1,000 Land Titles Issued So Far as Government Targets 5,000 This Year

Kingston, Jamaica, 19 June 2026

Around 1,000 land titles have already been handed out since the start of the year, and the Government says it wants to push output beyond 5,000 before the current financial year closes.

The figures were set out by Robert Montague, the Minister without Portfolio responsible for land titling and settlements, when he spoke in the Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on 9 June.

Surveys under way

According to the minister, government surveyors are working on about 4,000 surveys at present, and further work is planned in partnership with the National Housing Trust. He also said talks are continuing with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining on a project for more than 3,000 people who were relocated by the bauxite industry but have never been able to secure titles. He said the Government intends to correct this very soon.

Old government schemes in line for titles

A significant part of the plan concerns the 113 housing schemes that the Government, through the ministry with responsibility for housing, still owns and maintains. Some are rented and some are freehold, yet ownership was never formally transferred to occupants.

Mr Montague said assessments will begin this year, with corrective works on at least one scheme so that certificates of completion can be sought from municipal authorities and titles issued to the families living there. Separately, an amnesty for people owing $150,000 or less on government housing units has identified more than 2,000 accounts that qualify, and the ministry intends to release titles to those long-waiting first-time owners.

Hurricane help and new laws

As part of its response to the hurricane, the ministry replaced damaged or destroyed documents for more than 3,000 people free of charge. On the legislative side, the proposed Registration (Shared Community) Act has been referred to a joint select committee of Parliament, and amendments to the Registration of Titles Act are planned. Those changes would also touch the Special Provisions Act, the Land Surveyor’s Act and the Land Valuation Act.

What it means for homeowners

For residents of older government schemes, a registered title is what turns years of occupation into an asset that can be sold, passed on or used to raise a mortgage. Anyone living in one of these schemes, or who believes they may qualify under the housing arrears amnesty, would do well to check that their payment records and documents are in order so they are ready when their turn comes.

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