Moving questions

For me, I came here with only about 7 grand and I just 'winged' (wung? haha!) it. But I got a good job in the first couple days, too. If you figure on a cheap place to stay, you'll need $3,000 to move in ($1,000/mo + last and security), plus another $6,000 to live in it for 6 months (= $9,000). A cheap car is only a couple grand, plus insurance, so figure $2,250, minimum for that, plus gas for six months (= $3,650, Total = $12,650). Now you have to eat...yikes! If you eat out at McDonald's only once per week, and cook the rest of the meals yourself, you could get by on $200/week X 6 months = $5,200 (Total = $17,850). Now, you may need to drink or entertain yourself, and only you can determine how much that might be. I know when I first moved here 9 years ago, I was spending about $75/day just for drinks and fun and that would add another $13,650 for six months, but, like I said, that was for ME. Most people aren't addicted to alcohol like I am...but, if you're like me, then, to stay on island for six months, renting an apartment and owning a car, you're gonna need to bring at least $31,500...but like I said, that's for ME back THEN. I no longer drink, so that cuts out a LOT! And I'm also married, so that cuts down on the fun (har-har!), so I could probably now do it for around $20K. Hope this helps you some. Good luck to ya!

Wow Marty, that's quite a chunk of change!

Do you pay income taxes in the VIs? If you buy a home, how bad are the property taxes?

Robert,

If you go to the first announcement at the top of this page, ",,,new to the board, read this.." it will lead you to more information than you can read at one sitting about cost of iving, job-hunting, housing, etc. and then you can read all the moving stories to get a more in-depth sense of what island living is all about. And then if you have more specific questions you can search this forum and then if you have even more specific questions, we'll all be happy to help. Cheers and happy reading!

OK, cool, thanks for the tips, both

Yep, we pay taxes here, just like in America, but all of the money we pay in Federal taxes actually stays on island. Property taxes are bad, but they aren't what kills ya...it's the home-owner's insurance...well, not even THAT really, it's the hurricane ryder that kills. I think my homeowner's is something like $1,800/yr...with anothr $7,000 for the hurricane ryder!!!

Property taxes are pretty low compared to many other locations. The tax formula comes out to $750 per hundred thousand dollars of assessed value per year... so $1500 a year on a $200K house.

The hurricane insurance does add a lot more to the monthly payment than the taxes do. Talk to a mortgage broker about what you could qualify to purchase here. They can figure in the approximate costs of necessary insurance coverages, taxes, HOA fees where applicable, as well as your mortgage payments and give you a good ballpark for what you'd be able to get financed for in the USVI. Make sure you are talking to a mortgage broker who is licensed to underwrite in the USVI's, though. Most mainland brokers cannot and many people planning to move here don't realize that and think they have things arranged with their stateside mortgage company and suddenly learn they have to start over and may not be able to afford as much as they thought with the additional insurance costs added in. If you need names and phone numbers for a few mortgage brokers to talk to, just ask.