The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) awarded land titles to three government employees in Baguio and Benguet as part of its Pabahay Program, supporting the Marcos administration's push to expand access to affordable housing.

GSIS President and General Manager Wick Veloso led the turnover of Transfer Certificates of Title on 16 July to Imelda Cristeta D. Villamar of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp.-Cordillera Administrative Region, Aurora T. Valbuena of the Municipal Trial Court in Cities-Baguio, and Lorna A. Bandonill of the GSIS Baguio Branch Office.

The title awarding forms part of the GSIS Pabahay Program, which aims to help government workers secure affordable homes.

"Behind every title is a family that can now plan with confidence, live with peace of mind, and say with certainty that this home is theirs," Veloso said.

Among GSIS' housing initiatives is the Lease with Option to Buy (LWOB) program, which allows qualified members to lease GSIS-acquired properties before purchasing them without a down payment. The program offers repayment terms of up to 25 years and interest rates lower than those of commercial banks. GSIS also condones penalties for qualified members who remain committed to completing their housing obligations.

"We know that the down payment is often what prevents many members from taking the first step toward owning a home. Through the Lease with Option to Buy program, we removed that barrier," Veloso said.

To date, the LWOB program has enabled more than 5,000 families nationwide to become homeowners. GSIS has also made more than 12,000 acquired properties available for purchase, including 22 in the Cordillera Administrative Region—17 in Baguio City, two in Itogon, two in La Trinidad and one in Tuba, Benguet.

GSIS said the initiative supports President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino Program by translating the administration's housing agenda into affordable homeownership opportunities for government employees.