Jamaica Real Estate Boom Draws Diaspora Buyers as Experts Urge Careful Planning

Jamaica’s property market is continuing to draw heavy interest from residents and members of the diaspora, with real estate professionals pointing to strong buyer demand and major infrastructure works as key forces behind the momentum.

Gabrielle Grant Gilpin-Hudson, president of the Realtors’ Association of Jamaica, said the activity is being felt across the country, although Kingston and St Andrew remain central to the surge. She also identified St Catherine, Clarendon and St Thomas as important growth corridors, while noting that the North Coast, including St Ann, sections of St Mary and Montego Bay, remains active.

“We’re seeing the boom right across Jamaica, primarily driven by Kingston and St Andrew, of course, but also the connecting corridors – St Catherine, Clarendon, St Thomas, and then the North Coast has taken off for some time, so all across St Ann, a little bit of St Mary and Montego Bay is hot,” Gilpin-Hudson said.

She was speaking during Securing Your Piece of the Rock, a recent JN Group webinar focused on property ownership. The session was held as part of the lead-up to the 11th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference, set for June 14 to 18 at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St James. JN Group, a legacy sponsor of the conference since it began in 2004, is also co-chairing the event.

According to Gilpin-Hudson, apartments and detached houses in gated developments are among the most sought-after options. She said improved roads and other infrastructure upgrades have helped open up communities that were once harder to reach or less developed.

“The area that you may have the most interest in will depend on your appetite, what you’re looking for and your lifestyle choices,” she said. “Are you looking to live, invest, vacation or retire?”

Wanica Purkiss, mortgage broker and principal of Wanica Purkiss Consulting, said younger Jamaicans overseas are becoming more visible in the market. She said buyers in the 35-to-45 age range are showing interest in apartments and single-family homes that can operate as investments while also serving as future vacation properties.

“You have persons within the age group 35 to 45 who migrated and are now working and are buying into the new apartments, and there is a wide cross-section of available units depending on what you’re looking for,” Purkiss said.

Purkiss added that Manchester continues to appeal strongly to buyers based in the United Kingdom. She also said demand is rising along the corridor from St Ann to Trelawny, where different categories of properties remain on the market.

Still, she cautioned that the type of housing being built has changed, especially when it comes to size. “The difference now is that space is not as before. They are much smaller units,” she said.

With demand still climbing, the property specialists urged would-be purchasers to approach the market with a clear plan and a full understanding of the costs and legal checks involved in buying a home in Jamaica.

Purkiss, who previously worked as a mortgage executive at JN, said preparation should begin with consistent saving. She said the money needed at the start of the process is often one of the biggest hurdles for first-time purchasers.

“In any transaction that you do you have to have a cash input into the property that you’re purchasing. You must have your deposit and other upfront and mortgage closing costs,” she said.

She also encouraged buyers to complete proper due diligence, including confirming titles and arranging property inspections. Purkiss said applicants should also ensure that their credit position and income are strong before seeking mortgage financing.

Mortgage representatives said financing is available from institutions including JN Bank and the National Housing Trust, but stressed that each lender has its own qualification rules.

Dave Hanson, chief product officer for mortgages at JN Bank, said buyers should first seek pre-approval so they know what level of financing they can reasonably access.

“That pre-approval letter conveys that you are qualified and you’ll be able to afford the level of financing required,” Hanson said.

He said applicants are generally expected to submit documents such as income records, job verification, credit information and, in some cases, proof that they have savings available for a deposit. Hanson also noted that changes in a borrower’s financial situation can influence the final mortgage review.

Dwayne Berbick, assistant general manager for corporate affairs at the NHT, said borrowers should stay in close contact with their mortgage provider because each case is different.

“A mortgage is personal,” he said. “One of the challenges individuals sometimes face is basing their expected mortgage experience on someone else’s reality, and so you need to have that relationship with your mortgage provider to be able to say, ‘this is my reality and this is how my circumstances have changed over the process or even from the beginning.’”

Berbick said factors such as age, eligibility and borrowing power can lead to very different results, even when applicants appear similar on paper.

The May 21 webinar was hosted by the JN Group ahead of the diaspora conference and was intended to introduce major issues expected to be discussed at the gathering. Organizers said the topics were informed by recent research carried out by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade among Jamaicans living overseas.

Hundreds of people joined the online session from the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, the wider Caribbean and other diaspora communities, with participants interested in retirement, relocation and investment opportunities in Jamaica.