The PhilRES President - A Profile

A Profile Written by  Dr. Jaime A. Cura

PhilRES Executive Director

RODOLFO G. VALENCIA

National President

Philippine Real Estate Service Practitioners, Inc. (PhilRES)

Rodolfo G. Valencia, former Congressman and Governor of the Province of Oriental Mindoro and Founding Chairman of the RGV Group of Companies, particularly the RGV Real Estate Center, was elected National President of the Philippine Real Estate Service Practitioners, Inc. in September, 2014.

Father of the RESA Law

Before his election to the PhilRES presidency, RGV, as he is called by friends and colleagues, was the principal author in the Philippine Congress House of Representatives in 2009 of Republic Act 9646, or the Philippine Real Estate Act, more popularly known as the RESA Law.

RGV thus became popularly known as the Father of the RESA Law. In the Philippine real estate industry, this monicker comes as no surprise.  Long before he became involved in politics, RGV had been a successful real estate broker, appraiser, and consultant. His company, the RGV Group of real estate companies, was the largest in the industry and was considered number one in brokerage, appraisal, and marketing of many parcels of land and other real property in Metro Manila and the other principal cities in the country.

In fact, RGV’s familiarity with real estate practices in the country  and his leadership in the real estate industry made him a natural leader in the Philippine Congress for the passage of the RESA Law.

Professionalizing Real Estate Service Practice

The law provides for the mandatory licensing by the Philippine Regulatory Commission of all active real estate brokers, appraisers, and consultants, as well as all government assessors, in the Philippines, all categorized under the generic label of real estate service practice.

The measure aims to stop the proliferation and illegal practice of unlicensed and often ill-trained dealers (popularly referred to as colorums) in real estate which have resulted in multiple problems in real property acquisition, planning, development, and sale throughout the country.

All dealers would, henceforth, have to pass competitive examinations for each of the principal categories of real estate service practice as a pre-requisite to obtaining the corresponding mandatory license. Salespersons were to be officially accredited by the PRC and placed under the operational supervision of brokers.

The law also requires the continuing professional development (CPD) of all real estate service practitioners who must annually complete a prescribed number of credit units by attending PRC-accredited seminars and conferences on relevant and timely topics related to real estate planning, development, marketing, and management.  

The AIPO (Accredited and Integrated Professional Organization)

The law likewise mandates the automatic membership of all licensed practitioners in an accredited and integration professional organization (AIPO) which is private in nature but to be supervised by the PRC through a professional regulatory board (PRBRES). It is this AIPO that is mandated by the law to formulate and uphold a Code of Ethics in the real estate industry. It is also the AIPO with which the PRC is expected to work closely in monitoring private sector compliance with the RESA Law as well as other regulatory policies emanating from the PRC.

In addition to the legally-mandated AIPO, private practitioners may join other organizations already existing at the time, such as PAREB, REBAP, CREBA, NREA, PARA, APREA, and the like. But membership in such organizations does not exempt the mandatory membership in the AIPO.

As earlier stated, it is the PRC that accredits the AIPO. To do so, the PRC solicits the application for such status from all the operating real estate organizations in the country, which must comply with criteria, conditions, and guidelines laid down by the PRC.  

PhilRES as the AIPO

Soon after the passage of the RESA Law and the subsequent promulgation of its Implementing Rules and Regulations, a private organization was formed composed of all categories of real estate service practitioners. It was registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and came to be known as the Philippine Institute of Real Estate Service Practitioners, Inc. (PhilRES).  

PhilRES submitted its application for recognition and accreditation as AIPO, along with two other national organizations. After due diligence and deliberation, the PRC chose PhilRES as the AIPO for the real estate service sector.

Within a few years from the passage of the RESA Law and the recognition by the PRC of PhilRES as the AIPO, membership in the organization ballooned to several thousand members to become the largest of all the real estate organizations in the country.

Due to birth and growing pains, however, the development of the AIPO ran into serious snags. Some of the more serious problems emanated from the regulatory agencies themselves, particularly the newly-created Professional Regulatory Board (PRBRES) for the real estate sector. Confusion arose from multiple and often conflicting interpretations of relevant provisions of the RESA LAW. Soon, divisive politics set in and the AIPO found itself mired in the push-and-pull of politicized bureaucracy.

By this time, RGV was completing his third and final three-year-term as Congressman of the First District of Oriental Mindoro. Previous to that, he had completed three full terms as Governor of the entire province, during which he received many citations from national and international bodies for his visionary leadership and effective management as a local government leader.

Upon his return to the private sector, RGV resumed full-time active leadership of the RGV Group of Companies. This was a welcome development among Philippine real estate industry practitioners who had always considered RGV an industry icon. In the midst of their growing problems, the PhilRES National Directorate turned to RGV and practically begged him to join the organization and accept its presidency. After much deliberation, RGV could not refuse the request. As author of the RESA Law, he considered its proper implementation as his continuing concern.

RGV thus became PhilRES’s second national president in late September of 2014.

Steering PhilRES Towards its Rightful Role as AIPO

Losing no time, RGV led a review of the PhilRES constitution and bylaws and saw the need for appropriate amendments, organizing a bylaws review committee in the process. He pushed for the establishment of chapters in the major cities and towns of the country and encouraged a more vigorous membership campaign. He developed greater amity with the regulators and used his political capital to establish a closer  working relationship with the PRC.

Under his stewardship, the PhilRES staged its first general assembly where the various chapters from different parts of the country met each other for the first time and were invigorated by timely updates on industry developments and regulatory policies.

The national directorate and chapter presidents held a two-day strategic planning in the RGV headquarters and charted the goals, work program, and priorities of the PhilRES for its first five years. RGV took time to attend the induction of chapter presidents in their respective locales. The PhilRES national secretariat was located right in RGV’s corporate offices and ensured close coordination at all times.

A PhilRES website was designed and installed. The national directorate and appropriate standing committees met regularly. Strict financial transparency and accountability was imposed and performance reports were posted regularly on the PhilRES website. The RGV Group’s industry news and views digest, known as the RGV Real Estate Monitor, was shared with PhilRES and discussed the impact of the latest socio-economic and political developments on the industry environment.

A successful regional conference was hosted by the PhilRES Mandaue chapter in Cebu City. More than three hundred participants took part in discussing the impact of ASEAN Integration on the Real Estate Service Practice for two days.

The First PhilRES National Convention in September, 2015 drew more than a thousand delegates from all over the country to the SMX Convention Center at the Mall of Asia in Pasay City. The convention theme was “The Evolving ASEAN Property Landscape – Mobilizing for the Borderless Real Estate Market”.  The convention was widely lauded for the topnotch quality of its topics, speakers, and resource persons and merited ample credits from the PRC for continuing professional development of the convention delegates.

Within a span of two years, the PhilRES membership ballooned to more than ten thousand. It could have grown much faster, but the politics within the regulatory agencies and old habits and unethical practices among some of the private sector leaders took its toll on the organization. RGV led a herculean effort to bring the contending parties together, agreeing to some compromises on the very nature of the AIPO and the basis of membership in it. Still, this was not enough to quell the intense political maneuvering among certain ambitious industry leaders in cahoots with regulatory officials.

Stumbling Blocks

When a case was officially filed with the Supreme Court that questioned certain provisions of the RESA Law and the very nature and composition of the AIPO, and the regulatory agencies refused to renew the AIPO status and accreditation of PhilRES despite its faithful compliance with PRC-imposed conditions, criteria, and submittals, RGV advised the contending parties that it may be best for everyone concerned to simply wait for the ruling from the high court on the matters brought before it.

RGV’s long experience in government politics has come in handy. He realizes that no less than the majesty of the Supreme Court may be needed to break the negative forces within the regulatory agencies and the recalcitrance of narrow-minded objectors.

In the midst of all these, the PRC, unwilling to be more forthright in resolving the issues brought before it, has thus chosen to simply declare the role of AIPO vacant for an indefinite period.

Staying Focused on the Business and the Industry

In response, at RGV’s urging, the PhilRES National Directorate is now focused on amending the PhilRES Bylaws to adapt to the situation on the ground and prepare for a national election in accordance with the provisions of the bylaws and select a new set of national officers for PhilRES.

At the same time, a second PhilRES national convention is being held in Cebu before yearend to focus the attention of PhilRES members on the bigger concerns of the organization on how everyone can contribute to nation-building within our own industry.

In the meantime, RGV, the real estate industry icon, has set his focus on the development of his home island of Mindoro, and has his hands full with diverse projects related to housing, hotels and resorts, tourism destinations, new townships, port reclamation and transportation infrastructure development, energy supply and distribution system, and the like. Old hand that he is, he knows that it is these types of professional involvement that will make PhilRES membership worth everyone’s time, effort, and money.