If you’re still trying to decide where to settle down or if you simply don’t have a down payment saved up to buy a house, you may end up deciding to rent a home instead. This choice involves less of a commitment than buying a house and less of an upfront financial obligation, especially for those who are tight on their budget.
If you have been renting a place for a while now or if you are planning to rent, it helps to know that rental laws exist to protect your rights as a tenant, such as the right against unreasonable rent increases by your landlord.
Republic Act 9653, also known as the “Rent Control Act of 2009,” was enacted pursuant to the policy of the State to encourage the development of affordable housing and to protect tenants in the lower income brackets and other beneficiaries from unreasonable rent increases.
The Rent Control Act covers all residential units in the National Capital Region and other highly urbanized cities which rent out at a monthly rate of from P1 to P10,000 and all residential units in all other areas which rent out at a monthly rate of from P1 to P5,000 as of the effectivity date of this Act, without prejudice to existing contracts.
Although the limits on rent increase under the said law had already lapsed on 31 December 2013, the same law authorizes the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) —- now the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) — to continue regulation of the rental of certain residential units, to determine the period of regulation and its subsequent extensions if warranted, to determine the residential units covered and to adjust the allowable limit on rental increases per annum; taking into consideration, among others, the National Statistics Office (now Philippine Statistics Authority) census on rental units, prevailing rental rates, the monthly inflation rate on rentals of the immediately preceding year, and rental price index.
Pursuant to said authority, the HUDCC, through Resolution 01, Series of 2015 extended the rental regulation to 31 December 2017. It further extended the same to 31 December 2020 under Resolution 01, Series of 2017.
Subsequently, the National Human Settlements Board (or the “Board”) which is chaired by the Secretary of the DHSUD, issued NHSB Resolution 2020-04, extending the Rent Control from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2021 in view of the economic and financial difficulties brought by the Covid-19 pandemic to the country. This extension is also in line with the measures by the government to alleviate the plight of millions of affected Filipinos.
Given that the serious social and economic impact of Covid-19 persisted until 2021 and its long-term impact remains unclear in the coming years, the Board extended and continued the rental regulation for another one year, or until 31 December 2022. Hence, at present, for or as long as the unit is occupied by the same lessee, the rent of any residential unit shall not be increased by: 1.
More than two percent annually for those paying a monthly rent ranging from P1 to P4,999; 2. More than seven percent for those paying a monthly rent ranging from P5,000 to P8,999; and 3.
More than eleven percent (11 percent) for those paying a monthly rent ranging from P9,000 to P10,000.
In the event the residential unit becomes vacant, the lessor may set the initial rent for the next lessee, provided that in the case of boarding houses, dormitories, rooms, and bed spaces offered for rent to students, no increase in rent more than once a year shall be allowed.
Adequate housing is a human right and one of its key elements is the affordability of one’s dwelling. Housing would not be adequate if increasing the costs would threaten and compromise the occupant’s enjoyment of their own home.
