
Originally Posted by
tigi
Hi all,
We have seriously considered buying a house in Aruba, hoping to spend a couple of months there during winter, working remotely. We are looking specifically at houses, as they seem like better value vs condos. The major problem I have trouble getting over is that the market is extremely opaque. Unlike here in the states, there's no MLS so it's impossible to see recent sales, trends, etc. You are essentially at the mercy of realtors - not a great position to be in... It does seem like real estate prices on the island are in decline, and properties have been sitting on the market for months. And yet sellers aren't jumping at lowball offers either. Perhaps everybody is just trying to wait out the pandemic...
So, a few questions for Aruba property owners out there:
1. Based on your observations, by how much have property prices declined year-over-year? If that's too broad of a question, we are looking at 3-bed/2-bath houses in Noord (Opal, Rooi Santo, etc). What would be a fair price range for those, assuming decent condition with need for some cosmetic repairs?
2. What are the carrying costs for a house of that size, on top of land lease fees and property taxes? For example - insurance, trash removal, water, gas, electricity? If there are examples out there with and without a pool, that'd be awesome.
3. Is it feasible to manage ownership of a house in Aruba remotely, visiting perhaps a couple of times a year? For example, I've seen posts on this forum about paying utility bills in cash in person, repairs taking forever, and so on. What other challenges and inconveniences of Aruba property ownership have you encountered? Any government-related challenges - inspections, tax forms, and such?
4. Is it generally safe in Aruba to lock up the house and leave it unattended for months at a time? Or does everybody hire a property management company to periodically check in on things?
Thank you,
T