The National Housing Trust (NHT) last year disbursed $15.7 billion in mortgage loans to borrowers, 64 per cent of the total loans made to individuals across the financial sector, and more than building societies, credit unions and insurance companies combined.

The increased disbursements were 27 per cent more than the $12.3 billion loaned in 2009.

During the year, NHT disbursed 6806 loans, 888 more than that disbursed in 2009. The increases, according to the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), in its Economic and Social Survey, 2010, came as a result of policy changes implemented by the NHT in 2010.

The increase took place within a context of improved access and affordability to the loans as policy changes saw mortgagers receiving interest rates ranging from one per cent to seven per cent depending on income. This, coupled with the new ceiling on the amount of funds accessible to the borrower, from $7 million, up to $9 million and $3.5 million to $4.6 million created a platform for increased housing starts even though the overall decline in other areas of the construction industry continued last year.

The value of loans disbursed by building societies declined 17.9 per cent to $8.9 billion which represented a total of 1,479 loans. However, even though the total value decreased, mortgagers accessed higher sums during the year. The average value of mortgages disbursed amounted to $6.02 million, up from the $5.33 million recorded in 2009.

Life Insurance companies lent $49.3 million in total loans to mortgagers in 2010, while credit unions disbursed no mortgages, a trend that continued from 2009.

Consistent with the decline in the industry, employment fell by 6.7 per cent to 89,600 persons in 2010. The PIOJ said the decline in average employment by 6400 labourers in the industry represented the largest decrease across all industries. The industry accounted for just 13.9 per cent of men employed in the labour force, and 0.7 per cent of women.

The PIOJ estimated that during 2010, the real value-added for the construction industry fell 2.2 per cent and the sector’s contribution to GDP of 7.8 per cent, was the lowest over the last 5 years.

“The performance occurred against the background of the lingering effects of the global economic crisis on the domestic economy,” the PIOJ stated. “The downturn recorded for the industry was attributed mainly to a decline in activities for building construction as well as building installation.”

Building construction account for 95 per cent of total construction for the industry, while building installation, including repairs, account for the remaining 5 per cent.