Parrot on a PorchA Journey Toward the Little Mansion Dream

And just like that, our housing loan application has just been placed this morning.  But no, not with Pag-ibig just like I’ve been blogging about but with a bank.  The Seller (who’s our Ninong) suggested that we try inquiring in a certain bank after he got irked by Pag-ibig’s demand for a few extra requirements.  So this morning, we visited the referred bank and after discovering that 1.) we can get approval advise within 5 days 2.) they offer lower interest 3.) maximum term is 25 years 4.) we have all of their required application requirements and 5.) the approximate monthly amortization is within our set budget….without second thoughts, the husband and I agreed to give it a go.  For now, the husband can puff some cigars in nervousness as we have one week to pray for a reasonable appraisal which can consequently lead to a higher approved loanable amount.  We’re keeping our fingers crossed and we’re keeping the faith.

Since the Little Mansion will be finished any time soon, we’re now starting to get on the nitty gritty part of acquiring it (a.k.a. loan application). To recap, we tried to apply it last year initially with the loan purpose “Purchase of lot and construction of house” but we were told that it could not be since the construction permits were all named already to our developer. So that means, we need to have the house construction gets finished first before we can proceed to apply with a loan purpose of “Purchase of House and Lot”.

The husband took a leave from work yesterday so we can attend the Pag-ibig Housing Loan Counseling at Justine Building in Makati which is a requirement when applying for a home loan. We have attended already last August but the seminar has a validity of just 6 months meaning the loan application should be submitted within that time frame. So since we’re yet to submit ours, we have to attend it again. The counseling is just actually a 2-hour orientation where everything an applicant needs to know is discussed. An audio visual presentation will be shown highlighting the eligibility requirements, the loan application procedure and steps. It was also discussed briefly how an approved loan amount is determined from four factors. The amortization components were also explained so topics about home insurance quote, interest rates, the two types of insurance fees included and the upgraded monthly member contribution fee if applicable were mentioned in passing.

It was our second time to attend but we still listened attentively because there are new provisions and changes in the loan program. From 2 million pesos, the maximum loanable amount that Pag-ibig can grant now to a member is 3M plus the interest rate tier was also adjusted. Interest rates have been lowered.

Our approved MSVS (Membership Status Verification Slip) which is the seminar attendance proof will be released after 10 working days. The husband’s Certificate of Employment request is now being facilitated and will be available hopefully by next week. Until then that we can forward all the required documents to our developer for their submission of our loan application to Pag-ibig. We’ll then hope and pray for the best.

By the way, if you’ve stumbled upon my blog from google and should you be attending the Housing Loan Counseling, take note of the following reminders:
1. Be sure to bring a photocopy of your ID for the registration process.
2. Take note of the counseling schedule and please be considerate to arrive on time. Ours should have started at 10 AM but we began 30 minutes later to give way to the influx of latecomers.

Yesterday, we submitted the necessary housing loan application documents to our developer, consequently of which, they’ll submit along with the required documents coming from their end to HDMF. So we can now officially say that the waiting for the approval (and crossing fingers) begins and hopefully we receive a good news by the end of the year or by start of 2010. We could have submitted the application earlier but unfortunately, it took time before the husband was able to collate the documents. Accomplishing the form was the easier part though. We didn’t need the assistance of an accountant just to aid us furnish the income-related questions.

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It’s every couple’s dream to have a place that they can call their own. It doesn’t matter if it’s just a simple structured and less extravagant abode. What’s important is that they have their own sanctuary where they can start to build a small family and a household they can fully control on their own. However, it’s understandable that couple may not have the start-up purchasing means for a house not unless they have already saved for it before settling down or they are handed down through an estate or they’re gifted big time by their parents. For some, they opt to rent a house or live with their parents for the mean time while they save up for the house.

The latter is our current setup as we work on the establishment of our little abode. With supportive parents, we are on our way, little by little, to reaching and realizing our major goal..hopefully by mid-year of next year.

It’s no doubt that buying a house is indeed a one big project and that it takes time to process. The major hurdle usually is the financial part. But couples who wish to buy their own home have actually several means to take on that will aid them realize this big dream. The most popular, most exhausted and the easiest way is through Mortgage Lending or Mortgage Loans via government initiatives or bank programs. Mortgage loans are basically long term loans, usually a period of 30 years or less, where periodic payments are calculated according to the money value (over time) formula. Monthly payments are often fixed but can also be subjected to repricing over a certain period depending on the economic situation. Over this period, the loan little by little reach its maturity as the principal component of the loan would be slowly paid down through amortization.

Here in our country, the government through the Home Development and Mutual Fund provides easier means to acquire property for the average Juan through lower interest rates and more flexible terms compared to banks.

1. Loan Application Form – ✔
2. Recent ID photos of borrower – ✔
3. Approved Membership Status Verification Slip (MSVS) – ✔
4. Proof of Income:
a. Certificate of Employment and Compensation (CEC) – ✔
b. Notarization of the CEC – ✔
c. Cedula or Resident’s Certificate for the CEC Notarization – ✔
b. Latest 1 Month Payslip – ✔
c. Certificate of Tax Withheld (BIR Form No. 2316) – ✔
5. Proof of Billing Address – ✔

With that said, we’re now ready to begin the “waiting battle” and cross our fingers that everything will go smoothly.

1. Housing Loan Application Form – ✔
2. Recent ID photos of borrower – ✔
3. Approved Membership Status Verification Slip (MSVS) – ✔
4. Proof of Income:
a. Certificate of Employment and Compensation (CEC) – ✔
b. Notarization of the CEC
c. Cedula or Resident’s Certificate for the CEC Notarization
b. Latest 1 Month Payslip – ✔
c. Certificate of Tax Withheld (BIR Form No. 2316) – ✔
5. Proof of Billing Address – ✔

Just those two things in bold then we’re all set. I just hope that the husband can find time the soonest to process/acquire them both.

The husband filed a leave from work last Friday for us to facilitate some important things, one of which was to claim our approved MSVS form from the HDMF (Pag-ibig) office. MSVS stands for Membership Status Verification Slip which is one of the requirements when applying for a housing loan. This is the proof that we attended the required Housing Loan Counseling Seminar last month. For the Developer-assisted applicants, the said form can be coursed through directly by PAG-IBIG to their respective Developers. But since we failed to indicate the name of our Developer the time when we attended the seminar, we have to personally claim it.

I did not anticipate that the claiming of the said form would take us for about a couple of hours. First, we wasted much time (and gasoline) driving around the vicinity looking for a parking space. Unfortunately, the Atrium Building where PAG-IBIG holds office do not have ample parking space for the guests. We also didn’t find any nearby pay parking lot. We just decided that I’d be the one to get the form while the husband finds a parking space. Upon arriving at the releasing action, I spent about an hour waiting for my number to be called. Although I was seated and they have a queue number system, I got so bored because I didn’t have anyone to talk with. I occasionally used my phone to browse the web but the battery’s draining so, to kill boredom, I snooped, eavesdropped and observed everyone in the room.

My turn came and it took them about 15 minutes before they handed me the MSVS. Why? Because they could not find in the system the husband’s name and they have to thoroughly run through manually their files before they realized that they misspelled the husband’s last name in encoding. Arggh. Anyway, I was just glad that they were able to retrieve it otherwise, I would have really freaked out and insisted that they come up with an approved MSVS without us requiring to go through the seminar again.

So there, we finally have one of the requirements. Up next, the husband has to work on the employment related documents.

Anyway, as mentioned, we already have spotted a property and we have done the very first step towards the nitty gritty details of paper and financial works: that is to attend the PAG-IBIG Housing Loan counselling. In our country, it is the very first requirement on the application of Home Loans for those who want to buy a house under the financing of the government’s home development agency or the so-called PAG-IBIG or Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF). In the seminar, the requirements, steps and all other details were discussed on how to go about these loans. We opted to avail this housing loan instead through the local banks because it has the lowest fixed interest rate and the longest terms (as much as 30 years). They are also less lenient compared to banks in cases of payment defaults.

The next step we’ll take is to submit the necessary documents to the developer as they will be the one to process the application with the agency. We’re hoping for the best that everything will fall into its place as we’ve planned and hoped. It’s still far from realizing our dream home but slowly, we’ll get there in no time.

So this is it.

Yesterday, we went somewhere up north to check on the project that is being developed by our Ninong (wedding) and my SIL’s FIL. Considering the location (not really that far as compared to Fairview), and other factors most especially the flexible terms and the price itself, we’re giving this a go. We just hope that there won’t be much hassle (we’re anticipating that already) with regards to the processing of the housing loan. Hopefully, as soon as the husband clears up his hectic work schedule, he will be able to take a leave soon so we can attend the seminar from PAG-IBIG. For now, I’m researching from first hand accounts of those who have just taken a loan (banks and Pag-ibig) in forums such as Pinoyexchange and GirlTalk for me to have an idea what more complexities to expect. As early as now, hubby and I can’t help imagining how the house will look like, the move in process and the adjustments to take on.

We’re really hoping and praying that everything will go well as planned. Most importantly for now, if there’s one thing that we must continue to do, it is to save more and practice frugal spending. We have to put off buying those Las Vegas Show Tickets for a while.

I just know, in no time, we’ll have an abode that we can finally call our “own”..our Little Mansion.

The palace declared yesterday a special non-working holiday for the the funeral and burial day of the former President Cory Aquino. We took this chance to visit the husband’s grandmother’s grave at Himlayan because it was her birthday. On our way home, we passed by a residential-commercial complex currently being developed within the Tandang Sora area so we decided to check it out.

Pros:
1. Nice location. Very near the intersection of Mindanao and Congressional Avenues.
2. Guarded subdivision.
3. Commercial establishments abound within the vicinity including an ongoing construction of a Save More Supermarket just across the subdivision’s gate.
4. Model unit was promising. It’s a 3-storey with a Lot Area of 55 sqm and about 100+ sqm Floor Area with a garage.

Cons:
1. At a glance at the lot quotation sheet, we knew right away that we are incapable of paying even just the DP. Considering that these are just lot prices and it excludes construction cost, we can’t afford that much millions.
2. They have an exclusive in-house construction firm so that means, outsourcing for a cheaper firm can’t be done.
3. With the inclusion of a carport in the ground floor, very meager space is left for the living room, kitchen and dining room. Space is too limited.
4. Bigger lot areas are already sold out. No other options.
5. No PAG-IBIG financing scheme.

That was the first time that we did an ocular and although their houses were really charming – the cons expressed why it was a big NO for us. We can never afford such a million worth of lot prices for a meager area plus the financing scheme isn’t flexible (those two are really our concern). Nevertheless, it was fun doing an ocular as you get tons of idea on the interior, exterior designs and all.

Hmm, okay, next house prospect please.