Once the domain of mature clientele, luxury condominiums are becoming accessible to young, upwardly mobile professionals, particularly those who need a place close to work.
Shang Properties has added Shang Salcedo Place, a 67-story residential condominium that will rise between Gil Puyat Avenue and Tordesillas and H.V. de la Costa Streets in Salcedo Village, Makati. The favorite reference point is its proximity to the Saturday market in Salcedo Park and the bars and restaurants around it.
Unlike its other projects such as Shang Grand Tower, St. Francis Shangri-La Place and One Shangri-La Place, the Shang Salcedo provides smaller cuts from 35-sq-m studios to a one-bedroom 52-sq-m unit to a 104-sq-m two-bedroom affair on easy payment terms. There are 12 units in each floor, and residents will enjoy the privacy the setup affords.
Tasked to create the model units, the interior design firm Manny Samson & Associates wanted bright colors to appeal to the younger clientele. However, Edward Kwok, chairman of Shang Properties, insisted on a homey look.
Samson understood.
“Shang Properties is very particular,” he said. “It took us years to reach their standard of practicality, elegance and being ahead of everybody else. We designed until Mr. Kwok was satisfied. The unit should not look like a hotel. It’s got to have many things that are intimate to you.”
To personalize the unit, Samson said he imagined how a client would live in it.
Layering of lights
How the place would look like on first impression is important.
“When I visit a residence, it has to be maaliwalas (bright and open). That’s what people are looking for,” said Samson.
The units at Shang Salcedo Place offer either a nice bay window or balcony to facilitate natural light. It doesn’t feel claustrophobic as the height of the living and dining room and bedroom is three meters.
Samson’s model units show the possibilities of what the owner can do with compact space.
Although mirrors to visually enlarge space have become de rigueur, panes of beveled mirrors form a grid pattern and become an accent wall in the dining area, said Samson.
Shadow lines are etched along the ceiling bulkhead which conceal the wiring and sprinklers.
“You wouldn’t know that it hides the wires. The shadow lines become part of the ceiling design,” he said.
Indirect lighting from various sources defines the room. “It won’t look dull but welcoming.”
The one-bedroom affair becomes inviting with the layering of light. General lighting from the recessed ceiling creates a gentle wash of illumination for the inhabitant to see everything.
Task lighting comes from the pendant lamp above the dining table and the floor lamp beside the sofa. Accent lighting is provided by leaf-shaped, polished wall sconces.
“The advantage of layering lights is that you can turn on a few of them,” he said.
A long sofa can be used for entertaining or for sleepovers. To avoid clutter and tripping on furniture, there’s no coffee table.
The dining table can be easily repositioned.
Samson played with rich textures—-a customized wallpaper with a vinyl finish for easy cleaning and an accent wall made of laminated capiz to resemble crocodile skin.
Samson upgraded the kitchen using engineered stone and lacquered cabinets for a seamless look and a marble flooring for easy maintenance.
In the bedroom, the designer built a workstation and desk to hide the air-conditioning unit.
Samson underscored the importance of padding the walls. “If you live along the busy streets of Buendia, Tordesillas and Dela Costa, you need to dampen a lot of noise from outside,” he said. “Noise travels upward especially at night.”
The cabinetry details abound—translucent drawers so you can see your belongings and slim stainless-steel handles, wrapped in crocodile-embossed leather.
Surprise feature
The 35-sq-m model studio holds a surprise—a spacious bathroom.
“How long do you spend in the bathroom? It’s a reward you give yourself after a long day,” said Samson. “The Shang knows what is important so we make it look important.”
Aside from the beautiful tiles, Samson considered the practicality—adding a ledge above the sink for the amenities and a hidden cabinet with several compartments. The wardrobe cabinet is built with sliding doors on both sides. Hence, one can see the view of the bedroom from the bath and vice versa.
The bathroom must have good lighting, he said.
Since the kitchen is the first thing any visitor will encounter in the studio, the textures have been upgraded with engineered stone counters, cabinets with high-gloss wood veneer for texture and shine.
The studio can fit a queen-size bed that is placed beside a three-seat sofa and an ottoman that doubles as coffee table. It is adjacent to a dining area highlighted by a conversation piece, an onyx dining table, beside the mirrored tile wall.
“You’ve still got to live normally in a studio,” said Samson. “You have a dressing room, a place to entertain and invite people for dinner with you.”
Vincent Formoso, Shang Properties vice president for finance, said most developers claim to sell luxury residences.
But Shang’s provides superior offerings, he said—from the building’s quality of materials, to its accessibility to work, the well-designed layouts and the signature amenities such as state-of-the-art gym, swimming pool, extensive children’s play area and big function rooms.
There are six passenger elevators dedicated to the high and low zones that eliminate the waiting time.
The Shang Properties has developed several payment options with no-interest finance schemes.
Take a 35-sq-m studio with a selling price of P4,438,000. After paying a reservation fee of P100,000, you can make a 10-percent deposit fee of P343,800 and pay 40 percent over 48 months. The monthly amortization is P36,983. Finally, there are the 50-percent balance and other charges.
“The financing terms have eased up,” said Formoso. “It’s become more affordable in an affordable way to live.”