After deciding the Caymans was for us, it was time to find our perfect home and so my husband and I began our quest….

The excitement of looking for our first house abroad has so far been a pleasure. Simply knowing that each weekend, with the assistance of a great real estate agent, we have the feeling of discovery, adventure and surprise waiting for us. Each house we enter gives a different feeling and we love to mentally see ourselves in the property or not, and talk about the configurations and potential. There’s been so many houses on this island that have had their walls knocked out, their kitchens replaced, garages converted and pools put in recently. The property choices are endless and obviously you are spoilt for location, as each part of the island has a different feel and ambiance to offer.     

So far, after viewing nearly thirty or so homes within our selected criteria, we seem to be honing in on our future abode in paradise. During our search we have seen a mix bag of properties, (that’s what make the whole experience so enjoyable), including fixer-uppers, traditional Caymanian / Caribbean, townhouses, detached large houses and even large multi-unit complexes going on sale as one property.

When searching for houses, I try and go about it in a purely organic way. First of all we try and get a feel of what we want and then iron out the practicalities, which of course there are many to consider. Buying a house is obviously about costs, but the final decision is more about your gut. The right house will simply shout out “buy me!”

Have we found something yet?….well maybe…which brings me to the practicalities, of course before we plunge into a deal. The good news is mortgages are available to both Caymanians (naturally) permanent residents and overseas employees alike. There are plenty of providers too, including bank of Butterfield, Scotia Bank, First Caribbean, HSBC to name but a few. The process is similar to the UK procedure with banks offering competitive interests rates and requiring an initial down payment (which we have discovered has varied from 5% to 20%). Once we have decided upon what is suitable for us other factors such as stamp duty, payable to Government which varies from 4% to 7.5% according to residential status and location and insurance needs to be considered. Word of note – Insurance is much higher than you would expect compared to buying in the UK. 

Overall the process is straight forward enough, providing you do your research. Many of the realtors are able to not only help you in your search, but we have found have given honest advice and guidance. There are many listed such as Remax, Century 21, Crighton Properties, Coldwell Banker and Regal Realty, plus many more that can assist and provide you with up-to date listing on their websites.

As another weekend approaches and some further viewings are lined up, there’s no better way of spending a Saturday that letting your imagination run a little, do a little house window shopping and take a leap of faith to finding the perfect paradise home to settle in. Having spent most of my life living in the UK, I never ever once imagined I would be looking for a home to settle in the Cayman Islands. But with a twist of fate here I find myself, looking for my dream home in the sun. I very much look forward to this chapter unfolding.