Lower Cebu City socialized housing interest rate pushed

CEBU, Philippines -  Reduction of the Cebu City Government’s socialized housing program interest rate to six percent is being proposed before the City Council.

City Councilor Alvin Dizon, committee on socialized housing chairman, wanted to further elevate the “security of tenure for our urban poor residents,” in coming up with the proposal.

The proposed measure also aims to reduce the financial burden of socialized housing beneficiaries, considering they pay an annual interest rate of nine percent to the city.

Intended beneficiaries of the proposal are those who applied for the restructuring of the monthly amortization and condonation of penalties under City Ordinance 1998, which was approved in 2004.

“There is a need to impose the six percent interest rate to all socialized housing beneficiaries, especially since there are beneficiaries who have not applied for restructuring and condonation who still do not have any contacts or whose contacts only recently expired or lapsed,” Dizon said.

Dizon said his draft measure is in accordance with the Cebu City Local Housing Board Resolution No. 12-026, which recommended the reduction of the interest rate from nine to six percent for all bonafide beneficiaries.

Section 2 of the proposed measure provides that “the city adopts the policy of providing a continuing program of housing that is affordable, just, decent and low cost.”

City Division for the  Welfare  of  the Urban Poor Chief Collin Rosell and Marlene Paracueles of Urban Poor Alliance (UP-All), a city-wide alliance of urban poor groups and homeowners associations, had endorsed the passage of the proposed ordinance. (FREEMAN)