Gov’t Committed to Making Housing More Affordable

• Prime Minister, Dr. the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, has reiterated the Government’s commitment to ensuring that all Jamaicans have access to affordable housing solutions. He noted that there is an imbalance between housing supply and affordability, with many qualified individuals struggling to find solutions within their income bracket.
• The market is producing homes primarily for those with higher incomes, leaving a gap for low and middle-income families. In addition, houses priced at $12Mn are often sold for $18Mn due to market demand dynamics. “What we want to do is to get the market to produce houses in all categories,” he said, stressing the need for affordable options alongside high-end developments.
• “We need developers who can build houses at scale to bring down costs and make housing more affordable,” he stressed. The Prime Minister noted the role of the National Housing Trust (NHT) in financing low-income and achievable housing projects.
• “We’re doing everything to create what is called effective demand,” he said, noting that the Guaranteed Purchase Programme was introduced as a strategic measure to mitigate market risks for developers. “We say to developers; you build the houses, we buy them at a specific price and then we sell them at an affordable price,” he detailed. This approach aims to encourage developers to construct homes without fearing financial losses.
• The Prime Minister cited other initiatives aimed at making housing more affordable, including reducing the interest rates on mortgages, with some low-income borrowers benefiting from a zero percent interest rate. Efforts are underway to deliver 43,000 houses over the next few years as part of a broader strategy to meet housing demands.

(Source: JIS)