Pag-IBIG Fund works on long-haul program

The Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF) or Pag-IBIG Fund is working on the long-haul program where it seeks to partner with housing developers in providing housing units to prospective homebuyers who are members of the Fund.
Lawyer Romero Federico S. Quimbo, chief executive officer of Pag-IBIG Fund told developers during the recent Mindanao Developers Forum held in Davao City that in support to the long haul program the Fund has earmarked a bigger loan facility this year amounting to P50.50 billion.

Close to 200 participants joined the Mindanao Developers Forum coming from Regions IX, X, XI, XII and XIII.

Quimbo said that Pag-IBIG Fund has enough money for the program and developers can access the fund depending on the kind of program they would avail.

He stressed however that they want to implement lending program that is sustainable yet find ways to make it easier for the developers to access the funds saying that “we want our business sustainable and your (developers) business sustainable too”.

He told the home builders that they need to meet half-way to develop the housing program and the Fund wants to partner with people who are in for the long haul. They invite private sector to come in and invest as they partner with them in delivering homes to the members.

Quimbo said the Fund does not get any subsidy from government and they are the company that must make money because they need to give back to the members in form of dividends out of the money that they use for programs like housing loan.

“If we do not give back in return, the members would think that we are only using their money. We need to give something back to them who are funding the loans to developers,” he said.

He reminded developers that it is the Fund members’ money that they are using through the development loans and Pag-IBIG Fund needs to take care of their fund that is why they see to it that guidelines are followed.

He said out of the 7.5 millon members of the Fund only 10 percent avail of housing loans while the remaining 90 percent has not availed of the program yet contributes to the funds housing loan program.

The housing loan window this year is 53 percent higher than in 2008 of only P34.03 billion. The 2009 will have P43 billion for end-users loan and P7 billion for institutional loan.

He said for a period of ten years the housing loan program allocation in 2001 was only at P3.82 billion followed by P5.40 billion in 2002, P9.32 billion in 2004, P15.30 billion in 2005, P16.10 billion, 2006, and P22.59 billion in 2007.

Quimbo said despite the increased growth they maintain the same budget in 2007 and 2008 of 5 percent as against their revenue of 45 percent.

He said the growth for the past years was at P1.3 billion, but it was only last year they were able to hit P38 billion.