BPI financing solution seeks to make home loans affordable

Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) moves to make home ownership more affordable to consumers emerging out of the prolonged pandemic with the rollout of an “all-in” financing solution that stretches payment period for upfront costs that may be too costly especially for upstart housing borrowers.

The new solution gives housing loan clients the option to include upfront fees and charges into the loan amortizations. This means that for a housing loan of P3.5 million, for instance, the borrower will not have to cough out the upfront fees and charges of about P105,000.

“As we emerge from the pandemic, we need to pick up the pieces and do our part in helping the country recover. For us in the BPI group, this means providing better financial solutions that ease the burden of our customers, helping them save and invest toward a better tomorrow for their families,” BPI executive vice president and head of core retail products Ginbee Go said at a press briefing on Tuesday.

“With all-in financing, it will be easier for housing loan clients to finally have their own homes,” said Dennis Fronda, BPI head of retail loans. “Clients now have less to worry about because the [total amount of] fees and charges, which is about 3 percent of the total loan amount, is folded into the monthly amortizations and spread throughout the loan term.”

Time to buy, borrow

During the launch of this new solution on Tuesday, Fronda said housing borrowers could avail themselves of loan tenors of as long as 20 years, while loan amount could reach as much as 90 percent of collateral value.

“Now is the perfect time to take out a loan because we have rates that are even lower than the levels prior to the pandemic—it’s currently 6 percent to 7.25 percent [a year],” Fronda said.

To date, he said housing loan terms at BPI were averaging 10 years. Minimum loan amount is about P400,000.

Loan amortizations will be automatically paid through the client’s auto-debit arrangement account with BPI for a “safe and hassle-free experience.”

For this facility, BPI has teamed up with more than 10 property developers, including Ayala Land, DMCI Homes, SM Development Corp. and Greenfield Development.

Less burden

“When it comes to acquiring a home, we take into account how costly this could be for our clients, and considering the amount of the property they’re buying and the funds they need to prepare along with it. Additionally, the cost of the furniture and appliances to make their homes more comfortable to live in also add up to the things they usually have to prepare or even save up,” Fronda said.

This new payment solution is thus geared to provide affordability and convenience “so our clients would not have to be burdened about spending beyond what they can manage on the loan,” he added.

As the country recovers from this pandemic, BPI anticipates improved consumer confidence in applying for housing loans. As of October year-to-date, the bank has noted an increase in applications and regular housing loan releases.