BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Deputy Governor Diwa C. Guinigundo maintains his positive stance on the strength of the real estate sector saying the country has strong economic fundamentals and better monetary conditions to thwart threats of a bubble.

"The increases in property prices are fundamentally supported by economic and market conditions," he said in a keynote message at the joint BDO Unibank, Inc. and The Asset Philippine Real Estate Industry Forum held Wednesday. Citing data, he added the country's real property prices are still one of the cheapest in Asia.

The current state of the property sector, according to Guinigundo, continued to indicate robust demand in housing, office space and even hotels. And such demand, he said, can very well be supported by the lending sector through banks and various government agencies.

Nevertheless, Guinigundo underscored the BSP's continued implementation of macro prudential measures to deter unwarranted property price pressures. These efforts include, among others, loan-to-value ratio caps for residential real estate; imposition of ceilings on real estate loans; and tighter monitoring of banks’ real estate exposures.

In photo is Deputy Governor Guinigundo addressing the over 200 BDO clients and guests during the forum.