THE Board of Investments (BoI) said it amended the 2022 Strategic Investment Priority Plan (SIPP) to raise the price of low-cost housing units eligible for incentives to P3 million each.
The BoI said the ceiling had to be adjusted to conform to recent changes made by the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) and the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) to the pricing of units falling under the category of economic housing.
According to the DHSUD’s Department Order No. 2022-003, the price ceiling for economic housing was raised from P1.7 million to P2.5 million.
“With the recent adjustments in the price ceiling of economic housing approved by DHSUD and NEDA and the existing price ceiling for low-cost housing, the policy for mass housing should consider the said developments in the economic landscape of the country,” according to BoI Memorandum Circular 2023-005.
The SIPP now allows low-cost housing projects to have a selling price in excess of P2.5 million but not beyond P3 million. Within each SIPP-eligible housing development, socialized housing units must account for 20% of the registered project area and 20% of the floor area of all qualified saleable housing units, in the case of condominiums.
The economic housing category is capped at P2.5 million and the socialized housing component of each project must account for 15% of the registered project area and 15% of the floor area of qualified saleable housing units, in the case of condominiums.
The BoI also modified the provisions for income tax housing holidays (ITH) and duty exemption on capital equipment, raw materials, spare parts, or accessories.
The amendment also incentivizes tree-planting within or around each development. A project will be eligible to five years of ITH if the developer submits proof of planting 300 trees; projects with 500 trees planted will be eligible for six years’ ITH.
The trees must be planted within the project location or within the community where the project is located one year prior to the availment of ITH, the circular read.
Housing developers must also use 25% domestically sourced construction materials. — Justine Irish D. Tabile
