The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Top realtors yesterday told Tribune Business they has seen “a noticeable pick-up” in the high-end property market in the last two months, with transactions worth $20 million either closed or in the process of completing.

Some suggested to this newspaper that the reduction in the top rate of Stamp Duty, from 12 per cent to 10 per cent, initiated in May’s Budget, had helped to stimulate improved demand, although others were more sceptical.

Still, Mario Carey, head of Mario Carey Realty, said there had been “a noticeable trend since the Stamp Duty has gone down”.

He added: “I know of, or have been involved with, $20 million in transactions. It’s a noticeable trend.”

Asked whether the Stamp Duty rate cut had made an impact, Mr Carey replied: “I think a lot of people have accepted it. It’s definitely taken a bit of the burden off, and people are feeling good about it.

“Some people may have been holding off on closing, but I think that in the next two-three months it should become more evident. I think that’s something that’s positive.

“We’re going into the slow summer time, but it’s something to monitor. The Treasury is going to make a lot of money with all these deals going on.”

On the downside, Mr Carey said the transactions completed, or in the process of closing, were all-cash deals, highlighting the absence of credit and continuing reluctance of banks to lend.

“The problem is it’s all cash,” Mr Carey conceded. “There’s no bank lending. There’s large sums of cash at the high end, but no credit.”

Mr Carey was backed by John Christie at H. G. Christie, who told Tribune Business that the high-end Bahamian market has “definitely been picking up” and the Stamp Duty cut was “part of it”.

“It’s definitely helping it along,” Mr Christie added of the Government’s decision to return the top rate to 10 per cent.

“Generally, the market prices are coming down, and people are more willing to sell at more realistic prices. That 2 per cent on the high-end range is a savings and helps everything there.”

Asked about the value of real estate deals entered into over the last two months,” Mr Christie told Tribune Business: “I know personally of about $13-$14 million. I’m sure there’s probably more than $20 million.”

However, data provided to Tribune Business from the Bahamas Real Estate Association’s (BREA) Multiple Listing System (MLS) indicated a more modest pick-up in properties valued over $750,000-$1 million.

While the MLS only features a fraction of the total market, Tribune Business was told that in the June-July 2012 period - the time after the Stamp Duty cut occurred - only eight properties valued above that price bracket had been sold.

This compared with zero sales for such properties listed on the MLS between June-July 2011, indicating a modest rebound nonetheless.

And one realtor, speaking to Tribune Business on condition of anonymity, expressed scepticism that the Stamp Duty cut would have stimulated a major rebound by itself.

On a $1 million property, where the Stamp Duty payment was split between buyer and seller, the realtor said this amounted to just a $10,000 - or 1 per cent - saving.