Jamaica missing out on timeshare market

President of the Jamaica Association of Villas and Apartments (JAVA), Vana Taylor, says  because of delay legislative delays, local villa and strata property owners are missing out on business in the timeshare market. Taylor says  a new and reliable income stream would open for small players in the tourism if property owners were allowed to sell accommodation in time-blocks, and room utilisation rates would grow above the current average of about 30 per cent occupancy throughout the year. JAVA has 400  apartment and villa owners as members, while the Strata Commission has 1,532 strata corporations on record across Jamaica. The timeshare law has been under discussion for over six years.

More at http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20120115/business/business1.html

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Posted on January 18, 2012 17:38 by Administrator
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WIHCON segments business model to include luxury home offering

West indies Home Contractors (WIHCON), has earned a reputation for constructing homes in Jamaica for buyers with modest budgets. The company introduced the first-ever housing development in Jamaica (Mona Heights) and is well known for its Portmore housing solutions. The company has now taken the decision to expand its portfolio to include luxury as well as budget homes.

The company recently formally segmented its business model to include WIHCON Select, which will offer up-market products like Somerset Homes, Sunflower Manor and Aqueduct Gates. WIHCON Homes, which will continue to bring new designs, technical capabilities and quality products to satisfy first-time buyers

The unveiling of Somerset Homes, in Graham Heights, Kingston, follows the successful introduction of WIHCON's two other up-market developments in Mona, Sunflower Manor and Aqueduct Gates.
 

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Posted on December 5, 2011 08:38 by Administrator
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Low property tax compliance in Montego Bay

Mayor of Montego Bay, Jamaica, Charles Sinclair, revealed during  a recent Rotary Club of Montego Bay East's meeting, that only 45 per cent of landowners in St James are compliant with their property tax payments. Singleing out several residential communities, Sinclair said Porto Bello has a compliance rate of 14 per cent, noting that only 106 lots out of the 750 are being paid for. He listed the percentage compliance rates for Westgate Hills at 32; Ironshore, 28; Coral Gardens, 42; Spring Farm Estate, 43; and Torado Heights, 34.

The mayor urged landowners to commit themselves, as property taxes are used by the parish council to go towards the maintenance of the city's streetlights; collection of residential waste, and road repairs.
 

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Posted on October 18, 2011 15:40 by Administrator
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COK launches 10% mortgage loan

COK Sodality Co-operative Credit Union Limited recentlt announced  that its shareholders can now access 90 per cent mortgage financing, at  an interest rate of 10 per cent, for amounts up to J$25 million. The new COK Sodality loan facility, called Home Ownership Made Easy (HOME), is for 25 years and available to members who have amassed an amount equal to "the minimum percentage share amount required" for the HOME loan. 

COK also said it has compressed the closing costs attached to new mortgages to 4.5 per cent; and that commitment, legal and processing fees have been combined within a range of 2.5 per cent to 4.0 per cent of the loan amount.
The new offer is the latest in a round of rate cuts by mortgage institutions, the lowest being from GSB Credit Union which has cut rates twice since March and now offers home loans at 9.58 per cent. Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS), the leader in the mortgage market, in August began offering new rates, ranging from 11.49 per cent to a minimum of 9.8 per cent.
 

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Posted on October 11, 2011 16:02 by Administrator
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UDC will launch REIT to drive urban redevelopment

In the near future individuals will have the opportunity to purchase equity stakes in revenue earning properties in Jamaica owned by the  Urban Development Corporation (UDC). This financial year the UDC will list properties on the Jamaica Stock Exchange as part of an aggressive move towards the capital markets. UDC holdings include the waterfront properties of Oceana Hotel and Ocean Towers in downtown Kingston.

This is part of a broad strategy by the organisation to allow the private sector to drive development and represents a shift from traditional policy whereby the public sector would acquire lands, develop properties and finance projects. Finance Minister Audley Shaw gave the go-ahead for the UDC to move towards raising funds on the capital market.

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Posted on September 29, 2011 15:25 by Administrator
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Richmond Jamaica hailed as the future of Jamaican housing

Jamaica's first green community, the Richmond Housing Development (RDC) in St Ann, Jamaica was officially launched on Saturday, September 17, with Housing, Environment and Water Minister Dr Horace Chang calling for other developers to follow RDC's chairman Lee Issa's example. Dr Chang hailed the development as the future of housing in Jamaica and said RDC had showcased the possibilities and paved the way for future improvements to the way we build and, ultimately, the way we impact the earth.

Units at the Palms, consisting of three-bedroom, two-bathroom houses, boast thermo bars on the roof to reduce heat penetration, thereby reducing the necessity to use cooling systems such as air-condition units or fans. Water heaters and street lights in the community are also run by solar energy. The development has an eco-friendly sewage disposal facility, and also provides the option of rain-water harvesting. The community also has guidelines for residents that will ensure that the area remains green, including a ban on the use of high-phosphate fertiliser on the lots, and restrictions against cutting down trees of a certain size without the consent of all owners in the community.
 

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Posted on September 26, 2011 16:25 by Administrator
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JNBS drops upkeep savings component of mortgage payments

In an effort to to make loans more serviceable in the current difficult economic climate, the Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS) has dropped the upkeep savings component of its mortgage payments. The largest building society in Jamaica took the decision to phase out the upkeep savings component of monthly mortgage payments on existing accounts to ease the repayment burden of mortgagors. The upkeep savings component on new mortgages was discontinued from January of 2009.

Statistics released by the Bank of Jamaica show that non-performing loans — loans unserviced for over 90 days — among the four local building societies were $5.5 billion or 6.4 per cent of gross loans at the end of March 2011, around the same level at the corresponding period last year.

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Posted on September 8, 2011 04:50 by Administrator
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New Era Homes launches Caymanas real estate development

New Era Homes has acquired land in a section of the Caymanas Estate that the Urban Development Corporation has designated for housing known as The Village, and Leo Taddeo, chairman of New Era Homes 2000 Limited, has promised to deliver 200 middle-income homes on the 131-acre property. Taddeo recently announced that the project (which will eventually deliver 853 detached two and three bedroom units) will be pursued in four phases, with the Caymanas Golf and Country Club estate being the first phase.

With starting prices of J$11.5 million for the two-bedroom units and J$14.5 million for the three-bedroom units (exclusive of closing costs), New Era is already marketing the homes, and expects that they will be delivered in April 2012. The community will be gated, with a swimming pool, tennis courts and 'park-lets' for children in each cluster, and a commercial complex with shops catering to the various needs of the family.

Mortgage financing for the project is available through National Housing Trust and Scotia Jamaica Building Society.

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Posted on August 19, 2011 06:20 by Administrator
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Mortgage rates in Jamaica trend downwards

Starting in March 2011, based on the the offer of low-cost funds from the Jamaica Mortgage Bank as well as the Government's reduction in stamp duty charges, companies offering private mortgages have announced downward adjustments in their interest rates. In March the largest player in the local residential mortgage market, Jamaica National Building Society,  with a 46% share of the market, announced that it was contemplating a downward review of its rates, which range from 14% to 18%.

The second-largest player in the private mortgagae market, Victoria Mutual Building Society, reduced its rates effective June 1 to 10.4 per cent for savers, and 11.99 per cent for non-savers. Effective May 1, 2011, Scotia Jamaica Building Society, cut its lending rate for new homeowners  from 14% to 10.75% fixed for 36 months, and in July, the smallest of the four players, FirstCaribbean International Building Society, cut rates to 10.4 per cent for account holders and 11.85 per cent for non-savers.
 

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Posted on July 30, 2011 14:52 by Administrator
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Sagicor re-enters Jamaican real estate market

After putting several of its real estate development projects on hold in recent years due to the downturn in the sector, Sagicor Jamaica is re-entering the Jamaican real estate market. The company has broken ground for the construction of a 32-unit apartment complex at Strathairn Avenue, St Andrew, a $350-million investment, and is finalising a J$2-billion plan for a commercial and residential complex in May Pen. 

The Strathairn Avenue development is to be located just behind the Winchester Business Centre along Winchester Road, and will consist of 32 units in total, comprising 16 studios and 16 one-bedroom apartments. The units will be outfitted with a laundry closet, a balcony and will feature covered parking, elevator service and a rooftop fitness centre. The studio units are expected to hit the market at a price of $11 million, while the one-bedrooms will each sell for $15 million.

The property for the May Pen development is located on the southern side of the May Pen by-pass, opposite the Mineral Heights housing development. Phase one of the May Pen development plan is to build a commercial centre of 120,000 square feet, while phase two will be the development of a 'gated community' of two-bedroom semi-detached town houses. The designs of the May Pen commercial centre, done by Clifton Yap Architects, suggest that it will incorporate a supermarket, pharmacy, hardware store, cinema, retail shops, a gas station, a police station, and more than 500 parking spaces.
 

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Posted on July 22, 2011 04:27 by Administrator
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