32 homes under community renewal programme delivered to homeowners in Majesty Gardens

THIRTY-TWO DUPLEX housing units have been handed over to new homeowners under the National Housing Trust (NHT) Community Renewal Programme (CRP).

The beneficiaries received the keys to their new homes located in Majesty Gardens, Phase 1A, southwestern St Andrew, on Wednesday.

Of the 32 housing solutions that were handed over, three have been allocated to the New Social Housing Programme (NSHP), with the remaining 29 going to eligible NHT contributors.

Amenities include common parking areas, concrete sidewalks, potable water distribution network, central sewage collection and treatment systems, underground electrical distribution infrastructure, common area lighting infrastructure, green area and land reserved for recreation.

The selling price for the units ranges from – studio (252 square feet) $4.8 million, one-bedroom (417 square feet) $6 million, to $8.9 million for three-bedroom/two-storey unit (833 square feet on 1,200 square feet lots).

Prime Minister Andrew Holness disclosed that, with respect to the 29 successful NHT beneficiaries, 51 per cent are women; 31 per cent of the total number fall within the age range 19 to 40 years; and 51 per cent are in the 41 to 60 age range.

He noted that the income band of 28 of the 29 beneficiaries ranges between minimum wage and $30,000 per week, with only one recipient falling within the income band of $30,000 to $42,000 per week.

This, the prime minister said, is in line with the NHT’s “targeted subsidy approach”.

“The income group that the NHT is now targeting is the minimum wage to $30,000 dollars per week. That has been the income group that has not had significant benefit from the NHT. I am very happy to say that almost all the beneficiaries are from that income range … . This is the group that we need to focus on and target in our society,” he said.

SUBSIDISED BY NHT

The cost of the units is being subsidised by the NHT to assist low-income earners to realise their dream of homeownership.

“It means that the contributors of Jamaica to the NHT are paying for a portion of the full [cost] of the unit, so that you are able to afford the unit,” he explained, noting that this fulfills the Government’s mandate of providing decent shelter for every Jamaican, regardless of their income.

Member of Parliament for St Andrew South Western Dr Angela Brown-Burke told JIS News that the programme is life-changing for the beneficiaries, who can now experience the pride of being property owners and the opportunities that it will afford them.

“It is secure, it is safe. It also gives them the opportunity to add on to it and expand it to something that is their own and customise it. And just owning property is a big deal because they can now go to the bank and take out a loan because they have collateral, and just the opportunity to build this community is what a lot of them are looking for,” she said.

The CRP is aimed at improving the island’s physical and social infrastructure, as well as creating economic and employment opportunities.

It also promotes the sustainable development of marginalised communities within the Kingston Metropolitan Area, to achieve holistic community development.