STARTUP property technology (proptech) company Lhoopa Inc. said that it intended to build some 3,000 affordable housing units in the Philippines following a successful $80-million funding round earlier this year.
“Lhoopa aims to significantly scale its operations by delivering 3,000 affordable housing units in the Philippines and initiating pilot projects in Indonesia,” Lhoopa Founder and Chief Executive Officer Marc-Olivier Caillot told The Manila Times in an email.
Caillot said the cost of building the targeted housing units was estimated to be around $100 million, depending on the project specifications, location, and size of the units.
“These figures underscore our ongoing commitment to affordability while ensuring quality across our projects,” he added.
Founded in 2018, Lhoopa leverages technology and network empowerment to deliver affordable housing efficiently. It employs artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to track market trends and adjust strategies, identify undervalued properties, and partner with a network of local contractors and brokers to develop and sell homes.
In collaboration with its network of contractors, Lhoopa acquires properties at discounted market prices, with a turnaround time of 1.5 to 2 months for construction and renovation projects, something that is “significantly faster than the industry standards,” Caillot noted.
Lhoopa sells homes — typically priced from $9,000-$35,000 (around P504,000 to P1.96 million) — through local brokers using a proprietary broker app, reducing the need for an in-house sales force. It also helps buyers to apply for and obtain a housing loan.
“[By] automating much of the property acquisition and development process, Lhoopa can keep overhead low and quickly scale its operations across different regions,” Caillot said.
Last July, Lhoopa secured $80 million (P4.48 billion) in equity and debt financing from various investors.
A $20-million equity funding round was co-led by the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corp. and Wavemaker Partners.
This enabled Lhoopa to secure $60 million in debt facilities from the Asian Development Bank, the US International Development Finance Corp., and Lendable.
Lhoopa plans to allocate funds to expand its affordable housing projects in the Philippines and new markets in Southeast Asia, among others.
Lhoopa has housing developments across 58 cities in the Philippines, including in the National Capital Region and Calabarzon, and is said to be preparing for the launch of its first set of developments in additional markets this year.
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