The Sisbén, system with which potential beneficiaries of State social programs are identified, now he is part of the process to be able to acquire one of the financial relief Mi Casa Yathe program that for almost a decade has benefited households that earned between one and four minimum wages.
In order to «focus» it and make it reach «those who need it most», Sisbén will play a fundamental role in identifying potential beneficiaries, who with this system will be those who will be classified from A1 to D20 in the Sisbén IV survey. .
Despite their intention, many players in the construction sector considering that these new rules of the game are not effective, but on the contrary harm real estate activitytaking into account that the survey focuses on other social factors of the individual and less on their income level.
«Although this is a tool that helps to target subsidies, it does not help with the request for housing subsidies that implies savings, investment and indebtedness of households»said Guillermo Herrera, president of the Colombian Chamber of Construction (Camacol).
(See: Sisbén 2023: how to check score and group in the system)
And it is that according to data compiled by the 19 regional unions, 40% of home buyers do not have Sisbénwhich makes the task of reactivating a sector that has fallen month by month in more than half of its sales more difficult, and this taking into account that the sisbenization process takes time and seven out of 10 homes sold in the country are of social interest in which many the subsidy is required for a financial closure.
“We have seen in many of the cases of cancellation of Social Interest Housing (VIS) stages, that close to 30% of the interested parties do not meet the criteria imposed today by the modifications of Mi Casa Ya to be beneficiaries of the subsidy. . They are households that come in prevention processes, that have been paying for more than a year and today they cannot be beneficiaries of the subsidy and access their homes, ”Herrera acknowledged.
For this reason, considering it necessary to summon the Ministry of Housing again, generating, at least, a transition process for households that were already in the process of accessing their subsidy, without the need to meet the new criteria, as this would affect the dreams of these homes.
“The same is being asked for the sisbén and to classify in the required score. That is why we call for this to be expedited, today it is difficult for a family to be sisbenized (…) we need a universal income program, but not Sisbén as it works today because it is an imperfect program to rate the income and define how much is earned. I think that the banks do it better than the State”says Herrera who points out that the initial purchase conditions must be respected.
sisben
TIME
(See: How to apply TransMilenio discounts for Sisbén beneficiaries)
In addition, the union leader was emphatic on the need to review the issue, because, for the year 2026 about 50% of the supply available for delivery in these years corresponds to VIS, that is, about 78,500 units and interested partiesfor the most part, they will need the relief that Mi Casa Ya has provided.
«We hope that the plans of the National Government can be aimed at maintaining the purchasing power of households and generating more employment, because housing will always be the best savings option for households»aim.
In this way, it recommends that this system be auxiliary for the protection of resources in terms of housing for households.but not the only criterion.
“This program had no paperwork, that was the best. It was working very well. Moreover, according to the Ministry of Housing for the year 2022, 80% of buyers earned less than two minimum wages «He recognized the leader of Camacol.
A perfect mix to maintain the interests of the sector and the Government, for Herrera, would be to first give households time to have Sisbén and know under what cards they can play «It is not something that takes thirty days, it is something that takes time».
Second, the qualification criteria must be reviewed, since «there are many criteria that can leave many homes disappointed».
Third, that this is an exclusion system and is qualified as banks do. «More than 3.5 million households have calculation problems in Sisbén, therefore it should not be the heart of the program».
(Read more: Why household spending has had a slight recovery)
Likewise, it is worrying that by not taking into account many income criteria, the households to which the program is directed cannot access a mortgage loan with banks for their ability to pay and method of use.
In addition, taking into account that a Social Interest Housing for the year 2023 costs close to $174,000,000 and a Priority Interest Housing costs close to $104,000,000, it is more difficult for the poorest households in the country to be able to save for their down payment. .
living place
(See: Change My House: what it is and how to access this help)
There is purchase interest
According to a study by Estrenar Vivienda, in alliance with Camacol, It was made clear that Colombians are interested in buying a homebut it needs state support to achieve it.
In the survey, in one of the questions that said «To buy your home, do you need government subsidies?»80.5% of the people said they needed it and only 19.5% did not.
In the question «If you had an incentive to reduce your monthly loan payment, would you make the decision to buy your home within the next three months?», the gap even reaches 90%, these being the ones who would need an incentive to achieve your dream of buying a home.
PAULA GALEANO BALAGUERA
Journalist Portfolio