PAG-IBIG Fund’s performing loans ratio climbed to an all-time high, its top executives announced recently.
From January to September, the agency collected P38.56 billion, which is 12 percent or P4.17 billion higher than the amount collected in the same period last year. The amount is also a record high in terms of home loan payments collected by the agency for any January to September period.
“Collections remain robust as we sustained our momentum from 2018, which is our best year yet. We still have another quarter to go before this year ends but we are confident that 2019 will be another banner year because we continue to grow at a double-digit pace. In the third quarter alone, home loan payments grew 20 percent year-on-year to P13.98 billion. Strong collections not only reinforce Pag-IBIG Fund’s financial sustainability, but also benefits our members because the amount we collect are then plowed back to our housing portfolio so that more members can avail of affordable home loans from Pag-IBIG Fund. This is our way of heeding President Rodrigo Duterte’s call to address the growing housing needs of Filipino workers,” said Secretary Eduardo del Rosario, who heads both the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) and the 12-member Pag-IBIG Fund Board of Trustees.
Pag-IBIG Fund chief executive officer Acmad Rizaldy Moti added that because of the improvements in its collection efficiency, the agency was able to reach a record high performing loans ratio (PLR).
As of September, PLR reached 91.03 percent – the highest in the history of the Pag-IBIG Fund. In 2012, the agency’s PLR stood at a low 75 percent. Through several reforms, the agency improved its portfolio until it reached 90 percent for the first time in 2017. Its PLR further improved to 90.23 percent by the end of 2018 and increased further to its highest figure to date.
“We are happy to report that our efforts to maintain efficiency of collections enabled us to keep our performing loans ratio at above 90 percent. The high PLR shows that nine out of 10 of Pag-IBIG Fund’s home loan borrowers regularly pay their monthly amortizations, which is a vast improvement compared to previous years. We take pride in having a single-digit non-performing loans ratio considering that our portfolio is unique, as we cater to minimum-wage earners who are usually unserved by most lending institutions because of their financial capacity,” Moti said.
“Achieving the highest PLR is a notable feat for us. This is the result of both the reforms we have put in place and the growing appreciation of the Fund’s home loan programs among our borrowers. We appreciate our borrowers who regularly pay their monthly amortizations because they help us provide accessible and sustainable home financing to other members who need it too,” Moti added./PN
