Buying a BnB

I would recommend getting in touch with Roger Minkoff of Minkoff & Associates and chat with him. He has been here forever, and knows just about everything you might need to know. His e-mail is realadvisor@usvirealtor.com

Cisterns work like a charm, most houses have them. House is not damp because of cistern. I've never heard anyone complain about that. I have two 14,000 gallon cisterns and I don't even notice they're there...I just use the water they collect.

I run mine through a filter, and most people add Clorox to their cistern water. There are companies that will set up filtration systems for cisterns. You can also boil it, of course, or skip all that and purchase drinking water from the supermarkets. You may also live in an area that gets potable water from WAPA (Water and Power Authority) but they don't supply the entire island.

Hello,

Zoning:
I think this would depend on what the individual property was zoned as. You should call the Dept. of Planning and ask them what zoning a property must be to run a B&B.

Yes when you run out of water you have to buy water which is delivered by water trucks.

Cisterns:
Either you have a flat roof or a pitched roof with gutters. Rain water is 'directed' from the roof/gutters through pipes to the cistern. There is typically a screen in the pipes to keep leaves, bugs, frogs... out. The cistern is usually under the house so the top of the cistern is the floor of a room or two rooms depending on the size of the cistern and also could be the wall of a room (two story house, cistern/living area on one level). The cistern has a 'door' and a over flow pipe. The door or lid/cover is maybe 2 feet by three feet and can be lifted off to allow entry into the cistern. The run off pipe is where the excess water exits the cistern when it is full (overflowing). A pump pulls the water from the cistern and supplies your faucets, showers etc. If your cistern is leaking then your wall will be damp/wet - that's a bad sign. The wall might be cold but not quite damp.

I don't treat my cistern water.... not sure what other folks do for treating theirs. You can boil it first then use it for drinking, I've done that after heavy rains & hurricanes.

--Islander

You should also investigate STX. The VI real eatate magazine had two B&B for sale this week on STX, one in the West End with it's own beach and The Pink Fancy, a rather well known B&B in Christiansted. There are also two other small hotels, Waves of Cane Bay and the Cane Bay Reef Club that are/were also for sale.

If you're serious you should take a look.

Hi Linda,

I am trying to find this magazine on the internet, but no luck. Are you referring to a specific magazine or is it just a general comment that one shoud turn to a VI real estate magazine?

Thanks for the tip.

Kira

Thanks Linda and all for the info...........
I'd rather have a turn key operation or a house that was well upkept. I've seen a few of the hotels for sale and have heard other comments about the $$$ that needs to go in first to get it up to my standards............
I will keep checking the real eastate mags. My one for St. Croix is out of date and I need to get a new one. I have noticed though that the MLS on line doesn't turn over as fast as it does here in the DC area. Some of the houses on the MLS have been there for months and months. Is this common or are they just not updating the system?
Thanks again!

If you have a commercial facility (as a B&B would be), you're required to treat your cistern and have the water tested monthly by a water testing facility. You make the arrangement with them and they come out monthly to sample the water for coliform bacteria, sending you a copy of the results and sending a copy to EPA. Once a year your water is also tested for nitrates.

Most residents generally should chlorinate their cisterns every couple of months and it's no big deal - just pour in a small amount of Clorox, amount depending on the size of your cistern and the amount of water therein.

Hello Kira,

The magazine referenced is likely Houses, a monthly magazine with properties/agents for the USVI. St. Croix has a yearly magazine called Homes.

Hello Sandycwgrl, The listings are updated often. If you see houses on for a few months thats because they haven't sold and are still on the market.

--Islander

Thanks, Islander. If I do a MSL search through an agent's web site, would it list all the properties (that are listed), or is this list edited by the agent?

Kira

Hello Kira,

Once you click on a link to search the MLS typically you go to another web site (the flexmls web site) and it shows all properties (that are listed) by all agents. I've not noticed any differences between the order or properties listed when starting from one or another agent's website, except that those listed with that particular agent indicate such and 'other' properties say broker reciprocity.

--Islander