Buying Property In St Maarten | century21-stmaarten

 

Buying Property in St Maarten and St Martin

A New York Times article states that “There are absolutely no restrictions for foreign buyers” to buy a property in St Maarten.
You don’t need an attorney but you need a Real Estate Broker.
Contact us on +1721 526 1819.
Thank you.

I have been in St Maarten real estate for 25 years now and I admit buying a property is theoretically easy but practically a nightmare! You need my experience to predict problems before they happen.
Being one of the oldest agencies in St Maarten, we are trusted and recommended by Notaries, Lawyers, Banks and The National Pension Fund (APS) for our on-field excellence and integrity in operations.

As a buyer I provide my service to you at no charge. I am paid by the seller.

I work with hundreds of clients a month and each property closing is unique. Each property buyer has a individual need; like setting up Foundations or paying by Cryptocurrency. Yes our experience is immense and our expertise is people. This guide covers everything from legal documents, forms and laws. Hopefully you find it useful.

If your question is advanced, as a buyer my services to you are free of charge.
Call Ritika on +1721 526 1819, available on WhatsApp on this number.
Featured on HGTV and Century21 Head Broker
BEST REAL ESTATE AGENCY award for 11 years.

How To Buy Property In St Maarten – Short Version

Buying a property in St Maarten is easy and takes a few days if funds are ready! Once you have decided on the St Maarten property you are buying we follow these steps to Transfer the Title in your name or company or Foundation.

1. It begins with an Offer to Purchase, which is simply an official way of negotiating your price and terms. This is a flexible agreement.
2. Once both parties have agreed on terms, a 10% deposit is transferred to the Notary’s Escrow account or a Century21 holding account.
3. A Sales & Purchase Agreement is signed in tandem.
4. The Notary will then check the title of the property and confirm the legitimacy of ownership.
5. You will be required to provide an ID and complete a simple Source Of Funds declaration.
6. Once the Notary confirms all documents and Property Title is ‘clean’; you transfer the remaining 90%.
7. The Notary will inform the Kadaster (Land Registry) to transfer the title to your name.
8. There is a Transfer Tax of 4% to be paid at closing and Notary fees are between 1% to 2%.
9. There are No Property Taxes and No Capital Gains Tax in Dutch Sint Maarten.

Contactless

More and more in large part due to the pandemic we have completed a number of contactless transactions. Notaries and banks have recently changed their regulations and distance signing is possible via video.
You don’t need one, but for a contactless transaction, we will recommend a lawyer. You are at peace and the seller is assured about your intentions.

A Brief Overview

Before we start, let’s get to know a little bit more about this prime tourist destination in the Caribbean.
Covering a total land area of 37 square miles, Sint Maarten is one of the smallest islands in the world shared by two nations despite the absence of a physical border dividing the two territories. The northern part of the island is with France (60%) while the Netherlands owns the southern Dutch region (40%). So technically speaking, the French calls it Saint Martin, while it is Sint Maarten to the Dutch – to everyone else it’s Saint Martin or St Maarten. In recent times locals identify the entire island universally as “SXM” and I suspect this is going to be the future name for a unified island (I wish!).

According to the Koppen climate classification, St Maarten enjoys a tropical savanna climate. It’s warm and sunny from January to April while rainy days begin in August and last until the end of the year.

Here’s a fun rumor: a popular folklore among the locals explains how the island was divided into two regions. Inhabitants were told to choose one “walker” as representatives from each side. The French walker was made to follow the coastline heading north while his Dutch counterpart walked south. After circumnavigating the island and meeting the second time, a line was drawn from the starting point all the way to the meeting point which became the border. The Frenchman brought along a bottle of red wine as refreshment while the Dutch washed down his thirst with gin, negatively affecting his performance, leaving his lot with a smaller territory.
And I just heard about this recently!! I need to work less and get out more!

Why buy property in St Maarten and Saint Martin?

Whenever a client or new island friend tells me I have been to many other islands, I jump at the question “Why St Maarten?”
The real answer to this question is two things that are in favor of St Maarten; things-to-do and safety.
The world-class dining, booming nightlife and upscale lifestyle makes St Maarten the billionaire’s capital of the Caribbean as mentioned in Vanity Fair!