Someone told you preselling is cheaper.
They’re not wrong.
But cheaper than what, exactly?
And why would a developer make it cheaper for you?
Nobody hands out money for no reason.
You’re being paid for something.
This page is about what that something is.
The short answer
“Cheaper” means two different things, and preselling is only reliably one of them.
A lower entry cost means you need less money right now. That part is real and it’s dramatic. A small percentage spread over years, instead of a large sum due in months.
A lower total price means the finished unit itself costs less than a comparable one that’s ready now. That part is smaller than people assume, and nothing guarantees it.
When someone says preselling is cheaper, they usually mean the first one. Most buyers hear the second.
If preselling itself is new to you, start with what a preselling property is and how it differs from RFO.
Here’s why a developer offers that trade in the first place. A tower takes years and a great deal of money to build. The developer can borrow the whole amount from a bank and pay interest on it, or collect it from buyers like you as the building goes up. Buyers are cheaper money than a bank loan, and a high percentage of units already reserved makes the rest of the project easier to finance too.
What the discount actually discounts
Here’s what that trade looks like on a real unit: a studio in a tower in IT Park, from one of the preselling projects I currently represent.
| List price | ₱7,177,200 |
|---|---|
| Discount, 50% off the transfer and registration charges | (₱287,100) |
| Transfer and registration charges | ₱574,176 |
| Total contract price | ₱7,464,276 |
These figures are the developer’s own, from the sample computation for this unit. Both prices and availability move.
Read that discount line again. It’s not 50% off the unit. It’s 50% off one set of charges that make up a small slice of the total. Against the full ₱7,464,276 you’re agreeing to pay, this discount is about 3.8%.
It isn’t your fault if that wasn’t obvious from how it was described to you. A number labeled “50% off” is built to be read as bigger than it is.
That’s the discount, on this sheet. It’s small, and it’s not the reason preselling is actually cheaper to get into. The real reason isn’t a discount at all.
| Paid before turnover, over 60 months | ₱896,000 |
|---|---|
| Share of the total contract price | 12.0% |
| Balance, due at turnover in 2030 | ₱6,568,276 |
| Share of the total contract price | 88.0% |
These figures are the developer’s own, from the same sample computation. I worked out the shares myself.
You put in 12% while the building goes up. On its own, that’s a modest amount. Multiplied across every unit in a tower this size, it’s real money funding construction before the building is finished. The developer carries the rest of the cost, and collects your 88% years later, at turnover.
“I initially started buying two preselling condos… Over more than a year, I paid ₱700K in deposits. However, I decided to cancel the purchases, fully aware that I wouldn’t get my money back. Instead, I invested in landed properties… I couldn’t be happier with this decision.”
Comment on a Philippine property video
That buyer had already paid real money in before deciding the wait wasn’t worth it. Whatever you decide, decide it with the actual numbers in front of you, not after the deposits are in.
So what are you actually being paid for, in exchange for waiting on that 88%? Three things, and they’re all things the developer would otherwise carry themselves.
Time. Turnover on this studio is 2030. Money paid now can’t be lived in, rented out, or easily sold until then.
Completion risk. Plans change and delays happen between a floor plan and a finished lobby.
Price risk. You’re locking today’s price against a market four years out. Nobody can tell you in advance which way that goes.
What I think
The lower entry cost is real, and it does something worth defending. It’s how an ordinary earner gets into a building they could never assemble a large downpayment for. Sixty months of smaller payments instead of one big sum. That’s access, not a trick.
What I’d push back on is the word “cheaper” on its own.
You’re not being handed a bargain. You’re being paid a fee for financing part of a building and carrying risk the developer would otherwise carry, which is a legitimate job that deserves a legitimate fee.
So the question isn’t whether preselling is cheaper. It’s whether the fee is big enough for that job.
Don’t buy preselling if the discount is the only reason you’re buying. A lower entry cost you can’t use until 2030 isn’t money in your pocket. It’s a position you’re holding, and holding it costs you every month until then. If you’d want this unit even at a finished-unit price, the discount is a bonus on something you already wanted. If the discount is the only thing making it attractive, you’ve bought a number, not a home, and the number can move while your payment schedule doesn’t.
When you get your own unit’s computation, I go through what each discount line actually applies to before we talk about the monthly.
Questions
Why does the price list show a discount if it barely changes what I pay?
Because a discount can apply to one charge on the sheet instead of the whole price, the way it did on the studio above. Read what a discount actually applies to before you count it as savings on the total.
Does the price go up as the building rises?
Often, in stages, though I haven’t verified this happens on every project. Ask to see the project’s price list history if you want to check it for the one you’re considering.
Is the price I’m quoted the price I’ll owe?
Usually not exactly. Most price lists show a list price and a total contract price, and the second is what you sign for. Ask for both numbers and for the difference itemized in writing before you reserve.
Can I negotiate the price?
Rarely, on a developer project. The price list is set and applies to everyone. Terms are where movement usually happens instead: how the downpayment is spread, the reservation amount, and which promo you qualify for.
The one thing to take with you
Preselling isn’t cheap. It’s early, and being early is a job you’re doing for the developer.
Ask for two numbers before you reserve anything: the total contract price, not the list price, and what a finished unit of the same size in the same area is selling for today.
The gap between those two numbers is your actual fee for the wait. If it looks thin, say so out loud and see what comes back.
If you’d like a unit you’re weighing up worked through this way, send me a message on Messenger. You don’t have to be my client for that.
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