ANVIL RIDES THE REAL ESTATE WAVE

Fifty-five members and officers of the Association of Young Filipino-Chinese Entrepreneurs (Anvil Business Club) decided to forego their prized tickets to the Katy Perry concert at the Philippine Arena and, instead, troop to their second home at the Astoria Plaza Hotel to catch a different kind of gig – one that, when done wisely, will reap more financial rewards in the future. This is none other than the "Trends in Philippine Real Estate for 2015" seminar exclusively conducted for the Anvil Business Club by none other than celebrated real estate specialist (and, proudly, one of Anvil's own dynamic members) Carl Dy, as part of the organization's new monthly "Business Workshop Series" aimed to provide deeper value for members.
Amid a jam-packed crowd of eager listeners, Carl Dy shared his invaluable lessons on how to buy, market, and manage rental properties, often infusing his topics based on his real-life, family experiences in the real estate business (think "Lola Theresa," "Auntie Lucy," and "Miguel"). Illustrating complex property development management concepts with such prodigious clarity and simplicity, Carl was able to persuade seemingly incorrigible antagonists against the real estate industry and illuminate absolute novices (such as yours truly) to become congenial disciples of the business.
For many aspiring newcomers in the business, Carl has bequeathed two key "take-home" credos, to wit:
1. Three important lessons learned during the course of traversing the exciting journey in the real estate business: (a) Capital Appreciation, a rise in value of an asset based on a rise in market price; (b) Cash Flow, the movement of money into or out of a business, project, or financial product; and, (c) Leverage, the use of various instruments or borrowed capital to increase the potential return of an investment.
2. The "Greatest Secret" of the wealthy is passive income. You are never too young (or too old) to start property investing. Learn how to utilize bank facilities. Important practices in maximizing passive income include, (a) Locking in the price while offer is still low; (b) Using installment as a way to "force savings;" (c) Leveraging bank loans; (d) Being patient; (e) Buying the goose that lays the golden eggs; and (f) Designing your unit so it stands out among the others.
On the second part of his talk, Carl went on to offer his "bets" on where the next real estate "boom" areas will happen next, based on the concepts he described earlier. These include Studio Units in the heart of Quezon City which can be purchased below Php3.99 million (maximum amount exempt from VAT), using the 10-10-80 scheme of payment; Hotel Property which can be purchased below VAT price; and single detached properties in a central location where expatriates are comfortable.
Despite a two-hour presentation, the much-appreciative (and enlightened) audience seemed not to get enough of Carl, so much so that they lapped up his "6 Steps to Renting Out Your Condo" booklet in a matter of minutes. Indeed, through the masterful session of the great Carl Dy, everyone became a believer.
Carl Dy is the President of Spectrum Investments, a property portfolio management company. He has over a decade of experience in the real estate industry working for property giant Ayala Land as Sales Director of Ayala Land Premier. He is continually building up his property portfolio with an ultimate goal of living on passive income from real estate. An architect by education, Carl has written articles on property investing and has been featured in MoneySense magazine, Entrepreneur magazine, various broadsheets, and in various radio and TV programs including ANC’s On the Money. He owns and manages rental properties in areas like Rockwell, Makati, Ayala Center and Bonifacio Global City. He is also the past president of an upscale condominium corporation in Makati and current homeowner president of a high end residential village in Nuvali.
Kudos to Vice-President for Internal Affairs Hubert Henry Chua and Director for Individual Development Edison Kwong, for organizing this very successful affair.

ANVIL CATCHES PCCCI'S 4TH INDUCTION CEREMONIES

In an extraordinary gesture of support, officers and members of the Association of Young Filipino-Chinese Entrepreneurs (Anvil Business Club) trooped in numbers to witness the 4th Induction and Turnover Ceremonies of the Philippine-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (菲律賓中國商會), or PCCCI, led by its newly-installed President Wong Cheung Sha (王長沙), the father of dynamic Anvil member Jardin Wong. That evening, the mantle of leadership was formally handed over by outgoing President Jose Go (吳啟發), the man behind the success of the iconic Hi-Top Supermarket.

Anvil's sizable delegation joins more than a thousand guests and well-wishers, including key leaders from the national executive, legislative and local governments, as well as representatives from the major business and charitable associations, who graced the historic event at the Golden Bay Fresh Seafood Restaurant – incidentally owned and managed by the Wong Family – in Pasay City.
No less than Senator Cynthia Aguilar-Villar, who concurrently heads the Senate Committees on Agriculture and Food, as well as Government Corporation and Public Enterprises, inducted the new officers for 2015-2017. In her remarks, she thanked the PCCCI leadership for their generous invitation and welcome to be their inspirational speaker during their induction and urged the new officers to "support the development of agriculture through the construction of infrastructure in attracting more investments." She reiterated the importance of focusing on the agriculture sector because "40% of our poor population are dependent on agriculture. Thus, the economic gain for those in the agricultural sector will further boost economic activity and development and help achieve food self-sufficiency for our country."
For his part, His Excellency Zhao Jianhua (趙鑒華), Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines, reaffirmed his government's commitment of strengthening bilateral ties with the Philippines, despite the current geo-political challenges that recently soured Sino-Philippine relations. "As Ambassador," Zhao declared, "I shall not allow the 99% bilateral ties which we have established between our two countries be dominated by the 1% misunderstandings we have faced in recent months to define our relationship." He vowed to continue working closely with partners such as the PCCCI in securing a healthier, more vibrant exchange of ideas for the betterment of all.
Newly-inducted President Wong thanked the members of the PCCCI for their trust and confidence in electing him as the 4th president of the association. Citing the long history of the Philippines and Chinese, he urged members to continue fostering and enhancing friendly relations with our Chinese neighbors. "Let us adopt a civil, harmonious, solid co-prosperous platform, working together for a better Philippine Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry," he concluded.

ANVIL INTERVIEW WITH WUSHU ICON

Mr. Reginald Yu represented the Anvil Business Club  (Association of Young Filipino-Chinese Entrepreneurs) in a special segment of "The Janice Hung Show," starring the lovely and enchanting Janice Hung (洪燕燕), the country's most formidable Wushu (武術) champion-turned-compleat-entertainer.
Set under the glare of klieg-lights and captured by no less than three rolling cameras, what began as a perfunctory ten-minute interview about our organization turned out to be an intimate, yet, engaging half-an-hour conversation of what Anvil does and what it represents. The alluring martial arts champion (and, at 5'8 – a statuesque head turner, as well) – who displayed an impressive proficiency in Mandarin, Fookien, English and Tagalog (a rarity among today's generation of Tsinoys) – revealed to be following the exploits of our Club as well; expressing great hope about what it can do to inspire scores of young Chinese-Filipino entrepreneurs and professionals in becoming vital members of the community towards nation building.

Janice's story serves as a great inspiration to many of us. The eldest among a brood of six children raised under the specter of constraining traditionalism, she demonstrated grit and determination to unfetter herself from what many view as age-old stereotypical and obstructionist Chinese practices – and much to her parents' deep consternation at first – to become the young, amazing icon that she is today, overcoming many of the proverbial cultural challenges of second-generation Tsinoys living at the crossroads of change. Beginning at a very tender age of 7, she decided to be different by dedicating many years of her life in Wushu, having painstakingly mastered the art even if there were people in her life that were against her newly-found passion. She eventually earned gold medals in national Wushu competitions (1999-2007) and international competitions such as the Southeast Asian Games (2005 Philippines, 2007 Thailand), Asian Games (2006 Qatar), and the 1st Invitational Wushu Competition (2007 China). While studying at the University of Sto. Tomas, she also excelled as an athletic scholar and a member of the Women’s Track and Field Team.
Today, while retired from competitive sports, Janice continues to be the face of Philippine Wushu. In 2010, she established the Janice Hung Arts and Sports (JHAS) Foundation out of her desire to extend opportunities to the Filipino youth and promote their creativity. Since then, JHAS has been very much involved in providing education and cultural programs with more than 300 beneficiaries. Without an iota of a doubt, Janice Hung will soon be recognized as one of the country's most ennobling transformational leaders set to conquer the world stage as one of today's generation of young heroes.
The "Janice Hung Show" airs on Saturdays, from 4:00 to 5:00pm at NET25. Do catch our Anvil segment this Saturday, May 9. Don't miss it!

PUBLIC REVALIDA FOR BATAAN

Greatly honored to be invited to sit as one of the six panelists representing the academe, business and professional sectors in evaluating the Provincial Government of Bataan during the Public Governance Forum organized by the Institute for Solidarity in Asia. Yours truly represented the Association of Young Filipino-Chinese Entrepreneurs (Anvil Business Club) as part of the multi-stakeholder panels asked to assess their on-going results based on quality, sustainability and impact.

Held twice a year to give national government agencies and local government units an opportunity to report publicly on the progress they have made in creating sustainable transformation and development programs and setting up transparency and accountability mechanisms, the revalida session where I was asked to appraise examined the Provincial Government of Bataan, led by its young and energetic Governor, Hon. Albert "Abet" S. Garcia, as he made an impressive presentation of his administration's accomplishments towards a sustainable transformation program.
Guided by his vision that "By 2020, Bataan Province will be the preferred location for eco-industrial investments leading to the highest Human Development Index in the Philippines," the good Governor outlined his continuing plans of improving provincial access through the construction of alternative routes, reviving the use of the nautical highway; anticipating personnel requirements of locators in their Economic Zones; promoting Bataan as an investment location; optimizing information technology for key business processes; and building internal capability of the Provincial Government aimed to boost the quality of service to their constituency.
The revalida session has re-affirmed by strong belief in the promise of today's youth leaders, as they demonstrated that, with a far-reaching vision and the political will to achieve it, local governments can achieve good governance practices towards increasing the country's investment credibility and upgrade opportunities for economic growth.