THE National Home Mortgage Finance Corp. (NHMFC) announced a three-month moratorium on housing loan payments to help mitigate the impact of the Middle East war.
Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) Secretary Jose Ramon Aliling made the announcement on Wednesday following a meeting with NHMFC officials led by its president, Renato Tobias.
Over 50,000 borrowers will benefit from the moratorium.
“In response to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s call for a whole-of-government approach amid the ongoing crisis in the Middle East that is affecting many nations, including our country, we are implementing shelter-related financial relief programs, including that from NHMFC,” Aliling said.
NHMFC is one of DHSUD’s attached key shelter agencies.
Under the moratorium program, all eligible borrowers will automatically be covered for three months from May 1 to July 31, 2026, without the need to file an application.
The relief measure allows borrowers to temporarily suspend their monthly amortization payments without incurring penalties or additional interest.
Loan terms will be extended accordingly based on the duration of the moratorium, according to the NHMFC chief.
Aliling, who chairs Pag-IBIG Fund’s board of trustees, said that it has also approved a special benefits package for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were repatriated due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
OFW members may apply to withdraw up to 100 percent of their Pag-IBIG Regular Savings, including their employee share, employer share, and dividends earned, even before its 20-year maturity.
They can also withdraw up to 100 percent of their Modified Pag-IBIG II, or MP2 Savings, including returns earned, even before its five-year maturity or avail of a three-month moratorium on Pag-IBIG Housing Loan payments, free from interest and penalties, with the loan term extended by three months, the housing czar said.
Records showed that Pag-IBIG Fund has close to 900,000 registered OFW members in the Middle East as of February this year.
