It is not impossible to own a piece of the rock - Bermudians just have to save like mad and be a bit creative when it comes to financing.

This is the message from Frederica Forth, business development manager at Bank of Bermuda, who over the years has helped hundreds of Bermudians buy their own homes.

“There was a single mother with three children who now owns her own condo,” she said. “It was hard work, and it is not her dream house yet, but she is on her way. She bought it for $460,000 three years ago and it is now worth $530,000.”

Ms Forth will be speaking tonight as part of a panel organised by Bank of Bermuda called: “How to own a piece of the rock”. The free, after-work seminars will run tomorrow evening as well and include other professionals including realtors and lawyers.

Ms Forth is convinced that it was not impossible for someone on $40,000 or $50,000 - an average Bermuda salary - to work towards owning their own home.

“It does not happen overnight and it takes discipline and hard work,” she said. “But it can be done - I have seen people do it. You just have to be dedicated and be realistic.”

Ms Forth explained that if a person can save up a bit of money and can get friends, family or godparents to help by loaning them money, in a few years when the property is worth more money, the loan can be paid off through re-mortgaging the house at its new, higher value.

And she said people will not get their dream house the first time they buy, and may have to settle for a condo or for a house further afield or that needs to be fixed up.

Then, in a few years, when more money has been saved, and the value of their own house has gone up, then they can look at moving up the housing rung until they get to where they want to go.

Ms Forth said that interest from ordinary Bermudians in owning their own homes was high, with about 20 people coming through the doors of the bank looking for a mortgage every week.

“This does not include the pre-approved loans that we do on a regular basis,” she said. Ms Forth said that getting a pre-approved mortgage was vital if you were bargain hunting for a house - because if something cheap came up, everything was ready to go, and a deal could be sealed quickly.

“What we help you with is financing,” said Ms Forth. “We can help you work out a plan to achieve your goals, and help you find out just what you can afford now or in a few year's time. I am a great believer in saving. The earlier you start saving the better.

“For example if you are young and you do not buy those chips every week, and save the money instead, it is amazing how much you can build up. Every bit counts, and the earlier you start the better.”

And Ms Forth is excited about the seminars, and hopes the other panellists and herself will be able to help a few more Bermudians reach their goal of owning their own homes.

“Personally it is about giving back and educating,” said Ms Forth. “Most Bermudians want to own a piece of the rock and there usually is a way of doing it.”

She said that many people from less privileged backgrounds were also afraid of taking on such large amounts of debt that buying a house required, but there were ways of investing money that could help you get there.

Schemes such as buying for an investment, where the house is let out to cover the mortgage without the owner living in it.

“The average home is about $1 million, according to the latest reports,” she said. “Most people want to own this kind of house now, which may not be possible.

“But they can come to us and we can tell them what we are willing to lend. It may not get you your dream house, but if you think there is a 20 percent growth every six months - that means in a year it will have grown in value 40 percent. So in the long run it could be a good thing to do.”

She said a loan for a $750,000 house, over 30 years with a 7.5 percent interest rate, would have to make monthly payments of $5,373 per month. And to lend this kind of money, a couple would have to earn $10,800 a month.

And while the amounts for houses each year seemed to get more extreme, they had historically always gone up in value.

“The condos at Devon Springs were $375,000 five years ago. One went on the market at $700,000 recently,” she said. “So you can see the kind of returns you can get.”

The seminars are being held at the Bank of Bermuda Compass Point Building on the fifth floor from 5.30 p.m. tonight and tomorrow.