Turks & Caicos Islands Real Estate Summer/Fall 2018

PROVO PICTURES–COURTESY TURKS & CAICOS SOTHEBY’S INTERNATIONAL REALTY
What could be more relaxing than this view from Turtle Tail (and the lifestyle that goes with it?) Five Little Cays Villa has it all.
In an ironic twist of fate, the 2017 hurricanes (Irma
and Maria) may have alerted potential buyers to the existence
of the Turks & Caicos Islands. There was some
media coverage, especially on social media, as these tiny
islands braced for and survived a Category 5+ impact. And
afterwards, TCI’s trademark “Beautiful by Nature” sun,
sand and sea continued to shine. In fact, Grace Bay Beach
was awarded “World’s Best Beach” in the TripAdvisor®
Traveler’s Choice® awards for 2018, reclaiming its crown
from 2016.
Turks & Caicos Real Estate Association statistics
show that the average price of real estate sales increased
by nearly 50% in the first quarter of 2018, compared to
last year. This was led by single-family home sales, where
the average selling price was up nearly 40%. A closer look
at the figures reveals that Providenciales continues to be
the centerpiece of luxury villas. During this sales period,
Amanyara Villa sold for $5,650,000; Tranquility Lane
Villa sold for $4,600,000 and newly constructed villas at
The Shore Club, The Dunes and Blue Cay Estate sold in
the range of $2,500,000 to $5,885,000.
There’s no doubt that high-end owners are strongly
attracted to the island’s unbeatable combination of sparkling
turquoise waters, pristine beaches and endless days
of sunshine. It’s also easy to be comfortable with a Britishbacked
land registry system, lack of taxes, and stability of
the US dollar as currency.
The beachfront condominium market can be said to
have ignited the fire beneath the TCI real estate market in
the mid-1990s. Although it’s hard to believe now, Grace
Bay Beach was a largely undeveloped swath of ivory sand
at that time. One by one, successful resort condominium
development began, with Grace Bay Club, Ocean Club
and The Sands leading the way. Each project built on the
success of the last, raising the bar in luxury and amenities.
As buyers grew to trust the market and witnessed
ever-growing property values, the flames of interest were
fanned.
Today, over 20 years later, the surprising fact is that
there is little existing inventory for the strong demand that
continues for resort condominiums. Unit sales and dollar
volume in the condominium market dropped in the first
quarter of 2018 for this very reason. Most of the sales were
at the luxury end, ranging from The Palms penthouse at
$3,100,000 to a unit at the Regent Grand for $1,159,000.
Realtors and buyers look forward to new construction
in this market. This includes the 12-story Ritz-Carlton
Residences (next to Seven Stars on Grace Bay Beach),
along with other projects in the pipeline as the new development
economy begins to sprout from its deep and
strong roots.
18 Turks & Caicos Islands Real Estate – The Official Magazine of the Turks & Caicos Real Estate Association