Privacy Policy

Your assessment data stays on your device. Here’s exactly what we collect and why.

Overview

The short version: Your property assessment data is stored locally on your device and never leaves it. For premium subscribers, your email address and subscription status are stored securely in the cloud (Firebase). All payments are processed by PayFast — we never see your card details. We don’t sell your data.

This Privacy Policy describes how Joel Apex Solutions (“we”, “our”, or “us”) collects, uses, and protects information in connection with the Home Buyers Guide SA mobile application and website (propertyinspector.site).

Effective date: 1 January 2026  ·  Last updated: August 2026

Information We Collect

Assessment data (free & premium users)

All property assessment data you create — property details, room assessments, photos, scores, and notes — is stored locally on your device only. This data never leaves your device unless you explicitly export or share it.

Account & subscription data (premium subscribers only)

When you subscribe to a premium plan, we collect and store:

  • Email address — used for account authentication (Firebase Auth passwordless sign-in) and subscription management
  • Subscription status — your plan type, activation date, next billing date, and subscription status (active / cancelled)
  • PayFast subscription token — a reference token issued by PayFast to manage your recurring billing. We do not store card numbers or payment details.

This account data is stored securely in Google Firebase Firestore (a cloud database) and is associated with your email address.

Automatically collected information

We collect limited analytics data to improve the app experience:

  • Firebase Analytics: anonymous usage events (screens viewed, features used). No personally identifiable information is included.
  • AdMob: anonymous advertising identifiers for serving relevant ads to free-tier users.
  • Crash reports: anonymous crash data to help us fix bugs.

We do not collect: names, phone numbers, location data, or financial information. We do not store credit card numbers or bank details at any point.

Payment Processing

Premium subscriptions are processed exclusively by PayFast, South Africa’s leading payment gateway. PayFast is a registered Payment Service Provider compliant with PCI-DSS standards.

What PayFast handles

  • All credit/debit card details, Instant EFT, and Capitec Pay transactions
  • Recurring billing for your subscription plan
  • Refund processing

What we receive from PayFast

  • Confirmation that a payment was completed
  • A subscription token (anonymous reference ID for managing renewals)
  • The email address you used at checkout

We never see or store your card number, CVV, bank account details, or any raw payment credentials. These are handled entirely by PayFast on their secure servers.

PayFast is subject to their own Privacy Policy. View it at payfast.co.za/privacy-policy.

Subscription cancellation

You can cancel your subscription at any time from within the app (Settings → Cancel Subscription) or by contacting us at homebuyersguidesa@gmail.com. Upon cancellation, your premium access ends immediately and no further payments are charged.

Data Storage

On-device storage (all users)

All property assessment data is stored in your device’s local storage (IndexedDB). It never leaves your device unless you choose to export it.

Photos you attach to assessments are stored locally on your device, embedded in the app’s database. They are not uploaded to any server.

Exported PDF reports are generated entirely on-device and are only shared when you actively choose to share them (via email, WhatsApp, etc.). We do not have access to any reports you generate.

Cloud storage (premium subscribers only)

If you subscribe to a premium plan, the following is stored in Google Firebase Firestore (cloud):

  • Your email address
  • Your subscription plan and status
  • Your PayFast subscription token (for billing management)
  • Next billing date

Assessment content (property data, photos, notes) is never stored in the cloud, even for premium subscribers.

Data Security

Assessment data stored locally on your device is protected by your device’s own security (screen lock, encryption, etc.).

All data transmitted between the app and our cloud services (Firebase Auth, Firestore, Cloud Functions) is encrypted in transit using industry-standard TLS encryption. Firebase services comply with ISO 27001, SOC 1, SOC 2, and SOC 3 security standards.

Payment data is processed exclusively by PayFast on their PCI-DSS compliant infrastructure. We do not transmit or store payment credentials on our servers.

If you uninstall the app, all locally stored assessment data is permanently deleted from your device. Cloud account data (for premium subscribers) is retained until you request deletion by contacting us.

Data Sharing

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to third parties.

Data is shared with the following service providers only to the extent necessary to operate the app:

  • Google Firebase (Google LLC) — authentication, cloud database (Firestore), analytics, and cloud functions. Receives your email address and subscription data for premium subscribers.
  • PayFast (DPO Group) — payment processing. Receives your email address and processes your payment. We do not control what PayFast stores; refer to their Privacy Policy.
  • Google AdMob (Google LLC) — in-app advertising for free-tier users only. Receives anonymous device advertising identifiers.

We may disclose information if required by South African law (POPIA) or court order. In such cases, we will notify you unless prohibited from doing so.

App Permissions

The app requests the following Android permissions:

  • Camera / Photo access: to capture photos during property assessments. Photos are stored locally only.
  • Microphone / Record Audio: to enable voice note capture during assessments (speech-to-text transcription, processed on-device). Audio is never uploaded or stored as a recording — only the transcribed text is saved.
  • Storage read/write: to save and read assessment data and exported PDFs on your device.
  • Internet: for analytics, ads, Firebase authentication, subscription verification, and PayFast payment processing.
  • Notifications: to send optional assessment reminder notifications. You can disable these in Settings.

Location permissions are not requested or used.

The Web App (propertyinspector.site/app/) version uses the same permissions via browser APIs rather than native Android permissions.

Children’s Privacy

Home Buyers Guide SA is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided personal information through the app, please contact us and we will address it promptly.

Your Control Over Your Data

You have full control over all data within the app:

  • Delete properties: remove individual assessments and all associated data from within the app.
  • Clear all data: uninstalling the app permanently removes all locally stored assessment data.
  • Cancel subscription: cancel anytime from Settings → Cancel Subscription. No further charges will occur.
  • Export: generate a PDF report at any time to share or keep a record externally.
  • Delete your account & cloud data: email us at homebuyersguidesa@gmail.com to request permanent deletion of your email and subscription data from Firebase Firestore.

To opt out of analytics tracking, you can use Android’s standard “Opt out of Ads Personalisation” setting in your device’s Google settings.

Third-Party Services

The app uses the following third-party services, each with their own privacy policies:

This website (propertyinspector.site) uses Google Analytics to understand traffic patterns. Standard browser cookies may be used for this purpose.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date. Continued use of the app after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

Significant changes will be communicated via an in-app notice.

Contact Us

For any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your data:

Joel Apex Solutions
Email: homebuyersguidesa@gmail.com
Website: propertyinspector.site

Home Buyers Guide SA  ·  © 2026 Joel Apex Solutions  ·  Johannesburg, South Africa