WHAT IS THE FIRST STEP IN BUYING A HOUSE FOR RETIREMENT IN BONAIRE.

• Learn to speak softly (NO SHOUTING).
• Visit these two excellent Bonaire real estate sites...lots of useful info on moving to Bonaire:
  • RE/MAX Paradise Homes
  • Sunbelt Realty
• Come to Bonaire on an extended vacation and check out what is available and get a feel for living here.

(This thread was moved to "Moving to Bonaire" by moderator.)

Roger...lol

Roger...

You forgot exchange Type A for Type B personality.... :-)

C

Can you just buy a house and move there that simple? Is property that easy to buy?

Theresa, it is not simple at all. If you do a search you will find a plethora of information. Remember that nothing worthwhile is easy. At least that's what I keep telling myself.

Theresa...well from my own limited point of view, I think one of the only "easy" things to do on Bonaire is the diving & lying in the sun:-)..Beyond this, it gets more complicated. if you plan on living on Island you need a residency permit. If you plan on working there you also need another permit etc etc etc. Read the various entries in this section to glean more info. & best of luck to you!
As far as buying property, a good realtor is a must to explain the intricacies.

Vince, lol... yes the word of the day is "PERMIT".

I would love nothing more than to retire and live on Bon, I'll start saving and thanks for the info.

theresa, buying a house there is easier than in the states. it's the regulations about how long you can use the house without being a resident that are more complicated.

i agree with the previous post about the realtors...the two listed are very good.

Hi everyone!
I have a question about buying a house on Bonaire. My partner and I are interested in buying a "fixer upper", and we are thinking that, before making an offer on this type of house, we would probably want to have someone conduct a pre-purchase inspection. Are pre-purchase home inspections standard on Bonaire? Does anyone know whom I could contact for this purpose? I would like to contact a few people or agencies to get a sense of how much this would cost.

Now that I finished posting the above question, I just thought of another one! Here in the states, we have sellers' real estate agents and buyers' real estate agents. It appears to me that, on Bonaire, there is no such separation, and if you are interested in purchasing a property, you simply go to the listing agent and arrange to purchase it through him or her. Is my understanding of this correct? I would love to hear from you folks who have bought a home on Bonaire, and any advice you have on the process of finding a suitable home would be greatly appreciated!

Hi, again, Anke!
Higher up this thread, Roger has posted links to two realty sites. Go to them and you might find a list of building contractors who do home inspections. Otherwise you can ask the realtors here for a list when you are on island looking at properties. I hired the contractor who happened to be available at the time I needed an inspection.
No, building inspections are not standard practice on Bonaire, but they are wise, and your inspector will give you an idea of the cost of the "fixing up." The costs I was quoted helped me to bargain the purchase price downwards. And then I bargained with contractors and got the work done somewhat less expensively.
There aren't many realtors on Bonaire. You might be able to hire one to represent you, but you would need to find someone from whom you are sure you would not be buying, so as to avoid a conflict of interest, so avoid the major real estate firms.
You can find properties for sale online, at the real estate sites.
You can also learn a lot about Bonaire by looking at infobonaire.com and also the links which it provides.
My sense of the ethics of Bonaire realtors is that they are honorable people who will tell you what they know of the flaws in a property (if you ask them to) as well as its positive attributes. So you probably will be okay simply seeing properties with the realtors who represent the sellers.
The biggest problem I encountered is that homes which are for sale might be occupied by people renting them on a lease which cannot be broken, so you might not be able to move in right away after you buy.
You also might want to consider buying land and building a house.
Ann, could you comment on your experience doing that.
Good luck!!

I bought my land from Remax (owned vs leased) and there is one plot left..walk to Bachelor Beach!! I had two local Dominican men build my house. They broke ground Nov. 04, stopped til Jan. 29th and we moved in July 1. (It was not finished but..)It was really a piece of cake (for us). I was warned NOT to build but I never listen haa...I have a brand new house for the same cost if not cheaper of an older house with problems and maybe even ghosts..haa..

Has anybody (American) taken a mortgage from a bank in Bonaire? I understand that you can do this but the mortgage involves some sort of insurance. I am trying to understand and compare this to mortgages I have taken in the US. Prepayment penalties, equity, etc.

FYI, I am planning to take a home equity loan on my home here in Texas but I will still need to finance about 1/3 of the house in Bonaire.

I have heard the interest rates charged on Bonaire are higher than in the US.
I also am aware of several bank foreclosures on houses here.
When I bought my house the realtors here were advising people to try to do all the financing in the US.

I see. Thanks for that feedback. Hopefully the foreclosures were a result of people not paying their loans (which I would not fail to do).

Yes, regarding financing from the US verses Bonaire loans, it seems to be a common recommendation to get it done in the US. My realtor, Harbourtown, has told me it is no problem at all to get my loan for 1/3 of the home in Bonaire. We are in the process of trying to make that happen. I guess I am a little worried because it does not sound like many Americans do it this way.

Are there any Americans that have used Harbourtown? I am looking for some feedback on how your transactions processed through them (especially if you used a Bonaire loan).

Yes, the foreclosures occurred because people fell behind in their mortgage payments.
Because interest rates are higher here, the mortgage payments are larger than they would otherwise be.
I did not use Harbourtown. Sorry. They sometimes offer houses priced better, and those houses are snapped up quickly. Be warned. Houses can sell as soon as they are listed.
Good luck!

Mortgages are not too easy to get unless you have a long term relationship with a bank or plenty of collateral. They also do require a life insurance to pay off the loan if you die before the end of the term. The real drawback is the high rates..

Hi, I know this forum ended several months ago, but I am also looking to purchase property in Bonaire. I was thinking about a 2 bedroom home in Lagoen Hill, but I have had trouble finding a US company that will finance me. Do you mind if I ask what specific banks/companies that people have found useful? Thanks!

Generally US companies will not finace offshore unless it is on a US owned island. MCB will fiance local properties for non residents, however be prepared to pay a high interest rate.