Turks & Caicos Islands Government Announces Stamp Duty WaiverFor Property Transfers Valued at $2M and UnderFrom Sep 21st to Dec 20th, 2020
The stamp duty waiver on property transfers would be available to all eligible applicants that transacts a transfer on or after the 21st September 2020 but before 20th December 2020.
The stamp duty waiver granted would be as follows: 75% reduction of stamp duty on property valued up to $2 million, made between 21st September to 20th October 2020 50% reduction of stamp duty on property valued up to $2 million, made between 21st October to 20th November 2020 25% reduction of stamp duty on property valued up to $2 million, made between 21st November 2020 to 20th December 2020
We are here to assist you through this process. If you have any questions please contact your local real estate sales associate at Turks & Caicos Sotheby’s International Realty. Office: 1.649.946.4474 | info@tcsothebysrealty.com
Although many of us would expect Covid 19 to trigger a reduction in second home demand, nothing could be further from the truth on the Caribbean Island of Turks & Caicos. The Sotheby’s Turks & Caicos office reportedly closed $70M in sales during the month of June. Some speculate that the high sales are the result of the reduced stamp duty on the islands, but is there something more significant driving these high sales volumes?
Defying the Odds – First Half of 2020 Up Over Same Period Last Year
In late March, our world, and everything in it, came to a screeching halt, as Turks & Caicos Islands closed its borders to tourists and visitors through the end of June. Resorts, restaurants, airports and businesses closed and real estate deals, after a strong Q1, were either canceled or deferred.
However, unlike the aftermath of the financial crisis of September 2009, where we had weak fundamentals and luxury buyers disappeared, the opposite has occurred, with luxury and other buyers remaining in the game and continuing to shop and purchase real estate. Reports from our Sotheby’s International Realty network echo similar strength and trends in the US and Canada, and many countries internationally. In this regard, our market demand has shown much greater resilience and further, there has not been a flight to list property. So far, at least, our market has backed up prior assertions that we are stronger and fundamentally healthier. There are several reasons for this. First, we do not have an oversupply of inventory; second, we have very few speculators in the market; third, our debt–to–equity ratio is very low; fourth, throughout North America and beyond, there has been a COVID-19 surge to quality, open space and “safe” havens, and TCI checks all of these boxes. Finally, and most importantly, we continue to work diligently to communicate and serve our clients and customers. From our regular virtual internal team meetings to participation in Industry Zoom conferences, and virtual showings with customers and clients across the globe, we have placed quality communication at the forefront. In this regard, it is inspiring that we feel more connected with our network, team and community than ever.
As real estate elsewhere has dropped, the Caribbean nation has seen records broken despite the global pandemic, according to Mauricio Umansky, founder and CEO of real estate firm The Agency.
“We have definitely seen some extraordinary prices,” he told FOX Business.
South Bank is a low density 31-acre residential resort and marina community along 2,200 ft of beach and iron shore including a unique peninsula located on the southwestern end of Long Bay beach, offering some of the finest views over the Caicos Banks.
Sales volume of single-family homes in Turks and Caicos during the first quarter of 2020 outpaced the same period of 2019, and condo sales outpaced the two previous years to date, according to a Sotheby’s International Realty report.
Turks and Caicos is conveniently close to the U.S. and boasts some of the world’s best beaches, according to Umansky. The country also uses the U.S. dollar and has no property, income or capital gains taxes. The real estate market was already seeing big growth there last year, and it benefited from publicity around the sales of luxury homes that had belonged to Prince and Bruce Willis.
Wealthy Americans looking to vacation in Turks and Caicos were more likely to rent before the pandemic, so they could spend a summer there and then jet off to another luxury locale the next year, according to Umansky. But he said the pandemic has made the rich realize they want to own a second home outside crowded cities so they have someplace comfortable to stay in the event of a similar event.
“So there’s a big trend, they want to have a place to sequester and to have that second home if this happens again, and to have a home where the whole family can go, not just a little apartment that they don’t all fit in,” he said.
Turks and Caicos officials did close its borders in March as a result of the pandemic. The country has remained relatively unscathed by COVID-19, with just 12 cases and one death among the popular of 39,000 people, according to the World Health Organization. As of June 15, officials said there were no active cases of the illness in the country.
Beach Enclave’s newest boutique resort offering – the first true luxury boutique resort in TCI.
The Turks and Caicos government also incentivized real estate purchases during the pandemic by offering a 50 percent cut in stamp duty, waiving custom duties on construction materials and cutting planning fees by half, the Caribbean Journal reported.
Now the border is set to reopen on July 22 when Providenciales Airport reopens. The Grand Turk Cruise Center is also scheduled to reopen on Aug. 31.
With real estate outpacing the market in 2019 even during the pandemic, Umansky said he’s expecting even more growth once visitors can return.
“It’s back on and we’re selling,” he said. “It’s pretty incredible.”
Of course, Turks and Caicos isn’t the only vacation spot to see a boost in interest among wealthy homebuyers amid the pandemic. The Bahamas have also seen a “very solid rise in their real estate sales,” according to Umansky. He also spoke to FOX Business about the rise in popularity of ski towns like Aspen, Colorado and Park City, Utah as year-round getaways. And a run on vacation homes in traditional escapes for the rich and famous like the Hamptons has been well-documented.
Real estate in general is also recovering and getting closer to catching up with last year’s pre-coronavirus market, Umansky said.
“That gap is narrowing on a daily basis,” he said.
Amayara Resort – Located on the secluded Northwestern tip of Providenciales, bordering a national park.
“Since the reopening of the construction site on May 11,the safety of our working men and women on site has been prioritized, following local health guidelines…whereas these guidelines have added unexpected new steps to our processes, the construction continues unabated and the project is advancing well….the project has advanced considerably, with several homes reaching roof level and the resort main pool and its adjacent building advancing”-Mark Durliat, CEO and Principal of Rockhouse
“Rock House is perfectly positioned to complete and open in 2021to meet the growing demand from buyers seeking their own retreatswhere privacy, space, high quality of design and service are likely to be even more sought-after. A selection of elegantly designed cottages, each with their own private pool, will enjoy access to the superb amenity set of the newest boutique resort coming to Turks & Caicos.” Nina Siegenthaler, Vice President of Turks & Caicos Sotheby’s International Realty
1ST QUARTER 2020 CLOSES OUT ON A HIGH – PRE-COVID-19
As many of us are forced to slow down our lives and reflect inward, we are grateful for many things that this unprecedented time has brought us to evaluate, including of course our families, friends, communities and a country that has put all of our people first with their proactive decisions during this health crisis. We are further grateful to our TCI Government leaders, HE Premier Cartwright-Robinson, HE Governor Dakin, the Ministry of Health and their teams for their thoughtful leadership and communication.
As we begin to accept and absorb our new reality, we are advancing our way back to business activity and effectively working as a team and with clients and customers, and there are even new transactions in process, furthered by the recent reduction in Stamp Duty by 50%, which has provided a welcome trigger for short-term activity. Click link below to read more . . .
Turks & Caicos Real Estate Closes The Decade With Record Shattering Year On the Strength of Luxury Villa Sales
Turks & Caicos real estate sales closed out the second decade of the 21st-century with a bang, after entering it tepidly in 2010, as the following graphs demonstrates that villa sales represented around 52% of the total market in 2019. Circa $219.7M of the record $334.7M dollar volume were villa sales with a stunning average price point of $1.98M. This incredibly impressive performance speaks volumes for the power of the Turks and Caicos Islands brand, our private and public sector, and our wonderful investors, homeowners and visitors. If the past ten years can make history as our decade of the luxury villas, what will the next ten years’ headline be?
Impressive 3rd Quarter Leads TCI Market Towards Record Year
Led by our record-breaking sale of The Residence on Parrot Cay at $27,000,000, Q3 2019 posted an impressive gain over 2018 (up 38.8% from $64,785,600 to $89,918,500). Historically, Q3 is our sleepiest quarter, but it has become apparent over the past few years that TCI is now indeed a year-round market for both tourism and real estate, and not just a seasonal one, with strong summers and improving shoulder month performance. Overall, the market after three quarters is up 16.47% over last year in $ Volume ($241,145,500 vs. $207,048,195). This dollar volume is more than the market did in all of 2017! Average price is up 30% from $692,469 to $903,167.
Turks & Caicos Islands, the shining star of the Caribbean, continues to shine brightly as we see a steady influx of investor growth and activity in new development. The infrastructure improvements and ongoing utility upgrades will further improve to serve the luxury standards now set by our luxury home-grown brands and with the most recent entrance of world renowned brands such as Ritz-Carlton and Andaz. The construction industry has been busy for the past five years as we have witnessed villa projects and new homes being built on recently sold land parcels. In addition, high end land purchasers who desired to build from scratch, or who could not find a home/villa that fit their needs, have embarked on some amazing new homes and estate homes, relying on the expertise of local architects, builders and consultants, proceeded to build their own custom dream vacation homes. There is evidence of this impressive array of private development throughout the Turks & Caicos, especially in the luxury sector, as the islands continue to grow as the destination of choice for many real estate investors and visitors. Click on link to view full report.
Turks & Caicos Sotheby’s International Realty and Beach Enclave Grace Bay are happy to announce that the first villa is now complete! Beachfront Villa 2, a two-story, five-bedroom luxury villa is ready for the owners to enjoy. With only one beachfront villa remaining for sale this villa development is well on its way to full completion.
Turks & Caicos Real Estate | Caribbean 