Benefits (and Cautions) of Real Estate in Bermuda

In a previous SRS article, I related the circumstances of my Bermudiancitizenship. At the end of that essay, I hinted about the benefit of thisstatus. In this essay, I will now divulge that benefit.

My wife and I visited Bermuda many times over the years and eventuallyconsidered owning a home there. Many decades ago, when I was giving amammography course at the beautiful Sonesta Beach Hotel in Southampton,Bermuda, we arranged for a realtor to meet us during a free afternoon toshow us homes for sale. After the realtor drove up to the hotel entranceand we all introduced ourselves, my wife said we were interested in seeingtwo-bedroom waterfront homes.

When the realtor heard our American accents, she responded that unless oneof us had Bermudian status, she was very limited by law as to what shecould show us because non-citizens were only allowed to live in certainareas on the island. I then proudly opened my attaché case and handed herdocumentation of my status.

After looking it over very carefully, she informed us that she was nowpermitted to show us homes anywhere on the island. She said that the onlyproperty available at the time was a one-bedroom with a water view, but shewanted to show it to us anyway so we could see the neighborhood. We gotinto her small car (a luxury on the island) and off we went.

The neighborhood was clean but not elegant. The home was situated on lessthan a half-acre. It had a very small wading pool in the back. The housereeked of mildew and the appliances were very old. Regarding the waterview, when I stood on my tiptoes, I was barely able to see the ocean fromthe bottom left corner of the kitchen window.

Although we had no intention of buying the house, we politely inquiredabout the asking price. When I heard the price, I had to restrain myselffrom laughing. It was even more expensive than multibedroom homes on morethan an acre of land in the suburbs of Boston (not a cheap place to live!).I will never forget the four terse sentences of the realtor’s reply: "Landin Bermuda is dear. Bermudians are wealthy. The price is non-negotiable.The house will be sold in a week." I then turned to my wife and whisperedin her ear that I wanted to go back to the hotel to enjoy the rest of theafternoon … and I was finished looking for homes in Bermuda.

I would now like to leave you with three takeaways. If you, or someone youknow, want to buy a home in Bermuda, make certain you are familiar with therestrictive rules regarding non-citizens. Bermuda is an expensive place tolive so ensure you have enough assets. Finally, if you are consideringstaying at the beautiful Sonesta Beach Hotel, forget it. It was destroyedin 2003 by Hurricane Fabian.