Pag-IBIG: Home loan releases increased by 27% to P83.31B in Jan-Sept period

Home Development Mutual Fund or Pag-IBIG Fund on Thursday said its home loan releases reached a record P83.31 billion during the January to September period.

In a statement, Pag-IBIG Fund said it was “the highest ever amount released by the agency for any January to September period.”

The amount released grew by 27% or P17.83 billion from P65.48 billion in home loan releases in the same period last year.

The number of financed homes also grew 17% year-on-year to 74,708.

Out of the total amount of home loans, P5.72 billion was released as socialized home loans benefitting 13,131 members belonging to the minimum-wage and low-income sectors.

"Pag-IBIG Fund’s performance in the first nine months of 2022 now stands as the best in our history. Higher loan releases and an increasing number of borrowers mean that more and more Filipino workers are being helped by Pag-IBIG Fund to have their own homes,” said Secretary Jose Rizalino Acuzar, who heads the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development and the 11-member Pag-IBIG Fund Board of Trustees.

Pag-IBIG Fund CEO Marilene Acosta also cited a strong third quarter, with the agency releasing a record-high P31.35 billion for the period alone. 

“With our home loan releases amounting to P83.31 billion in the last nine months, we have nearly surpassed the amount released for the entire year in 2019, which was one of our best performing years. By the end of 2022, home loan releases may reach P110 billion, surpassing yet again the P100 billion housing loan takeout level for a single year,” she said.

“We shall do our best to achieve this, as this figure will translate to over 100,000 Filipino workers who shall fulfill their dreams of homeownership.”

Acosta said that the strong demand for the agency’s home loans can be attributed to its interest rates, which remain low despite the current market trend, high loan-to-appraised value ratio, long repayment period, and much-improved insurance terms. — VBL, GMA News