[2007-05-21]  Phakalane to launch starter apartments for the youth
A new product to be launched in July by Phakalane Properties may be the answer to many aspiring home-owners.
Although he would not reveal much as negotiations with partners are still going on, the Managing Director of the company, Lesang Magang, hinted that they were looking at launching the product, which will cater for anyone gainfully employed, single women, single mother or a people without a joint income property.

"Property ownership is the means that will empower you," he told a gathering at a women's leadership conference held at the Gaborone Sun recently. Magang said they were going to come up with starter apartments in Phakalane, adding that people should not dream only of saving for a three bed-roomed house.

A starter apartment with one or two bedrooms should be good enough for anyone, he said. Magang said his company was disturbed that a graduate earning P5, 000 could hardly afford anything, qualifying only for a loan of P100, 000.

He said a person born and raised in the middle of Gaborone could easily be "priced out" of the big city's property market, unless there was assistance from family


This had been the case in other cities like London, New York and Johannesburg where properties were out of the reach of those born and bred there.

Magang said that when acquiring property, it is important to consider location and how much the property would return if sold in accordance with starting a family or changing lifestyles. He said Phakalane had a historical growth on its properties.

Magang said that banks tended to give more respect to property owners. He said
although it was none of his business to advise people against buying expensive cars, such cars looked better when parked at own properties.


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