Jamaica Mortage Bank

NAME OF FEATURE | THE GLEANER | SUNDAY, JUNE 6, 2021 11 JAMAICA MORTGAGE BANK 50TH ANNIVERSARY THE JAMAICA Mortgage Bank (JMB) was es- tablished in 1971 as a private limited com- pany under the Companies Act of 1965 with an authorised share capital of $5 million. On June 5, 1973, under Act of Parliament No. 16 of 1973, the bank was converted to a statutory corporation. The authorised, issued and fully paid-up share capital of the bank is at present $500 million. Prior to the existence of the JamaicaMortgage Bank, there was no established mechanism for ensuring liquidity in the housing financemarket. There was also no other financial institution in Jamaica with the primary focus of providing bridge financing for housing development pro- jects. The JMB stands proud as being the pioneer financier for the wide-scale development of housing solutions for thousands of Jamaicans. The JMB partnered with the Caribbean Housing Corporation (CHC) in the mid-1980s and early 1990s to fund housing solutions across Jamaica, especially during the buildout of Portmore and the Greater Portmore areas, in- cluding issuance of retail mortgages linked with the Mortgage Indemnity Insurance. The oper- ation of the CHC was subsequently subsumed under the National Housing Development Corporation, which we now know as the Housing Agency of Jamaica Limited. Over the past 50 years, the JamaicaMortgage Bank has facilitatedhomeownershipby theprovi- sionof private debt funding for the construction of low- andmiddle-incomehousing solutions and commercial developments in support of housing across the island. The JamaicaMortgageBank has funded more than 100 housing projects across the length and breadth of Jamaica, resulting in the provision of more than 16,000 diverse solu- tions ranging from regularising squatter settle- ments to vacation-type houses. These include the housing communities of Greenwich Estates inSt Ann, CambridgeMeadows inSt James, Magil Palms andWedgewoodGardens in St Catherine. Housing solutions in Braeton, Marine Park,West Cumberland and Passage Fort in Portmore in St Catherine, aswell as CoorevilleGardens and Long Mountain in St Andrew, andmany other formida- ble housingdevelopments across Jamaica, form part of the JMB’s legacy housing financeprojects. The JMB has also been involved in commercial developments with the financing of the Angels Plaza and the Adventure Plaza in St Catherine. In the past five years alone, the JMB has seen sig- nificant increase in residential activities where it has financed58housingand commercial projects valuing approximately $26 billion. These include the state-of-the-art dormitories atTheUniversity of theWest Indies, Mona. HISTORY OF THE JMB THE JAMAICAMortgage Bank is guided by its vision to finance safeandaffordablehousingso that all Jamaicanswill haveaccess tohomeown- ership.Toachieve its vision, thebankonlends to privatedevelopers throughtheprimarymarket. Over the past 50 years, the bank has attracted developers who have accessed financing to undertake residential or commercial develop- ments. Eachproject proposal presented to the bank for consideration is reviewedandassessed on an individual basis and priced accordingly. Developments which are considered to be green projects, for example, the presence of water harvesting or solar panels, are provided witha special discounted rateunder thebank’s Green Initiative Programme. Here is a compilation of two developers’ experiences with the JamaicaMortgage Bank. Ricardo Foster, managing director of Alfran Development Limited, in speaking about the Jamaica Mortgage Bank in a JIS interview in February of 2021, stated that:“The first word I have is really AWESOME!We first approached themortgage bank inNovember of 2019 and immediately we were introduced to their technical staff that brought us right through the process … and I want to emphasise the technical staff because, without them, we probablywouldn’t have beenwherewe are at right now. They really guided us throughout the process and I can tell you by February of 2020, we had a provisional approval.” Alfran Development Limited is respon- sible for the construction of Genesis 28, a development located on Waterloo Avenue in St Andrew. Mr Alexander Coke, director of The Edbury Development Limited, also shed light on his experience with the JMB, stating that: “The Jamaica Mortgage Bank has been very inter- active and cooperative andwehavebeenpart- ners over the last decade. They give pragmatic advice based on profitability for the project and tweaking the design that the consumer can accept and appreciate it, and if dem tell yuh something, that is how it guh…demvery factual and straightforward and reliable; and reliability is what you need in this industry.” The Edbury Development Limited is cur- rently constructingThe Emerald Apartments in Meadowbrook, St Andrew. THE DEVELOPERS’ PERSPECTIVE I MAGINEMIGRATINGoverseas to increase the likelihood of being financially capable to build your dreamhomeback in Jamaica.You eventually identify and purchase the land, youget your plandrawn andpassedby the relevantmunic- ipal corporation and conquer all other challengesat thispreliminary stage. You are now ready to build andyouentrust a close relative, or friend,withyour financial resources inorder that theymaymonitor the process, since they are ‘closer to home’.Youask for updates and re- ceivemore than just verbal assur- ances that things are progressing well; your trustedwatchmansends photos to corroborate his story. Months pass and you are contin- uously assured that: ‘everyting good, man’! This, of course, is until you decide tomake a surprise ap- pearance with the view of having first-hand visual of your beautiful dreamhome; theoneyouhaden- visionedsincebecomingof age to haveas anumber-onepriority; the one you worked so hard to build; theoneyouhoped to retire in.You arrive at your lot but, to your sur- prise, that iswhat still remains, a lot; void, empty, no place to lay your head, save and except for the dirt which had barely been cleared to the rear of theproperty.Youclench your fist, hold your chest in disbe- lief and slowly fall to the ground. You suffer a heart attack because your trustedpartnerhasdefrauded you and taken your life’s savings. Sometimes the story is a little less bizarre; sometimes there’s an actual structure on your land but nothing compared to your dream or the photographs you had been receiving. Stories abound of persons remitting funds equiv- alent to the cost of two or three houses having the dimensions and features of the one actually constructed on their lot. What’s often very troubling is that no sensible answers are ever forth- coming from their trusted agent/ family member/friend. And the excess or squandered funds are gone, never to be recovered! Far toooften, we reador hear of thesehorror stories involvingpeo- ple from the diaspora desiring to build their home, being scammed out of their hard-earned life sav- ings, usually by personswho they trusted. The Jamaica Mortgage Bank has decided to put an end to this unfortunate practice. The bank has conceptualised a new product, the Diaspora Home Building Services (DHBS), geared towards persons in the diaspora who want to construct a house in Jamaica as a place they can call home upon their retirement or just a place to staywhenever they visit the Rock. The DHBS features the bank, through its technical staff, managing the entireprocess involved inbuildingyour homeup to and including your turning the key to enter and enjoy the reality of your own home. This is done through the following steps, as- suming you already own the land on which you intend to build: • Formulation: At this stage, you andthebankdeterminewhat your precise needs are, e.g., if youwant tobuildfromanalreadycompleted design or if you need assistance with the design and construction of your house. Dependingonyour need, youareprovidedwithanap- proved list of professionals/con- sultants which you may engage, including: contractors, architects, quantity surveyors, land survey- ors, clerkofworks, attorneys-at-law, landappraisers andengineers.You are guided through the selection process, such that a reputablepro- fessional/consultant is engaged to deliver each service required on terms that are reasonable and affordable. We also provide ad- vice on the form and conditions of contract to be used between client andconsultants/contractors, as well as how and when funds are released to the various profes- sionals/consultants inaccordance with the completion of contract deliverables. • Assessment: The bank will do an assessment and provide an initial report detailing the ad- equacy of the drawings and all the elements tobe captured. Our officers will ensure: the consist- ency of scale; that all approvals are obtained fromthe relevant regula- tory authorities; reasonableness of the costing, budget and cash flow projection, amongother activities. • Monitoring: The bank will provide monitoring services on the work being undertaken by the contractor through periodic site visits, attending project meetings and providingmonthly progress reports which will in- formof the quantity, quality and value of work completed, and making recommendations for payment in linewith agreements. • Final accounts: The bank will provide an evaluation and recommendation of payment for final completion; Certificate of Final Completion and a final Close Out Report. For more information contact the Jamaica Mortgage Bank at: Telephone: 876-929-6350-2 Email: info@jmb.gov.jm Website: www.jmb.gov.jm \ Facebook and Instagram: @ jamaicamortgagebank Twitter: @jamaica_bank Youtube: JamaicaMortgage Bank DIASPORA HOME BUILDING SERVICES PRODUCT HIGHLIGHT