US Virgin Islands

I've just finished a visit to my daughter, in Australia, and offer some reflections about our two islands and lifestyles. I live in St Croix, in the US Virgin islands. My little island is 27 miles long and 8 miles wide. It is home to lovely white sand beaches, a sub-tropical rainforest, verdant hills and valleys, and colorful flora and fauna.

My daughter lives on the Gold Coast in Australia. Her island is a bit bigger than mine! In fact, everything there is bigger! The beaches are extremely wide. The ocean is very cold and the waves are huge! The trees - even the same ones that we have in St Croix - are taller. The rainforest is much older, and the vistas from the Australian rainforest (the Hinterlands) are just huge and gorgeous. The bugs and critters are bigger there, too, and more deadly! I had the chills at the Brisbane museum looking at the creatures that live among the Aussies! About all we have to worry about in St Croix are centipedes - and they look pretty tame compared to the Australian centipedes!

Housing

My daugther lives in one of those neighborhoods with rows and rows of houses that all look pretty much the same. I can't leave the house for fear I will never find it again! And these row houses are not inexpensive, either. The average cost of a home there is mid 300's to mid 400's (and right now the dollar is about .8 of the Australian dollar). That's just a basic home - nothing fancy. In fact, the architecture and design features here are very plain, and the lots very small. There are subdivisions springing up all over the place - which are, in my opinion, very unattractive and unappealing.

On my little island, St. Croix, there are not very many subdivisions, and there are no new ones! The house prices are fairly comparable, but for the same price in St Croix, you're going to get an old place that needs quite a bit of work. One big difference is that in St Croix you are never more than 30 minutes away from anything. But in Australia, the suburbs are miles away from shopping, beaches, and other amenities. Gas prices are about 4 times as high as in St Croix.

Costs

They are taking lots of steps to "go green" in Australia. Hotels and homes are constructed with energy efficiency in mind. Already their power bills are much lower than ours in St. Croix.

Food and drinks are much more expensive there. A beer (and by the way, the beer in Australia is just outstanding) will cost you about $7 a pint. In St Croix, happy hour prices are anywhere from $1 - $3 for a beer (but nowhere near as good). A mixed drink or glass of wine there will set you back about $10 - in St. Croix, about half of that. Meals, with the difference in the dollar, are about the same, although we did go to a steak place and the hamburgers were $25. Ouch. Grocery store prices are probably comparable as well.

Weather

The weather in St Croix is always warm. September is typically the hottest with the least amount of breeze (unless there's a hurricane), and winters are just perfect. On the Gold Coast, the seasons are, of course, opposite from ours. It's pretty hot there in "our" winter - but fairly chilly in their winter (our summer). I visited in October and the weather was interesting. Some days were very hot, and other days quite chilly.

Lifestyle

My conclusion is that life is harder on the Gold Coast of Australia. It's expensive; there is a lot of driving; jobs are hard to come by and you typically have to travel long distances to get to them; and there are lots of critters on land and sea to be wary of.

The pace, lifestyle, and ease of my little island of St Croix suits me much better. Although Australia does have something that St Croix does not have - and that's my beautiful daughter and her wonderful man, Andy. For that reason, I will certainly be leaving a little piece of my heart "down under" - and am already thinking of my next trip to visit the Gold Coast.

Meanwhile, contact me with all your questions and concerns about living and buying real estate in St. Croix. Be sure and sign up to receive your free Relocation Package and learn about our island.

Kim Lucas, REALTOR
www.retireinstcroix.com
www.kimlucasvi.com
340-626-3758
kim@coldwellbankervi.com

My Passion is living life to the fullest!

WOW! Lobsters! Yes, just off the Fredericksted Pier. The snorkeling and diving is GREAT fun here! Fredericksted is on the West end of St. Croix thus known as "West is Best" for the beautiful, sandy beaches along with the wonderful people. We enjoy diving and snorkeling the pier (when the cruise ships are not in of course). We see needlefish, lobster, sea horses, barracuda, flounder, and numerous other caribbean creatures of the depths. This is a passion of mine, but what I enjoy more is:

Back in May, I worked with the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, U.S. Coast Guard, the Power Squadron, DPNR, St. Croix Rescue, and numerous other organizations to organize "Safe Boating Day" on the Fredericksted Pier. This event was a huge success. We promoted safe boating for everyone who came out for the day long event. We introduced safe boating practices to children, local fisherman and anyone interested. Over 100 children were given life jackets and were shown how to properly put them on, and to understand that children of certain ages must wear them when on a vessel/boat. We coordinated a mock SAR (Search and Rescue) with the U.S. Coast Guard Helicopter right off the pier. Then when the mock victim was brought to the pier, St. Croix Rescue took over and provided mock rescue techniques showing the crowd how the different organizations work together.

Define your passion, find your big WHY, and learn to live! There are many organizations in your community that need YOU! Who knows maybe I will see you out on the water and when I do, just give me a big HELLO.. I make the difference in many lives by making it my choice to help people! I continue training through the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and will be learning SAR (Search and Rescue) very soon. Wish me luck in my endeavors as I wish you luck in finding yours!

Remember St. Croix when you are making your next travel plans... IT is beautiful year-round!

For those of you wondering what's been happening in the St. Croix real estate market in the last 6 months,  here are some stats you might find interesting:

HOMES:
62 home sales (closings) in last six months. Average sales price $472,702; median sales price $365,000. Average difference sales price to list price - $68,452. Average DOM = 238.

About a quarter of these homes were under $200,000. About a third were between $200,000 - $400,000. Nearly 10% were in the $400,000 - $500,000 range. Twenty percent were between half a million and a million, and nearly 10% were over one million.

Currently, there are 224 houses on the market. Only 10 % are under $200,000 - and many of these are just "slabs" or partial constructions. About a third are between $200,000 and half a million, and another third are between half a million and a million. That leaves about one-fourth of the homes listed at a million or more. There is a real need for nice, decent "low end" homes here, but if you're in the market for a high end home - there's plenty to choose from!

CONDOS:
56 condos closed in the last six months. Average sales price $222,691; median sales price $176,250. Average difference sales price to list price - $21,539. Average DOM = 217.

Most of the condos sold (nearly two thirds) were under $200,000. About 30 percent were between $200,000 - $400,000.

Currently, there are 162 condos on the market. about 42% of those are under $200,000. There are no new condo complexes on the market, and the least expensive condo here i

LAND:
241 land sales in last YEAR. Average sales price $154,295; median sales price $53,000. Average difference sales price to list price - $25,569. Average DOM = 307.

Nearly 75% of the sales were parcels under $100,000, and about 70% were an acre or less. Slightly over 20% of the sales were between one hundred and five hundred thousand. Four percent of the sales were over half a million, and over 15 acres.

There are some great buying opportunities now in St. Croix.  Our economy is strong and improving, and there will always be demand for housing in Paradise.  Contact me for details, my Relocation or Retirement Packages.  And Developers - we need you!  Email me for my Developer's Package too.

Kim Lucas, REALTOR
kim@coldwellbankervi.com
340-626-3758
www.kimlucasvi.com
www.retireinthevi.com

Location does play a significant role in the factor where affluent homeowners choose their dream home and real estate!

A recent real estate survey showed twenty-seven percent of the people surveyed responded that their dream home was on an island.

This survey revealed that about half of the affluent homeowners surveyed (48 percent) own at least one secondary residence. About 45 percent of these properties are located in beach areas. For those who are second home owners, more men than women polled the primary purpose of the residence was a retirement property (17 percent versus 8 percent).

As the seasons are starting to change on the mainland, please enjoy the Fall colors for me! I will enjoy the beautiful, sunny days here on St. Croix. When you've had it up to here with snow snoveling and you need a break, consider a trip to St. Croix, US Virgin Islands this Winter.

1031 Exchanges, Investment Opportunities, Second Homes, Resort Living....it is all right here on my beautiful island! I can't tell you how nice it is to have 365 days a year to plan outdoor activities! When you or your clients are ready for an escape, visit my website and let me know how I can assist you in your trip planning. www.KelliBarton.com and I look forward to talking with you...don't be surprised if you do hear the sounds of the Caribbean Sea in the background because I may just be having our conversation on a sail on my beautiful sailboat with my husband or taking a little break from work to dip my feet in the beautiful turquoise waters.

PROPERTY OF THE DAY: Price reduction on 3 bedroom 2 bath condo on the beach, priced at ONLY $115,000. This is a perfect setting for retirement, investment or just a winter get-a-way. St. Croix is full of snow birds who will be returning in the next couple of months from their wonderful Spring and Summer trips back to their homes on the mainland. The island comes to life around November and then in December for our Carnival. We celebrate more legal holidays here than anywhere else in the world!

H20 Beach Resort.....with hammock on the beach to return your work calls after lunch....

I found paradise and YOU can too! It is up to you to decide how and when you will retire. Have you considered retiring in a place where you vacation? Why downsize and stay in the same neighborhood you have lived most of your life in. It is time to see the world! It is time to live life! You have earned it! Do it before it is too late. Do it while you can! Do it while it is still affordable! I am available to show you the beautiful homes, condos or investment properties on St. Croix. I have the perfect property waiting for you....Homes here are still affordable....

Fall is fast approaching and here on St. Croix I continue to watch the fishing boats go out daily, the kayakers enjoy another beautiful day on the water and the St. Croix is a fabulous location for your second home! You can have the best of both worlds. Imagine living winter in a tropical climate of 75-80 degrees daily. Imagine being able to wear shorts and lounge outside every day! Winter here in St. Croix is pleasant with steady tradewinds and daily sunshine. You will never get bored and say I wish I had something to do! Today I am going sailing, tomorrow I may go diving with the turtles, and the next day I will lounge under a tiki hut and catch up on my reading (all of this around showing wonderful people great opportunities to buy land and homes this weekend on island time). Life is what you make it! Make it grand! Don't settle for the same old life you have now, add some excitement to it! Bring the entire family down for a visit and let me show you why so many people have decided to call St. Croix home.

The locals are friendly, the flora and fauna are admired year around and the climate can't be beat! We have wonderful tradewinds to cool the warmer days of summer. Pack up the dive gear, fishing rods and swim suits....we have a place reserved for you....

I found Paradise sailling around these waters, you can too.... Call me for your FREE copy of the USVI Settler's Handbook. Provide your name and address and when you are planning your trip down (consider winter in America's Paradise) No passport required!