Dear Editor,

One of Jamaica’s most pressing problems is unabating crime.

There are many reasons for this and one could pen a long treatise on the causes and solutions to address it. For example, I have, in the past, written letters to newspapers about the need to address the crisis in the Jamaican family as an important strategy to arrest the crime monster. Another important concern, however, is the yawning gap between the haves and the have-nots. History has shown that when the gap between the poor and the rich is unreasonably wide then there is typically crime. This gap is displayed in many ways in this very classist society of ours. However, the main evidence of the gap is in the housing market in which homes are priced way beyond the reach of the general population.

Unfortunately, the insanity in the housing market does not show any signs of abating. The continued deprivation of many Jamaicans from obtaining decent and affordable housing is a travesty and a blot on our society. In my view, the National Housing Trust (NHT) is an abject failure. In fact, one could say that their modus operandi is a legitimised reverse Robin Hood tactic in which the majority of participants in the scheme have no choice but to hand over their hard-earned cash to benefit the few who are able to afford housing.

An examination of the mission of the NHT on its website reveals that the institution is not living up to its mandate of increasing the stock of available housing. If it had, then there would be enough housing to drive the price down to a reasonable level. The NHT needs to return to the days of building housing solutions that the average Joe can afford. Personally, I think it is sheer greed why houses in Jamaica are so expensive and not necessarily the cost of input materials.

As a homeowner, I certainly don’t mind if the market crashes if it means an end to the foolishness. The way I see it is that this continued deprivation is one of the reasons for crime. If the basic needs of a people are out of their reach, they may resort to crime. That’s because many believe that working hard at a regular job is not enough to afford them a home in Jamaica unless, of course, they are willing to engage in activities that will see them getting their hands on a substantial wad of cash.

It is not uncommon for me to hear people comment on the presence of large houses in certain communities as possibly financed through drug-running activities. In fact, it seems that some Jamaicans no longer subscribe to the notion that education and hard work will afford them a comfortable life. There are many people who are living in volatile communities who would like to move out but can’t afford to do so. In some instances they may witness family members become a product of their environment and get caught up in criminal activities or they themselves become victims of crime and in some cases a cycle of violence is initiated when relatives seek revenge.

For me, having less crime and being able to live in a peaceful country is more important to me than owning my own property. Unfortunately, the market won’t crash unless there are no buyers. The question I hear many people asking is: Who in Jamaica can afford these ridiculously high-priced houses? Based on my anecdotal investigation it appears that the market is being propped up by people in the Jamaican Diaspora. A recent article in The Gleaner entitled ‘BritJammers want to own a piece of Jamaica’ also confirms my conclusion.

To be clear, I don’t have a problem with the Diaspora purchasing a home in Jamaica if they intend to live here. What I have a problem with is the large number of people who purchase a home as an investment for rental income, including Airbnbs. However, the recent revelation that criminals are renting Airbnbs to carry out their nefarious activities and to hide out from the police is a very scary admission, so, at some point this could become an unworkable option.

It seems that as a country we have a penchant for catering to outsiders before catering to our own. I believe the true state of the market will be revealed if we remove the outside players. Less demand will or should result in lowered prices. However, the market will fail to respond in this way because of the powerful overseas demand.

If Jamaicans abroad desire peace on the island, then they need to stay out of the local real estate market, especially if they have no intention of residing here in the future. The resulting crash in the market can lead to a return to sanity in the sector as many of the industry players have no conscience. So my appeal to Jamaicans in the Diaspora is: Please stay out of the real estate market for the sake of the many Jamaicans who are desperate to put a roof over their heads.

Jean-Ann Bartley

jeanannbartley@yahoo.com