SHFC Deepens Urban Poor Housing Push With PCUP Pact
The Social Housing Finance Corporation is widening its reach for the country’s poorest communities. The agency has forged a new partnership with the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor, timed to coincide with the Community Mortgage Program’s 38th anniversary on August 3.
The move reinforces SHFC’s support for President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s Expanded Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino (4PH) Program, which is implemented by the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development under Secretary Jose Ramon Aliling. It also signals a deeper inter-agency push to get organized urban poor communities into secure, community-driven housing.
A New Pact to Widen Access
The Memorandum of Understanding was signed on August 3 in Makati City by SHFC President and CEO Federico Laxa and PCUP Chairperson and CEO Undersecretary Michelle Anne Gonzales. The agreement is designed to expand access to community-driven socialized housing for organized urban poor communities through stronger collaboration between the two agencies.
Under the deal, PCUP’s ALPAS Komunidad Program will be integrated with SHFC’s housing initiatives. That means more organized communities will gain access to socialized housing services, backed by strengthened community organizing, social preparation, technical assistance, and project development.
Laxa underscored SHFC’s continuing efforts to revitalize the CMP, now called the Enhanced CMP, and transform it into a more responsive and impactful housing program for organized communities. He expressed optimism that the collaboration with PCUP would further strengthen government efforts to serve more Filipino families.
“Maraming salamat sa PCUP na alam kong magtutulungan kami upang lalo pang mapaganda ang benepisyong ibibigay natin sa ating mga kababayan,” he said.
Gonzales, for her part, recognized the efforts of DHSUD and SHFC in advancing the Expanded 4PH Program and pledged PCUP’s full support for the initiative.
“Asahan n’yo po ang buong suporta ng PCUP. More power to SHFC, and we will do our best to help empower the lives of the people and the communities who will live in the houses you will be building,” Gonzales said.
Land Titles Mark 38 Years of Homeownership
The partnership announcement came alongside a milestone celebration. As part of the CMP’s 38th anniversary, themed “Bahay, Buhay, Magandang Kinabukasan,” SHFC awarded Transfer Certificates of Title to 20 member-beneficiaries from three CMP communities in Valenzuela and Caloocan cities.
The recipients came from the Samahang Magkakapitbahay ng Rosepacking Homeowners’ Association Inc. Phase I and Villa Enrico Heights HOAI in Valenzuela City, along with Samahang Mapalad ng Amparo HOAI in Caloocan City. For these families, the titles represent more than paperwork — they mark the end of years of renting and uncertainty.
Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, Samahang Mapalad ng Amparo HOAI President Carmelita Malinao expressed her gratitude to SHFC for helping their community achieve secure land tenure.
“Nagpapasalamat po ako sa SHFC, dahil nagkaroon po kami ng bahay. Hindi na po kami nangungupahan at sarili na po naming lupa ito,” she said.
SHFC, together with DHSUD, has continuously awarded land titles and checks for land acquisition to housing beneficiaries, reaffirming the agency’s commitment under Secretary Aliling to bring government housing programs closer to the people. Since its inception in 1988, the CMP has provided security of tenure to more than 300,000 families nationwide, a testament to the government’s enduring commitment to making homeownership accessible to low-income and underserved Filipino communities.
