Oct 12, 2026 · by BalayHub Admin · 6 min read

RFO Condo vs Pre-Selling in the Philippines: Which to Buy

RFO condo vs pre-selling: cash needed now or stretched over 24 to 48 months, construction risk, rent from month one, and the finished buildings by city.

RFO Condo vs Pre-Selling in the Philippines: Which to Buy

RFO condo vs pre-selling is the first fork in every condominium search in the Philippines, and most buyers take it without noticing. A ready for occupancy unit is finished: you can stand in it, measure it, check the water pressure and move in or rent it out the month after closing. A pre-selling unit is a floor plan and a turnover date two to five years away, sold at a lower entry price with the down payment stretched over the construction. Each one suits a different buyer, and the wrong choice shows up either as years of installments on an unfinished tower or as a finished unit bought at a price a patient buyer would not have paid. This guide sets the two side by side, on money, risk and timing, and shows where to find the completed buildings in each city from our own database.

What changes when the building already exists

The money changes first. On a pre-selling unit the down payment, typically 10% to 30% of the price, is spread without interest over the construction period, commonly 24 to 48 months, and the balance falls due at turnover; our guide to pre-selling condo payment terms runs the schemes on one unit. On an RFO unit the schedule is compressed: a down payment of 10% to 20% and the full balance within about 30 to 60 days, in cash or through a bank or Pag-IBIG loan that is applied for immediately, as our guide on how much down payment you really need sets out. The RFO buyer needs more cash sooner, and needs the loan approved now, on today's income, rather than on the income of the year the tower is finished.

The risk changes second. The pre-selling buyer carries construction risk: the turnover date that slips, the developer that stalls, the finished unit that differs from the model. The protections are real but partial, a license to sell to check before paying a reservation, and the Maceda Law refund of at least half of what was paid for a buyer who stops after two years of installments. The RFO buyer carries none of that; the building is the building. What remains is the ordinary risk of any resale or inventory purchase, which the turnover inspection checklist covers, with the added point that in a tower completed years ago the dues, the reserve fund and the state of the elevators are already on record and can be asked for.

The income changes third. An RFO unit rents from the first month; a pre-selling unit earns nothing until turnover, while the installments run. For a buyer who needs the rent to carry the loan, that gap decides the question by itself.

Where the price advantage sits

Developers price pre-selling below the finished product because the buyer is lending them the construction money and taking the construction risk, and they typically raise prices as the tower rises. That is the whole case for buying early: entry price and time. The case for RFO is that the inventory a developer still holds in a finished tower, and the units resale owners want out of, are negotiable in a way a launch price list is not, especially in a market with unsold stock. Our Mandaluyong guide notes that Metro Manila's oversupply gives buyers negotiating room on entry, and that room is widest on units that already exist.

We do not publish a single percentage for the gap between the two, because our listing price sample does not record the completion status of each unit and the gap moves with every project. What the sample does give is the market level: median asking prices of about ₱195,000 (about $3,110 / €2,780) per square meter in Makati and ₱198,000 (about $3,150 / €2,820) in Taguig, and ₱128,000 (about $2,040 / €1,820) in Mandaluyong, which our price guides for each city break down by unit type. Test any pre-selling quote against those medians: a launch price at or above the price of finished units nearby is a launch price with no discount in it.

Finding RFO buildings by city

Our building directory records the completion year where it is known, which makes a shortlist of finished towers quick to build. In Taguig, 25 of the 91 buildings in our directory carry a completion year up to 2025, from Alder Residences, 1,515 units finished in 2024, and Park Avenue at Grand Central Park in 2021, to Ivory Wood in 2019, Verawood Residences in 2020 and the older Grace Residences, with 3,579 units from 2016. In Makati 34 buildings carry a completion year up to 2025, including Park Central Towers and 100 West Makati in 2024, Red Residences in 2022 and San Antonio Residence in 2021. Quezon City has 22, among them Cameron Residences and Glam Residences in 2024, Infina Towers and Vine Residences in 2022 and The Celandine in 2021. Pasig has 14, led by Satori Residences, Fairlane Residences, The Velaris Residences and The Travertine at Portico, all 2024, and Lumiere Residences in 2020. Mandaluyong, the city where searches for ready units are most frequent, has nine, from The Olive Place in 2024 and Sheridan Towers in 2020 to Flair Towers and Avida Towers Centera in 2015.

On the other side of the ledger sit the towers with turnover still years out: Sage Residences in Mandaluyong in 2028, Fortis Residences in Makati in 2027, Le Pont Residences in Pasig in 2029 and Uptown Modern in Taguig in 2031. Each building page in our directory carries the year, the unit mix and the current listings, and our shortlists of the best condos in Taguig and BGC and the best condos in Mandaluyong sort the finished towers from the launches.

Which one to buy

Buy pre-selling if you have steady income for the next three years, no need to live in or rent the unit before then, and the discipline to treat the installments as a savings plan with a building at the end. Buy RFO if you need the unit now, if your loan approval is strong today and may not be later, if you want to see what you are paying for, or if the rent has to start paying the loan from month one. Investors in particular should compare a pre-selling launch price with the finished units next door before they sign, since the discount is the only reason to wait, and it is not always there.

Whichever you choose, the checks are the same: the license to sell for a project, the title and dues for a finished unit, and a written computation sheet you can keep. Current condos for sale across the metro show both kinds side by side, with the completion year on the building page.

This article is general information, not financial advice. Building counts and completion years are from BalayHub's building directory as of October 2026 and cover only buildings with a recorded year; prices are median asking figures from our listing price sample, not appraisals.

Dollar and euro figures are approximate conversions at ₱62.8 per US dollar and ₱70.2 per euro (ECB reference rates, 2026-10-13).

Frequently asked questions

What does RFO mean in a condo listing?

Ready for occupancy: the building is complete and the unit can be inspected, bought and occupied or rented within weeks of closing. A pre-selling unit is sold before or during construction from plans and a model unit, with turnover two to five years away. RFO units come from a developer's remaining inventory in a finished tower or from resale owners.

Is pre-selling cheaper than RFO?

Usually at launch, because the buyer lends the developer the construction money and carries the construction risk, and developers raise prices as the tower rises. The gap varies by project, and we do not publish one percentage for it. Compare any launch price with the finished units nearby: our listing sample puts median asking prices at about ₱195,000 (about $3,110 / €2,780) per square meter in Makati, ₱198,000 (about $3,150 / €2,820) in Taguig and ₱128,000 (about $2,040 / €1,820) in Mandaluyong.

How is the payment different for an RFO condo?

A pre-selling unit spreads a 10% to 30% down payment over the construction period, commonly 24 to 48 months, with the balance due at turnover. An RFO unit needs a 10% to 20% down payment and the full balance within about 30 to 60 days, in cash or through a bank or Pag-IBIG loan applied for immediately, so the buyer needs more cash sooner and a loan approval on today's income.

Which Metro Manila buildings are RFO?

In our building directory, with a recorded completion year up to 2025: 25 in Taguig, such as Alder Residences (2024) and Verawood Residences (2020); 34 in Makati, such as Park Central Towers and 100 West Makati (2024); 22 in Quezon City, such as Cameron Residences (2024) and Infina Towers (2022); 14 in Pasig, such as Satori Residences (2024); and 9 in Mandaluyong, such as The Olive Place (2024) and Sheridan Towers (2020). Each building page shows the year.

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