The Quezon City government has bought a property in Barangay Bagong Silangan and Payatas to house some 3,000 informal settlers.
Mayor Joy Belmonte has signed the deeds of sale of 214,057 square meter property.
“Ito’y umpisa ng hangarin nating mabigyan ng katiyakan sa paninirahan ang mga informal settlers sa ating siyudad (This is the start of our dream to assure informal settlers that they would have their own homes in the city),” Belmonte said, noting that when she was elected mayor, part of her agenda is to address the concerns of the city’s informal settlers.
A total of 530 families from various homeowner’s associations will benefit from the program in Sitio Veterans in Bagong Silangan. The land, with a total area of 36,651 square meters, has been purchased for about P110 million.
The local government said that by next year, it also intends to purchase another parcel of land for 1,270 families from the same company that owns the land in Bagong Silangan.
Meanwhile, a 76,787 square meter land in Payatas will be reserved for 1,2000 families.
“Under the agreement [with the owner of the land], only 65,025 square meters will be purchased by the local government for P195 million while the remaining 11,762 square meters will be donated by the company,” the local government said.
The city has initiated a Direct Purchase Housing Program in a bid to expedite the process of providing security of tenure to intended beneficiaries.
Under the scheme, the local government will buy the property from the land owner and award them through a Direct Sale Program to intended beneficiaries.
“The intended beneficiaries can only secure their individual title after payment of their respective lots,” Belmonte explained, noting that it is a “win-win-win situation for the city government, the land owners/sellers, and the informal settlers.”