Buying a house through the Internet<\/p>\n
The young couple was cruising slowly in the Raffles Hills
\nhousing estate. This was an important trip -- for house-hunting
\n-- as they planned to get married in less than a year. Their
\nentire morning and afternoon were spent with an informative
\npersonal survey on the brand-new houses in this estate and
\nfollowed by the other nearby estates in the Cibubur and Cilengsi
\nareas, such as Citra Grand, Kota Wisata and Legenda Wisata. \"Both
\nof us are of the same opinion: the houses we've seen are
\nexcellent and the location has a healthy environment,\" said the
\nman, who had the appearance of an executive.<\/p>\n
Next question was the price. Having both mid-priced and
\nupmarket houses, the houses in these estates were at least Rp 100
\nmillion (US$11,750). Besides their personal savings for the down
\npayment and furniture, the woman was certain that with their
\ncurrent careers they were eligible for loans from any of the
\nreputable banks in the country.<\/p>\n
Indeed, today, the country's economic situation has much
\nimproved, with the result that banks feel secure in providing
\nloans to both developers and consumers (see Table One).<\/p>\n
At least 40 major banks -- both state and private -- are
\nactively providing such loans, including the country's two
\ngiants, BCA and Bank Mandiri. Both are currently working in close
\ncooperation with two professional property brokers: BCA with
\nCentury-21 and Bank Mandiri with Raine & Horne. This means that
\nloans are provided, not only for purchase of new houses -- the
\nprimary market -- but also for the secondary property segment, or
\nsecondhand houses.<\/p>\n
Another leading bank -- Bank Tabungan Negara (BTN) -- which is
\nwell-known for its involvement in building a huge number of
\nsimple or modest houses around the country -- the RS and RSS
\ntypes -- has announced that it would allot more of its funds to
\nthe property sector. In 2002, this bank dispersed Rp 1.39
\ntrillion for the purchase of 35,000 houses, while this year the
\nbank will provide its customers with more than Rp 2.2 trillion
\nfor their housing needs.<\/p>\n
Other major banks that have jumped on the bandwagon are Bank
\nLippo, Bank Mega, Bank Internasional Indonesia (BII) spell out
\nwhat it is, Bank Bumi Putera, Bank Danamon, Bank Niaga and Bank
\nNISP, while real estate analysts estimate that the list of banks
\nwill grow longer in the near future.<\/p>\n
Bank Niaga, for example, as of September 2002 had provided
\nloans totalling Rp 75 billion and estimates an increase of 30
\npercent for 2003. Its house loan product, Niaga Specta Graha
\nKredit, has an 18 percent fixed interest rate for a variety of
\nhousing needs, including purchase of a new or secondhand house,
\nshop or even house renovation. The credit term is 15 years.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, as of September 2002, Bank NISP had provided loans
\ntotalling Rp 450 billion and this year's plan is a sum of Rp 1.5
\ntrillion. The bank's house loan product, KPR Merdeka,
\nincorporates the latest IT technology and customers can apply
\nonline through the Internet using their site: kprmerdeka.com.
\nTheir credit term is also 15 years and the money can be used for
\npurchases of low-priced as well as luxury houses that cost Rp 1
\nbillion each. Once a customer fulfills all the prerequisites the
\ncredit is approved within five days at the latest.<\/p>\n
\"This IT-incorporated loan product is our newest innovation
\nthat includes a credit simulation allowing the applicant to
\ncalculate and find out his or her ceiling of credit. The
\napplicant can also accurately calculate the price range of a
\nhouse he or she intends to buy based on their ability to make the
\ndown payments and the subsequent installments,\" explained
\npresident and CEO of Bank NISP Pramukti Surjaudaja.<\/p>\n
So, today, with the availability of sophisticated information
\ntechnology, purchasing a house -- or to be more precise, getting
\nyour loan from almost any major bank -- is just a click away.
\nSwitch on your computer, browse the Internet and you can easily
\nfind out the entire range of products and features from the
\nbank's website.<\/p>\n
-- Ari Darmawan<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/buying-a-house-through-the-internet-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }