The avg. real estate broker fee here is around 10%. That's not a secret and they all operate pretty much around the same figure. It IS a valid question and one that should be asked right up front when discussing real estate.Times are tuff and slow right now...so you may be able to shave a few percentage points off that, but don't bet on it.

What Tina or Wendy would make as a referring agent FOR southwind is their business.
Southwinds commission however is common knowledge.

You could pretty much live very comfortably for the rest of your life in Belize on that figure. LOL I know I could.
Hell, contact me and I'll sell it to you at 5% fee!! LOL

Of course it should be mentioned that Southwind will most likely get the major part of that fee. Naturally!

You do not have to have a real estate license in Belize to sell real estate. Anyone can hang a sign out and call themselves a real estate agent. Buyer Beware!!

You MUST investigate the property thoroughly and make sure you go to Belmopan and see with your OWN eyes that it has been registered and is FREE & CLEAR. Make sure the taxes have been paid as well.
DO NOT leave this up to anyone else to do...not a lawyer or an agent. Do it yourself!...and get copies of everything.

Real estate here is tricky but if you do your homework you can get some good deals.

My first question concerning this particular parcel would be how much of it is viable land? It will more than likely need to be surveyed again unless it has had one in the past year. Surveys are expensive and I would ask that the owner have this done and documented. Of course there again...the best way is to see to it yourself. That is the only thing I trust here when it comes to property.
The other point that should be mentioned is that there is no infrastructure in this area so you will need to plan for the expense of alternate power and water. In my opinion that's not a bad thing. If you maintain your equipment well...you will have power and water all the time...when others on the grid don't. There again....counting on yourself to be sure things get done. You will find it's the best way here.

Just my humble opinion...




[This message has been edited by Enigma (edited 09-17-2002).]

Dear Enigma:

Thanks for your very valid points regarding buying and selling land in Belize but I regret that the tone of your e-mail makes for an interpretation that somehow the sale of this land is not valid or that the title to the land might be questionable, none of which is true.

You do honest business people a disservice making off-the-cuff comments such as those above insinuating that every business deal perpetrated by a Belizean must be crooked. I, personally, get offended by the underlying message.

Cheers,
Wendy

it seems to me, that enigma has always kinda of jealousy to those people having money. LOL

Some have it, others want it. There will always be the haves and have nots...

such as life...

You know Wendy...I've come to your defense several times on this board when people have out-in-out dissed you because I thought the comments were unfair and inappropriate for a public forum. I don't really know you personally but that really doesn't matter.
Fair is fair, and when I see unfairness I try to put a proper perspective on it and post something positive so that viewers of this board will keep their train of thought in a fair and mature manner.

I made a special point to say that it is nobody's business what commission you or Tina make on this deal. That's personal and should remain so.

I haven't a clue what the hell "ENVY" is talking about. I don't see a shred of anything even remotely resembling jealousy in my post...so I choose to completely disregard his/her comment. Not even important!

The basis for my whole post was to give accurate information on real estate buying in Belize....IN GENERAL. Whether it is this parcel or some piece of land in Cayo, it doesn't matter.

There is no such thing as a "buyer broker" here. In the states you can have a broker that represent you, the buyer...and then there is an agent for the seller. Both make money. You do not have that protection here so it is YOUR responsibility as the buyer to safegaurd your investment. If you don't then you have no one to blame but yourself.

I am not implying that all real estate deals in Belize are crooked or are intentionally a rip off. All I am saying is that because of the nature of the real estate market here and the laws governing the sales of real estate and the way records are kept here....SHIT HAPPENS! Whether it was intentional or just through a lack of proper handling is beside the point.

Nobody is pointing a finger at you so you have no reason to be defensive.

It should be also noted that out of all of the real estate companies in Belize, probably 3 quarters of them are owned by Non-Belizeans. Your comment about deals by Belizeans being crooked was NOT implied in my post. That is obviously an issue you need to deal with...not me. I personally have had worst dealings with foreigners who seem to have a knack for capitalizing on the shortcomings of the way things are done here.
It is not the Belizeans that you will most likely be taken by.

I hope this clears things up and as I said previously, do your homework and you can probably find a good deal.

Well said, no matter where you buy property in the world...Buyer Beware...do your due diligence. The money you save could mean the difference between a good deal and a rip-off. Hey i have some land for sale in Florida...has just a little water on it though....They sell this stuff to the snow-birds all the time...FWIW

I don't think there was any finger pointing Wendy...and good luck, i hope you can sell the land....Good for you if you do!

Regards

Capt. Bill

That was some very good and useful information Enigma....I didn't see anything negative in it at all.

MR

Dear Enigma:

I appreciate the response and my apologies if no disrespect was meant in your post.

For the record, the land does have a clear registered title, has been surveyed recently, and in fact, is in the process of having a subdivision approval on it. This is one tract of land only which is located on North CC. Some of it is low swampy land, but the majority of it is buildable land. This is virgin land with coconut trees and natural habitation found on coral islands. It has not been cleared. It has about 2000 ft. of seafront (facing the reef). It is located adjacent to (directly south of) the forest reserve on North CC.

Its an excellent investment opportunity for someone who is interested in an eco-resort development of some kind.

The price is fairly cheap for this type of property, but the owner financing is what makes it especially attractive.

BTW, both Tina and I sell properties. We do not only refer clients to Southwind, we are also authorized to list, show and sell properties.

As to "envy"'s post, I wouldn't worry about that too much. If I am correct in my belief, "envy" is the lunatic woman that has been cluttering up this board with all her negative posts. Marty has put a BOLO out for her posts.

Hope this clears things up.

Cheers,
Wendy

I'm sure it's a nice parcel of land. I've seen the north end by plane and although a lot of it is covered with bush, what I could see looked nice. As you said it still needs to be cleared.

If there has been a recent survey done, then that is a plus. Although the price per acre (22,500 approx.) is not bad, buying the whole tract for $1.2 mil may be difficult for anyone except a developer or a very wealthy individual with money to burn.
With the terms of the deal, the payments would work out to around $9,250 US a month for 120 months. Not to mention the total interest paid on the loan would be around $460,000 US. There would be no way I would pay that kind of interest...ever...on anything.

Is the owner willing to divide the parcel up? You may stand a better chance of selling that way. Maybe have one large plot for a developer and then acre parcels for the rest? Just a thought.

Hey..if you girls can sell it...more power to you! LOL Can I have a job as your Limo driver when you do??? LOL

I think breaking the property up would make it easier to sell also. 10% is a bit high in todays marketplace for financing, so if the lots were around 1/2 to 1 acre...10% would not be quite so bad because the amount financed would be lower. The thing is to zone the land...so the owners have to build a certain way...i.e. concrete...or whatever...some sort of standard. Perhaps use solar, wind or other way to generate power. Water is also an issue. Caye Chapel can make more water than they can use, perhaps this could be done on the northside of CC also. FWIW

Capt.