KEY shelter agencies (KSAs) are now assuming a significant role in the government’s Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino (4PH) program to make houses more affordable, according to the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD).
Admitting he was formerly a real-estate developer, DHSUD Secretary Jose Rizalino Acuzar said the Social Housing Finance Corp. (SHFC) and the National Housing Authority (NHA) are taking over the direct contracting of construction services for the 4PH program to eliminate the cost of hiring developers and enable the sovereign guarantee to minimize its coverage.
“Now, what will happen is, when the loan is done, the SHFC will contract and then the NHA.
No more developers. With such a system, we can save because the developers’ profit is lost,” Acuzar said in a statement.
“Because you know, when you’re a developer, you hire a contractor, you build your building, and your developers make money. Straight contractor, your contractor will also make money,” he added.
He said the other tasks of the two KSAs would include the in-house planning for small projects, particularly creating standard designs but with different facades to reduce monotony.
The hiring of private designers would only be done for bigger projects, he cited.
“Here’s what our government has done, there are no more developers. The developers here are your government. So your developers’ profit is gone. So let’s go straight to the contractor. So contractors just profit. That is what we will ask for a guarantee,” he stressed.
DHSUD will reduce the costs and price of housing projects that would eliminate capitalization and pre-selling of developers, he said.
“I used to be a developer. I am also hiring private architects to design our development. That too, seems like your NHA and then SHFC has in house planning for that. So when your projects are too big and a bit complicated, we also hire private designers,” Acuzar said.
“So it depends on the project and after that, you will hire designers. The NHA and SHFC also have in-house planning, when it comes to small projects, they design (the projects themselves). Then, of course, they make standard designs, so that your factory is the same. Your facades are just different so that you don’t look monotonous,” he added.
