There are many unknown’s in life. The trick to getting through them is understanding your options and acting before everyone else in the same predicament thinks your idea is a good one.
The rollover issue is a very controversial one with many different emotions attached to it.
I will address what I feel are some choices that vendors and purchasers should consider, as well as how we see the island’s residential market fairing over the next 12-24 months.
The rental properties may be viewed as a market indicator, as we see the amount of rental listings returning to pre-Ivan numbers. However, the prices have yet to return to that time, and may never come down to that again, as everything has gone up, especially insurance, construction, etc.
As new residents arrive on island they will know outright that they are here for a potentially limited time. Some of them will have the resources to buy, others will not. The ones that do not, will obviously look to rent.That is where your property comes in. If you are able to hold on to your investment after you leave, and by this I mean, if your tenant’s rent will cover your mortgage, your strata fees, insurance, etc. Should you wish to do this, there are many excellent Rental Management companies that will look after your investment.
This option will allow you to hold on to your investment while your application is being reviewed, hence fulfilling one of the requirements, give you a place to live while you are preparing to move (should it come to that), or otherwise hold on to an investment, that is likely to compound.
If you cannot hold onto your investment, then I would recommend speaking to a real estate agent about listing your property soon. One of the options when listing, is that if you do sell the property prior to your departure, you may be able to rent it back from the new owner for a short time period. This will mean that you will not have to move twice, and be able to leave the island without any loose ends.
As far as the real estate market is concerned, we will see a lot of things happening. We will see an influx of properties being listed for sale and we will also see a number of rental units come on and off the market.
We should also see the number of transactions go up for properties in the $200-$500,000 property range, as the general formula is that if you are going to rent for more than 3 years, then it would behoove you to buy.
At the end of the day, there are many unknowns, but if you speak to your real estate agent, they may be able to help you with your decisions by supplying with the information you need to make the right one for you.