Affordable Cebu houses in Cordova Bay subdivision

Located in the interior portion of the village of Gabi in Cordova in Mactan island, Cordova Bay town homes are built at par with houses in middle-end subdivisions elsewhere in Cebu but sold at lower cost.

The total area of Cordova Bay Townhomes is also smaller compared to other subdivisions in Lapu-Lapu City and in other areas of Cebu.
The amenities already in the subdivision include the landscaped entrance, guardhouse, and water tank. Still to be constructed, as of late last year, are the parks and playground and clubhouse.

ERIKA. The Erika house model is a single, detached two-bedroom home that can be expanded (on some blocks only) to accommodate a third bedroom. The lot area ranges from 125 to 172 square meters, floor area ranges from 67 to 50 square meters. Click on photo to view larger image.
There are three types of houses that can be availed of in the subdivision: Erika, Esperanza, and Josefa.

The Erika house model is a single, detached two-bedroom home that can be expanded (expansion applicable to some blocks only) to accommodate a third bedroom at an additional cost to the buyer. The lot area for the Erika house ranges from 125 to 172 square meters. Floor area ranges from 67 to 50 square meters.

The Erika two-bedroom unit is tasteful and affordable and is perfect for a small- to medium- sized family. It has two bathrooms, one of which is located in the master bedroom. A unit costs from P2.6 million to P1.96 million depending on the size of the lot.
The Erika living room is well lighted and gets enough air from the windows that line the living room walls. The dining room is spacious and is adjacent to the kitchen, which also gets enough light from the windows beside the sink.

ERIKA MASTER BEDROOM. The master bedroom can hold a large bed and large closets and has its own bathroom. Click on photo for larger image.

The master bedroom can hold a large bed and large closets and has its own bathroom. It also has several windows that provide a great view of the Cordova skies.

The second bedroom is much smaller and accommodates a single-size bed and a small closet.
The Esperanza house model is of a duplex type. It shares a wall with one other house of a similar model. Lot area of each house model ranges from 96 to 109 square meters while floor area is fixed at 50.52 square meters for each home.

It has two bedrooms and one bathroom. The master bedroom can accommodate a queen-size bed and large closets with some space left for a dresser. The second bedroom is smaller and may be suitable for one or two children.

ESPERANZA. The Esperanza house model is a duplex and shares a wall with one other house of a similar model. Lot area of each house model ranges from 96 to 109 square meters while floor area is fixed at 50.52 square meters for each home. Click on photo to view larger image.
The kitchen is adjacent to the living room and an exit door leads out to the back of the house where the extra space may be utilized as a laundry area.

House and lot price of the Esperanza house starts at P1.5 million.
Josefa is a two-story house model with two bedrooms and two bathrooms, one for each level. The unit is built under a row house system that groups it with three or seven other similarly designed homes.

Like the other house models in the subdivision, the front door of the Josefa house model opens into the living room and leads to the dining room that continues through to the kitchen where a back door leads out to a small space outside for laundry or other purposes.
Located near the kitchen is the bathroom for the first floor.

ESPERANZA KITCHEN. The kitchen in the Esperanza house model is adjacent to the living room and an exit door leads out to the back of the house where the extra space may be utilized as a laundry area. Click on image to enlarge.

A stairway near the dining room leads to the second floor, where the master bedroom and a second smaller room are located. A second bathroom can be found on the second floor.
The master bedroom is spacious even with the queen-size bed and closets put in for the display unit. Prices for the raw Josefa units starts from P800,000 and P1.5 million for those with improvements.

Taking out a Cordova Bay house requires a reservation fee of P10,000, which is good for 30 days but which is not refundable. To buy a house through a financing program, the buyer must pay 30 percent of the total contract price as down payment. The balance of 70 percent is payable for up to five years for in-house financing, 15 years for bank financing, and 20 years for Pag-Ibig financing.

JOSEFA. Josefa is a two-story house model with two bedrooms and two bathrooms, one for each level. The unit is built under a row house system that groups it with three or seven other similarly designed homes. Click on photo to view larger image.
About Cordova

Cordova is a fifth-class municipality that shares the island of Mactan with Lapu-Lapu City. It used to be barangay of Lapu-Lapu and was then called Day-as. It became a town separate from Lapu-Lapu City in 1913.

The town has a total area of 892.5 hectares. It has 13 barangays, 9 of which are located in the coastal areas.

Its satellite islets–Gilutongan, Lava, Tongo, Shell Island, and Nalusuan–are favorite destination of tourists. The Gilutongan channel is one of the main diving sites in the country and the town has a marine park that teems with colorful ocean life.

Cordova town may be part of Cebu City but not soon

CEBU, Philippines – Mayor Tomas Osmeña is optimistic that the move to declare Lapu-Lapu City a separate district would pave the way for the Municipality of Cordova to become part of Cebu City but the two Cebu City congressmen believe this might not happen soon.

Cebu City South District Representative Antonio Cuenco told The Freeman the move would call for Constitutional amendment “since requirements are clear that the parties concerned has to be compact, adjacent and contiguous.”

“Else, we are violating a law,” Cuenco said.

For his part, Cebu City North District Representative Raul del Mar said Cordova cannot be part of Cebu City at this point in time, considering that it is part of the province as its municipality as part of the old district, the sixth district.

“It could be possible in the future but that will have to be in agreement not only with officials of Cebu City and Cordova but also with the Province of Cebu and 6th District and its residents,” Del Mar said.

Vice Mayor Michael Rama also shared the sentiments of the congressmen, saying the move would need approval from Cordova and, more importantly, legislative intervention both from the councils of the two local government units, as well as the House of Representatives.

“There has to be that willingness of Cebu City to take in and of course the desire of Cordova to form part of Cebu City,” Rama said.

Rama said this scenario can be likened to case of barangays Pardo, San Nicolas, Talamban and Mabolo that used to be municipalities but later joined in as barangays of Cebu City.

City Councilor Gerardo Carillo who is eyeing a congressional seat said it is possible to have Cordova part of Cebu City, considering that the municipality is far from Consolacion to make up the rest of the sixth district.

“This is something that we have to advocate for the betterment of both….and Cordova will also benefit from the growth of the City,” Carillo said.

City Planning and Development Officer Nigel Paul Villarete said Cordova will not only become a bedroom community of Cebu City but even has the potential to become a center of development considering that it is very near the South Road Properties and barely 500 meters away from the City Hall.

“We just have to build a bridge over Shell Island and then ferry to Cordova to solve the separation by sea issue,” Villarete said.

Following a hearing on House Bill No. 5007 authored by Rep. Nerissa Soon-Ruiz, the Senate Committee on Local Government chaired by Senator Benigno Aquino III is set to recommend for approval to the plenary of the Senate the separation of Lapu-Lapu City as separate district.

This move will, in effect, split the existing sixth district into two legislative districts, thereby giving additional representation and consequent funds for development.

H.B. No. 5007 was approved by the Lower House sometime in the last quarter of 2008 and transmitted to the Senate on October 6, 2008. H.B. No. 5007 is a substitute bill to HB No. 1306, which originally proposed the creation of one district for Mandaue City and Consolacion and one district for Lapu-Lapu City and Cordova.

Due to a complexity that Lapu-lapu City voters could not anymore vote for provincial elections while Cordova residents can, it was decided in the course of deliberations to lump Cordova, Consolacion, and Mandaue City as one district by making Lapu-Lapu City a lone district by virtue of its being a highly urbanized city.

While Mandaue is a highly urbanized city, its charter allows it to continue to vote for elections of provincial officials as an exception thus making it similarly situated on that regard with the other two municipalities.

The Beauty of Cordova

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Cordova Municipality got its name after Cordova City in Spain. It first became a Municipio in 1864 but lost its town hood thereafter but was able to regain its municipal status in 1913. From 1913 up to the present, a total of 15 town mayors were able to run the Municipality, replacing one after the other.

It is a 4th-class municipality belonging to the 6th district of the Province of Cebu and is situated within Metro Cebu particularly in the Island of Mactan. Cordova is one of the two Local Government Units (LGUs) comprising the Island of Mactan.

In 2000 Census, a total of 42,032 were counted as inhabitants of the Municipality of Cordova with a total household of 6,520. The National Census and Statistics Office (NCSO) recorded an average annual growth rate of 4.22%. However, the latest unofficial count disclosed a total population of 45,713 in 2007 with a household of more or less 8,761.

The education of the children and the youths of Cordova are being catered by the existing 14 daycare centers, 11 public elementary schools, 2 private elementary schools, 1 public high school, 1 private high school and 1 public college. The skills training program such as Garment Trade is also available for the Out-of-School Youths and the Adults.

There is no hospital within the town however the Municipal Health Office is there to address health consultations and treatment, immunizations and some minor surgery. The birthing/lying in services are also available in the Municipal Health Office giving assistance to the mothers who will deliver/give birth to their babies.


Basic infrastructure and utilities such as water, power, communication and road networks are also available in the Municipality except in Gilutongan island and in the other small islands where some residents depend upon the generator for power, and rainwater and water from the commercial peddlers for drinking. A solar power was installed in Gilutongan Island in 2000 or 2001 but for lack of maintenance, it is no longer functioning now.
In terms of land use and zone classification, Cordova is dominated by a blend of residential and mixed use areas where subdivisions are encouraged to settle and some commercial and non-polutive industries are allowed to thrive.


Topographically, Cordova is generally flat with 0-3% slope. Its highest elevation does not exceed ten meters above main sea level. The general substrate is of limestones. The outcrops of hard limestone are evident in almost all places making the surface rugged. The limestone type belonging to Carcar formation occupies flanks of ridges and practically all of coastal areas. In terms of vegetation, the portions of the town are made up of cultivated areas of land interspersed with specks of brush and grasslands.


This coastal municipality is being separated from Lapu-Lapu City by a waterway. It is composed of thirteen (13) barangays, 12 of which are found in the mainland while the island barangay of Gilutongan lies in the distant southern portion facing the Municipality of Getafe in Bohol. The Municipality of Cordova also claims territorial and administrative jurisdictions over the small islands of Shell, Tongo, Lava and Nalusuan. Per certification of the Land Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Cordova’s land area is 789.6065 hectares. Its wide intertidal flats or foreshore areas that serve as a fishing ground during high tide and as a gleaning area for the variety of sea shells during low tide and very low tide stretches to more or less 3,500 hectares. During winter seasons, a portion of this area will be filled with white, long-legged migratory birds from Australia and from other cold places in the world. In 2000, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources spotted some 15 different species of migratory birds, the most common is the Chinese Egret.

Cordova also takes pride of its abundant marine resources and habitats. The vast mangrove covers that ensembles like perimeter fences surrounding the mainland prevents the big waves to intrude the dry land and provides food to the some thousands of kilograms of fishes and other marine dependents. The unique and the long variety of sea grasses that can be mistaken as a paved road from a distance during low tide is also a habitat of the dangguit and the other herbivorous fishes.


Coastal Resources Management has been considered by the Municipality of Cordova as one of the basic services. It is being evidenced by its establishment of the renowned Gilutongan Marine Sanctuary in 1999 and the Nalusuan Island Marine Sanctuary in 2002. The tip of Day-as Wharf in Barangay Day-as which sits on a mangrove plantation was also declared as a Marine Habitat Village in 2003. This environmental protection effort is the Cordovanhons’ way of expressing their gratitude to the Almighty God for blessing the town with so much natural bounties. Eventually, this effort gives birth to other activities and opportunities for the Cordovanhons such as Tourism and Livelihood.


It is not only the environment that is being protected by the Local Government of Cordova but its culture and heritage is also being preserved. Not so known to many Cordovanhons, Cordova is very rich in cultural heritage. Everybody knows of King Lapu-Lapu in the Battle of Mactan but only very few know Cordova’s very own hero, King Dagami who came from Barangay Gabi, Cordova, Cebu. Thus, the importance of remembering the past surfaced and is now being recognized by the Officials so that the Cordovanhons would know their origin and would be able to establish an identity of its own. Cordovanhons’s way of celebrating their past is expressed through a dance-drama or mardi gras known as the Cordova Dinagat-Bakasi Festival., which depicts Cordova’s fishing lifestyle. In addition to this, Cordovanhons’ effort to preserve culture is being deepened by the LGU-initiated study of the Cebuano language.

Being proximate to the Mactan – Cebu International Airport and adjacent to the giant and urbanized cities in Cebu (Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu), Cordova encounters a spill over of development and it would not be surprising if soon Cordova’s pace of economic growth will change from not so fast to very fast.