Housing Ministry meeting with banks to prequalify land owners for loans -Minister Rodrigues

The Ministry of Housing and Water is liaising with local banks in an effort to fast-track the process for land allottees to become homeowners, in keeping with its comprehensive approach to providing sustainable housing.

Minister within the Ministry of Housing and Water, Hon. Susan Rodrigues said when it comes to homeownership, land allocation is merely the first step.

The Ministry wants to work with land owners from the beginning to the end of the process, she said, in a recent interview on DPI’s “The Progress Report.”

“We’ve met with several of the banks already. We’ve met with the Bankers Association to try to negotiate better interest rates and a mechanism in which we can send a list to the bank or the banks of those who have received their allocation and then the banks prequalify them,” Minister Rodrigues said.

She added that this initiative will also help prospective home owners “know how much money they are entitled to [or] the amount of mortgage they can receive, so that they can know how to plan properly.”

The Ministry is also taking steps to respond promptly to requests from banks and lending agencies. This is to eliminate undue delay, which could result in an allottee becoming lost in the system because of a lack of communication.

The Housing and Water Ministry is mandated to deliver 50,000 house lots over the next five years in keeping with the PPP/C’s manifesto promise.  Of this amount, 20,000 will be turn-key homes.

Minister Rodrigues said all housing areas will have serviced lots with all the necessary infrastructure such as access roads and bridges, drainage systems and water and electricity networks.

Some 3,600 house lots have already been distributed in Regions Three, Four and Six since the PPP/C took office in August.

Further, with a number of new housing schemes developed in 2020 and more slated for development in 2021, the Ministry is focusing on zoning.

“There’s a lot of planning that goes into these housing schemes [and] a lot of skills that are required…planning to ensure zoning, properly, to ensure that we have zones for industrial activity [and] zones for commercial activities, so that none of this interferes with the residents occupying their lots.”

“All of these [will] help to make a community wholesome,” Minister Rodrigues said, noting that the communities will also have green spaces and playgrounds for leisure activities.

There are also plans to build homes for young professionals. The objective of this project is to promote and provide affordable housing solutions for young Guyanese and to create opportunities for families. Three models have so far been approved by the Ministry.