The Pag-Ibig Fund Bacolod Branch released a total of P317.290 million in housing loans last year to its members who have availed of 941 house and lot units.

The housing agency, however, only reached 86.88 percent of its target loan releases for 2005. Last year, it set aside P365.198 million for financing of 1,207 accounts. Only 77.96 percent of the total target was financed.

Mary Ann Fruylan, officer-in-charge of Mortgage Loans Division, said that Pag-Ibig Fund uses as basis for their annual goals the funding commitments sought by housing developers. Thus, if the developers could not reach their targets for the year, their agency will also will suffer a shortfall.

At the start of each year, the Pag-Ibig Fund signs with the developers a Memorandum of Agreement which states the latter's monthly commitments which they ask the agency to fund for the year.

Fruylan said that although there are developers that failed to reach their targets, there are also those that fulfilled their commitments or even exceed it.

For 2006, Pag Ibig Fund Bacolod Branch has projected to release P339.163 million in housing loans for 1,061 units or accounts.

It will only be 89 accounts per month so I hope we can hit our target, Fruylan said.

This year's figures are lower because these are based on Pag-Ibig Fund Bacolod's actual accomplishment as of August 2005, she said, along with other criteria, including the branch's membership level.

Fruylan said that many Filipinos still need to own houses as shown in the housing backlog, however, their lack of capacity to pay, which is one of the basic requirements in availing a housing loan, is a major hindrance.

Pag-Ibig Fund requires that a borrower's monthly amortization should not exceed 40 percent of his/her monthly income.

She said that in Bacolod City, those who avail of P1 million to P2 million loans are usually overseas Filipino workers while those who obtain loans between P200,000 and P300,000, for socialized housing units, are mostly government employees.*NLG

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