Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) is launching a major consumer education initiative, set to take place on New Providence and Grand Bahama this weekend.
RBC, along with the Bahamas Real Estate Association (BREA) and the law firm Higgs & Johnson, is hosting the "Home Buying Made Easy" mortgage seminar at the bank's Carmichael Road office. A similar event will be held on Grand Bahama.
The one-hour seminars are part of the bank's Home and Auto Expo and will cover several topics including: purchasing the right home; the legal aspects of buying a home; planning for your purchase/home construction; managing extra costs and taking advantage of mortgage options.
Saturday's seminars follow a series of seminars held in Abaco, Exuma and Eleuthera over the past two weeks.
"Through these seminars, RBC and its New Providence partners hope to give clients a better understanding of the mortgage process, legal requirements and financial commitment needed to achieve home ownership," explained Deborah Zonicle, RBC's marketing manager. Free pre-qualification is also being offered so that attendees will have an opportunity to understand the amount they can qualify for before shopping for a home or property.
BREA President Franon Wilson commended RBC for hosting the expo on Saturday, as it seeks to assist Bahamians to achieve their goal of home ownership.
"We commend RBC for adding this educational component to the expo because when people look to own a home, it takes a lot in terms of planning in order to make it happen. So the more information that people have, they will be able to better execute that plan," he told Guardian Business.
During the events on New Providence and Grand Bahama, attendees can get pre-qualified for a car or mortgage. The expo will be held at RBC's Carmichael Road branch from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Real estate companies and developers, auto dealers, home maintenance providers and insurance companies will be participating in Saturday's events and will offer special pricing, discount coupons and giveaways exclusively to attendees.
Tanya McCartney, managing director at RBC FINCO, urged Bahamians to take advantage of this unique opportunity.
"The RBC team is looking forward to serving the Bahamian public this Saturday and assisting them with their financial needs. We strongly encourage the public to participate in the Home Buying Made Easy mortgage seminar," she explained.
Saturday's events come on the heels of the recent launch of the bank's summer mortgage campaign.

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