Prime Minister’s Housing Announcements in the Budget Stimulating Renewed Interest in Homeownership
“This is a very innovative solution that will help ease the housing shortage that is right across Jamaica.”
– Prime Minister Holness
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Prime Minister Andrew Holness says there is great anticipation and greater interest particularly from young people on homeownership as a result of the announcements to stimulate the housing market.
Speaking in East Central St. Andrew on Friday (April12) during the handing over ceremony of two housing units under the New Social Housing Programme to persons who lost their home following a fire, Prime Minister Holness said there is there renewed hope from young people.
“There are many persons working in all kinds of industry who earn relatively decent salaries that instead of paying rent they could use the money (for rent) to pay for a mortgage which preserves their equity in a property. They can then build upon (the equity) in future years. The Government thinks this is a very innovative solution that will help to ease the housing shortage that is right across Jamaica,” said Prime Minister Holness.
The Prime Minister says the new NHT house ownership option is particularly attractive to young people who do not have a large household and want to live in proximity to where they work.
In his 2024/2025 Budget presentation in Parliament in March, Prime Minister Holness announced a new programme by the National Housing Trust (NHT) where contributors who are first time home buyers may use their accumulated points and NHT benefits to access one bedroom apartments particularly within or near urban centres, as starter homes. These apartments will be made available to contributors via sale agreements with an optional buy-back clause.
Importantly, the buy-back clause will give mortgagors the option to sell the property back to the NHT. Mortgagors who sell their unit to the Trust under this arrangement will be allowed to access a new benefit from the NHT, in full, towards the acquisition of a new home. This new programme is aimed to get more young people into homeownership.