Barita Investments expects to begin generating cash from its property development portfolio by the end of 2027, providing investors with a clearer timeline for when land and buildings held by the company may start producing development income.
The first proceeds are expected to come from a modern warehouse project at Ferry in St Catherine. The former Eden Gardens property is likely to follow, while two other sites are progressing through different stages of planning and execution.
The timetable marks an important transition for Barita. The investment company has accumulated a portfolio of real estate assets, but much of the financial benefit has so far been reflected through changes in asset values rather than cash earned from completed developments.
Ferry expected to lead the portfolio
Barita Chief Executive Officer Ramon Small-Ferguson told investors that the Ferry warehouse is comparatively modest in scale and is expected to be completed ahead of the company’s larger developments.
“We do have a fairly small project that we expect to conclude the fastest, which is a modern warehouse that we are commissioning the construction of in Ferry,” he said during an investor briefing.
Small-Ferguson said the project should either be completed, or approaching completion, by the end of 2027. Barita expects to have realised cash flow from the development within that period.
For Jamaica’s commercial property market, the decision to begin with warehousing is notable. Logistics and industrial developments can generally be delivered in phases and may present a more direct route to rental or disposal income than larger mixed-use schemes. Their performance, however, still depends on construction costs, tenant demand, financing arrangements and the terms on which space is leased or sold.
Ferry occupies a strategically important position near Kingston, Portmore and established transportation routes in St Catherine. That makes the wider area relevant to businesses requiring access to the capital, the port network and major population centres.
Barita has not disclosed the warehouse’s expected development cost, size, completion date or anticipated income. Investors will therefore need further information before they can assess how much the project may contribute to the company’s overall earnings.
Eden Gardens moves towards construction
The former Eden Gardens property is expected to be the next major development to advance.
The site has been cleared, while design work, partner selection and the approvals process are under way. Barita is working towards breaking ground during 2027, although the company has not yet published a final project value or detailed return forecast for the development.
“We are in heavy pre-development,” Small-Ferguson said, explaining that the company had progressed with design, the appointment of development partners and the coordination of approvals.
The Eden Gardens property is one of the more prominent sites in Barita’s portfolio. Its location and visibility mean that the eventual design, land use and commercial structure could attract considerable interest within Jamaica’s development market.
A proposed groundbreaking is nevertheless different from a guaranteed construction start. Major projects remain exposed to planning requirements, design revisions, financing conditions, procurement decisions and movements in building costs. The 2027 target gives the market a direction of travel, but further milestones will be needed before the project’s delivery programme can be assessed fully.
From paper gains to operating income
The real estate strategy forms part of Barita’s attempt to reduce the importance of revaluation gains within its reported earnings and increase income supported by completed transactions and cash-producing activities.
For the nine months ending June 2026, Barita reported a $3.6 billion increase in gains on investment activities. That figure included realised investment gains and fair value movements across equities and other investments. The company did not separately state how much of the increase was attributable to real estate.
The distinction matters to investors. A property may become more valuable on a company’s balance sheet without immediately producing rent, sale proceeds or development profit. Revaluation gains can strengthen reported performance, but cash flow gives a clearer indication of whether an asset is actively earning money.
Property development also introduces a different risk profile. Land must move through design, approval, financing and construction before value can be converted into income. Delays or cost increases can affect returns, particularly where borrowed money is involved.
Barita’s 2027 target therefore gives shareholders a benchmark against which the property strategy can eventually be measured. The question will not simply be whether the assets increase in value, but whether the developments are completed, occupied, sold or otherwise converted into dependable cash.
Returns of up to 45 per cent targeted
Barita is targeting returns ranging from 25 per cent to 45 per cent on total project costs, depending on the type of development.
Small-Ferguson said returns to equity investors could be higher where debt is used to finance part of a project. Borrowing can increase the return earned on shareholders’ capital, but it can also magnify the effect of delays, cost overruns or weaker-than-expected revenue.
The figures disclosed by management should not be confused with guaranteed returns or annual interest rates. The company has not provided the expected duration, financing structure or profit assumptions behind each project. Those details will be necessary to compare the proposed returns with the risks and capital committed.
Barita has also indicated that it is reviewing slower-moving assets and redeploying capital into investments offering greater liquidity and stronger yields. Real estate assets may therefore be developed, sold, refinanced or otherwise repositioned where management believes the capital could work more effectively elsewhere.
A test of execution
Barita’s property platform is now approaching the point at which construction and delivery will matter more than the value assigned to undeveloped sites.
The Ferry warehouse offers the company an opportunity to demonstrate that it can move a project from planning into completed, cash-generating use. Eden Gardens will present a larger and more visible test, particularly as the company coordinates approvals, development partners and financing.
For Jamaica’s wider property sector, the programme also illustrates how institutional investors are treating real estate as an active development business rather than simply holding land and waiting for prices to rise.
By the end of 2027, investors should have a better indication of whether Barita’s accumulated property assets can produce the cash, returns and development activity management now expects. Until then, the timetable is significant, but delivery will remain the measure that counts.
Follow Jamaica Homes on Youtube @jamaicahomes and Instagram @jamaica_homes and on Facebook @jamaicahomesnews Send us a message or email us at onlinefeedback@jamaica-homes.com or editor@jamaica-homes.com
Visit our YouTube Community ↗