my mom is thinking of moving to st. croix. any info would be great

Paola
There are many older single people living on St Croix. They live safe happy lives. There are some limitations however. Transportation and medical care can both be a problem for older folks. The public transpotation system is difficult to use and not very dependable. The health care system, while improving, still lacks many critical care services. Many people choose to go to Florida or PR for serious medical treatment.

Americanized?? Well the last time I checked St Croix was still part of the USA. However it does have it's own unique way of being American. It is much slower paced than much of America, particularly urban America.

I hope your mom comes down for a visit to find more about this "unique" place.

I wouldn't describe St. Croix as being very Americanized, definitely nowhere near the magnitude of St. Thomas. There are other countries like Aruba, which isn't even under the US, that are more Americanized than St. Croix. Culturally speaking, it's like another country that is politically under the USA.

thats a good start, thanks. What neighborhoods would you recommend?and real estate agent?

The right neighborhood for your mother would depend on many things.

What type of neighborhood would she find comfortable?

Does she like to socialize or does she prefer more private living?

Does she have favorite activities she'd like to continue here?

Would she want a condo or a house?

Would she need to be near the hospital or other medical facilities?

Would she be living with a pet?

What price range could she comfortably afford?

Would she be comfortable driving much on the island?

Would she want to be close to a beach? Or up on a hillside with an ocean view? Or inland?

How many bedrooms/bathrooms would she want?

Would she want to live with a roommate or alone?

Finding the right neighborhood and property for each person is a very individual search. There are some very nice neighborhoods on the island in different price ranges. Sometimes senior citizens prefer condo living so they have less maintenance issues to contend with themselves and someone close by to help out if they need it.

Has your mother ever visited St. Croix? We are coming into the absolute best time of the year to be here... although it's pretty great all year around.

If your Mom hasn't spent any time on St. Croix she should definitely come for an extended visit before making a moving decision. That will give her the opportunity to meet people, look around the island and get a feel for living here before making a big leap which she might regret. Good luck!

I would highly recommend Alexandra as the realtor to use. She went out of her way to hwlp us, even after the sale when she was already paid. Very nice lady.

Yes indeedy!! Alexandra is my choice.She has given me much helpful info. even though I am not on island just yet.She's so nice and is very knowledgeable...LA

I'm tagging on to STT's response...we haven't been here long, 6 months or so, but we have had LOTS of visitors. All of them thought STX was wonderful - for about a week or two, then they are confused as to why we would do without some of the things they consider necessities (which we don't miss at all, so everyone's different)...we've had about a dozen guests, and not a one of them felt they were cut out of the right cloth to live on island for an extended period of time. One couple experienced rock fever almost immediately, which I found amusing, considering that they came from a very small town in central Arkansas which they never leave.

We're a little younger than your mom, but I would definitely agree with STT Resident on this one - if your mom has the means, I would advise coming down for 3 months or so and seeing how it works out for her without cutting the ties back home. She will need to "work" at finding the right niche for her - different areas of STX have their own mojo going on, you just have to find the one where your yin and yang fit it. If it works for her, GREAT! If it doesn't, she has just had the best vacation anyone can hope for!

If you haven't already noticed it, the extended PMV is something highly touted on this board, and rightfully so...another thing that might help is to do a search on the board for messages about why people LEFT the island; I think a lot of good information and insight is located in those posts too. And don't throw out the info because it's not what you want to hear...some of the info can be thrown away, but a lot of the posts contain real-life info that your mom might find useful in making her decision.

Good luck, and Happy New Year's Eve/Happy Old Year's Night to all on this board! A special "thank you" to those who helped make our transition to STX such a positive experience - especially Ric and Linda J!