Coldwell Banker Islands Blog

The Royal BVI Yacht Club’s Sailing team, showed up in force at Cowpet Bay to challenge the sailors from St. Thomas Yacht Club at this year’s MLK Jr. Day Regatta. Representing the BVI this time around were an impressive group composed almost entirely of BVI locals. This heavy local involvement, is a direct result of the programs at the Royal BVI Yacht Club to train sailors here in the art of competitive sailing, providing lifelong sport for these currently young kids.
In the Laser Class, BVI Islanders Matthew Oliver and also Mollee Donovan sailed the 4.7m vessel, finishing third and first, respectively.
Mollee had a superb regatta, finishing in first place in nearly every single race. Jonathan Woods raced in the Radial Rig (medium size Laser sail) finishing in third place .
In the Optimist Class, small racing boats for children 8-15 years old, sailors all start on the same starting line but are scored according to age division. Team BVI was represented by sailors in the Green (beginner) , White (9-10) and Blue (11-12) Fleets .
In Blue, Sam Morrell placed second and third overall; in the White fleet Rayne Duff placed first, sixth overall; and also racing in White but not placing this regatta were Thad Lettsome and Sam Childs.
All the young sailors performed really well this weekend. showing that their training with our resident coach Omari Scott has really paid off.

Source:bvinews.com

When you are considering purchasing a British Virgin Islands Home home Buy low, sell high. Isn’t that what we are taught from an early age? If you want to put this valuable life lesson to the test, 2012 may be the best year in the last 3 decades to do so. These tips below may just help you to get started in the buying process-

1. Consult a Mortgage Provider

- Have your credit checked.

- Ascertain what your price range is

- Beginning with this particular step will answer many questions and take away any doubts or myths you may have.

2. Consult a Coldwell Banker BVI Realtor

- At Coldwell Banker BVI Real Estate we are here to help, we will take you step-by-step through every aspect of the purchasing process. Whether it’s suggesting a mortgage provider which has the very best options, values of property or information on maintaining your home when you have found the perfect place. Coldwell Banker provide the very best knowledge and understanding from beginning to end.

3. Get familiar with the local communities and types of homes in the areas you would like to live in.

- Internet searches and open houses are an good way to begin your research.

- Visiting the areas you are interested in to check out the local amenities and chat to people already living there will give you a feel for what living there will be like

4. Start putting money aside

- If you have your mortgage offer in place and know that your monthly payments will be $1000.00 but are currently paying $750 in rent, putting the extra aside will help with the down payment and get you used to paying out this amount, it will also reduce any fears you may have about affording the extra payments once you are in your new home.

5. Write a list of what your wants and needs are from your new home and discuss with a Coldwell Banker BVI Realtor – We are here to help!

- Be as flexible as you possibly can and realize that no home will be perfect and match every requirement you have, however you can come close, and even find a place that exceeds expectations.

Final Thoughts

By following these steps and consulting a Coldwell Banker BVI Realtor you are sure to make the best decision for you and your family.

Imagine waking to the breathtaking views that this lovely Caribbean home in Virgin Gorda has to offer. This lovely, well-appointed 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom villa with a studio apartment on the lower level, is perfect for families vacationing with extended families, groups of friends, small retreats or couples.

Price:$1,200,000

Read more about this listing

Whether you are preparing to put your British Virgin Islands Home on the market or you simply want to make a change so that it looks more attractive, here are some inexpensive tips to ensure you get just what you want – The best house on the block!

1. Purchase a new door. The front door of your house is definitely the most important detail of your home as it is the first thing passers by, visitors and potential buyers will see. It is easy to give the entrance to your home a lift by giving it a new coat of paint, one of the best effects are wood colors such as mahogany.

2. Consider Shutters. If your home is older, purchasing shutters are a good way to add charm and character without it costing the earth. You can find relatively inexpensive shutters in homestores or alternatively if you want an individual feel why not look in antique shops. This is also a way to add vibrant colors to your home should you wish to do so.

3. Accessorize. Brass knockers, mail boxes, and lamps are all small investments which will make your house look great, however as these items can lose their shine over time so choose tarnish-free pieces, House numbers, kick plates and doorbell buttons are also good options.

4. Tidy up the grounds. Trim bushes to ensure that doorways and windows aren’t hidden. Fill window boxes with vines, geraniums, and ornamental grasses, or plant perennials like climbing hydrangea. Your garden should complement the design of your home. If your property is contemporary, disregard the old-fashioned flowering plants and choose carefully trimmed spruces or spiral topiaries.

5. Paint right. Traditional colors are popular and the classics never go out of style, there are many different colors and shades to choose from and it is probably a good idea to check out the homes you like and ask the owners for the names of paint colors. Painting your home is likely to be the most expensive improvement in this list so do not hurry your choice.

These 5 simple tips will help you to improve the outside of your home fairly inexpensively, so that visitors or potential buyers will feel welcomed into your home, and have a good impression from the first moment they arrive.

Following its first-to-market introduction of the iPhone 4, last summer, the full-service telecoms provider is continuing its exclusive Apple deal with introduction of the most amazing iPhone yet. LIME CEO, David Shaw says the iPhone 4S will again change the way people communicate. “This is another first from LIME. Bringing world class technology is our way of building communities and families in the Caribbean. The iPhone 4S is best in class, innovative and the ultimate ‘every-thing device’ that will change the way we access and share information. It shows what advanced technology looks and feels like and that’s what our customers expect of us. We’re very proud to partner with Apple to make this happen for the Caribbean,” he said.
Packed with incredible new features, including Apple’s dual-core A5 chip for blazing fast performance and stunning graphics, the iPhone 4S will be available in three models – the 16GB, the 32GB and the 64GB.
Other features of this masterful device include an all new camera with advanced optics and full 1080p HD resolution video recording; iPhone 4S comes with iOS 5, the world’s most advanced mobile operating system with over 200 new features; and iCloud, a breakthrough set of free cloud services that work with your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac or PC to automatically and wirelessly store your content in iCloud and move it to all your devices.

Source:bvinews.com

When you have put your British Virgin Islands Home on the market, you may be considering an open house. If correctly executed, holding an Open House is a very efficient way to generate more marketing exposure and to attract interested purchasers, However it is not as easy as just cleaning and inviting potential purchasers to view your home.

Follow these simple tips to get the most out of your open house event:

Ensure Your Home is Ready: Just because you have put your home on the market, doesn’t mean that it is automatically ready for viewings by potential buyers. As the saying goes, you only have one chance to make a good impression, and this is also true of your home when you are hoping to sell. The first and most obvious task is to make sure you thoroughly clean the house, second would be to finish any minor maintenance projects so that your home looks more inviting.

Hold your Event on a Weekend: Open Houses are more effective when held over weekends as this allows more people to visit without worrying about work commitments/kids etc. Let people know that you are holding an open house by putting directional yard signs at key points. Your real estate agent may also help to inform potential buyers that the open house is happening.

Stage Your House: Most people arrange their furniture to their own tastes and families lifestyle, however it is good to bare in mind that potential buyers are more attracted to homes which appear spacious, So when you are staging your home think of how a potential buyer may see it and remove any clutter or unnecessary furniture.

Sign-In Sheets: It is a good idea to get visitors details, so creating a simple sign in sheet for people to provide their name, phone number and email address, will help when you want to contact the visitors after the event.

Create and print leaflets: Create a simple leaflet giving brief information on the house and your contact details so that you can hand them to visitors upon arrival.

Offer Refreshments: One of the oldest tricks in the book is to bake cookies before an open house, this gives the house a pleasant and inviting aroma and will also provide treats for your guests and encourage them to stay longer to ask more questions about your home.

Purchase fresh Flowers: A great way to emphasize your homes beauty is to purchase fresh flowers form your local florist and place arrangements in a vase, not only will it improve the look of your home it is also a conversation starter so that when visitors comment on them and ask where they came from it is a great opportunity to explain about all the good shops and amenities in the area.

Be Professionally minded: Visitors may express their opinions on aspects of your home which they do not like, be professional and remember that you are not selling your home, but merely a house which buyers will want to make their own.

Answer Questions: You will never be able to guess the amount of questions the prospective buyers may ask regarding the house and surrounding area, so it is always best to be prepared to answer questions about: Property taxes, major appliances, heating and air conditioning systems and questions concerning the local community. If there are any questions that you are unable to answer, inform them that you will get the answer and contact them via phone.

Find out if a prospective buyer is pre-approved: Not all visitors will be interested in buying your home, however for those who are showing that they are by asking questions, don’t be afraid to inquire if they have been pre-approved for a mortgage. If they are not pre-approved, It is a good idea to recommend that they seek financial advice regarding the mortgage to begin the process.

Follow-Up: A good tip is to send a thank you email to all those who attended your open house and left contact details, you can include a link to the listing of your house so that they can view the pictures and details again and ask if they have any more questions regarding the house. In the following days call each person and politely inquire whether they are considering purchasing your home, if the answer is negative, again thank them for their time and ask if they have any feedback on your home which may help make the house more appealing to other potential buyers. If you get a positive response, offer for them to visit your home again for a second viewing.

Placing your home on the market can be a stressful process, and sometimes it can feel like there is no interest at all. Open houses are a good way of showing off your home to potential buyers without the pressure. Why not discuss holding an open house with your realtor today, you might just find that it is the best way to sell your home!

H. Lavity Stoutt Community College, will be conducting a week of orientation and registration exercises beginning on Tuesday 10th January, for students taking classes during the 2012 Spring Semester.
The exercise will target new students, and will be held only at the Paraquita Bay Campus, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Thereafter, the registration of new and continuing students will take place at Paraquita Bay and the Virgin Gorda Center.
Registration will continue on Monday 16th January, but from this date, a “late fee” will be charged. All students are therefore encouraged to take advantage of the registration process which runs from 11-13 January, pertaining to their respective categories.
Students may communicate with their advisers either electronically or face-to-face. Electronic advising will allow students to access the College’s SONISWeb portal through the website www.hlscc.edu.vg. Face-to-face advising and registration will be available at both the Paraquita Bay and Virgin Gorda locations.
As a comprehensive community college, HLSCC’s offerings are designed to prepare students for transfer into the upper division of baccalaureate programmes of other colleges and universities, or for immediate job entry or career advancement.

Source:bvinews.com

Sea’s Song Villa sits thirty feet above the Sir Francis Drake Channel on a bouldered promitory separating Long Bay and Nail Bay on the western shore of Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands.

Price:$2,950,000

Read more about this listing

When you have made the decision to place your British Virgin Islands Home onto the market, home staging is a critical part of the sale process because if you wish to make the most money from your home and get a quick sale, you will need potential buyers to feel its a hot property. These 20 top tips will help you understand what the main dos and don’ts are for successful home staging.

Do

1.Set your listing cost by using area comparables

2.Put personal collections away somewhere safe.

3.Give your home a fresh coat of paint.

4.Clean windows and open curtains.

5.Fix all running toilets, or risk flushing profits down the drain

6.Remember that outdoors is just as important as indoors so prepare your entire living space to the same high standard

7.Visit model homes to see how they look and feel, and incorporate these aspects into your home

8.Grind a lemon inside the waste disposal, this will smell great for when potential buyers are visiting

9.Display fresh flowers, fake plastic flowers do not give off the right impression

10.Keep your day job, hire an expert and assist them in what they do best

Don’t

1. Tell yourself that the higher the asking price, the more options you will have when negotiating – You could end up idle on the market.

2. Leave obstacles like bikes and scooters laying around in the front yard

3. Do any major renovations

4. Use scented air fresheners, instead dot fresh flowers around your home

5. Leave personal paperwork laying around

6. Think the house will sell itself, your home needs look the best to sell

7. Clean up by putting everything in the closets

8. Leave incomplete DIY jobs

9. Be scared to ask for help, there are many professionals who can assist with staging

10. Allow pets to greet the visitors at the door

Does your house look like a show home yet? It is always best to look at your home as if you were a highly critical buyer. Home staging properly is very important especially in a difficult market when potential buyers feel it necessary to offer below the asking price. When you present your home in the best way possible it will strengthen your position as a seller when negotiating price.

Victor International ant Yacht Club Costa Smeralda are pleased to announce the completion of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda Virgin Gorda Clubhouse. Oil Nut Bay is a private community nestled on the eastern tip of Virgin Gorda. Developer of Oil Nut Bay and chairman of Victor International, David V. Johnson states, “We have combined the finest real estate marine property in the Caribbean with one of the world’s leading yacht associations, combined with decades of tradition and sailing excellence, to create an unparalleled Caribbean resort destination. YCCS Virgin Gorda and Oil Nut Bay offer the highest standards and services for owners and guests.”

The British Virgin Islands are recognized as one of the finest cruising destinations in the Northern Hemisphere. The trade winds and predictable weather patterns, dramatic and mountainous island landscapes, protected bays, clear waters, beautiful sandy beaches and world-class fishing, scuba-diving and snorkeling continually draw yachtsmen to the BVI from around the world.

For over 40 years, YCCS has been one of the leading yacht clubs in the Mediterranean with its base in Porto Cervo, Sardinia. The new YCCS Virgin Gorda, enables the international sailing and yachting community to enjoy YCCS’ legendary expertise in the organization of top-level international sailing events, and hospitality services second to none in the British Virgin Islands.
The new Marina offers superior facilities and services. Located in the pristine waters of North Sound, Virgin Gorda, it has 38 slips for yachts up to 100 meters and a draft of up to 9.1 meters. The Marina design includes a central T-shaped dock measuring 267 meters that is accessible from both sides.

Source:www.oilnutbay.com