BP 220, the standards for socialized and economic housing
Batas Pambansa Blg. 220 of 1982 lets housing for low and average income families be built to lighter standards than an ordinary subdivision under PD 957. The standards themselves are in its implementing rules, last revised in November 2008. They come in two levels, economic and socialized, and set the smallest lot, the narrowest frontage, the smallest house and the rest. Every figure below carries the section and page it was read from.
What single detached, duplex and row house mean in practice is in the types of houses guide. The balanced housing share a developer owes is in the RA 7279 and RA 10884 guide.
BP 220 standards, economic and socialized side by side
Each row gives both levels and where the rule is in the 2008 rules. Where the two levels differ, it is in lot size, the row house frontage, floor area and how finished the house is handed over; the building standards inside the house are the same for both.
Lot size
| Point | Economic | Socialized | Section and page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single detached | 72 m² | 64 m² | Section 5.C.2(b), Table 7, printed page 13, amended by Board Resolution No. 824, series of 2008 |
| Duplex or single attached | 54 m² | 48 m² | Section 5.C.2(b), Table 7, printed page 13. Note 1: duplex and row house lots are sold with the house |
| Row house | 36 m² | 28 m² | Section 5.C.2(b), Table 7, printed page 13 |
Lot frontage
| Point | Economic | Socialized | Section and page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single detached, corner or regular lot | 8 m | 8 m | Section 5.C.2(c), Table 8, printed page 13, amended by Board Resolution No. 824, series of 2008 |
| Single detached, irregular lot | 4 m | 4 m | Section 5.C.2(c), Table 8, printed page 13 |
| Single detached, interior lot | 3 m | 3 m | Section 5.C.2(c), Table 8, printed page 13 |
| Duplex or single attached | 6 m | 6 m | Section 5.C.2(c), Table 8, printed page 13 |
| Row house | 4 m | 3.5 m | Section 5.C.2(c), Table 8, printed page 13. The note: at most 20 row house units per block or cluster, never more than 100 m long |
The house on the lot
| Point | Economic | Socialized | Section and page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Floor area, single-family dwelling | 22 m² | 18 m² | Section 5.C.4(a), printed page 14 |
| How finished it is handed over | complete house | shell house, doors and windows | Section 5.C.4(b), printed page 14: economic housing is complete per the submitted specifications; socialized housing is at least a shell house with doors and windows to enclose the unit |
| Front setback | 1.5 m | 1.5 m | Section 5.C.5(a), printed page 14 |
| Side yard | 1.5 m | 1.5 m | Section 5.C.5(b), printed page 14: from the building line |
| Rear yard | 2.0 m | 2.0 m | Section 5.C.5(c), printed page 14 |
| Building up to the lot line | with a firewall | with a firewall | Section 5.C.5(d), printed page 14: abutments per the National Building Code. Section 5.C.4(b): a firewall is mandatory for duplex and single-attached units and at every row house unit |
Inside the house
| Point | Economic | Socialized | Section and page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Headroom where there is no ceiling | 2.0 m | 2.0 m | Section 6.A.2(b)(1), printed page 24. For rooms with a ceiling the text gives no figure; its Figure 5, "Minimum Ceiling Heights", is dimensioned 2.00 m |
| Mezzanine | 1.80 m clear above and below | 1.80 m clear above and below | Section 6.A.2(b)(2), printed page 24: covering no more than half the floor below it (50%, as printed) |
| Door height | 2.0 m | 2.0 m | Section 6.A.2(c)(1)(b), printed page 25: bathroom and mezzanine doors 1.80 m |
| Door widths | main 0.80 m, bedroom 0.70 m, bath 0.60 m | main 0.80 m, bedroom 0.70 m, bath 0.60 m | Section 6.A.2(c)(1)(c), printed page 25: minimum clear widths, main, service or bedroom, and bathroom doors |
| Windows, habitable rooms | a tenth of the floor area (10%) | a tenth of the floor area (10%) | Section 6.A.2(c)(2)(a), printed page 25: total free area of openings |
| Windows, bathrooms | 1/20 of the floor area | 1/20 of the floor area | Section 6.A.2(c)(2)(b), printed page 25 |
| Stair width | 0.60 m | 0.60 m | Section 6.A.2(c)(3)(a), printed page 26: minimum clear width |
| Stair riser and tread | riser 0.25 m max, tread 0.20 m min | riser 0.25 m max, tread 0.20 m min | Section 6.A.2(c)(3)(b), printed page 26: treads exclusive of nosing |
| Stair headroom and landings | 2.0 m; landings 3.60 m apart at most | 2.0 m; landings 3.60 m apart at most | Section 6.A.2(c)(3)(c) and (d), printed page 26 |
| Handrail height | 0.80 to 1.20 m | 0.80 to 1.20 m | Section 6.A.2(c)(3)(e) and (f.1), printed page 26: one handrail where a guard or wall is on the other side; none needed under 4 risers |
Between units
| Point | Economic | Socialized | Section and page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Firewall | 150 mm masonry | 150 mm masonry | Section 6.A.2(f), printed page 28, amended by Board Resolution No. 824, series of 2008: wherever a dwelling abuts a property line; at least 150 mm (6 in.) thick, rising 0.30 m above the highest point of the roof and extending 0.30 m beyond the outermost edge of the units; no openings; ceilings not continuous between units |
| Courts and yards | 2.0 m minimum dimension | 2.0 m minimum dimension | Section 6.A.1(d), printed page 23: inner courts connected to a street or yard by a passage at least 1.20 m wide; 1.50 m allowed in cluster units of one or two storeys with adjacent courts of at least 3 m² |
| Condominium or multi-family unit floor area | 22 m² | 18 m² | Section 6.B.2(a), printed page 35: for BP 220 condominium projects, 18 m² |
What it means when you buy or build
- Check the lot against Table 7 before you pay. A single detached lot in an economic project is at least 72 m², and in a socialized project at least 64 m². A smaller lot sold as single detached is worth asking about. The PD 957 guide covers the buyer's rights that apply to both kinds of project, and the land title guide what to read on the title.
- Socialized means a shell, unless the contract says more. The minimum a socialized project hands over is a shell house with doors and windows. What is finished beyond that is in the specifications you sign, so read them.
- A row house or duplex shares a firewall. It runs 0.30 m above the roof and 0.30 m beyond the front and back of the units, with no openings. Extending a row house later means working with that wall, which the house extension guide covers.
- Small lots leave little room for change. With 1.5 m at the front and side and 2.0 m at the rear, a 64 m² lot has a small area left to build on. Our renovation and expansion planning starts from what the lot and the rules still allow.
What this page does not cover
- Later amendments. This page reads the Revised IRR of November 2008, with the amendments of HLURB Board Resolution No. 824 of that year. HLURB's functions passed to DHSUD under RA 11201, and any later HLURB or DHSUD issuance that changes these standards could not be checked for this page. Ask DHSUD or the developer which rules the project was approved under.
- Price ceilings. What makes a project economic or socialized is its selling price, set by government issuances that change over time. This site does not print prices.
- Subdivision design. Roads, open space, parks, community facilities and utilities for the project as a whole are in the same rules and are left out here.
- Approval, registration and the licence to sell. Rules III to V cover what the developer files; this page is about the lot and the house.
Source: Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations for BP 220 (with amendments), Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board, November 2008, from the file DHSUD publishes. The law is on the Lawphil Project.