The Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) has wasted no time in the new year, clearing all pending certificates of registration and licenses to sell (CR-LS) filed in 2025 that had fulfilled all requirements — within the first 10 working days of 2026.

The swift cleanup followed a directive from DHSUD Secretary Jose Ramon Aliling who ordered regional offices and the Housing and Real Estate Development Regulation Bureau (HREDRB) to act quickly on the backlog. By mid-January, a total of 129 pending CR-LS applications had been reviewed.

Applications that were found compliant were immediately approved and released. Those with incomplete requirements were returned to developers for compliance, while others were terminated after failing to submit the required documents within the prescribed period.

Supervising Senior Undersecretary Sharon Faith Paquiz said the review process helped clearly distinguish which applications were ready for approval and which still needed action.

“Other applications were assessed with incomplete requirements and are now for compliance by the developers concerned, while some were terminated due to failure to submit the lacking requirements within the given period,” Paquiz said.

She added that the faster turnaround was made possible by a new policy issued by Aliling that streamlined procedures for developer-applicants, DHSUD regional offices, and the HREDRB.

“In order to achieve this output, Secretary Aliling issued a policy streamlining the process for developer-applicants, the regional offices, and the bureau,” Paquiz said.

The released CR-LS covered a wide range of housing projects — socialized, economic, and open market — in various parts of the country.

For Aliling, the move reflects the administration’s broader push for faster and more efficient public service.

“This is in line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s directive to provide faster and cleaner service to our people,” Aliling said.

“You can expect DHSUD to continue working to further improve and speed up our processes for the benefit of our stakeholders,” he added.

Sustaining the momentum

With the backlog cleared, DHSUD said it intends to keep the pace going. New CR-LS applications for 2026 will be processed within the timelines set under the agency’s streamlined guidelines.

The January push traces back to Aliling’s 5 January order directing all regional offices to release pending 2025 applications with complete requirements by 16 January — the 10th working day of the year.

The effort is seen as a critical boost to President Marcos’ flagship Expanded Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino (4PH) program. With CR-LS approvals moving faster and regulatory bottlenecks easing, private developers are expected to ramp up socialized housing production nationwide.

Supporting reforms are already in place. DHSUD and the Department of Economy, Planning and Development earlier issued a joint memorandum raising the price ceiling for socialized housing to P950,000 for house-and-lot packages or horizontal developments, and P1.8 million for condominium-type projects.

The agency also worked with the Bureau of Internal Revenue to simplify and streamline applications for tax exemptions for socialized housing projects.

“All of these are proof of President Marcos Jr.’s sincere commitment to help more Filipino families own decent, safe, and affordable homes —so they can live with greater dignity,” Aliling said.