Floods to force developers to back off; land values dip

Original Report

Floods to force developers to back off; land values dip

By Karen Lapitan, Maricar Cinco
Inquirer Southern Luzon
First Posted 04:27:00 10/08/2009

Filed Under: Ondoy, Flood, Real Estate, Construction & Property, State Budget & Taxes

LOS BAÑOS, LAGUNA—The lingering flood that inundated 18 towns and two cities in the province of Laguna may scare investors and developers from venturing into real estate businesses in the province.

This is the view of Noel Veracruz, provincial assessor whose office is located in Sta. Cruz, the capital town.

“One effect (of the flooding) is that it may instill a slight fear on the developers. They will now become more choosy (of the area) if it is flood-prone or not,” he said.

This is aside from the statement from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) that its flood and geo-hazard map shows that riverbanks, lakeshore areas, creeks, floodways and river mouths are not suitable for settlements.

Nilo Tamoria, head of the DENR-Calabarzon, said efforts were being undertaken by the DENR’s Mines and GeoSciences Bureau to inform the local government units about this.

“Developers usually buy land at a cheap cost so they could sell it off at a higher price. But let’s say they are now to choose between the price of P500 per square meter and P800 per sq. m. for a lot, they may now opt to buy the latter so long as it is not in a flood-prone area,” Veracruz said.

The flood, which submerged lakeshore communities of Laguna, has lingered following the onslaught of Tropical Storm “Ondoy” (international codename: Ketsana).

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