The National Housing Trust, NHT, has expanded the number of partner institutions under the revised External Financing Mortgage Programme, EFMP, to seven deposit taking institutions and one full-service life insurance company.
Up to July, just a month before the EFMP replaced the long-standing Joint Financing Mortgage Programme, the NHT announced that it had inked deals with the top two banks, National Commercial Bank Jamaica and Scotiabank Jamaica, as well as large credit union COK Sodality to handle more of its mortgage business.
But since then, the Trust says it has onboarded the VM Building Society, JN Bank, JMMB Bank, First Global Bank, Sagicor Bank and full-service life insurance company, Sagicor Life.
CIBC FirstCaribbean is the sole bank that has not yet been named a partner institution under the EFMP.
The new EFMP offers contributors earning more than $30,000.99 weekly a wider range of financial institutions from which they can access their NHT loans, among other benefits.
However, contributors who earns less than $30,000.99 weekly as well as others requiring NHT subsidies, such as home grants, will still be required to have their applications processed at the 13 NHT branch offices and service centres across the island.
NHT interest rates will apply to the NHT portion of the loan, which is up to $7.5 million per beneficiary, or $8.5 million in some cases, accessed from external financial partners.
That portion of the loan is capped at the NHT’s maximum rate of 5 per cent per annum, but prospective homeowners also have the option to access additional funding from the bank for home purchases at their own interest rate.
The Trust contends that through the EFMP partnership, it will be in a greater position to focus on its core mandate of providing affordable housing units to contributors, especially those at the affordable end of the market. The programme is also designed to assist the NHT in meeting its goal of quicker service delivery.
The state agency projects that some $25 billion in loans will be disbursed to consumers during the financial year 2024-25 by the current and prospective partnerships.
karena.bennett@gleanerjm.com
