MANILA, PHILIPPINES -- Gagang has always dreamt of owning a small bakery. She and her carpenter husband worked hard to save enough money from their meager incomes and got a loan to buy a small oven and an LPG tank for their business. Soon enough, the wonderful aroma of freshly baked bread filled their house every morning.
But just a week before Christmas of 2011, a tragedy struck Cagayan de Oro, Gagang's hometown. Typhoon Sendong (Washi), destroyed their house and all of her properties, including her precious oven. Over a thousand people died in that calamity, but miraculously, all four members of her family survived the raging floods.
Two years after the tragedy, Gagang is back on her feet with the help of Habitat for Humanity. As one of the 6,000 beneficiaries of the organization, Gagang received a safe, decent and dignified house for her family.
Reaching out
Inspired by Gagang's story, Lamudi Philippines extended a hand to Habitat's cause. The company contributed P20, 000 for the rebuilding efforts in earthquake-stricken Bohol in Visayas.
Through its partnership with brokers and developers, Lamudi has committed to help build 20 homes for the survivors of the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that had hit Bohol and destroyed more than 11,000 houses in the province.
The fastest growing online real estate classifieds website encourages each partner broker and developer to donate part of their earnings that they make through Lamudi to Habitat for Humanity. A house costs up to P50, 000, but any amount willingly given to the cause is highly appreciated.
"Lamudi aspires to provide every Filipino with their dream house - including those who cannot afford to buy or rent a house of their own, or those who lost their house due to a disaster," said Jacqueline van den Ende, Founder and Managing Director of Lamudi in the Philippines.
"Habitat for Humanity helps Lamudi realize this vision: 'One house. One dream'. The more houses are sold through Lamudi, the more dreams we will be able to realize. We look forward to teaming up all the real estate developers and licensed brokers who signed up with Lamudi to realize this dream for every single Filipino in partnership with Habitat for Humanity," she added.
Habitat for Humanity's head for Donor Market Development Louie Baclagon expressed his gratitude to Lamudi and its partner brokers: "Lamudi's support will truly make a big difference in the sector where it's and its partners are major stakeholders -- the housing sector.
The partnership shows that Lamudi and its real estate broker partners care a lot too about the housing situation of the poor and the displaced people. May this project be a tremendous success and inspire others to further invest in finding solutions to the problem of homelessness," said Baclagon.
Lamudi was founded in 2013 and is currently available in 28 countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. The leading real estate marketplace offers sellers, buyers, landlords and renters a secure and easy-to-use platform to find or list properties online.
posted by:
Elsie Cansino
