Presidential frontrunner Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. revealed his plans to revive an initiative addressing the growing housing backlog in the country, which may soon reduce the housing loan application process to just seven days.
Previously implemented by the Home Development Mortgage Fund (HDMF), more commonly known as Pag-IBIG Fund, the ‘7-Day Takeout Policy’ aims to drastically shorten the current three to four months waiting time for loan approval.
“We recognize every Filipino family’s desire to have a decent and safe home. We will strive to provide the Filipino worker with a dwelling that will restore his dignity and his hope for a better future,” Marcos said in a news release.
Government data estimates that the total housing needs of the country will soon hit 6.8 million units by the end of 2022. By the year 2040, if left unattended, the number could balloon to 22 million units.
“Unlike previous efforts, we will endeavor a whole of society approach to tackle our growing housing problem. We need to have a convergence between all stakeholders as we institute regulatory and policy reforms,” Marcos added.
Low-cost or economic housing refers to units with a selling price of PHP580,000 to PHP1.7 million.
The positive impacts of housing development through decent and affordable living, employment generation, and indirect tax income would aid in the country’s bid to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo Credit: Facebook/Bongbong Marcos