GSIS launches new housing program

State pension fund Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) President and General Manager Wick Veloso has affirmed the institution’s alignment with the government’s Bagong Pilipinas governance model by responding to stakeholders’ needs through programs in housing, investments, insurance, and affordable loan products.

“GSIS is fully on board with the Bagong Pilipinas overarching theme and has in fact incorporated its core principles into our operations.”

As part of the housing effort, GSIS rolled out the Pabahay sa Bagong Bayani na Manggagawa (PBBM) program last May to help reduce the government’s housing shortfall of more than six million units. The three-pronged strategy includes a rent-to-own scheme extended the Housing Accounts and Condonation Program, and affordable housing units for government workers, first targeting Quezon City and Antipolo.

Government employees can secure two-bedroom units for ₱1.6 million, at affordable terms with no down payment and a 30-year repayment period at ₱12,000 monthly.

GSIS’s housing condonation program provides a lifeline for borrowers with outstanding arrears, offering full payment options that waive penalties and surcharges while the Lease with Option to Buy program provides leasing options for available housing units. Current occupants receive priority to buy these units during the lease period, with both cash and installment plans with no down payment.

Veloso underscored the significance of empowering GSIS members, lifelong public servants, to own a home – a universal Filipino dream and a fundamental human right.

GSIS’s investment strategies support the “growth story of the country” by investing in sectors such as power, water, food production, telecommunications, healthcare, education, and consumer goods. Key investments include ACEN’s Energy Transition Mechanism for cleaner energy, Nickel Asia’s job-creating lithium battery business, Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) for transport, energy, and digitalization, and San Miguel Corporation for the completion of the Metro Rail Transit Line 7 linking Metro Manila to Bulacan in 2025.

On the insurance front, GSIS posted a historic ₱6.8 Billion in gross premiums written in 2022 and now stands as the country’s biggest non-life insurance company with its General Insurance Fund posting a net worth of ₱41.92 Billion last year.

In the digital arena, GSIS rolled out GSIS Touch, an internally-developed mobile app for members and pensioners to access services remotely. For pensioners, GSIS Touch features a Facial Recognition for annual “proof-of-life” compliance ensuring pensioners receive their pensions continuously.

With almost 96% of members and pensioners conducting their transactions via the GSIS Touch app and kiosks, the President urged other government agencies to follow GSIS’s digitalization lead.

The upcoming MPL Flex loan program, launching this October, offers longer and more flexible payment terms ranging from one to 15 years and allows government employees who have served for only one month to apply.

Veloso emphasized the role of the weekly flag-raising ceremony in keeping GSIS employees up to date with pension fund developments, saying, “It’s more than tradition. It ensures we’re all in sync, working cohesively toward our goals.”

The Bagong Pilipinas approach to governance, outlined in Malacanang’s Memorandum Circular No. 24 issued on July 3, embodies a vision of a principled, accountable, and reliable government, focused on implementing an all-inclusive plan for economic and social transformation.