Sharon Cuneta reveals how she grew her money 5 to 10 times bigger

MANILA, Philippines — “Megastar” Sharon Cuneta has been a performer most of her life, but much of her wealth did not come from show business, the award-winning singer-actress bared at a round table interview last week at the fifth anniversary of the “Sheroes” campaign of Filipino insurance company InLife (Insular Life) for which she is the endorser. 

“My profession has been known to be as an entertainer. I sing, I act, I host, I perform in concerts, I make records,” Sharon began.

Her career, however, might have been more as “a real estate investor.”

“My income from show business, I’ve been able to grow, I won’t say (what) exactly, let’s say between five to 10 times more because of my investments,” she explained.

“Let’s say you buy something for P100 million. Then in seven years, you’re not doing anything, you’re just singing, hindi mo pinapansin. After a few years, you sell it for P400 (million). And I was like, okay, I was just doing what I love and I wasn’t minding it.”

The key to success in real estate, she said, is location.

“The important things really to remember are location, location, location,” she stressed.

She shared her checklist before buying a property investment.

“My question to myself before I buy a property is will I live in it? And if this is something that’s meant for hindi artista… If it’s medyo middle class, would they want to live here? May tubig ba dito? Nagbabaha ba dito? All these things that we’re afraid of, you list it down: ‘Ayaw ko ng baha, ayaw ko ng walang tubig, ayaw ko ng kumbaga, mababangga ako ‘pag may truck na nawalan ng breaks… ‘yung mga gan’un lang kasimple.”

She is also very particular about the property’s developer and its reputation.

“And then you always make sure ‘pag bumibili ka, okay baa ng developer nito? Anong track record nito?” 

InLife Sheroes, the Filipino insurance company’s flagship program for women empowerment, was established in partnership with the  International Finance Corp., a member of the World Bank Group. It aims to reach out to the relatively untapped segment of the women in the Philippines, especially women entrepreneurs who need life and health protection as well as financial solutions to expand