New NHT Benefits Take Effect July 1

MEDIA RELEASE

Effective Monday, July 1, 2024, the National Housing Trust (NHT) will be launching a series of policy changes and initiatives that will significantly benefit contributors looking to buy or improve their homes.

Expansion of the 10 Plus Home Improvement Loan  As more Jamaicans become homeowners, there has been an increased demand for home-improvement financing. Come Monday, all mortgagors, will be able to access their home improvement loan after only ten years, a significant reduction from the previous 15year wait time.  With a maximum loan amount of up to $3.5 million, contributors will be able to undertake more extensive renovations to their properties with a shorter wait period.

SMART Energy Home Improvement Loan

Contributors will also be able to access financing for a range of renewable energy products under the NHT’s SMART Energy Loan. Under this loan facility, homeowners may access up to $1.5 million to install energy-saving technology such as solar panels, batteries, solar-water heaters, solar insulation, as well as other renewable energy technology including windmills, hydropower, and biomass. In addition, homeowners can also use the loan to install rainwater harvesting and storage systems, including tanks and pumps. Contributors will access this loan at a standard 5% interest rate with a payback period of up to ten (10) years or by the time the homeowner reaches the age of seventy (70), whichever comes first. This initiative promotes climate change resilience through improved energy saving technologies, further enforcing NHT’s commitment to environment sustainability.

SMART Energy Grant (Public Sector Pensioners)

In addition to the Smart Energy Loan, the NHT is expanding its grant offering with the introduction of the Smart Energy Grant. The programme will target public sector pensioners, who will be able to access to up to $1.5 million to enhance their homes with energy saving technologies. The Smart Energy Grant will benefit 30 pensioners per parish each year, for the next three (3) years. Beneficiaries will be selected at random based on the following criteria:

• At the point of retirement, the pensioner was earning less than $30,000.99 per week;
• Must be a homeowner (this includes owners of non-NHT constructed houses)
• Must be 60 years or older;
• Must not have already installed these systems;

Preference will be given to pensioners living in areas with unreliable or irregular electricity supply. This grant will help them reduce their utility bills and minimise their environmental impact. The NHT will advise when it will begin accepting applications for the Smart Energy Grant.

Policy Change to Benefit Young Adults

To address the rising need for housing among young Jamaicans, the

NHT will now reserve a minimum of 10% of NHT’s housing solutions to contributors under 36 years old. With the NHT’s 100% financing (subject to affordability) for its scheme development, this new policy change opens the door for more young people to access NHT developments.

Homestarter Programme

The state-owned entity will also make homeownership a reality for more young adults with its Homestarter Programme. The programme offers one-bedroom starter apartment complexes with easy access to urban centres. An innovative feature of the programme is its optional buy-back clause, which allows contributors to sell their units back to the NHT within a 15-year time span. This will free up the new mortgagor to access a new non-homeowner’s loan benefit from the NHT for the purchase of a new home. Currently the programme includes housing developments in Vineyard Town and Howard Avenue, St. Andrew, and a planned development at Barracks Road, St James.

As the NHT strives to improve and enhance its products and services, making homeownership more accessible for its contributors, it also prioritises environment sustainability and care. For more information on these new policies visit our website www.nht.gov.jm.