Pag-IBIG to build houses worth P100,000 each

MANILA, Philippines – The government is looking at building socialized housing units worth P100,000 each in order to provide homes for homeless Filipinos.

“There is a backlog in houses and we want to provide houses for all,” Home Development Mutual (Pag-IBIG) Fund board member Edgardo G. Lacson told reporters.

Lacson said the housing backlog is four million. The plan is to build 400,000 units annually.

Lacson said they are looking at partnering with a private construction firm in order to build the houses. “We want the houses to be affordable that is why we are partnering with private firms because they have the expertise.”

Lacson said a price tag of P100,000 is very affordable and most of the families will be able to afford this. “This is the initiative of the vice president.”

The Board of Investments (BOI) is looking at cutting in half the price ceiling to qualify as a mass housing project in order to avoid abuses in the grant of income tax holidays (ITH).

A ranking official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the BOI might recommend reducing from P3 million to P1.5 million the ceiling price per unit for a housing project to qualify for incentives. Under the current law, all housing projects, regardless of size, which has a value of P3 million and below may qualify for ITH.

As such, the official said even condominium units that can barely house a family can make the grade for a mass housing project. Recently, a high-end real estate developer was granted an incentive for its condominium project in Bel Air Village Makati because its small studio units were priced at P3 million.

The official also noted that some developers place a price tag of P3 million but buyers actually pay a higher price because of financing deals and interests.

The official said they will be checking the socialized housing projects of those given ITH for their low cost mass housing projects. Under the law, there must be a parallel socialized housing project for every ITH granted.

A socialized housing project is worth P400,000. Firms are given three years to comply for mass housing projects in Metro Manila and four years for mass housing projects in other areas.

The official said that they will now check the name and location of these socialized housing projects. The official said most of the socialized housing projects are located outside Metro Manila but they still want to ensure compliance.

Last year, the mass housing component of the Investments Priorities Plan (IPP) was almost deleted but was included after typhoon Ondoy hit Metro Manila and there was a need to rebuild houses in some areas of the metropolis.

However, now, the official said that they are considering limiting ITH in surrounding provinces only in order to help decongest Metro Manila. –Ma. Elisa P. Osorio (The Philippine Star)