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Filipino workers are investing on real estate
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Posted on Jun 21 1999
Despite the uncertainty of their employment contracts in the CNMI, Filipino workers here are investing on real estate in the hope to fulfill their dream to own a house back in the Philippines.
Visiting loan program manager Vincent N. Nery said following its first housing fair held on Saipan last year, the number of borrowers from the CNMI has more than doubled.
“From 17 borrowers before the fair, we have 210 as of today,” he said.
Nery is representing the Home Development Mutual Fund or Pag-IBIG, a Philippine government corporation based in Makati, which offers housing loans to its members including overseas contract workers.
Its membership base in the CNMI has also increased. From 500 members last year, the Pag-IBIG office at the Philippine Consulate now has 1,800 members.
For its second housing fair held last weekend, his office brought real estate developers for Laguna, Davao and Bacolod. Moreover, condominium units available in the cities of Quezon, Manila and Pasay were also pushed in the CNMI’s market, including non-Filipino buyers.
“Even with the downtrend in the economy, we have remained positive because housing is a basic need. Plus, the best time to buy is when the economy is down,” he said.
He added that the Pag-IBIG office in the CNMI has maintained the 80 to 85 percent collection efficiency, which is considered one of the highest in the industry.
Housing units available in the Philippines, their prices range from a low of P180,000 to a high of P950,000 for each unit.
Pag-IBIG members will need to pay the reservation fee with the developer and comply with the documentary requirements before their housing loans will be processed, he said.
For Filipinos who are not yet Pag-IBIG members, they will need to pay a year’s contribution before they can qualify to apply for a housing loan.
