The rent out New York condo of Senator Loren Legarda amounting US$3,095 a month

Below are more details on Senator Loren Legarda’s rental apartment in The Griffon building, found in Blocksy:

The FLOOR PLAN

THE BED ROOM

The FOYER outside her apartment:

Three weeks ago, Senator Loren Legarda quietly rented out her New York condo, turning her into a landlady on posh Park Avenue, according to the New York real estate website Blocksy.com.

The monthly earning from the rental lease is much more than the monthly basic pay of a Philippine senator.

There is nothing wrong with investing in real estate abroad.

However, it appears to be a contradiction in the case of Senator Loren Legarda. When she chaired the Senate Economic Affairs Committee she called on foreigners to invest long term in the Philippines while secretly, she had opted to invest a big chunk of her personal assets abroad.

On September 12, 2008 or two years after buying the Manhattan condo, Senate Economic Affairs Committee chair Loren Legarda issued the following press release excerpted here:

Press Release
September 12, 2008
RP needs long-term investments — Loren

Senator Loren Legarda cited the need for the country to attract more long-term foreign investments to spur economic growth, create much needed jobs, and alleviate poverty.

“We need foreign investor who would stick with us through thick and thin, and who will not leave in huff at the slightest sign of trouble,” said Legarda, chair of the Senate Economic Affair Committee.

Legarda said that the country has abundant skilled workers to entice foreign companies to set up their industrial or business operations here.

Legarda issued the statement in reaction to reports that so-called hot money are flowing back to the local stock market as a result of the plummeting prices of oil in the world market.

The latest Bangko Sentral report showed that the country drew $187.5 million in net foreign investments in August, compared to the $20.2 million investment inflow in July.

“The problem with hot money is that it comes in today and is gone tomorrow,” she said, citing as example the large investment outflow last March triggered by inflation.

*****

Legarda said that any investment coming into the country is good, but that what the country needs are long-term investments, as exemplified by business processing firms, and technology-based companies.

What Legarda forgot to say, perhaps, is that top dollar individuals like her can help the country grow and become less poor by investing their money in the Philippines.

Legarda’s original press release can be found on the Senate website by clicking here.

Legarda is a front-runner in the current senatorial race. Sources told me that she had earlier instructed her staff to make her Number One. Being Number One opens up a world of possibilities for the broadcaster-turned-senator. Which is why it is very important for the public to scrutinize her actions from now until the 2016 race for the presidency and vice-presidency.

Two commenters – one from San Francisco and the other from Canada – tipped me off about this new development involving Legarda’s piece of Manhattan.

Senator Legarda listed her 725-square foot condo unit as for rent (it was listed on “Blocksy” by real estate agent Prudential Douglas Elliman)  on December 1, 2012. She finally got a renter on April 23, 2013 after dropping the monthly payment from US$ 3,100 to US$ 3,095. So it’s no longer available on the market in case you want to rent it out yourself.