Stronger public-private partnership urged to allow more Filipinos acquire homes

A member of the House committee on banks and financial intermediaries has called for enhanced collaboration among government agencies, real estate developers, and housing finance institutions to narrow the gap between residential property prices and the purchasing capacity of Filipino families.

Representative JP Padiernos said there should be stronger public-private partnerships in the housing industry as the property sector reportedly confronts a dip in sales and persistent affordability challenges.

He said there is a need to identify practical ways to make homeownership more attainable through manageable monthly installments while ensuring that developers can deliver quality housing at commercially sustainable prices.

Padiernos has authored and co-authored at least seven House bills on condominium redevelopment, urban development, and socialized housing.

The Philippine Statistics Authority’s 2020 Census of Population and Housing recorded approximately 28.50 million housing units nationwide, of which 25.19 million were occupied, alongside 26.38 million households.

The approximately 1.18-million difference between households and occupied housing units provides a broad indicator of housing pressure but is not an official estimate of the housing backlog or the number of families capable of purchasing homes.

Padiernos said the challenge is not simply to build more houses, but to ensure that available homes match household incomes, financing capacity, location preferences and actual housing needs.

Earlier, Pag-IBIG Fund reportedly released P69.19 billion in housing loans covering 43,051 units in the first half of 2026, up 15% in loan value and 9% in units financed year-on-year, indicating continued activity in the country’s formal housing-finance market.

Within that total, socialized housing loans for minimum-wage and low-income members reportedly reached P6.70 billion, financing 6,601 units, with increases of 118% and 132%, respectively, from the same period last year.

Pag-IBIG also offers a subsidized 3% annual interest rate for eligible socialized-housing borrowers, alongside promotional rates of 4.5% and 5.75% for qualifying housing loans in other price categories and a maximum housing loan ceiling of P10 million, subject to program conditions.

According to Padiernos, these measures provide a basis for examining how financing assistance can help qualified households purchase homes that would otherwise be beyond their reach.

He added, however, that the property market continues to face a mismatch between housing demand and available supply.

Colliers, a global real estate research firm, reported approximately 79,200 unsold condominium units in Metro Manila at the end of 2025, including nearly 30,000 unsold ready-for-occupancy units, while its second-quarter 2026 report projected residential vacancy to reach 25.6% by year-end.

It also identified economic and affordable condominiums as the primary drivers of residential demand in the first half of 2026, suggesting that affordability, financing access and the alignment of housing products with end-user requirements are increasingly important to market recovery.

Padiernos said unsold inventory does not automatically mean that homes are affordable to families that need them.

“Prices, down-payment requirements, monthly amortization, location and loan eligibility can prevent potential buyers from purchasing available units, while developers face financing, maintenance and other costs when inventory remains unsold,” he explained.

He added that the proposed initiative would examine whether targeted financing assistance, more efficient construction methods, improved infrastructure coordination and streamlined government approvals could reduce avoidable costs and expand access to suitable housing without compromising construction quality or buyer protection.

Among the country’s developers, Ayala Land, Inc. generated P41 billion in property development revenues during the first half of 2026, leading peer performance ahead of Megaworld Corporation’s P27.2 billion, SM Prime Holdings’ P20.9 billion, and Robinsons Land Corporation’s P7.1 billion.

Despite the slowdown in reservations, ALI reported an improvement in residential inventory levels, from 18 months in the first quarter to 15 months, and turned over close to 6,000 residential units across 40 projects during the first half. These developments point to the importance of matching housing supply with effective demand, while balancing affordability for prospective buyers with the financial sustainability of property developers. —AOL, GMA News