Goodbye to the Rent Control Law

by Jay Castillo on January 4, 2009 · 3 comments

in Real Estate Laws

* Update – Republic Act (RA) No. 9653, also known as the Rent Control Act of 2009, was signed into law last July 14, 2009. Salient features of RA 9653 can be found here while the full text of The Rent Control Act of 2009 can be found here.

House not keen on extending rent control law – solon
By EDMER F. PANESA

The country’s rent control law expired last December 31 and there’s little chance of it being extended.

And should this happen, this could be bad news for tenants of apartments, boarding houses and dormitories as the increase in rental rates might be much higher than the increases in the past three years.

According to Parañaque City Rep. Eduardo Zialcita, the House of Representatives is not inclined to pass a new law that would extend the Rent Control Act of 2005.

The rent control law first took effect in 1999 and was extended twice, in 2002 and 2005. The law prevented unbridled increases in rents of residential units and gave protection to low-income tenants and boarders, especially students.

Zialcita, vice chairman of House Committee on Housing and Urban Development and one of the principal authors of the law, said they would allow the prevailing market forces to set the increase on rent this year.

“No more extensions,” he said. “Two extensions were enough. Let the market forces set the amount of the increase (of the rent).”

*This is just an excerpt, read the rest of the article here: Manila Bulletin

Well, from what I have learned from experienced real estate professionals, market forces basically dictate the rent. Even if there is no rent control law, landlords can’t just dictate a very high rent if the rental rates in the area are low. They’ll end up with no tenants for sure.

Of course, it may also be that the rent control law muffled the market rental rates, so with its non-extension, there is a possibility that landlords may increase rates consistent with market forces. Just remember that at the end of the day, a landlord needs tenants in the same way that tenants need landlords, so the landlord should not be too greedy and should only ask for rental rates that are fair and just under the circumstances.

As foreclosed real estate investors, we should all be aware of the laws affecting rentals as these affect the computations which we use to determine whether we should invest in a particular property or not. As the rent control law has just expired last December 31, and with the clamor from some sectors to extend it, it is still possible that this just might happen. I will monitor this issue and let you know of any developments so don’t forget to subscribe to my mailing list.

*The rent control act, also known as Republic Act No. 9341, is an act establishing reforms in the regulation of rent of certain residential units, providing the mechanisms therefor and for other purposes. You may read it in its entirety here: http://lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra2005/ra_9341_2005.html

* Update – Republic Act (RA) No. 9653, also known as the Rent Control Act of 2009, was signed into law last July 14, 2009. Salient features of RA 9653 can be found here while the full text of The Rent Control Act of 2009 can be found here.

Don't be the last to know, subscribe now!

Subscribe now and get notified of new listings of foreclosed properties, public auction schedules, and real estate investing tips, it's free!

Incoming search terms:

philippine rent control act, rent increase in the philippines, 2011 rent control act of the philippines, philippine law boarding houses, philippine rent control, ra9653 rental law apartment in philippines, renatal laws of the philippines, rent control act 2011, rent control act 2011 philippines, rent control law 2011
  • Millionaire Acts

    Hi Jay, thanks a lot for dropping and leaving comments on my blog. By the way, there are good points raised on my article “House: Asset or Liability”. I think they are probably accountants. :)

  • Jay Castillo

    Hell Tyrone, you’re welcome and thanks also for visiting. I just saw the comments and I was expecting such and I also think they are accountants, I should know, I married one. =)

  • http://www.earnpilipino.com catrosinfo

    Nice info.

Previous post:

Next post: