Pag-IBIG sees 200,000 members in southern Mindanao still without homes

DAVAO CITY — More than 200,000 southern Mindanao members of the Home Development Mutual Fund, otherwise known as the Pag-IBIG Fund, do not own homes due to affordability issues and a housing backlog, among others.

“We have more than 200,000 of our members who still do not have houses,” said Cesar C. Bazan, officer-in-charge of Pag-IBIG Fund’s Business Development Department.

Pag-IBIG Fund members can tap various loan windows: a multi-purpose loan for various immediate needs; housing loan packages with subsidized interest rates; and the regular housing loan package.

Pag-IBIG has a nationwide loan budget of P65 billion this year and Mindanao’s share is P7.6 billion, of which P3.2 billion has so far been released.

Still, he added, a significant housing backlog exists due to rapid population growth and limited purchasing power to initiate the process of acquiring a house.

The Fund’s members are those who are employed, but Mr. Bazan said housing loans are available only to those who earn more than P12,000 a month.

“We finance property based on appraised value. Whatever the difference between the amount of the property and what we can fund is the equity of the buyer,” he explained.

Mr. Bazan said the fund has partnered with developers to make it easier for members to get a house.

“The developers acquire the property, put up a subdivision and then sell the housing units to our members,” he said, noting that standards are strictly observed and developers who fail to meet these are blacklisted.

Meanwhile, Mr. Bazan said the agency is also planning a P100- billion project that will be jointly implemented with the National Housing Authority and the Land Registration Authority for Marawi City residents who have been displaced by the armed conflict there.

Each housing unit under the program will be worth P450,000, and a 3% interest will be offered to those earning P12,000 a month and below and 6% for those with higher incomes.

Under the plan, land assessment will start as soon as the military allows entry into identified areas. Assessment, he said, is necessary since most of the land in the city is not titled.

Mr. Bazan said the fund has also started assessing members who may need financial assistance for the renovation of their damaged houses. Pag-IBIG Fund offers a P150,000 rehabilitation loan for minimum-wage earners, with zero interest for the first six months. —