Finance:

Do you have to use the finance package(s) on offer or can you pay for the plot outright?

You do not have to use the finance package and you can pay outright. However, if you do not use the finance package you do not have the exchange privilege. If you take the finance package it means you do not pay out for your land until 18, 24 or-36 months (whichever you choose). This means the land has not been to the Supreme Court for registration and therefore you have the flexibility with Bahama Acres to change to another location, buy a double plot etc.

Are the interest rates fixed or variable?

The interest rate is fixed for the time you have signed to your payment schedule e.g. over 18,24 , 30 or 36 months. Bahama Acres will not change these interest rates from those used in the signed agreement.

What happens if the interest rates go up or down significantly before I sign

Bahama Acres will not change these interest rates from those used in the signed agreement.

When were these interest rates set?

Bahama Acres made this arrangement with Coutts Bank back in 1998. These are very reasonable interest rates over very short periods.

Can I change the finance option once I have signed up to my package?

Yes you can change your finance option. You can opt to pay earlier.

Land Ownership:

Who owns these plots at the moment?

As in the offering the plots are owned by Bahama Acres Ltd, founded in 1960. The land (product) is called Bahama Sound.

Why are they being sold privately now, and not developed by the current owner? 

These plots were bought by the Moynahan family in 1937 and now the company is led by Jay Moynahan, who is not in the construction business and has no desire to be. He continues the selling of this land through the sales team led by Bill Hurlock who now lives in Exuma.

Does this mean that the value of the land will not go up significantly?

The value of the land will almost go up, especially when there are so few plots left. However, we cannot tell by how much. We cannot forecast the percentage of increase to any owner. It depends on the current market forces.

Does this mean there are other costs incurred by keeping hold of this land?

Once you become an owner, you have to join the Property Owners Association. This association is responsible to provide the maintenance of all the roads, parks and reserves in the Bahama Sound area. Each purchaser pays annual dues to this association, assessed on a per lot basis. The 2004 assessment is B$ (US$)50.00.

Building:

The use of local architects (or those registered in the Bahamas) to either design the house or review the plans sounds a bit restrictive?  What costs could be incurred by paying for a second architect should I use a UK one?

You can use a UK architect but (as in the UK) a local architect registered and licensed in that country, (in this case The Bahamas), must sign off the plans to ensure they conform to the local requirements. If a UK architect is used, the cost of a local Bahamian architect signing off is about B$200. UK architects work in centimetres, whereas Bahamian and US architects work in feet and inches. Any plans drawn by a UK architect to be submitted to the local authority, must be re-drawn by a Bahamian surveyor, which cost more than getting a Bahamian architect to sign off.

What is meant by “over designing” the home – are there planning restrictions on what I can build on the island and who controls these?  Where can I find more information on the sort of buildings I can construct?

The note on Building a home on Great Exuma is written by Bahama Sound to provide guidance to owners who want to build a house. "Overdesigning" in this instance was to ensure that people do not build what is not necessary. This term is not meant as another planning restriction. A local Bahamian architect or constructor can provide you with all the information on this and Bahama Acres can supply you with a number of names of local architects and builders.

Why does the vendor have a say in what gets built there?  (Schedule 2)  Surely this is just another layer of bureaucracy on top of all the planning departments and local architects we need to get through.

While this is stated on schedule 2 on page 13, it is more as a protection for all of the owners, it has also never been known that Bahama Acres has refused anyone permission. The final say is really from the Local Government Authority in Exuma.

Does this apply to anybody else should I resell my land?  Will this have an impact on the resale value if the ORIGINAL vendor has to be consulted over everything constructed there?

This will not apply when you resell your land. When you re-sell, Bahama Acres is not involved and has no say in it.

Amenities:

Who is responsible for the maintenance of the infrastructure – e.g. roads, power lines, drainage, etc and how much will this cost?

The Government is responsible for all of the infrastructure - government roads, power lines, drainage etc. The owners are responsible for infrastructure within their own property within the Bahama Sound section. As stated in the previous paragraph, the Property Owners Association to which you pay B$50.00 per annum, maintains the roads and parks within the owners’ section. Pipe water is available to various areas, but each owner is responsible for his own water supply. The estimated cost for a drilled well (pump tank, piping, installation all included) is approximately US$3,600.

Sewage is the same. It is the responsibility of each individual owner to provide a septic tank system – approximately US$2,000.

There is provision for the Government to “levy assessments for the installation, construction and maintenance of government roads and public utilities when population density warrants such action.”  (Schedule 2, part 10).  This sounds very much like the sort of thing that has happened in Spain where villa owners have found their land being grabbed back by the Spanish local government to allow the construction of roads etc.  What provisions are there to prevent the government from “land-grabbing”?

This is a reasonable clause but all government roads have been built and these stop at the entrance of your section. Therefore this should not affect any of the costs and they are unable to levy more costs in your own area.

Tax and other points:

Why is there a minimum floor area requirement on property size? Is this related to possible future floor area property tax?

There is a minimum floor area for property size (elaborated on page 15 of the General Offering). This is purely to protect that people cannot build just a shanty shack on their land. All the requirements are quite clearly stated in the offering. In section 18, the minimum size is 1,000 square feet and in section 12 it is 1,200 square feet. Generally, a home may not be 40 feet above the highest elevation … two storey (ground and first floors) – this restriction is to prevent high-rise building blocks. Looking at point 3 the boundary wall cannot be more than 4 foot high, the property must be minimum of 20 feet away from the road and a minimum of 8 feet to the side and back of the property from the boundary. This is to ensure that properties are not built too near each other – leaving you still a huge area to build 10,000 square feet.

What is the situation with Land Taxes – are these protected against sudden or costly increases?  At what point are they assessed and what happens to the tax once I have constructed a property?

The current rate of tax is at 1 –1.5%. The present government is very helpful to overseas buyers as it brings in investment and work. This has been a stable government and is unlikely to change, but as in all countries, governments have the right to impose all kind of taxes. In the Bahamas there is a democratic system of government.