Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Prime Harbor Estates ("we", "us", "our") respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you interact with us, use our services, visit our website, or engage with our marketing and communication channels in South Africa.

By using our services or providing us with your personal information, you agree to the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

2. Who We Are

Prime Harbor Estates is a real estate company operating in South Africa. We provide property-related services including (but not limited to) property sales, lettings, property management, advisory and related services.

3. Information We Collect

We may collect and process the following categories of personal information:

3.1. Identification and Contact Details

• Full name
• Identity or passport number (where necessary and lawful)
• Contact details (phone numbers, email address, physical and postal address)
• Date of birth (where required for compliance and verification)

3.2. Property and Transaction Information

• Property preferences, search criteria and requirements
• Property ownership details (e.g., title deed information where applicable)
• Purchase, sale, lease, or rental history
• Offer to purchase or lease information
• Financial and affordability-related information required for transactions (e.g., proof of income, bank confirmation, bond pre-approval details) when necessary

3.3. Business and Professional Information

• Employer details and occupation (where relevant to a transaction)
• Company details if you are acting on behalf of a business (e.g., directors, signatories, registration number)

3.4. Compliance and Verification Data

• Know-Your-Customer (KYC) documentation required by law (e.g., FICA-related documentation: proof of address, identification documents)
• Records of screening against legally required watchlists or sanctions lists, where applicable

3.5. Technical and Usage Data

• IP address and device information
• Browser type, operating system and settings
• Pages visited, time and date of visits, and referring websites
• Cookies and similar tracking technologies (see section 9)

3.6. Communication Data

• Records of communications with us via email, phone, SMS, messaging platforms, social media or website forms
• Marketing preferences and responses to campaigns or surveys

4. How We Collect Your Information

We collect personal information:

• Directly from you when you contact us, complete forms, sign agreements, request property information, attend viewings or open houses, or use our website or digital channels
• From property portals, listing platforms or partners where you have expressed interest in our listings or services
• From public sources, such as the Deeds Office, public property registers, and other publicly available records
• From third parties such as credit bureaus, financial institutions, attorneys, conveyancers, or other professional service providers as required for transactions and compliance
• Automatically through cookies and similar technologies when you access our website or digital platforms

5. Legal Basis for Processing (POPIA and Applicable Law)

In South Africa, we primarily process your personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA) and other applicable laws. Our legal bases include:

• Your consent
• The need to perform a contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract
• Compliance with legal and regulatory obligations (e.g., FICA, tax, anti-money laundering requirements)
• Our legitimate interests in operating and improving our business, provided such interests do not override your rights and freedoms

6. How We Use Your Information

We may use your personal information for the following purposes:

• To provide and manage our real estate services, including property sales, purchases, rentals, and management
• To respond to your enquiries, schedule property viewings, and communicate with you about your property interests
• To prepare, negotiate and execute contracts or other legal documents
• To conduct due diligence, identity verification and FICA/KYC checks
• To liaise with relevant third parties such as attorneys, banks, bond originators, inspectors, body corporates, homeowners’ associations and service providers
• To process payments, commissions and fees, and maintain proper accounting and financial records
• To send you property alerts, market updates, newsletters, promotional material and other marketing communications in line with your preferences and applicable law
• To personalise your experience and provide recommendations based on your property preferences
• To operate, maintain and improve our website, systems and services
• To detect, prevent and respond to fraud, security incidents and misuse of our services
• To comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes and enforce agreements

7. Sharing and Disclosure of Your Information

We may share your personal information with:

• Our employees, agents and authorised representatives who need the information to perform their duties
• Professional advisers and service providers involved in property transactions, such as attorneys, conveyancers, bond originators, banks, insurers, valuers, surveyors, contractors, inspectors, and property managers
• Business partners, affiliates or contractors who provide services on our behalf (e.g., IT support, marketing, data hosting, analytics), subject to appropriate confidentiality and data protection obligations
• Government authorities, regulators, law enforcement agencies or public bodies when required by law or to protect our legal rights or the rights of others
• Prospective buyers, tenants, landlords, sellers or their representatives, but only to the extent necessary to facilitate a transaction or as required in marketing and showing properties (e.g., limited contact details or property-related information)
• Third parties in connection with a merger, acquisition, sale of assets, corporate restructuring or similar transaction, subject to appropriate safeguards

We do not sell your personal information.

8. Cross-Border Transfers

Your personal information may be transferred to and processed in other countries if necessary for the purposes described in this Policy (for example, where service providers or cloud hosting providers are located outside South Africa). In such cases, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the recipients are subject to laws, binding corporate rules or contractual obligations that provide an adequate level of protection for your personal information, in line with POPIA and other applicable laws.

9. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We may use cookies and similar technologies on our website to:

• Enable website functionality and security
• Remember your preferences and improve your experience
• Analyse website traffic and usage patterns
• Support marketing and advertising activities

You can adjust your browser settings to refuse cookies or to alert you when cookies are being used. However, some features of the website may not function properly without certain cookies.

10. Data Retention

We keep your personal information for as long as reasonably necessary to:

• Fulfil the purposes for which it was collected
• Complete any contracts or transactions with you
• Comply with legal, regulatory, tax, accounting and reporting obligations
• Resolve disputes and enforce our rights

Where possible, we will anonymise or securely destroy personal information that is no longer needed.

11. Data Security

We implement reasonable and appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, disclosure or access. These measures include, where appropriate:

• Access controls and authentication mechanisms
• Secure storage and encryption where feasible
• Regular software updates and security monitoring
• Internal policies, training and confidentiality agreements for staff handling personal information

Despite our efforts, no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. You are responsible for keeping any passwords or access credentials confidential.

12. Your Rights

Subject to applicable law and certain limitations, you may have the right to:

• Request access to the personal information we hold about you
• Request correction or updating of inaccurate, incomplete or outdated information
• Request deletion of your personal information where legally permissible
• Object to or restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances
• Withdraw your consent where processing is based on consent (this will not affect processing carried out before withdrawal)
• Object to the use of your information for direct marketing purposes

To exercise your rights, please contact us using the details provided in section 13. We may require proof of identity before processing your request, and we may charge a reasonable fee for access in line with applicable legislation.

13. Contact Details and Complaints

If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our handling of your personal information, please contact our information officer or designated representative using the contact details published on our official website or other communication channels.

If you believe your privacy rights have been infringed, you may also lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator in South Africa. Details of the Information Regulator are available at: https://inforegulator.org.za/

14. Direct Marketing

We may use your contact details to send you information about properties, services, promotions, events or market insights that may be of interest to you. You can opt out of direct marketing communications at any time by using the unsubscribe link in our emails or by contacting us directly. We will then no longer send you marketing messages, although we may still contact you regarding ongoing or past transactions and service-related matters.

15. Third-Party Websites and Services

Our website, listings or communications may contain links to third-party websites, platforms or services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those third parties. We encourage you to read their privacy policies before providing them with your personal information.

16. Children’s Privacy

Our services are not intended for children under the age of 18, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from minors without appropriate consent as required by law. If we become aware that we have collected personal information from a minor without the necessary consent, we will take reasonable steps to delete such information.

17. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal or regulatory requirements, or technological developments. The updated version will be posted on our website with a revised effective date. We encourage you to review this Policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information.

18. Effective Date

This Privacy Policy is effective as of the date indicated on our website or the communication through which it is made available and remains in force until amended or replaced.