Lyford Hills $20-25 million infrastructure investment

The lead developer of Lyford Hills has told Tribune Business that some $20-$25 million will have been invested in the subdivision's infrastructure once it is completed, with some four to five lots being sold per month despite the recession.

Tennyson Wells, the former FNM and independent MP and Cabinet minister, said all the sewerage lines had been put in for the 126-lot Phase I at Lyford Hills, with 70 per cent of the trenching for electricial, water and communications lines, and "40-50 per cent of the water, telecommunications and electricity" piping installed throughout the three-phase project.

"The infrastructure is going in," Mr Wells told Tribune Business. "We opened it [Lyford Hills] in May of this year, and we have all the sewerage lines for Phase I in. The roads are in throughout the entire subdivision - the base roads for phases I, II and III.

"I was hoping to have Phase I completed by the end of November, but hopefully by the end of January we should have completed it. We are about a month-and-a-half to a month behind the schedule of where we thought we would be now. The main reason [for the delay] was equipment problems."

Still, Mr Wells said he and the development team expected to "roll into Phase II within the month", that stage featuring 95 lots available for sale, with the third and final phase including "150-something" lots.

Lot prices, the former MP said, range from the $120,000s to around $300,000, with some four to five lots sold per month in Lyford Hills since the development started in May.

"We have sold about 20, and for quite of number of others, people are in the banks dealing with funding," Mr Wells added. "The interest in it has been very high. A lot of people want it, and we have sold four times as many as in previous developments."

As for his other real estate projects, Mr Wells said sales at the 115-lot Yuma Estates had "been very slow this year" as the economic contraction bit, prompting himself and the other investors to "take the bank out of it".

"We have purchased some of the lots ourselves, and will hopefully take the bank out of it in the next month or so," Mr Wells explained.

"We still have 20-odd lots left. We think that's a very good subdivision, and are not going to reduce the prices on that." Lots at Yuma Estates, he added, are priced from $90,000 up to $105,000.

As for the 181-lot South Seas, Mr Wells said some "30-odd" of those had already been sold, and he now had approval from both the Bahamas Environmental, Science and Technology (BEST) Commission and the Bahamas National Trust (BNT) to cut the channel for the planned marina, something that had already started.

At South Seas, lot prices range from $90,000 to $205,000, the latter being for the likes of commercial lots, fourplexes and triplexes.

As for his latest acquisition, the former Bacardi plant adjacent to the South Seas development, Mr Wells said he and his fellow investors were "still working on" their plans for the site and would be able to say more in a month's time.

How much money will you need for retirement?

Most people understand that the sooner they begin planning for retirement the better, but the question invariably arises, "How much money will I need for retirement?" This is obviously a very important question, but it is also one that is very difficult to answer.

National Insurance, your company-sponsored pension plan, personal savings, longer life expectancy, inflation and your retirement needs (what you want out of retirement) are all factors that should be considered when determining how much you'll need to save for a comfortable retirement. It is however very important to get a handle on your current expenses as it is this component that will help you decide how much money you'll need. The problem is many individuals don't have any idea about what their expenses will be, hence they usually underestimate what their savings should be. Also, many individuals don't take medical costs into consideration or don't focus enough on the risk posed by inflation. Additionally, one of the most neglected facets of retirement planning is longevity risk. With the modern advances in medical technology, people are living longer than the country's standard life expectancy. Once you've considered all of these factors and gotten a good handle on your annual retirement expenses, you can then determine how you might pay for those expenses and thus, how much you will need to save for retirement.

It is estimated that an individual entering retirement will need approximately 70% of their pre-retirement income each year after they retire, to enjoy the same lifestyle they had while they were employed. However, if you look at what an individual may want to do when they retire, for example, increase travel or take up an expensive hobby, the 70% replacement income factor jumps to 100%. To take this one step further, individuals who retire before paying off their mortgage will need about 120% of their pre-retirement income to enjoy the same standard of living that they previously did.

Accurate estimates of expenses and income are invaluable as you plan your retirement and determine your savings need. After you've determined what you think you'll need to live on during retirement (expenses), one rule of thumb is to multiply it by 25. For example, if you think you'll need $40,000 a year, you'll need 25 times that amount or $1,000,000 in order to retire comfortably. Next, you need to consider what you are eligible to receive from National Insurance and/or your company pension plan, then identify their annual value and subtract that from your annual retirement expense. What's left is the amount of living expenses that must be made up either by investment income or other sources of income.

For example, if you expect to receive approximately $12,000 from National Insurance benefits each year and $8,000 in an annual pension from your company sponsored pension plan, you will only need half of the $40,000 each year from your savings. Since you'll only plan on pulling out about $20,000 each year, you'd need about $500,000 saved by your retirement date.

After determining your income gap (in this scenario $500,000 by your retirement date) you can easily calculate what you need to save to achieve your goal.

Another factor that will help you determine how much money you will need for retirement is to determine when you actually plan to retire. The younger you are when you retire, the longer you can expect to live during retirement. This means you need to have a lot more money saved. If you wait longer until retirement, not only will you be retired for a shorter amount of time, but you will also work more years, meaning you can save more. The younger you are and the more you have saved, the less you'll need to save in the future in order to achieve the same retirement standard of living as someone older or with less money saved up until that point.

This rule of thumb is not a rule of law but merely a guide. Everyone's retirement goals are personal and no one gets into trouble because they saved too much too soon. When it comes to how much savings you'll need for retirement, putting away more money while you're working, and working more years before retiring is a good form of insurance for ensuring a comfortable retirement.

Sean K. Longley, CPA is Vice President, Business Development/Client Relations - CFAL, a member of the AF Holdings Group of Companies.

Why should I use a Licensed Real Estate Agent?

If you are arrested and taken to jail wouldn’t you want a Defense Attorney who knows the inns and the outs of the Law to fight on your behalf? Or would you prefer a lawyer who was just called to the bar and has no experience? Personally I would go for the former and not the latter.

The same logic applies to having an estate agent fight for your real estate needs. On one hand you have a well educated estate agent whose day to day job is real estate, on the other hand you have your buddy who thinks he knows real estate, but his day job is an a/c repair technician. Who would you rather be looking after your best interests? The answer is clear.

A licensed estate agent has chosen real estate as their career so they have studied the law, passed courses and exams, earned designations in specific real estate fields, and work in the industry on a daily basis.

A licensed estate agent has the knowledge and experience to handle your real estate needs whether you are in the market to purchase or whether you are looking to sell. They have an extensive network of contacts within the real estate industry including, but not limited to, estate agents, appraisers, brokers, attorneys and architects.

The Bahamas Real Estate Association governs the real estate industry in The Bahamas and they have a fairly current online list of licensed estate agents throughout The Bahamas Islands which you can peruse at any time.

BREA urges land buyers to ensure they have proper titles

President of the Bahamas Real Estate Association (BREA) William Wong yesterday urged all prospective land buyers to ensure that due diligence is taken when purchasing property, including making sure that they have "clear and good land titles."

His comments came almost two weeks after Canaan Baptist Church was demolished after losing a land ownership battle with Arawak Homes.

"It is really up to the buyer to make sure that they do the due diligence, making sure that their lawyer does all the proper checking before they pay for a piece of property. That is one of the fundamentals in buying real estate - knowing that you are buying a piece of property that has a good title and the person who is selling it has a right to sell it," Wong said

Canaan Baptist Church pastor, Rev Eugene Bastian said that he purchased the property from a local company back in 1999 for $30,000. But a September 1 court judgment found that Arawak Homes rightfully owned the Charles Saunders Highway property.

As a result of the court ruling, Arawak Homes demolished the church, sparking outrage among some members of the religious community. However, Arawak Homes chairman Franklyn Wilson told The Nassau Guardian in an earlier interview that even more churches are embroiled in land ownership disputes with his firm.

Wilson said the problem of people occupying land with no legal claims is an issue that needs to be tackled.

While not commenting directly on the Canaan Baptist situation, the BREA president agreed that there are cases of people squatting on other people's land without buying the property.

Wong also agreed that over the years, people have abused the Quieting Title Act. This legislation provides for individuals who have occupied or farmed land for 12 years or more to apply to the courts for legal title to the property.

"I have heard stories of certain people acquiring properties that they have no interest in. And I think by now the government has seen to this and they have taken measures to have it corrected," he said.

"I have heard stories where people have been quieting properties for their own benefit and they have no idea who these properties belong to. They figure it is vacant and they make a claim for it. But, I think that is quieting down these days and people are a bit more diligent."

As for the Association, Wong said, "our agents, they make sure that when they are selling somebody's property that it is up to the buyer to make sure that he/she is able to get good title before they purchase property."

New Paradise Realty Bookmarks

The website for RE/MAX Paradise Realty has recently added bookmarks so now you can bookmark and share Bahamas real estate listings with your family and friends on social sites like Delicious, Facebook, MySpace, Stumble Upon, Twitter and more.

The AddThis sharing bookmark tool is a quick and easy way to share what you have found on the internet. Try it out and let me know what you think.

RE/MAX Bahamas now on MySpace!

RE/MAX Paradise Bahamas Realty has now joined the social network MySpace! If you are a member of MySpace and you would like to be friends to stay up to date with real estate in The Bahamas and the RE/MAX company itself, just add them.

Find the profile here:
RE/MAX Paradise Realty on MySpace

RE/MAX Paradise Realty now on Twitter!

Looking to keep up with what's happing in real estate in The Bahamas? If you are then this is right up your ally.

RE/MAX Paradise Realty has now joined the Twitter community. Find RE/MAX Bahamas on Twitter right here at: http://twitter.com/REMAX_Bahamas