A proposed new law for Jamaica’s gated communities would give homeowners’ bodies real power to collect maintenance fees, up to and including selling the home of an owner who will not pay.
KINGSTON, Jamaica, 28 October 2026
The story behind the cartoon
In today’s cartoon, three neighbours stand at the roadside in a hillside gated community, each holding a receipt marked Paid. They are staring at the one townhouse on the block that has been wrapped in a giant chain and padlock tagged Unpaid Fees, with a For Sale sign already in the lawn. Its owner stands at the front door clutching a stack of unopened envelopes, realising too late that the bills he ignored have caught up with him.
The joke points to the Registration (Shared Community) Bill, 2026, which was tabled in the House of Representatives in January. It is designed for gated communities of townhouses and standalone homes that are not strata developments and so have had no dedicated legal framework.
What the Bill proposes
Under the Bill, once a shared community plan is registered with the Real Estate Board, the owners of all the lots become a body corporate known as a community corporation. That corporation would keep the common property in good repair, insure it, set up a long term maintenance plan and collect contributions from every owner to pay for it all.
Unpaid contributions, along with reasonable collection costs, could be recovered in the parish court, and simple interest would build up on any debt left outstanding. Where an owner has not paid for more than 60 days and cannot be found, the corporation could ask the court for an order of possession and rent out the lot, with the rental income used to clear what is owed.
As a last resort, the corporation could sell the property. Before it does, it must satisfy the Real Estate Board that it took all reasonable steps to notify the owner, and it can only exercise the power of sale once the board issues a certificate allowing it. The court could also order an owner who breaks the community’s bylaws to pay a penalty of up to J$1 million.
What it means for buyers and developers
For developers, the Bill sets out clear steps. A developer selling lots must apply for a certificate of registration within one year of registering the shared community plan, or before selling the first lot, whichever comes first. Without that registration, lots may be hard to sell to buyers who need a mortgage, since lenders may be reluctant to lend against them, leaving developers to rely mostly on cash buyers. The Bill also provides for fines and up to six months in prison for developers who do not comply.
Existing gated communities would have a two year window after the law takes effect to register voluntarily with the Real Estate Board. When the Bill was tabled, an Opposition Member of Parliament called for it to go to a joint select committee because of its far reaching effects.
Why it matters
Disputes over maintenance fees are a familiar part of life in many gated communities, where neighbours who pay often carry the cost of roads, security and common areas for those who do not. The Bill aims to share that burden fairly, but it also raises the stakes for every owner. Anyone buying into a gated community should ask what the fees are, what the bylaws say and whether the development is properly registered.
In a shared community, the fees are part of the price of the house. Skip them for long enough and you could lose the house itself.
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