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With all of the development that is currently taking place in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) such as, Scrub Island, Beef Island, and Raffles Resort…We bring you part two of the article that was written by our first guest author. If you missed the first part of the post you can read from the beginning here:
http://www.mytropicalescape.com/2007/07/03/buying-a-home-in-the-british-virgin-islands/

Also, if you have the chance, take a look at our new feature, “Daily Photo” where I will be posting some new photos, some pictures from our travel archives, and anything esle that I find interesting.

Part 2 - Buying in the British Virgin Islands - Author Guest Writer begins below:

TO BUY (or NOT TO BUY)?

1. Market investigation –You will probably spend a minimum of 3 months. There are nine real Estate agencies listed in the yellow pages and you will want to visit many of them.  The realtor is your contact, just as in the US; so you need to find the person who you can work with best and is representing the home or land that you are interested in purchasing. You go through the usual steps of making an offer, counter offers are made etc. Until you and the seller have an agreement. You will probably want an inspection and you are required to have an appraisal and to provide an “ extract map”, essentially a survey map of the property and it’s neighbors.  The realtor will probably refer you to a lawyer to begin the next part of the process, although you can use the services of a local business company at less cost to you.

2. “Non Belonger” Land Holding License – This process is unique to the BVI. You must apply for this license in order to close the sale. Each applicant is required to provide: three personal references, a financial status report and a police report from your last jurisdiction. This process can take up to one year, although the government is making efforts to expedite them faster. The application goes to many different offices and is logged into a book as it is moved along the process so you can check on the status. Make sure you keep copies of all of the papers as there are many pieces in the folder and they sometimes do get misplaced. Waiting for the license is a source of anxiety, especially as the contract states that either party can cancel the agreement if the license is not granted within 12 months. Home prices had increased significantly while we waited and we worried that the seller might use this opportunity to sell again. This constituted many visits to the government and pleas to our lawyer as we got very close to the deadline. In all likely hood, the seller was just as anxious as we were as he had waited so long to close on his deal.

3. Landholding license is granted- The governor signs the landholding license, and your representative registers it, then closing is immediate. It is a very short meeting to hand over papers as the financing had already been accomplished through the lawyer. Ours was completed in about 10 minutes. None of the long, complicated signing of papers that you have in the US (see Mark and Terrie-buying Palmetto Guesthouse). You can immediately take occupancy as most homes come furnished.

4. Now you have a license and a home- A very important piece of information is that the landholding license entitles you to only six months of living in the BVI. This is usually enough for most people as the BVI home is often a second (winter) home. If you plan to occupy your home for more than six months, this is an entirely new process that you must go through with The  Department of  Immigration and there is no guarantee that you will be granted the additional time.

Final thoughts-We don’t wish to make this sound too negative. We love our home and the country where we have chosen to live. We certainly had our times of frustration and doubts going through the process; but we were fortunate to work with good people who were encouraging and patient with us, listened to our concerns and offered solutions. We found the employees at Natural Resources, where the license begins and ends its journey, were always available to help and advise. It can be done with knowledge, planning, patience and adaptability.