SOHO UNITS
The 25-storey Mabolo Garden Flats has alloted two floors for its Soho unit clients. (PRIME HOLDINGS FACEBOOK)
A local developer is targeting young entrepreneurs for their Small Office Home Office units in their 25-story Mabolo Garden Flats.
The SOHO units will serve both residential and commercial needs of these entrepreneurs.
Construction of 34 SOHO units is on-going and will be completed in time for their turnover in December, said Primary Homes Inc. Vice President for Sales and Marketing, Ramiro Espina.
The SOHO units will be on the 5th and 6th floors of the building in barangay Mabolo, Cebu City.
These units will also offer residents a space where they can do their small businesses or startups.
The units will only be limited to these two levels for security, Espina said.
Cameras were also installed into the hallways as safety measures.
Businesses in the SOHO unit must also be “low-traffic businesses” in order to monitor who comes in and goes out.
For the benefit of both the SOHO and residential unit owners in the building, Primary Homes partnered with PLDT and invested into fiber optic lines, in order to ensure fast Internet connectivity.
Espina said that fast connectivity is crucial for SOHO owners, as many of their home-based businesses require the Internet to thrive.
He added that while the Studio and Loft unit types available for purely residential units will be available for the SOHO units, their price ranges will be around 5 percent higher, at around P2.1 million for the studio unit and P4 million for the loft.
At present, there are 20 studio units and 14 loft units, of which around 50 percent have been sold.
Soho clients include overseas Filipino workers, investors, mid-income workers and young professionals.
Around 75 percent of all clients are investors, but Primary Homes said that the percentage of investors has been going down in recent years.
Espina said that more and more people are buying units with the intention of living in them instead of selling them.
“We’re doing this to test the market. New businesses and startups are coming to Cebu, and most young entrepreneurs want to work from home, especially with the availability of the Internet,” he said.
However, future projects will still be a mix of residential and commercial spaces.
A total of 252 residential studio units and 28 residential loft units are also available in the 25-story building.
Around 70 percent of these have also been sold to clients.
The amenities offered to homeowners include a jogging trail, infinity pool, gym and several pocket gardens, which will all be located on the 3rd, 15th and 17th floors, as well as on the roof deck.
