Over 350 people accessed housing and mortgage-related services at the National Housing Trust’s (NHT) Home It! Expo at Emancipation Park last Friday, March 22.   

Sabrena McDonald-Radcliffe, assistant general manager of advertising and sales at NHT, said the expo was an important opportunity to provide individuals with information about the organisation’s products and benefits. 

“The expo is part of an overall campaign focused on raising awareness about the diverse product offerings at the NHT to inspire and empower individuals to pursue homeownership. Most persons only think of schemes when they hear NHT, and while our scheme facility is excellent, we serve a wide and diverse contributor base which means we offer a range of other available solutions geared toward helping our contributors to successfully navigate property ownership,” said McDonald-Radcliffe.

The expo ran from 12 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and saw individuals learning how to access NHT’s benefits, grants, financing arrangements and verifying their contributions status and mortgage eligibility. Self-employed individuals were also able to register to become NHT contributors.

McDonald-Radcliffe added that Jamaicans could look forward to even more mobilisation initiatives like the expo being staged islandwide. 

“At the NHT, we are all about accessibility and people really appreciated that we brought the services to them, in one central location. They really appreciated the ease of accessing the information and services. We’ll be doing engagement sessions at supermarkets, markets, transportation centres and so many other spaces within the next several months,” said McDonald-Radcliffe.

Albert Smith, a driver with the Jamaica Urban Transport Company (JUTC), lauded the efforts of the nation’s principal housing agency, noting that the information and service were not only timely but excellent. 

“I was able to verify my eligibility as well as how much I would be able to qualify for to purchase a property, things I didn’t know before. This information was truly valuable and now I feel like I am in a much better position to start the property search process,” said Smith.

Participants were also able to engage with other agencies, such as the National Land Agency, National Insurance Scheme, Tax Administration Jamaica, Ministry of Health & Wellness, Courts Jamaica, Excelsior Biscuit Company, Vita Malt, Wisynco, and Tastee Cheese.