A public–private sector partnership is expected to help narrow the housing gap for low-income families, and an official of Leechiu Property Consultants expressed optimism as dialogues toward this goal are now underway.
Citing government data, Roy Golez, Leechiu’s director for research and consultancy, said in his presentation of the fourth-quarter 2025 market report on Wednesday that the country recorded about 10.65 million housing backlogs in 2024.
Data from the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) show that from 2018 to 2024, the number of households increased by roughly 478,000 annually, while private-sector housing production averaged only around 128,000 units per year. This leaves an annual shortfall of about 350,000 units.
Golez noted that several measures are being implemented to address the backlog, including the expanded Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino (4PH) program, the reduction of the socialized housing loan rate to 3 percent, and the Government Service Insurance System’s (GSIS) housing initiatives.
The private sector is supporting these efforts, with various real estate developers committing to build more than 250,000 socialized housing units over the next three years, among other initiatives.
In an interview after the briefing, Golez said discussions between the government and private developers are ongoing to tackle the issue. He explained that under Batas Pambansa 220, developers are required to allocate a portion of their projects for socialized housing, with about PHP 12–13 billion already placed in escrow for this purpose.
Republic Act (RA) 7279, or the Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992, as amended by RA 10884, mandates that subdivision developers allocate 15 percent of their projects for socialized housing, while condominium developers must allocate 5 percent.
Golez expressed confidence that ongoing consultations will eventually lead to revisions to the law that could help ease the housing deficit. While reducing the backlog will take time, he stressed that concrete steps are already being taken.
“It has to be government-led for that kind of volume, rather than private sector-led. The private sector can only help so far,” he said.
