KINGSTON, Jamaica — Fresh data compiled by the Realtors Association of Jamaica (RAJ) through its industry-leading Multiple Listing Service (MLS) has painted a surprisingly resilient picture of the country’s real estate sector, showing the market generated a staggering J$99.3 billion in total property sales across 2025. This robust performance comes even after the widespread economic disruption caused by Hurricane Melissa, defying broader expectations of a slowdown across the sector.
Analysis of the aggregated MLS data shows that three parishes — St Andrew, St Ann and St Catherine — accounted for the overwhelming majority of total 2025 sales activity, with growth driven by two complementary forces: strong urban residential demand and sustained tourism-linked investment. The results cement real estate’s long-standing role as a core pillar of Jamaica’s national economic growth.
Roger Allen, RAJ Second Vice-President and chair of the MLS Committee, outlined the dual-market dynamic shaping current industry trends. “On one hand, we have high-volume urban markets serving local homebuyers and commercial users, and on the other, high-value, tourism-focused parishes that deliver strong returns even with far fewer total transactions,” Allen explained.
Breaking down 2025 parish-by-parish performance, St Andrew claimed the top spot nationally, pulling in J$41.17 billion across 1,727 recorded transactions — leading the country in both total revenue and transaction volume. St Ann followed closely behind with J$27.36 billion in sales, with growth propelled entirely by surging tourism-related investment in vacation properties and resort-adjacent developments. St Catherine generated J$11.71 billion across 700 transactions, a figure that reflects the parish’s ongoing large-scale residential expansion to meet growing demand from urban commuters.
Westmoreland posted J$6.86 billion in total sales from just 52 high-value transactions, signaling that most activity in the parish centers on large luxury resort and vacation home developments. St Mary recorded J$3.40 billion in sales, reflecting growing investor confidence in the area’s long-term tourism potential, while Manchester hit J$2.36 billion supported by steady, consistent residential activity. St Thomas was the weakest-performing parish in 2025, recording just J$96.2 million in MLS-tracked sales.
A key trend highlighted by the data is that while most parishes recorded fewer total transactions in 2025 compared to 2024, multiple parishes delivered higher total annual revenues — a clear indicator that property values are rising rapidly across Jamaica’s key high-demand markets. Among the parishes that saw higher revenues in 2025 despite lower transaction volumes were St Catherine, Westmoreland, St Ann and St Mary. Even St Andrew, which retained its national lead, recorded a small year-over-year decline in both transaction volume and total revenue compared to 2024 figures.
“St Andrew’s dominance in the market is not surprising, but the scale of its lead over other parishes remains significant,” Allen noted. “The Corporate Area continues to act as the undisputed engine of Jamaican real estate activity. The bigger question moving forward is how we can unlock sustained, inclusive growth across other parishes that have not seen the same level of activity.”
The 2025 MLS data also reinforces a long-observed connection between public infrastructure investment and property value appreciation across the island. “Highway expansion and targeted urban development projects consistently lift surrounding land values and accelerate both residential and commercial growth,” Allen explained. Areas that have recently benefited from upgraded road networks, expanded public utilities, new schools and hospitals, and increased commercial development — including Kingston, St Andrew, St Catherine, St James and sections of Clarendon — continue to draw strong buyer interest and steady investment inflows.
Beyond property sales, the Jamaican rental market also posted solid gains in 2025, generating J$772 million in tracked rental revenue between January and December. St Andrew, St Catherine and St Ann led all parishes in total annual rental revenue, while Westmoreland recorded the fastest growth rate in the rental segment. This trend underscores rising demand for short-term vacation rentals and long-term second home rentals in popular resort regions across the island.
It is important to note that the MLS figures are compiled from voluntary transaction reports submitted by roughly 2,000 registered realtors operating across Jamaica. The current dataset does not include direct sales from property developers or private transactions that are not processed through the MLS system.
Allen emphasized that the granular MLS data serves a much broader purpose than just tracking industry performance, providing critical insights for national economic planning. “Our MLS platform delivers real-time visibility into pricing trends, shifting buyer demand, persistent inventory shortages and changing transaction patterns across the country,” he said. “This information is critical for identifying underserved housing markets, persistent affordability gaps, and the infrastructure investments that will deliver the greatest long-term economic return.”
According to Allen, these insights can be leveraged to shape more effective national housing strategies and unlock targeted growth in parishes that have historically been underrepresented in national real estate activity.