SOCIAL SECTOR INVESTMENT PROGRAMME
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SUSTAINING GROWTH, SECURING PROSPERITY
CHAPTER 3: NATIONAL SOCIAL SITUATION
community inclusive of the adherence of
acceptable standards of care for persons in
treatment and rehabilitation.
4. A
CCESS
TO
Q
UALITY HOUSING
Access to adequate and affordable housing is a
necessary element of improving one’s standard
of living. To address the national concerns of
affordability and accessibility to hosing, the
GoRTT aims to construct new homes, upgrade/
improve existing homes, regularise squatters
and upgrade their settlements, develop lots and
sites with modern infrastructure, and review
financial arrangements (such as the provision of
grants, subsidies and mortgages).
The Housing Division of the Ministry of Housing,
Land and Marine Affairs (MHLMA) has lead
responsibility to provide housing solutions that
are of good quality, affordable and accessible
to the nation’s citizenry. The division is guided
by the Policy Framework for Sustainable
Development and the Housing Policy, and is
mandated to facilitate the development of
sustainable communities aligned to proper land
use policy guidelines.
The major functions of this Division are:
1. Provision of high quality affordable and
accessible housing solutions;
2. Identification of Funding for the Housing
Programs;
3. Identification of Land for the Housing
Programs;
4. Facilitation of the implementation of Housing
Policy and Regulatory Framework;
5. Evaluation and monitoring Housing Policy
Implementation;
6. Relocation/
Containment
/Squatter
Regularisation;
7. Provision
of
Integrated
Information
Technology Solutions;
8. Communication on Government Housing
Policy and Programmes.
The implementing agencies with respect
to housing are the Housing Development
Corporation (HDC), and The Land Settlement
Agency (LSA).
The Ministry has implemented a number of
initiatives to address the housing needs of the
population. These include:
A. Low Mortgage Rate Facility
In July 2012, Government approved the Land
for the Landless Policy. In fiscal 2013, there
was agreement to grant beneficiaries of the
Land for the Landless Programme eligibility to
access funding under the existing 2% Mortgage
Financing Regime administered by the Trinidad
and Tobago Mortgage Finance Company
Limited (TTMF) to facilitate the purchase of
residential lots and the construction of houses,
or the purchase of starter homes. In May 2013,
at the first public draw for lots under the Land
for the Landless Programme, 500 persons were
selected to become potential beneficiaries. The
successful persons will be eligible to access
funding under the existing 2% financing facility
for the purchase of land, as well as to construct
their homes.
To further assist with the purchase of their lot of
land, Government has also approved a pricing
policy for State land. This policy is applicable to
lands in four categories, namely:
• The Residential Lots Programme;
• The Squatter Regularisation Programme of
the Land Settlement Agency (LSA);
• Lands for the relocation of squatters by
Government for developmental purposes;
and
• Lands being developed by the Housing
Development Corporation (HDC).
The lands will be leased for a period of 199
years, and the cost will include a premium plus
an infrastructure cost per square foot. The
premium for all four categories of land indicated
above, will be 20% of the cost of the raw land.
