Looking and Buying Land in Belize
Everyone will have their own idea of what they want but I would advise you take into account a few of the following considerations before you buy the land your home will sit on.
Belize is in the Sub-Tropics, therefore gets wet, if you have not yet experienced Belize 'Wet' then you need to, Belize can also experience high winds and occasionally is in the path of Hurricanes.
Always visit in the wet season, the beautiful dry piece of property you look at in March/April, could be, in October, under 2' of flood water.
Your ideal location in Belize, North, South, East, West, Sea, River or Jungle, will also have a influence on what design of Build you choose.
As they say Location, Location, Location. This is no different in Belize, except that this is more of an important factor. In fact every factor of Why, you would choose a piece of property, is more of a Big-Deal, if you get it wrong in Belize.
'Development', or, 'Go It Alone'.
'Developments'
Have a few advantages over going it alone, amongst these are the following,
· Developments usually already have power and water, if not then there usually is the promise of provision of these utilities.
· There is safety in numbers, once you have your home up and built, there will be someone there to look over it when you are out of the country.
· There will neighbours around to lend advice on building and there usually is a resident Contractor that people tend to use and trust.
· There is usually locals that have already placed themselves on the development, that will be on hand to offer services, such as Housework, Garden work, and General Maintenance.
Developments also have some negatives
· They usually have restrictions/covenants on what and how you build.
· You will have neighbours close by.
· There is usually politics involved in the community.
· There are a lot of badly managed developments and some that are nothing but a scam!! Be very careful when buying into a development that have no infrastructure in place, but promise there will be in the future.
'Going It Alone'
Has some fantastic plus points, the best one being the beauty of what you can find and achieve in a 'Stand Alone Property'
· You have a far better selection in Size, Type of Terrain and Geography,
· You can usually negotiate a deal per M/2, or Acre and you will be surprised at what you can finally get the piece property for.
· You can build what you want to.
· No close Neighbours, No Community Politics
As with developed land 'Stand Alone Property' also have negatives.
· You will need constant security; someone really needs to be present at all times.
· Usually you will have to bring in Power and Water or harness both with sustainable means.
· The 'Logistics' of the 'Construction Stage' can be a challenge to say the least.
If you intend to be part time in Belize, I would suggest buying on a Development.
If you are not accustomed to controlling complex projects buy on a development.
If you do buy on a development it must already have at the very least, 'Power'.
If you decide to buy a 'Stand Alone Piece of Land', 'Negotiate The Price', Look at the Logistics of getting to the location, this could be by 'Barge', if on the Cayes. You may even have to cut through Jungle to gain access; you may have to form a road.
Searching and Buying
Searching
There are lots of people in Belize who claim to be 'Estate Agents' (UK), Realtors (USA), there is no Association in Belize, but I think this may change very soon.
I would suggest you first research where you want to live, Sea, River, or Jungle,
Development or Stand Alone.
I would then put the 'Feelers' out and ask on Forums and on 'Facebook' pages,.
Look at what is for offer on websites to get a good idea of what is about.
I always ask who the owners are, a bit of detective work on the ground, with locals and neighbours will usually get you a name.
Narrow it down to 2 or 3 locations and go visit, plan to spend at least a few days at each location, camping out would be better if in an isolated area.
Buying
ALWAYS, use your own solicitor to close the deal.
Always make sure you have the 'Title'.
Never pay the full asking price on 'Stand Alone' property.
Usually Agents fees are the buyer's responsibility, make sure all taxes are all paid up to date on the property.
Never buy a Development property without a contract to say the Power Is going to be supplied, with a specified completion date (Unless off Grid).
You could try to put in your own penalty clauses, if dates not achieved, but good luck with that. I personally would not buy if power not already in.
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