Gumbs: Affordable Housing Policy Sets NAf. 900 Monthly Baseline

GREAT BAY--Affordable housing, income-based access to homes and the need to prevent continued housing market failure were central to Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure Patrice Gumbs’ presentation to Parliament, as he outlined government’s proposed national housing policy and the approach being taken to address St. Maarten’s housing shortage.

Minister Gumbs told Parliament that the policy defines affordable housing as housing that costs no more than 30 percent of median net income. Based on the 2025 baseline, this translates to approximately NAf. 900 per month. The Minister explained that affordability is not being treated as a general concept, but as a measurable threshold that must guide planning, financing, development and future access to homes.

The Minister provided the update during the continuation of a parliamentary meeting on the current state of national housing in St. Maarten, including government planning and institutional capacity. He said the housing policy, which was submitted to Parliament on February 3, 2026, is intended to address both the existing housing shortage and future housing demand.

According to Minister Gumbs, the policy is not based on one consolidated master plan, one development area or one government construction project. Instead, it uses a phased, modular and multi-site approach that allows government to pursue different housing interventions across various districts and through different development models.

He stressed that the often-cited target of 1,200 homes should not be interpreted as 1,200 new homes being built in Belvedere, nor as 1,200 homes to be constructed by government alone. The target includes a combination of new construction, reuse of vacant or underused buildings, urban renewal, densification, subdivision, house splitting and better use of existing urban areas.

“The policy addresses both the existing housing problem and future development,” the Minister explained. He said it does not focus only on new buildings, but also on mortgage access, the rehabilitation and reuse of abandoned or underutilized properties, better use of scarce land and housing solutions that can be delivered through multiple partners.

The Minister said the housing challenge cannot be solved through one institution. The policy therefore calls for a joint public and private approach involving government, the St. Maarten Housing Development Foundation, private developers and financial institutions. He noted that the policy does not state that government will build 120 units per year. Rather, government intends to support the execution of approximately 120 units per year through phased development, reuse of existing stock, densification strategies and institutional partnerships.

Minister Gumbs said government’s immediate focus is on the newly purchased Belvedere Remainder area, while also supporting the Housing Development Foundation with existing inventory and future development. The current Belvedere housing project consists of 474 homes. The recently acquired land is now being reviewed through land analysis and development planning to determine how it can best support housing and other public needs.

He clarified that the Belvedere Remainder area is being considered for more than one purpose, including housing, cemetery use and cultural or historical conservation. No final decision has been made on the exact location of a cemetery within the broader area, and planning is still ongoing.

Affordability, the Minister said, must be protected over time through a combination of regulatory, financial and supply-side mechanisms. These include affordable housing production targets, subsidies, mortgage guarantees, rent-to-buy schemes, densification and the reuse of existing housing stock.

He warned that if affordability safeguards are delayed or not implemented, St. Maarten risks continued housing market failure. That failure, he said, would leave many residents unable to access limited housing supply, increase inequality, deepen reliance on informal or substandard housing, contribute to the brain drain of young professionals and key workers, and weaken the country’s economic resilience.

Minister Gumbs also made a distinction between social housing and affordable housing. Social housing refers to subsidized rental housing provided primarily by public or nonprofit institutions to eligible low-income households. Affordable housing, by contrast, targets residents within defined income and price ceilings, including workers who should be able to access homes within the local market.

The policy does not create a separate housing category for civil servants apart from the general public. However, the Minister said the policy recognizes that teachers, health workers, civil servants and other key workers should be able to access affordable housing.

Another major affordability tool highlighted by the Minister is the mortgage guarantee fund, which he said has been administratively reestablished by ministerial decree. Financial institutions and the Central Bank were consulted during the development of the policy, and government is now working to finalize participation arrangements.

The Minister said funding options under consideration include budgetary allocations, revolving guarantees, risk-sharing models and possible future earmarked revenue streams. Final structuring will take place in coordination with the Ministry of Finance.

Minister Gumbs said the policy is intended to move St. Maarten toward a broader housing delivery system, one that combines public land, private investment, financial tools, reuse of existing stock and targeted affordability measures. He said the goal is not only to increase the number of housing units, but to ensure that residents, including middle-income earners and key workers, can realistically access housing in a market where land is scarce and costs remain high.

‍