The Chamber of Real Estate and Builders’ Associations, Inc. (CREBA) welcomes President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s decision to temporarily defer the implementation of Republic Act No. 12001, or the Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RPVARA), calling it a timely opportunity to ensure that the landmark reform is implemented in a fair, transparent, and well-calibrated manner.

In a statement on Sunday, the real estate group said while fully supporting RPVARA’s objective of establishing a single, market-based, and internationally aligned property valuation system, CREBA stressed that the success of the law depends on the readiness of implementing agencies, including the Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF), Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), local government units (LGUs), and other concerned institutions, as well as full compliance with the law’s consultative requirements, including the activation of the Regional and National Consultative Committees for meaningful stakeholder consultation, adequate public information and education to promote public understanding, acceptance, and readiness for implementation, institutional capacity-building, technology and data privacy safeguards, clear implementing guidelines, and realistic implementation timelines.

CREBA likewise recommended a phased national transition framework beyond the first-year real property tax cap, revenue-neutral assessment level adjustments where appropriate, stronger taxpayer safeguards and appeals mechanisms, protection of housing affordability through appropriate treatment of socialized and economic housing, clearer valuation rules for development projects, industrial machinery, and other specialized properties, policy clarification on issues such as balanced housing compliance, socialized and economic housing, and related tax implications, and comprehensive capacity-building for local assessors and LGUs.

The organization also urged the government to conduct a broader impact assessment of the law, not only on real property tax collections but also on its implications for Capital Gains Tax, Documentary Stamp Tax, transfer taxes, title transfer and registration, housing production, investments, MSMEs, infrastructure, ease of doing business, and the financial burden on ordinary property owners, particularly the middle class.

It further called for policy measures that will ensure valuation reform promotes development, housing affordability, investment confidence, and economic competitiveness rather than discouraging investment.

“RPVARA should modernize the country’s valuation system without undermining housing affordability, economic competitiveness, and property ownership,” CREBA said.

“We remain committed to working with government to ensure that the law achieves its intended objectives while safeguarding the interests of Filipino homeowners, taxpayers, investors, and the real estate industry.”

CREBA added that it is finalizing a comprehensive Position Paper containing detailed legal, technical, and policy recommendations to support the effective, equitable, and sustainable implementation of RPVARA.

RPVARA, enacted as Republic Act No. 12001, modernizes and standardizes real property valuation in the Philippines. Signed into law on June 13, 2024, it creates a single valuation base, reorganizes the Bureau of Local Government Finance, and grants local tax amnesty.