Low-wage earners’ home loans hit P4.52B
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Mon, 08 Jul 2019 16:18:09 +0000
THE Home Development Mutual Fund (Pag-IBIG Fund) reported on Monday that the socialized housing loans it extended to 11,894 members from the minimum-wage and low-income sectors reached P4.52 billion in the first half of 2019.
According to the state-run agency, the figure represents nearly 30 percent of the total number of housing loans financed by the agency from January to June.
Pag-IBIG Fund financed 41,746 housing loans worth P37.07 billion in the first half to help members acquire or improve their homes.
“Socialized housing is designed especially for minimum and low-wage workers. President Rodrigo Roa Duterte directed that there be government programs catering to this underserved sector. Hence, we have this housing program that is suited for their financial capacity,” said Secretary Eduardo D. del Rosario, chairman of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) and the Pag-IBIG Fund Board of Trustees.
“This is the essence of the BALAI (Building Adequate, Livable, Affordable and Inclusive) Filipino Communities Program of the government’s housing sector toward providing decent shelter for every Filipino family,” he added.
Socialized housing loans are up to P580,000 for a 32 square-meter residential unit in a horizontal housing project. Under its Affordable Housing Loan Program, Pag-IBIG Fund maintains the lowest interest rate in the market at 3 percent annually, which it has provided for minimum and low-wage workers since May 2017.
Pag-IBIG subsidizes this low interest rate, being a tax-exempt agency as specified under Republic Act 9679.
“Our charter allows Pag-IBIG Fund to offer the lowest rates for home loans of minimum and low-wage workers. And aside from keeping our interest rates low, we also reduced the insurance premiums of our home loans. As a result, qualified borrowers under this program will pay an affordable monthly amortization of only P2,445.30 for a socialized housing loan worth P580,000,” Pag-IBIG Fund Chief Executive Officer Acmad Rizaldy P. Moti said.
“All these are part of our efforts to provide the best home financing program for our members. That’s what Lingkod Pag-IBIG is all about,” he added.
The post Low-wage earners’ home loans hit P4.52B appeared first on The Manila Times Online.