The Philippine Government Employees Association (PGEA) hailed the Pag-IBIG Fund’s latest cuts in housing loan interest rates as a “revolutionary move that will benefit government workers in the lower salary grades.”
PGEA President Esperanza Ocampo said that with the new interest rates, “even those who have never considered themselves capable of buying a house before will have the chance to become homeowners.”
Pag-IBIG reduced its interest rate to only 6% per annum for loans up to P300,000 and 7% for loans up to P500,000. Previous interest rates for these loan packages were 9% and 10%, respectively.
Under the new rates, the monthly amortization amounts to only P1,798.65 for loans worth P300,000 and P3,326.51 for loans worth P500,000.
“This kind of opportunity has never been available to government employees before. Even with loans from government institutions, most of them still could not afford the monthly amortizations with their salaries,” Ocampo said.
“Homeownership is now a very realistic option, considering that the amortizations are even lower than the average house rental,” she added.
A government utility worker earning P6,039 a month can now afford a P300,000 Pag-IBIG housing loan, while a public school teacher earning P10,000 can afford the P500,000 package.
The Fund’s Board of Trustees, chaired by Vice President Noli de Castro, approved the new rates last week.
The Pag-IBIG management proposed the new interest rate structure upon De Castro’s instructions to give better access to housing loans for employees who cannot afford to borrow from banks with their current income.
Ocampo commended the Vice President, who concurrently chairs the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC), “for his passionate resolve to focus on the housing needs of low-income workers nationwide.”
“This is a great non-wage benefit, and a wonderful Christmas gift for government workers,” she said.
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