Business
Jamaica: Foreclosures on the increase
Prior to 2011 foreclosures were a rarity in Jamaica according to the National Land Agency (NLA) but now the island has seen the rate shoot up by a phenomenal 2550%.
The NLA, where foreclosure applications are filed and approved via the registrar of lands, disclosed recently that there were 212 foreclosures last year, up from eight in 2010. There were eight foreclosures in 2010; two in 2009; and none in 2008.
In this previously uncommon legal manoeuvre, a lender attempts to recover the balance of a loan from a borrower who has stopped making payments to the lender by forcing the sale of the asset used as the collateral for the loan.
The process tends to take much longer in Jamaica than in the US as a loan first has to be booked as an NPL after 90 days; after which it goes into auction; then a private treaty; before forclosure proceedings, which can take up to a year to complete, can be initiated. Additionally, Jamaican mortgage banks generally work hard with borrowers to avoid foreclosures on properties, including renegotiations and rearranging of loans.
