he Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) has approved an order authorizing the issuance of temporary license tos housing developers to secure affordable housing rates for Filipinos.
At the Laging Handa briefing on Thursday, DHSUD Secretary Eduardo del Rosario said he recently approved Department Order 2021-008 to allow housing developers to get a temporary license to sell lots and units, even with pending issuance of permits and clearances from local and national government agencies.
Del Rosario said the housing developers have to go through long queues and processes, such as getting permits from the local government units and the national agencies, which sometimes would delay the housing projects for up to two years.
He said the department order would help lessen the construction period of the housing developers. It will also streamline the costs from getting building permits to actual unit building, in a particular housing project.
“So with the issuance of the temporary license to sell, ma-offset na natin ngayon iyong one year delay (we can offset the one year delay),” del Rosario added.
With the issuance of the temporary license to sell, del Rosario said the housing developers can start pre-selling of lots and houses to home buyers while the constructions units are ongoing.
“Para sa ganoon iyong mga ibinabayad naman ng mga home buyers ay magamit din ng developer to plow back at makapag-continue iyong kaniyang production (So that developers can use the payments of the home buyers to plow back and continue their production),” he added. “Iyan ang isang reklamo ng ating mga developers kasi kapag hindi sila nakapagbibenta kaagad, ang nangyayari, uutang sila sa bangko (That’s the major complaints of our developers because they have to loan from the bank if they won’t sell immediately).”
Del Rosario said once the developers are allowed to do pre-selling, through the temporary license to sell, they can secure further funds to ensure the immediate completion of their housing projects at lesser costs.
The temporary license would also limit them to have bank loans, he added.
“Kapag ganoon ang situation, ang presyo rin ng bahay na ibibenta ng ating mga housing developers ay bababa (If that’s the situation, the housing developers would sell the houses at lower prices),” del Rosario said.
Del Rosario described the housing development as a “pump primer” of the economy, noting that there are “80 aligned industries in the construction of a single house.”
The housing czar said direct consultation has been done with four major developers’ associations in the Philippines before he signed the department order.
“We protected their interest while we protected the interest of the home buyers,” he added.
The DHSUD, under National Shelter Program, is responsible and mandated to oversee the financial regulatory and production aspects of the housing industry.
Source: Philippines News Agency
