Jamaica’s real estate resilience and investment prospects will be the main focus of the Build Wealth with Real Estate Investor Conference scheduled for August 19 at the AC Marriott Hotel in New Kingston.

The conference seeks to expose interested parties to presentations and cross-fertilised discourse from leading  local and international real estate experts and investors in the industry, as well as top financial and legal minds on investing in real estate in Jamaica and globally, in addition to building wealth.

In the lineup  are several international and local experts namely: International realtor, Matthew Garland, popularly known as, “The Mortgage Guy,” podcaster and entrepreneur, Omar Wisdom, lead international mortgage broker and CEO, Wisdom Mortgages; Wayne Brooks, international real estate investor and success mentor; Shaneka Shaw Taylor, lawyer and realtor; Kalilah Reynolds, journalist and entrepreneur; Ryan Taylor, CEO, TASC Property Appraisals; Michelle O’Connor, CEO, Strategy with Michelle, Stacey Hines, CEO, Epic Transformation Inc.; and Natalie Barham, CEO, Design Your Wealth.

Garland boasts over 19 years in the real estate industry in the US and is a bestselling author who will share his knowledge on real estate investing.  With increasing interest in international real estate investing, Garland will share practical pointers, resources and skills on how to seize global real estate opportunities at the conference.

The event is organised by Jamaica-born financial strategist and the powerhouse behind Profit Jumpstarter, Keisha Bailey.

Bailey, a strategist-turned-real estate investor, notes that, “this event is designed to create a space where industry experts and investors can share information and best practices, network, as well as tap into existing opportunities and delve deeper into the power of real estate investing.”  

“Hosting this conference in Jamaica, allows Jamaicans to also unlock the keys to real estate investing in a strategic way, affording them the chance to own their piece of paradise or build out their real estate portfolio within and outside of Jamaica,” she added.

Bailey further revealed, “I am passionate about this conference as someone who has amassed the knowledge to help others build wealth having served as financial expert, for over 18 years in the Jamaican and Canadian financial sectors, and I want to use this opportunity to share these strategies with others so that more Jamaicans can build wealth through real estate investment, which is a time-tested wealth model that has helped countless individuals.” She notes further that “understanding the power of real estate investing and learning how to explore and use strategies and insights to navigate this industry will no doubt position individuals for financial prosperity.”

The viability of the Jamaican real estate market is evident by the resilience shown during the COVID-19 Pandemic, with construction, real estate, renting and other business registering growth as high as 6.4 per cent and 2.1 per cent at its height, data from the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) shows.

Demand for real estate remains high and the government has responded by increasing the loan ceiling offered by the State-run National Housing Trust to J$7.5 million, for a single applicant as at July 1, up from J$6.5 million while also adjusting interest rates for all mortgagors. Market interest rates have also remained close to single digit, which augurs well for real estate investors and home owners.