PHILIPPINE PROPERTY MARKET DURING THE ASIAN FINANCIAL CRISIS

In the early 1990s, the Philippine property market was booming.

Developers were building.

Capital was flowing.

And dollar loans made everything look cheaper.

Then something broke—

not in the Philippines… but in Thailand.

A currency peg failed.

The Baht collapsed.

Capital fled emerging markets.

And in a matter of months, the Philippine peso followed.

From Php 26 to Php 42 per US dollar.

That was all it took.

Because while revenues stayed in pesos…

debt was in dollars.

Suddenly, balance sheets didn’t work.

Companies were pushed to the brink.

Developments stalled.

Property prices fell.

And what most people forget:

It took 10 years for prices to recover.

—

This wasn’t just a property cycle.

It was a lesson.

That leverage magnifies risk.

That totally unrelated events can destroy otherwise sound businesses.

—

Real estate is powerful.

But it is not immune.