally state that you will have to shoulder the costs of transfer tax and the registration of the condo title in your name. This should amount to no more than an additional 4% of your purchase price.

Read the fine print. For the common good of all unit owners, your condo will be governed by a deed of restrictions. The restrictions will dictate what you can and cannot do when you move in to your condo. Ask for a copy of the master deed and restrictions of the condo project and read through it. If you are a pet lover, you should know if the building will restrict or even prohibit pet ownership. Some condominium buildings may also prohibit the use of LPG.

The numbers don’t lie. When it comes to return on investment or ROI especially for those looking to rent out their condos for passive rental income, the numbers don’t lie. With a lot of condo projects that are on sale nowadays, given location as being equal, you might be asking yourself, shall I buy a brand new or a second hand condo unit? Let’s run the numbers.

If you want to ensure minimal vacancies for your unit, the best price to offer potential tenants is the lowest possible rate, inclusive of condo dues.  For example, say you have the cash and you are thinking of buying a Php 1.5 million second hand unit versus a Php 2.5 million brand new unit.

If you rent out a second hand condo unit at Php 10,000 per month, inclusive of condo dues, at an average acquisition price of Php 1.5 million, your estimated annual ROI would be:

Annual ROI = Annual Rental Income ÷ Acquisition Cost

Annual ROI = [Monthly Rental x 12] ÷ Acquisition Cost

Annual ROI = [Php 10,000 x 12 months] ÷ Php 1,500,000.

Annual ROI = 8%.

However, if you bought a brand new condo unit at an average price of Php 2.5 million and you would like to earn at least the same ROI as the second-hand unit, you’ll need to rent it out at:

Monthly Rent = [Acquisition Cost x Annual ROI] ÷ 12 months

Monthly Rent = [Php 2,500,000.00 x 0.08] ÷ 12 months

Monthly Rent = Php 200,000 ÷ 12 months

Monthly Rent = Php 16,666 (inclusive of condo dues)

If you want to ensure minimal vacancies for your unit, the best price to offer potential tenants is the lowest possible rate, inclusive of condo dues.  For example, say you have the cash and you are thinking of buying a Php 1.5 million second hand unit versus a Php 2.5 million brand new unit.

Now, put yourself in the shoes of ordinary office worker who would like to rent it to save on time and effort on commuting, which one will you choose? Chances are, you’ll go for the second hand because you will just basically use it as a shelter to eat, sleep and go to work.

Condominium investing is truly a good source of passive income. However, before you plunge your hard-earned money into it, make sure you are armed with your strategy so as to become a successful condo investor.

Must-have Condos at Iloilo Business Park

At Iloilo Business Park, Megaworld’s 72-hectare business township offers the most high-end residential condominium towers for those looking for near-perfection, if not, the classiest and most exciting in terms of amenities and location. Iloilo Business Park’s three most iconic residential towers are the contemporary-designed 3-tower One Madison Place, the vintage architectural-designed Lafayette Park Square and the 22-floor, sky-garden-lifestyle The Palladium. Each of these tower offers condominium units in various style and sizes, mood and vision, financing and payment mode that suits your needs, your passion and ensures your money’s worth when investing for a lifestyle you desired most. For more information, you may visit our showroom at the ground level of Richmonde Tower, 8 Enterprise Road, Iloilo Business Park, Mandurriao, Iloilo City or call (033) 3303462-65 or visit us at www.iloilobusinesspark.ph.

(Article source : http://www.millionaireacts.com/3246/condo-investment-strategies-and-tips-for-buyers.html)

Pres. Aquino Inaugurates IBP, Richmonde Hotel and ICC

 

VIBRANT TOWNSHIP KEY: Megaworld Chairman Dr. Andrew L. Tan passionately shows President Benigno Aquino III the symbolic township key of Iloilo Business Park, the 72-hectare newest epicenter of business, finance, tourism and lifestyle destination in Western Visayas, ushering better employment opportunities and investment hub for everyone. They were surrounded by notable government officials including Senate President Senator Franklin Drilon, Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor, Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog and Megaworld officers. Iloilo Business Park, Iloilo Convention Center and Richmonde Hotel Iloilo were officially inaugurated yesterday, Sept. 14. 

VISIONARIES: Megaworld Chairman Dr. Andrew L. Tan (center) gladly shows new visionary projects that will soon elevate Iloilo Business Park and influence the swift progress of Iloilo City to President Benigno Aquino III (second from the left) who led the inauguration of the township, the 3,700-seater Iloilo Convention Center and Richmonde Hotel Iloilo yesterday, Sept. 14. Looking on the IBP scale model are (from the left) Senator Franklin Drilon, Megaworld First Vice President and Commercial Division Head Andrew Kevin Tan, Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick E. Mabilog and Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor.

We envision #IloiloBusinessPark to be Iloilo’s central business district and a center for lifestyle and tourism of Western Visayas. In the next five years, we hope to generate around 250,000 direct and indirect jobs for Iloilo, not just in the BPO sector but also in our hotels, malls and commercial centers, residential buildings, transport, security, construction and even here in the convention center. 

We hope to encourage future graduates of Iloilo to stay in this beautiful city for work instead of going out to search for greener pastures. We also hope that those who have decided to work in Manila, Cebu or even abroad, will go back to Iloilo, be united with their families and loved ones because they have already found job opportunities here. This is the idea of reverse migration that our townships hope to achieve and contribute to the community and to the country.

-- Dr. Andrew L. Tan
Chairman and CEO, Megaworld Corporation

PASSION AND VISION: Dr. Andrew L. Tan, Megaworld Chairman sincerely shared his message yesterday, Sept. 14 to inspire Ilonggos by looking ahead in the future as Iloilo Business Park, the company's prominent 72-hectare business and leisure township will become a magnet of investment, better employment opportunities, tourism destination and a symbol of Iloilo's economic glory will beautifully change their lifestyle. IBP, Iloilo Convention Center and Richmonde Hotel Iloilo were officially inaugurated yesterday led by President Benigno Aquino III. 

The ribbon-cutting ceremony of Iloilo Convention Center yesterday, Sept. 14 led by Senate President Franklin Drilon, Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog and other prominent officers DOT and MIWD before the formal inauguration.

President Benigno S. Aquino III, Senate President Franklin Drilon, Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog, Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor and other notable government officials take part in the historic inauguration of the 3,700-seater Iloilo Convention Center, Iloilo's state-of-the-art convention venue that would elevate the tourism industry, international conventions and job opportunities. Also, a symbol of Iloilo's rich cultural heritage and artistry. The event was successfully held yesterday, Sept. 14 at Iloilo Business Park. 

Megaworld Officers at the official inauguration of Iloilo Business Park, Richmonde Hotel Iloilo and Iloilo Convention Center. (From left to right) Jericho Go - Megaworld First Vice President for Business Development and Leasing Group, Jason Faller - Vice President for Account Management Division, Harold Geronimo - Assistant Vice President / Head of Public Relations and Communications Division, Jericho Barcelon - Assistant Vice President for Project Integration and Development, Jennifer Ann Palmares- Fong - Iloilo Business Park Head of Sales and Marketing, Astrid Cruz - Vice President for Special Project / Interior Design and Virgilio Carsido - Vice President for Visayas Operations.

Seeing the World with ICC

SEE THE WORLD THROUGH ILOILO: Taking another visual trek to showcase what Iloilo City has to offer to the world: I-CON or Iloilo Convention Center and Guggenheim Museum.
In Bilbao Spain there stands a magnificent building called the Guggenheim Museum. Guggenheim Museum was designed by famed American architect Frank Gehry. It's design is daring and innovative. In Iloilo City, stands a magnificent building called the I-CON, Ilonggos' own state of the art Iloilo Convention Center.
I-CON was designed by famed Ilonggo architect William Cosculuela, well known for his green urban design. It incorporates Iloilo's culture and heritage. 
Re-post from JR Delfin facebook account. 

Iloilo Business Park Photo Contest

ATTENTION, ILONGGOS! In the next few days, all eyes will be on Iloilo City as we inaugurate the country’s next central business district, the Iloilo Business Park.

We want you to join us to celebrate this new milestone of Iloilo City by participating in Megaworld’s “What’s Big About ‪#‎IloiloBusinessPark‬?” online photo contest.

Click the link for the full contest mechanics! Good luck!

http://www.megaworldcorp.com/contest-whats-big-about-iloilobusinesspark-photo-contest/

IBP & ICC Inauguration: SYMBOL OF SYNERGY

            

Photos courtesy of RTVM Facebook account

SYMBOL OF SYNERGY: Visionary men made Iloilo Business Park and Iloilo City's current economic rise a possible reality, benefiting Ilonggos with world-class opportunities and lifestyle elevation. President Benigno S. Aquino III spearheaded the inauguration of Iloilo Business Park, Iloilo Convention Center and Richmonde Hotel Iloilo on Sept. 14. Megaworld Chairman Dr. Andrew L. Tan shared his visionary projects of Megaworld for IBP to ensure its role as a center point of investment, business and tourism in Western Visayas. The president together with other Iloilo government officials and Megaworld officer had a brief tour at Richmonde Hotel Iloilo and Iloilo Convention Center. Ilonggos can now chase a bright future and experience exciting opportunities with IBP.