KINGSTON, Jamaica – For generations of Jamaicans who have built lives outside their home country, owning property or investing in the land of their birth remains a deeply held goal. To help turn that aspiration into well-informed, secure action, the Jamaica National (JN) Group has organized a special virtual event ahead of the country’s major upcoming diaspora gathering: the “Securing Your Piece of the Rock” pre-conference webinar. The online session, scheduled to kick off at 1:30 p.m. Jamaica time on Thursday, May 21, 2026, will connect overseas Jamaicans and other interested investors with top industry insiders and stakeholders to unpack every dimension of cross-border real estate investment in Jamaica. Unlike generic investment information sessions, this webinar is tailored specifically to the unique needs of people based outside the country, addressing common pain points and questions that have repeatedly emerged from diaspora communities. At its core, the event will break down both the promising opportunities and the potential hurdles of investing in Jamaican real estate from abroad, while walking attendees through the practical step-by-step process of completing a successful transaction. Beyond high-level discussion, organizers have designed the session to deliver actionable support: participants will gain clear guidance on which local institutions, industry experts, and government agencies to engage with at every stage of their investment journey, as well as details on how to access these key resources remotely from outside Jamaica. This pre-conference webinar is a core lead-up event to the 11th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference, which will take place in-person from June 14 to 18, 2026, at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St James. The decision to center the webinar on real estate did not come from internal guesswork, but from direct input from the diaspora itself. Paulette Simpson, JN Group’s Executive for Corporate Affairs and Public Policy, who also serves as co-chair of the main conference’s preparatory planning committee, explained that the topic was selected based on a global survey of Jamaican diaspora members carried out by Jamaica’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade. “One of the main areas that Jamaicans abroad wanted to discuss and learn more about was Jamaica’s property market. In response to this, JN has taken the lead to host this webinar,” Simpson said. “We’re going to be discussing and guiding persons on investing in property in Jamaica because we want everybody to own a piece of the rock.” The event’s agenda covers a wide range of critical topics that matter most to overseas investors. Attendees will learn how to safely identify and acquire land in Jamaica, walk through the separate processes for purchasing personal residential property and investing in commercial real estate, get clarity on how to access mortgage products from abroad, and explore third-party property management options that work for non-resident owners. The agenda also addresses common long-standing challenges, including understanding land titling rules, resolving disputes tied to family-owned land, and navigating key legal considerations to avoid costly missteps during transactions. For the JN Group, the webinar fulfills a core mission to empower diaspora communities to invest confidently in their home country. “Part of our role is to ensure that the correct information is given to the diaspora so they can make informed decisions that will benefit themselves, their families and Jamaica as a whole,” Simpson added. To deliver authoritative, reliable guidance, the webinar has assembled a lineup of seasoned panellists with deep expertise across Jamaica’s real estate and finance sectors. Confirmed participants include Elizabeth Stair, a real estate broker with JN Properties and former chief executive officer of Jamaica’s National Land Agency (NLA); Wanica Purkiss, a mortgage broker and former mortgage executive at Jamaica National; Gabrielle Grant Gilpin-Hudson, president of the Realtors’ Association of Jamaica; and Dwayne Berbick, Assistant General Manager of Corporate Affairs and Public Policy at the National Housing Trust (NHT). Additional industry professionals joining the panel include Dave Hanson, Chief Product Officer for Mortgages at JN Bank; Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Sean Prendergast, Managing Director of JN Properties; and Carlton Earl Samuels, Chief Development Financing Officer at the JN Group. Organizers anticipate strong turnout from Jamaican diaspora communities across the globe, including large concentrations in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and other Caribbean nations, with attendees ranging from people planning to retire or relocate back to Jamaica to those seeking to expand their investment portfolios with local real estate. The session will be moderated by Karon Lewis, a mortgage specialist and acting Business Relationship Manager at JN Bank, and will include dedicated time for attendees to submit comments and ask questions directly to the panel of experts. Registration for the event is open now, with interested participants able to sign up via the official JN Group webpage at https://www.jngroup.com/webinar-registration/, or access the live stream directly through the JN Group’s YouTube channel.
Pre-diaspora conference webinar to spotlight Jamaica’s real estate market opportunities
