DOTr Statement on 260% increase of Common Station from Original Php778 M to Php2.8 B

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Here is the statement of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) in response to the post of Renato (Nato) Reyes Jr. re: 260% increase in the project cost for the Common Station from the original Php778 million in 2009 to Php2.8 Billion:

"CLARIFICATION: The Php777 million is not the cost for the SM City Annex Station. It is the ADDITIONAL COST TO THE ORIGINAL COST of the North Avenue Station of the North Extension Project (NEP) which was transferred to the SM Annex location because of MRT7. Please take note that the 2009 transfer of the NEP's North Avenue Station to the SM City Annex location was due to the fact that the MRT7 project was not yet in place back in 2006.

The original cost of the North Avenue Station of the NEP in 2006 was approximately Php780 million. When it was moved to SM City Annex in 2009, an additional Php777 million was needed with a total cost of around Php1.5 Billion. This is because the original North Avenue Station of the NEP was originally intended to service ONLY Lines 1 and 3. BUT, with the subsequent approval of Line 7, the government needed a bigger station to serve three (3) rail systems. Bigger station equals bigger budget.

The "additional" 777 million approved in 2009 was on top of LRT-1 NEP's original 2007 NEDA Board approved Project Cost of Php6.3 billion. The reason for the additional cost was because the SM Annex station (a.k.a. MM Integrated Rail Terminal) is larger than the original LRT-1 NEP terminal station across Trinoma (because instead of just being a transfer station between LRT-1 and MRT-3, the SM Annex station connected LRT-1, MRT-3, and MRT-7). Again, Php777 million is NOT the cost of the SM Annex station; Php777 million is the "ADDITIONAL" cost entailed by shifting from the original LRT-1 NEP terminal station across Trinoma to the SM Annex Station.

Boodle Fight in a Bilao at St. Nicholas Catering and Restaurant

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Our pre-Christmas get-together last December was a tummy-filled foodie blast thanks to St. Nicholas Catering and Restaurant's "Boodle Fight sa Bilao." Unlike most boodles that you eat either on banana leaves, the restaurant's boodle fight is conveniently placed in a "bilao" or large woven tray. The "Boodle Fight in a Bilao" is available for Dine in or Take out.

The "Boodle Fight in a Bilao" is available in many variants or food combinations. In our case, we got three "bilaos" of the one they call "Davao" with Shrimps, Calamares, Shrimp tempura, Lechong Kawali, Eggplant Tempura, of course Rice, plus some Salted Egg Tomato and Onion.The "Palawan" version has Fried Chicken, Pancit Canton, and Okoy Gulay to replace the Shrimp tempura, Lechong Kawali, and Eggplant Tempura, while the "Boracay" bilao has Fried Chicken, Lechong Kawali, Sisig, Pritong Talong with Bagoong, and Pancit Canton. "Cebu" has Calderetang Baka, Lechon Kawali, Sisig and Pancit Canton. "Batangas" has Adobo sa Dilaw, Calamares, Shrimp Tempura, and Pancit Bihon. All Boodle sa Bilao have Shrimps, Salted Egg, Tomato, Onion and Rice. You save around Php200 per bilao.

Too bad it's not yet available for delivery since the place is quite hard to get a taxi or regular transport services if you're just going to commute. Getting a Grab or Uber transport may be difficult especially during peak hours. It is thus advisable to bring a car or any vehicle as service. But the owners just wants you to come to the place so you could personally visit and take some photos with their new giant teddy bear.

The Top Five Real Estate Emerging Market Trends for 2017

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Property portal Lamudi Philippines predicts five market trends that will shape the property sector in 2017

The year 2016 was a challenging year for real estate. Most of the year was rapt with uncertainty in the aftermath of two seismic events—Brexit and the U.S. elections.

Anyone thinking of buying property became hesitant and decided that it was more prudent to wait until there is more clarity about how these unexpected events would affect the market. Buyers in Mexico were worried that a wall might be built sending the country into an economic recession. English investors were concerned that the inevitable departure from the EU would be cataclysmic for the domestic property market.

Analysts at Lamudi Philippines have spent some time in the lab crunching the stats, to come up with five trends they deem will shape real estate in 2017.

Steady as She Goes

With torpid real GDP growth across most of the emerging markets, governments are reluctant to raise interest rates. So where does that leave the market? In many cases due to difficulties securing construction financing and the cash required to purchase prize locations, there is now a situation where investors will look to avoid risk more so than usual. In brief, this will create a calm market, where real estate prices remain stable. While construction activity is expected to pick up pace in the second half of 2017, the start of the new year will be slower to gain momentum.

Emerging Markets Are a Portfolio Essential

A smart move for the new year is to hedge your investments in Europe and the United States by including some higher risk real estate investment funds. In a world of unattractive global investment options going against the grain might be the ticket to prosperity. Despite the International Monetary Fund cutting its global growth forecast to 3.4 percent for 2017, there is hope in the developing world.

Attack of the Drones

Unmanned aerial vehicles or drones will be the big tech advancement in 2017. Real estate agents will look to gain an edge over competitors by providing flyovers of properties for exclusive properties and agents. Home-buyers and sellers will be able to use drones to their advantage. One caveat: certain flights will need the local tower’s permission along with a flight plan filed online. There is a real danger that drones could crash into commercial planes; considering the damage a bird can do this is something users need to bear in mind.

Optionality Is Back

As investors flee to relative safe havens; developers and investors are seeking solace in multi-use projects. Owners of versatile buildings can benefit from finding the maximum rent from the ideal tenant, whether that is through offices, retail outlets, or residential blocks. Flexible leases will become more common in a coworking type of arrangement. Lamudi—the global property platform whose global HQ is in the trendy Kreuzberg area of Berlin, Germany, share their building with other Rocket Internet startups. This is an ideal way for owners to get the full rental income while companies can engage in knowledge sharing.

Smart Home Tech and IoT

In 2016 we read a lot about the revolution that the Internet-of-Things (IoT) promised and 2017 may be the year for smart home technology to become more widespread. The problem is that there is a lot of competition, but no single company has managed to combine multiple appliances and apps into a seamless catch-all product. That could soon change with Google and Apple entering the market, giants of uniform user experiences. So brace yourself for smart houses that make life very, very easy for you.