BELMOPAN, Belize — A ban on transporting fully assembled wooden houses on Belize’s public roads left several finished prefabricated homes stranded in the week before Christmas 2025, as builders pushed the government to reconsider.
The Department of Transport, headed by Chief Transport Officer Leon Gentle, issued a notice requiring houses to be taken apart before they are moved, WIC News reported on 22 December. Oversized loads also require advance notice and official escorts and may travel only between 9 pm and 5 am, subject to approval. The ban followed a road accident on 18 December involving a drunk driver, Breaking Belize News reported.
Ron Plett of Plett’s Home Builders said his company had moved more than 3,000 houses over more than 25 years and warned that the ban would make housing less affordable. Chester Williams, chief executive officer in the Ministry of Transport, met builders on 23 December. Greater Belize Media reported that under current guidelines, homes up to 20 feet wide may still be moved intact, and that any permanent change to the rules would need Cabinet approval.
What it means
Analysis: Factory-built wooden houses are one of the most common low-cost routes to home ownership in Belize. Requiring them to be dismantled and rebuilt on site adds cost and delay for buyers at the lower end of the market, so the final rules matter well beyond road safety.
Editor’s note: This article was added to the Jamaica Homes News archive on 30 September 2026. It reports events from December 2025 and is dated to when they were reported.
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