Realty tax cut sought

Isabela Rep. Giorgidi Aggabao INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Owners of smaller homes would receive protection from the taxman under a bill filed by Isabela Rep. Giorgidi Aggabao.

Aggabao wants family homes, particularly those with a value of P500,000 or less, exempt from real property taxes.

“In so doing, a family, especially the poor ones, may be spared from the sorry spectacle of losing their homes simply because they could not pay their real estate taxes,” said Aggabao in his explanatory note to the bill.

He said the bill found support in the law, which provides protection to the family home. The Civil Code exempts the family home from execution, forced sale or attachment, except under well-defined exceptions, he pointed out.

Under the bill, the family home would be declared exempt from real property taxes if the owner actually resided there, and if the current and fair market value of the home did not exceed P500,000.

If the home value exceeds P500,000, only the first P500,000 would be exempt from the real property tax. The amount beyond that would be subject to tax.

But if the value of the home exceeds P1 million, the entire property shall be subject to tax. Leila B. Salaverria