Christie’s Answer: Over the past few years, we have noticed more people looking to St. Croix as a place to retire. Over the past 18 months we have certainly seen this trend accelerate. They usually have a 1 to 5 year plan. Properties are so very different here, that when people find something they like, they tend to buy it now, and not wait until right before retirement. Sometimes they purchase a home or condo, and rent it long-term or as a vacation rental until they can move here themselves.
According to Bloomberg News Article 2021-04-30, “About 2.7 million Americans age 55 or older are contemplating retirement years earlier than they’d imagined because of the pandemic, government data show . . . many cite robust retirement accounts and Covid-19 fatigue for their early exit, according to interviews with wealth managers and federal surveys.”
Chris’ Answer: Once an offer to purchase a property has been accepted, the inspection contingency ensures that the Buyer receives vital information about the property. It allows the Buyer to potentially negotiate repairs, a reduction in the sale price, or even walk away from the purchase with a refund of all of their earnest money.
The inspection contingency is contractually part of the accepted offer to purchase. Generally, that inspection period is 2 weeks long, and it begins when the offer to purchase is signed by all parties.
Some people ask if they can waive the inspection. We always recommend using a professional home inspector, and having an inspection contingency period. Waiving the inspection contingency period means you won’t be able to use the results from an inspection to negotiate remedies, price, or cancel the contract with the Seller, putting your earnest money deposit at risk.
We feel it’s important for you to know as much as possible about the property you are buying. It’s to the Buyer’s advantage to be present during inspection. This way, the Buyer can ask questions from the Inspector at the site, and learn more about their new home.
That hotel has been shut down for 4 years since Hurricane Maria and we get a lot of questions about when that’s going to re-open. We are so happy to seeing the relaunch in October! According to their September announcement on Facebook, the resort will be a room-only resort until February 1, 2022, and with the all-inclusive program on the horizon. See the resort website for details.
Named as one of Travel & Leisure’s Best All-inclusive Resorts in the U.S. Virgin Islands recently, the Divi Carina Beach Resort and Casino will be fully relaunched as an all inclusive, adults only resort with 200 rooms. The resort has redesigned rooms and suites and also includes an on-site casino, a restaurant and bar for late-night options. Amenities will include non-motorized watersports, a mini-golf course, tennis and pickleball and a 24-hour fitness center, along with two freshwater pools. Read more in the Caribbean Journal.
Photo courtesy of Divi Carina Beach Resort and Casino
Pickleball is a sport that combines tennis, badminton, and ping-pong all in one, and it’s growing in popularity in the US Virgin Islands!
The St. Croix Pickleball Committee thinks the sport gained traction in the territory about 2 years ago and has been organizing tournaments at different times in a year. The recent tournament on August 21st had 12 teams competing head-to-head for prizes and medals. The event was great outdoor fun for the participants and for the spectators who came out to support the event. Anyone interested in learning how to play pickleball or in donating towards improving the pickleball courts can contact Linda Midlikowski at 340-473-0215 (read the full article on St. Croix Source).
Congratulations to the winners of the tournament! – First place: Jayson Williams and Elle Abraham – Second place: Mayya Kawar and Brandon Rausch – Third place: Judy Leonardis and Alice Kuo
According to the USA Pickleball Association, pickleball has had a 650 percent increase in numbers over the last six years with the largest growth not necessarily in the over 60 age range. Created in 1965 near Seattle, pickleball was named after pickle boats, the thrown-together crew that sometimes competes in rowing. The sport has been popular for about 20 years in Florida and other places with large numbers of retirees. Currently, there are many municipalities and parks and recreation departments that are setting up courts, making it accessible to a younger crowd according to NBC News.
There’s no denying that the heart and soul of the Virgin Islands lies in the territory’s robust agriculture. With its rich, premium soil and its proximity to the equator, this combination creates a unique taste and texture in produce that surpasses the flavor of food grown on the United States mainland. St. Croix, an island once known as the “Breadbasket of the Caribbean,” has continued to make strides to eliminating food insecurity on the island with recent support from World Central Kitchen’s (WCK) Food Producer Network (FPN).
FPN was established in Puerto Rico 2018 in response to the devastating hurricane season the year prior. To date, $3.7 million in grants have been disbursed to over 200 food producers affected by natural disasters in the Caribbean and Central America. In 2020, WCK expanded the program to the Virgin Islands to support the farmers, fishers and food-related small businesses that suffered catastrophic losses after Hurricanes Irma and María. FPN helps to strengthen food security and sustain economic development throughout the territory’s food producing communities for many years to come.
Mikol Hoffman, Director of WCK’s Food Producer Network, shared his vision on how the program benefits the USVI. “We have seen through collected data that program participants increase their sales and production by over 50% after one year in the Network,” said Hoffman. FPN also works to connect its partners to each other and bring together a vibrant community of food producers who now actively collaborate through new production and distribution partnerships. This results in greater reach and increased market presence. “Through these efforts, program participants can become stronger as a whole than as individual food system operators and increase their productive resilience against future disasters.”
When asked about the potential of developing sustainable food systems in the USVI, Hoffman credited the territory’s abundance of fertile lands and abundant waters. “We see tremendous potential in not only developing a sustainable food system, but a thriving food economy with interconnected food producers working hand in hand.”
To date, WCK has invested over $300,000 through 20 grants across the Virgin Islands, with an average grant size of $15,000. Their latest round of funding invested $78,000 through five grants to food producers on St. Croix and St. Thomas including Concordia Farm, Crescent Farms, Kallaloo Farms, LLC and Mystical Farms on St. Croix and Tropical Pops Popsicles on St. Thomas.
For more information, please visit wck.org/fpn-usvi to learn more about World Central Kitchen’s Food Producer Network in the US Virgin Islands.
Photo of Kallaloo Farm – Edward Schuster
Article written by Anquanette Gaspard (agaspard@cruzanfoodie.com) for Coldwell Banker, St. Croix Realty
