Jamaica Homes News
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Four months of shut borders and near-zero tourism revenue: Jamaica’s housing market in July 2020 is living through its most severe external shock in modern memory, sustained only by rate cuts, institutional resilience and diaspora loyalty.
Three weeks into a global pandemic, Jamaica’s borders are closed and its housing market is in shock. This review examines the channels through which COVID-19 will reach Jamaican households, and what the institutional safety net can realistically provide.
Jamaica enters 2020 with record tourism, multi-decade low unemployment and the most favourable macroeconomic conditions in a generation. This review asks whether the housing market’s structural constraints will allow this moment of promise to translate into lasting affordability.
Jamaica’s economy is growing at its fastest sustained pace in a generation, yet the housing shortage is widening. This review examines the paradox of prosperity that leaves working families still unable to afford a formal home.
Record tourism arrivals are reshaping the resort property market while the affordable housing deficit deepens. This review examines the growing distance between Jamaica’s two-speed property story and what it means for working families.
As Jamaica’s IMF programme reaches its landmark conclusion, this review asks what six years of fiscal adjustment have meant for housing affordability — and whether the post-programme era will finally deliver supply to match the deficit.
Three years of GDP growth and falling unemployment have laid strong foundations for Jamaica’s housing market. This review measures what the Holness government’s first term has delivered for home buyers and what remains unfinished as the second half of the mandate begins.
Credit rating upgrades, strong tourism and three years of steady growth have made Jamaica’s housing market more confident than it has been in a decade. This review measures the recovery’s depth and asks who it has left behind.
Low rates, rising employment and record diaspora investment make July 2018 one of the better moments in recent memory for Jamaica’s housing market — yet the land titling crisis keeps hundreds of thousands of households locked out of formal homeownership.
Two years since Andrew Holness led the JLP to victory: Jamaica’s debt has broken below 100% of GDP, mortgages are at their most affordable in a generation, and the housing market is moving again — yet the structural supply deficit persists.
Jamaica survived the Caribbean’s most devastating hurricane season in a decade largely unscathed. This review examines what the regional catastrophe means for the island’s property market — and who is really benefiting from the most favourable mortgage conditions in a generation.
A month after Irma and Maria devastated swathes of the Caribbean, Jamaica counts its blessings and its opportunities. This review examines what the worst hurricane season in living memory means for Jamaica’s property market — including the insurance consequences that will arrive with a lag.
Sixteen months into the Holness government, Jamaica’s economy is growing and mortgage rates are at historic lows. This review asks whether the JLP’s first year in office has translated new energy into new housing supply for the Jamaicans who need it most.
Thirteen months into the Holness government, Jamaica’s economy is genuinely growing, the BOJ has started cutting rates and developer confidence is returning. This review assesses whether the new administration’s energy is translating into meaningful housing market improvement.
Ten months into the Holness government, Jamaica is growing again and the rate outlook is turning positive. This review asks what the JLP’s housing agenda has achieved in its first year — and where the urgent work for 2017 must be directed.