September 17, 2013 by Irma Isip [
malaya.com.ph ].
The country’s largest real estate and
housing developers group has proposed a public-private partnership (PPP) to
resolve the worsening urban squalor from informal settlements.
The Subdivision and Housing Developers
Association Inc. (SHDA) said the proposal will mean construction investments on
their part, plus subsidy and the provision of housing loans from the
government.
Under the proposal, private developers
will prepare building plans, undertake and finance the construction of
socialized low-rise buildings, assist in the processing of housing loans for
informal settler family-beneficiaries, and even organize a condominium
corporation for these housing projects.
SHDA hopes that in turn, government
would subsidize the provision of in-city land that is fully developed and
buildable.
The group said government agencies can
then assist by recognizing the project as the developers’ compliance to the
socialized housing requirement, setting a price ceiling for the socialized
housing units, and extending affordable home loan values to the beneficiaries.
The concerned local government unit
can also help fast track permits and provide property management for completed
projects.
While socialized housing for the
underprivileged continues to be developed, SHDA has noted that these
developments have largely risen in non-urban areas in the past 20 years.
Paul Tanchi, chairman and national
president of SHDA, said over half a million informal settlers “will grow at
least at the same pace as the national population growth rate, plus the rate of
migration from the provinces because of the promise of jobs in urbanized
areas.”
He said many relocated informal
settlers simply return to the cities since they already work there. The
situation is further compounded by the migration of provincial job seekers.
Estimates from the Housing and Urban
Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) show that over 570,000 informal
settler families live in communities
with unacceptable sanitary standards, high crime rates, and lower access to
education and employment.
Four out of 10 residents of Metro
Manila, the highest urbanized area in the country, now live in the slums.
SHDA, which counts over 200 chapters
across the country as members, will tackle the issue of addressing housing
backlog at the 22nd National Developers’ Convention and General Membership
Meeting on September 26 to 27 at the Fairmont Makati.
With the theme “Groundwork: Shaping a Sustainable Housing Industry,” the
convention will host sessions on Streamlining the Permitting Process; Access to
Affordable Housing; and Exploring Options for End-User Financing.
The national convention features a
number of housing industry luminaries as resource persons, including officials
from HUDCC, National Economic and Development Authority, Housing and Land Use
Regulatory Board, Home Development Mutual Fund, Board of Investments and the
Land Registration Authority.
SHDA is the largest organization of
housing developers in the country.
The housing backlog is estimated at
3.7 million units, SHDA said.
__________________________________________________________
