How to buy your slice of paradise

You’ve had a great time visiting the Cayman Islands and now want to buy a vacation home. Imagine afternoons on the beach, sunshine year round, and superior services at your fingertips. It is easier than you think. For a comprehensive list of properties check out Myigloo. Any local realtor or attorney should be happy to give a detailed explanation of the steps that need to be taken to buy a property. It is always advisable to hire a realtor based in Cayman or attorney familiar with jurisdictional details, who should be able to deal quickly and efficiently with any un-foreseen issues. 

Here are just a few things you need to know about the property process before you invest in the Cayman Islands. 



Strata 





 Strata apply to only condos and apartments. Strata membership is automatically acquired once the transfer process is complete and you sign the strata agreement. 

Your representative should already have investigated whether the previous owner had any arrears. If there are arrears, your representative needs to ensure they are automatically deducted from the purchase price and paid over to the strata. 



Timeshare, fractional ownership 



A popular alternative to buying property outright is to buy into timeshare, which is a contract to use a property over a fixed number of years. 

With a timeshare, the developer always has an interest in the property and you buy the right to use the property a week at a time, depending on your vacation habits. Generally, you buy where you want to vacation and the property purchase should have a good exchange value so you can exchange your time in other timeshares around the world. 

Fractional ownership is a deeded real estate purchase. An attractive part of fractional ownership is you share the price, share the costs and receive the full benefits of what is usually a luxury property. Fractional ownership is usually bought through a corporation, which issues shares to each shareholder who owns the property. 



Utilities 





Once the land transfer contract has been signed, take the documents to any Caribbean Utilities Company office and to the Water Authority, along with photo ID, so an account can be opened in your name. Electricity and water supplies are usually available within one business day of ac-count activation. When seeking to install utilities for a new building the developer or contractor will need to apply for the account on the vendor’s behalf. This can be done once the new property is inspected by the Planning Department and receives a certificate of occupancy.

Now all that is left is for you to enjoy the beach and paradise.