BY IRMA ISIP
[ Malaya.com.ph ] January 14, 2010
The Board of Investments (BOI) may remove incentives on vertical or condominium projects located in Metro Manila to encourage construction outside the metropolis.
"It’s under review," said Elmer C. Hernandez, BOI managing head.
Hernandez said the perks may not have served the purpose of decongesting Metro Manila and making available affordable housing to ordinary workers since condominiums are beyond their reach.
The agency will incorporate the outcome of the review in the 2010 Investment Priorities Plan.
Hernandez said the BOI has noted the barrage of registrations for vertical housing since it was included in the IPP. A lot of the projects are high-end, undertaken by big-name developers.
Hernandez said incentives for horizontal housing development would still continue as they serve the purpose of decongesting Metro Manila.
"We continue to support mass housing as government wants to address that basic need. That is why we are subsidizing it through incentives. But vertical housing in Metro Manila, does it still need incentives?" he said.
According to Hernandez, based on a BOI study, incentives to housing translate to about P50,000 savings in the price per unit, a significant amount for ordinary homeowners.
"Our intention was to serve the market of workers living outside Metro Manila but work in Metro Manila for them to have affordable housing. Did this happen? Did this benefit them?" he said.
The BOI has set a condition for low-cost mass housing projects to enjoy incentives. The projects should allocate 20 percent of the units for socialized housing at P400,000 per unit.
Incentives have been given to encourage developers to engage in mass housing. Housing development also spurs economic activity and generates jobs.
Every million peso investment in housing generates P16.6 million worth of economic activity, according to the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC).
HUDCC estimates the housing backlog and new housing requirements between 2005 and 2010 at 3.756 million units.
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