Government of Jamaica

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to some frequently asked questions here. 
If you don't see an answer to your question, you can send us an email. 

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You can get back your total contributions if you fall in any of the following categories Retirees Invalidity Pensioners Expatriates who are leaving the island Agents/Nominees of deceased contributors This is called Special Contributions Refund (According to Section 22 of the NHT Act).

If the company is still in existence, verification of contributions can be had from the employer. If the company is no longer in existence and the contributions have not been remitted, those contributions would not contribute towards determining your points.

Persons who qualify for a Special Refund are : Retirees Invalidity pensioners Migrating expatriates Agents of deceased contributors A Special Refund gives you access at one time, to all the contributions you have made to the Trust.

Type of financing Requirement Loan from NHT 5% of the bid sum is payable as a deposit, providing the other associated costs can be covered by the mortgage loan. Loan from other source(s) 15% of the bid sum is payable as a deposit, providing the other associated costs can be covered by the mortgage loan. Cash purchase 15% of the bid sum is payable as a deposit. Evidence of the balance of the purchase price and the other associated costs must also be provided before offer is considered acceptable. Joint Finance Mortgage Programme (JFMP) 15% of the bid sum is payable as a deposit, providing the other associated costs can be covered by the mortgage loan.

You will be required to pay the difference between the bid amount and the maximum loan entitlement. This is also subject to your ability to repay the loan. You must provide evidence that you can pay this shortfall before the sale/purchase processes can commence.

There will be some specific legal fees which you will be required to pay to enable us to not only register your name(s) on the Title as owner(s) of the property, but also the mortgage loan. These fees are approximately 3% of the sale price, and represent half costs for stamp duty and registration. (N.B. The 3% is based on the Stamp Commissioner’s assessment of the value of the property, and the cost to register the mortgage loan may vary depending on the Institution from which you will be obtaining the loan)

(a) You must be a first-time homeowner, and currently making contributions to the Trust. However, for more details of the eligibility requirements you may either visit the Customer Service Department at the nearest Branch Office, or visit the Loans section of the website by clicking on the  “ Loans”  link in the menu for more information. N.B. If you are not qualified for a NHT loan, you may still be allowed to purchase a property; however, we will not grant you the loan. Financing must therefore be sought from another source. (b) You may use the Fifteen (15) Plus Loan to purchase a property being sold by Private Treaty provided: the previous NHT loan was obtained at least 15 years ago; you are not currently a home-owner; your current non-home -owner status is not as a result of failure to meet NHT’s required mortgage payments. (c) If you are successful in bidding on more than one property, you will be allowed to purchase these properties, subject to proof that you can afford to pay for each one. However, we will grant you a mortgage loan on only one (1) property, if you are eligible for a non-home-owner’s loan or a loan as outlined at item (b) above.

Vacant possession is not guaranteed. If the unit is still occupied by the previous owner(s) or is tenanted, upon receipt of Letters of Possession from the Trust, you will be responsible for ensuring that the property becomes vacant by serving a notice to quit on the occupants, and pursuing Court action for recovery of possession.

We cannot give you permission to access the property, however, if the occupant(s) is/are willing to allow you access to any area of the property, this is done at his/her own discretion. The properties are sold on an “as is” basis, therefore if upon inspection, any damage is identified, we do not accept responsibility for same.

We will give priority to “Cash purchase” for these properties; however, mortgage loans will be provided to qualified contributors provided that when the bids/ letters are being submitted, the persons who are interested in purchasing the properties do the following: indicate that they agree to purchase the property even though there is no Registered Title; provide proof of how the property will be purchased ( i.e by cash, or by getting a loan from a financial/mortgage institution).