THE Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF), or the Pag-IBIG Fund, reported on Saturday a dramatic surge in socialized housing financing in the first nine months of 2026 after the rollout of the 3-percent home loan rate under the government’s flagship housing program.
Pag-IBIG CEO Marilene Acosta on Saturday showed figures, indicating that socialized housing loans, extended to minimum-wage and low-income members, climbed 173 percent compared to the same period in 2025, with 10,904 units financed — more than double the 3,987 units recorded a year earlier.
The value of socialized housing financing under the expanded Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino (4PH) program, likewise, jumped 172 percent, rising to P12.10 billion from P4.45 billion, the HDMF said.
“Socialized housing now accounts for nearly 16 percent of all homes financed by Pag-IBIG Fund, up from just 7 percent during the same period last year,” the Pag-IBIG chief executive said.
Housing Secretary Jose Ramon Aliling, who chairs Pag-IBIG’s board of trustees, said the latest housing figures would only show that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to make decent and affordable housing accessible to more Filipinos under the expanded 4PH is now translating into meaningful results.
“What is especially encouraging is that more minimum wage and low-income workers are becoming homeowners while our expanded financing options are also opening more opportunities for members in the middle-income sector,” he added.
Under 4PH, the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) chief said Pag-IBIG Fund offers its lowest subsidized rate of 3 percent to qualified member-homebuyers of socialized housing units, whether in condominium or subdivision developments.
The housing department said the adjustment was among the first changes Aliling made to the original 4PH program upon assuming office last year.
The top DHSUD official also broadened the program beyond its original single modality of vertical housing to include house-and-lot packages, lots only, rental housing, the Enhanced Community Mortgage Program and other people-centric approaches.
In addition, Pag-IBIG Fund introduced promotional rates of 4.5 percent for home loans of up to P4.9 million, and 5.75 percent for loans amounting to P10 million and below, subject to existing rules and regulations.
The nearly threefold increase in socialized housing loans shows that expanded 4PH is making a real difference for those who need affordable housing the most, while helping more hardworking Filipino families find homes suited to their needs and budgets, the housing czar said.
“And because of Pag-IBIG Fund’s promotional lower rates, more of our fellow Filipinos can now afford to have their own homes,” he said.
Overall, Pag-IBIG financed 68,514 homes worth P111.29 billion from January to September, up from 59,789 homes worth P93.03 billion in the same period last year — a 15-percent increase in homes financed and a 20-percent rise in housing loan releases, the DHSUD said.
