How much you can borrow
NHT sets the limit by the kind of loan and by how many people apply together, up to 3 contributors. The limits have been in force since 16 June 2025.
- Open Market, to buy from a private seller or developer: J$9,000,000 for one applicant, J$17,000,000 for two and J$23,000,000 for three. The one-applicant limit is J$12,000,000 when the home costs J$14,000,000 or less. Three applicants need a home with at least 2 bedrooms.
- An NHT scheme house: up to J$17,000,000, financed in full, if you can afford the payments.
- Building on your own land: J$11,000,000 for one applicant.
- A house lot: J$5,000,000 for one applicant.
Our NHT mortgage calculator has the full table, including the limits for two and three applicants on every loan type.
Source: NHT: loan limits (updated July 2025). Read .
The interest rate
NHT sets your rate from your weekly gross pay: 0% up to J$30,000.99, 2% up to J$42,000.99, 4% up to J$100,000.99 and 5% above that. If two or three of you borrow together, NHT averages everyone’s weekly pay and puts one rate on the loan.
Teachers, nurses, firefighters, police officers and the security forces pay 1% less with 5 to 10 years of service and 2% less with 10 or more, from 1 July 2026.
Source: NHT: loans, JIS: NHT to reduce interest rates for teachers, nurses, firefighters and security forces. Read .
Who qualifies
You must be between 18 and 70, never have had a loan from NHT, and not own a home. NHT says conditions apply to both of those. NHT also asks for 52 weekly contributions, with 13 of them in the last 26 weeks before you apply. NHT decides each case. EveryDolla isn’t part of NHT and can’t tell you whether NHT will approve you.
An eligibility letter shows the loan amount, term and interest rate NHT would give you, so you can take it to a bank or an agent. You can ask for one on NHT Online if you are an employed contributor. If you are self-employed, a voluntary contributor, co-applying, or earn both as an employee and as self-employed, NHT asks you to request it at an NHT office. Scheme houses need no letter.
Source: NHT: buy loans, NHT: eligibility letter. Read .
Deposit and service charge
NHT finances up to 95% of an Open Market purchase, so the deposit is 5%. If you earn less than J$30,000 a week and the home costs J$14,000,000 or less, it is 2%. Applicants aged 35 and under can ask for an advance of up to J$2,000,000 toward the deposit, which comes off what they can borrow.
The service charge is a share of the loan that depends on pay: 0% at J$30,000 a week or less, 2% from there up to J$42,001 and 5% above that.
Source: JIS: NHT reduces deposit on open market loans for contributors earning less than $30,000 a week, NHT: buy loans. Read .
How long you can take
NHT loans run for up to 40 years. Newspaper columns also say the loan has to be repaid by age 70, which shortens the term for older borrowers. NHT’s website doesn’t say so, so confirm it with NHT. The calculator shows it as an assumption you can change.
Buying on the open market
NHT’s checklist for an Open Market loan starts with a signed and dated sale agreement, a deposit receipt or the vendor’s statement of account, a valuation report and a surveyor’s ID report. Each report must be no more than a year old, and NHT says the list is not limited to these. NHT also says it will not pay a deposit or any of the cost where the sale price is more than the total loan limit you are entitled to, so ask NHT how your price will be treated before you sign.
If you earn more than J$30,000.99 a week, you apply through one of NHT’s partner banks or credit unions, and NHT’s own rates still apply to the NHT part. The partners NHT lists are Scotiabank, NCB and COK Sodality Co-operative Credit Union, on a list dated 1 August 2023. COK Sodality has since merged into C&WJ Co-operative Credit Union, so ask NHT which lenders take part today.
NHT scheme houses
NHT advertises scheme units as they become available. Applications are online only, within the advertised intake period, and are scored on weekly income and contribution history. At least 20% of scheme units are kept for people 35 and under. A parent up to age 70 can give their contribution points to one biological or legally adopted child, or co-apply with that child, to help with affordability on an NHT scheme property.
The Home Grant
The Home Grant is money you don’t repay: up to J$3,500,000 for first-time owners earning from minimum wage up to J$30,000.99 a week. You need at least 7 years years of NHT contributions, and you can’t already own a home or have had an NHT loan. Up to three people can apply together.
Thinking of claiming your contributions back? Our NHT refund guide explains which years are open, and claiming a refund doesn’t stop you getting a loan.