FILINVEST REIT Corp. (Filrt), the Gotianun-led real estate investment trust, on Tuesday reported a net income of P1.05 billion in 2023, down 19 percent from the P1.3 billion a year earlier.

Net income, minus the net fair value changes in investment properties, would have been P1.28 billion, as rental and other revenues amounted to P3.0 billion.

The company said it posted an average occupancy rate of 83 percent in 2023 after securing new leases totaling 20,139 square meters (sqm), 2,630 sqm of which were in the fourth quarter.

"The new leases that we have in 2024 have been encouraging, and we are optimistic that leasing activities will improve further in the second half of the year," Maricel Brion-Lirio, Filrt president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

"Despite some challenges in the market conditions, we remain committed to expanding our portfolio and steadfast in our goal to significantly increase dividends for our shareholders in the long term," she added.

Tenants leasing around 31,835 sqm, or 77 percent of 41,110 sqm of expiring leases last year, had renewed their contracts, Filrt said, noting that the weighted average lease expiry "improved significantly."

It intends to diversify its tenant mix by welcoming both traditional tenants and co-working locators. The majority of its current tenants were multinational business process outsourcing firms, accounting for 78 percent of the tenant mix.