PROPERTY developers are slowing condominium launches in Metro Manila as elevated vacancies, rising buyer cancellations and weak demand continue to weigh on the residential market, Colliers Philippines said.
Speaking at the Q2 2026 Philippine Property Market Briefing on Wednesday, Colliers Philippines head of research Joey Bondoc said developers had become more cautious amid a growing inventory of unsold units and persistently high vacancies in parts of the capital.
“It used to be a wait-and-see approach, but right now, are they waiting and hesitating?,” Bondoc said.
Only about 3,000 condominium units were launched in Metro Manila during the first half of 2026 while net take-up reached just around 2,000 units, he said, both significantly lower than in previous years.
Bondoc said developers were also completing fewer projects, a trend expected to continue through 2029 as companies recalibrate expansion plans.
The slowdown comes as the number of unsold ready-for-occupancy condominium units rose to around 32,000 from about 29,000, with buyer backouts increasing, particularly for units priced between P3.6 million and P12 million.
“We recorded a lot of backouts in the lower-mid-income and upper-mid-income price segments,” Bondoc said, noting that these cancellations have contributed to the rising inventory of completed but unsold units.
Vacancies remain a major concern, especially in the Bay Area, which is on track to become Metro Manila’s largest condominium market by the end of 2026, overtaking Bonifacio Global City in terms of total housing stock.
Residential vacancy in the Bay Area has climbed to nearly 60 percent while office vacancy has exceeded 40 percent. Retail space in the district has also been affected, with one major mall recording vacancy of more than 40 percent.
Across Metro Manila, nearly 1 in 4 condominium units in the secondary market is vacant, a figure Colliers expects to increase to almost 26 percent by year-end.
Not all submarkets, however, are experiencing the same level of weakness.
Bondoc said the Makati central business district, Rockwell Center and Ortigas Center were continuing to post comparatively lower vacancy rates while rental rates in these areas had begun to recover.
He added that despite elevated vacancies in the Bay Area, lease rates have also started to improve from the steep corrections recorded in recent years.
Meanwhile, demand has shifted toward more affordable housing segments, with economic, socialized and lower-middle-income projects showing greater resilience than higher-priced developments.
Bondoc also urged the government to consider raising the value-added tax exemption threshold for residential units from the current P3.5 million to P5 million, saying the move could stimulate demand in the condominium market and help absorb excess inventory.
