SM Development Corp. (SMDC), the residential arm of SM Prime Holdings Inc., EXPECTS TO POST RECORD SALES THIS YEAR ON THE back of strong demand from the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) that make up its main market.

SMDC President Jose Mari H. Banzon told reporters last week that the optimism was based on the company’s performance for the first eight months of the year, although he gave no details.

“Judging from the performance of our sales from January to August, our sales have actually been hitting record levels and I can see by the end of 2023 that this will be a new record year for us and we are definitely on track to achieve it,” Banzon said.

In the first half, SM Prime Holdings’ residential business, led by SMDC, reported revenues of P17.6 billion, less than half compared to the full-year figure of P40.1 billion recorded in 2022.

However, it said that reservation sales were already up 15 percent year-on-year at P68.5 billion versus last year’s P59.4 billion, while unit sales had grown by 17 percent.

Banzon said the OFW market made up about 60 to 70 percent of SMDC’s residential sales. He noted that OFW spending was typically highest in December when most migrant Filipinos return home to spend time with their families.

“Overall, I think our growth will be sustained and we will hit that record high,” he claimed.

“The reason for this is that the majority of our market, which easily [is] 60 to 70 percent, is mostly targeted to OFWs, and 30 to 40 percent is geared toward local customers,” Banzon added.

“As long as Filipinos continue to send workers overseas, we will have a strong term, and we are expecting strong sales in December and it will be a good month for us.”

Banzon also said that SMDC was planning to launch at least 12 projects next year across the country.

“We will launch a minimum of 12 projects next year, with one to two projects planned every month. ... It also could be more than 12, depending on the sales take-up of our developments,” he told reporters.

“Moreover, these projects will be [all] over the Philippines as we have a substantial land bank scattered all over the country, which is mostly in the southern Philippines and also in central and southern Luzon,” Banzon added.

“Right now, we are known to be a condominium developer, but we have invested substantially into large tracts of land to develop horizontal housing. Actually, starting this fourth quarter, we will be providing residential lots in secondary cities as we continue to provide offerings like that will be affordable for possible buyers.”

SM Prime Holdings shares fell by 80 centavos to close at P29.40 on Friday.