New housing agenda proposed

Housing projects in the Philippines. Photo courtesy of Asia Green Buildings.

MANILA – The Chamber of Real Estate and Builders Assocations Inc. (Creba) said that their proposed five-point housing agenda may be beneficial to address the current housing backlog in the Philippines and at the same time to improve the industry’s contribution to the local economy.

During a forum held last Monday, Creba national chair Charlie A. V. Gorayeb said that their proposals aim to increase the production of housing units from 100,000 to 500,000 every year for the next twenty years.

Aside from boosting economic activities, this agenda will also provide good housing conditions to many Filipino families and at the same time generate jobs.

According to Creba, their five-point agenda will include the following: ensure the availability of long-term and affordable funds for socialized and economic housing; affordable homes for employees in urban areas; adequate lands for residential, commercial, and industrial development; efficient local government housing regulations, and a full-fledged housing and urban development state agency.

He also noted that approximately P220 billion of untapped funds may be used for the housing project which include the Centralized Homebuyer Financing Program (CHFP) among others.

“The amounts set aside for housing by various existing laws must be integrated and put under a Housing and Urban Development Fund. These funds will be the springboard for the operation of the country’s long-term mortgage backed Securitization Program to further augment the CHFP fund,” the agenda read.

Aside from this, Creba is also pushing for the creation of a Local Housing Board that will act as the main contact in terms of housing-related function, and a Department of Housing and Urban Development for creation of laws to address concerns on housing.