Bank South Pacific is excited to announce a major partnership with Hausples.com.pg; a local website listing all available properties for sale and rental in PNG.

“BSP has always been at the forefront of innovation. It’s clear that Papua New Guineans are increasingly using the internet to make their lives easier and our sponsorship of Hausples.com.pg is proof of our commitment to supporting our customer’s choices”, explains BSP Head of Marketing & Public Relations Julie Fraser.

“We are acutely aware of the critical shortage of housing throughout Port Moresby and much of PNG. Hausples.com.pg allows people to access available housing more easily and quickly, and BSP supports initiatives such as this. Whether you are seeking to buy or rent a home, the financial considerations are significant and BSP can provide advice and services to help people achieve their goals”, she adds.

BSP are also proud to be supporting the real estate industry via its sponsorship of Hausples. The website is free for the public and has been rapidly gaining momentum since its launch in March this year. “We are thrilled to report that traffic has more than doubled in the last month, with nearly 60,000 page views.” says Brian Byer, Hausples CEO.

Under the arrangement, BSP have become the major site sponsor of Hausples.com.pg and the two companies will work together to improve people’s access to housing and understanding of how finance can improve their options.

 “Hausples deals with the most reputable real estate agencies in PNG including Century 21, Strickland Real Estate, DAC Real Estate and The Professionals. We are delivering a large level of customer inquiries which makes life a lot easier for the public and the real estate agencies”” says Mr Byer. Hi views are shared by Century 21 Executive Chairman Brian Hull.

“Hausples is helping us achieve excellent outcomes for our customers and we are very happy to see their strategic alliance with one of PNG’s most respected brands –BSP”, says Hull. Moving forward, BSP and Hausples will craft new financial literacy campaigns and explore new ways to reach customers.

A magnificent rental duplex in Port Moresby

For more information on this property as well as the rental price, check it out at

www.hausples.com.pg

Did you know that real estate agents in PNG and largely unregulated?

For those new to house hunting in PNG, whether it be to buy or rent, it may come as a surprise to learn that Papua New Guinea’s real estate industry is unregulated by the government. Unlike in many other countries, any individual or company can represent themselves as a real estate agent and begin selling land, houses or even development sites; the sky really is the limit. Whilst the unregulated nature of the industry is of benefit for those budding sales people and entrepreneurs, it does present a challenge for the person seeking the perfect home to rent or development site to purchase.

In this article we discuss some of the things to be aware of when conducting your property search to make sure you achieve your goals and avoid being scammed.

Start your property hunt off the safe way

When you start your property search it’s important to plan your strategy well from the start. Avoid the temptation to immediately put a request on Facebook or ask friends; this is a sure fire way to get caught up in ‘private deals’ that unfortunately often go wrong. Instead, you should begin by looking at either individual real estate agency websites (such as Century 21 Siule or Strickland Real Estate) or a real estate portal such as Hausples.com.pg.

As many real estate agencies in PNG do not have websites, portals aggregate all of the property for sale or rent in a single site. Using these sites not only will this save you time in searching, but it will also very quickly give you a sense of the current real estate market in the area you are looking in.

In order to identify the right property for your you should start by reviewing various websites for information such as:

• What is the average selling price or weekly rental for the type of property you are considering?
  
  
• How many properties are available within your price range?
  
  
• Which real estate agents seem to have the most properties that suit your criteria?
  
  

Another great tip to save yourself time is to call a few agencies and ask them to let you know as soon as new properties matching your criteria come onto the market. Alternatively, some agency websites and the Hausples.com.pg real estate portal allow you to create an automated email alert that is sent as soon as properties are uploaded that fit your requirements; no more trawling through lots of websites our even calling lots of agents!

Before arranging inspections make sure the agent is reputable

You have narrowed your search down to 3 or 4 properties and now you are keen to take a look through and make sure they are clean, safe and meet all of your other criteria. The next step is to now ensure that the agency you are dealing with is reputable and professional. For safety reasons, it’s extremely important to avoid attending properties alone with private individuals who are not from one of a recognised agency. So how do you know if the agent or agency is trustworthy?

Here are our tips:

1. Ensure that the agency is carrying a decent amount of homes for sale or rent. 1 or 2 properties is likely a hobby, rather than a business.
   
   
2. Check that they have a website. Companies that have invested in a website are generally larger and more professional than those without a website.
   
   
3. Source the agencies from a recognised source such as the Real Estate Industry of Papua New Guinea or other directories that only allow genuine real estate companies to list their property stock – the Hausples Agent Directory is one such place.
   
   
4. Ask friends and family to confirm whether they have dealt with the agent before and what their experience has been
   
   

Assuming you have carried out the basic steps above, you should be ready for your inspection and with some luck ready to move into your new home!

Established real estate agents in Papua New Guinea

There are a number of well established real estate agents in PNG and in particular in the major cities of Lae and Port Moresby. The following is a list of prominent real estate agencies, however please note that this list is not exhaustive and there are likely to be number of other agencies throughout the country that are also reputable:

• Arthur Strachan Real Estate (Port Moresby & Lae)
  
  
• Budget Real Estate (Port Moresby)
  
  
• Century 21 Siule (Port Moresby)
  
  
• DAC Real Estate (Port Moresby)
  
  
• Hawaii Real Estate (Port Moresby)
  
  
• Our Real Estate (Port Moresby)
  
  
• Pacific Comfort Real Estate (Port Moresby)
  
  
• Perlease Management Services (Port Moresby)
  
  
• Sovereign Real Estate (Port Moresby)
  
  
• Strickland Real Estate (Port Moresby)
  
  
• The Professionals (Port Moresby & Lae)
  
  
• Urban City Realty (Port Moresby)