Building a house (while living off-island)
 

Hello to all of you!

I have been browsing through this forum for a while and I have found several brief posts mentioning that it is not advisable to have a house built in Barbados if you are not present "every step of the way". My husband and I are in the preliminary stages of planning to build a house on the island after having visited multiple times. It would not be realistic for us to be there throughout the building process (we are in Canada), but could visit several times. Is there anyone here, or anyone who knows of anyone, who has had a positive/negative experience having a house built on the island while not being present? We have connected with a local civil engineer who has knowledge and experience in the building industry and we do trust him. However we want to plan for the worst and hope for the best so any advice or anecdotal information would be greatly appreciated!

Sherwood

Re: Building a house (while living off-island)
 

Thank you to whoever it was that PM'd me but I'm afraid I can't open the message, the settings on this forum blocked me from opening any messages unless I have a minimum of 3 posts! I guess this is 2...

Re: Building a house (while living off-island)
 

So perhaps for my third post, which will hopefully magically open my PMs :) , I will broaden my question to include building a house as a non-citizen generally... pitfalls to avoid, things you wish you had known from the outset, any subject matter expertise you may have gained along the way...

Thanks team

Sherwood

Re: Building a house (while living off-island)
 

My partner is a well respected Architect here in Barbados, Canadian by birth but has been here practising his craft for 46 years. He can put you in touch with clients of his who have trusted him to build/ renovate whilst they are in their home country ( he is in fact just in the process of starting another project for English clients ).
It takes several months normally for Town Planning to approve drawings, after this , working drawings, fine tuned with clients, checking the building plot ( how far down are rocks/solid ground ) , and if everyone is satisfied, the work begins.
With the wonderful ways of communicating these days , even if clients are not on island , itis easy for them to follow progress by e.mail, photo's, etc.
So just make sure you choose the right people to work on your project and a trustworthy Lawyer and before you know it you will be living in the land of sunshine.
Non

Re: Building a house (while living off-island)
 

Thanks so much, pepper27. It's nice to know that people do have positive experiences building while away with the right people. We are having plans drawn up at the moment, and they will be submitted to the planning office. You said your partner is an Architect, and that he has been involved in building/renos as well, so pardon my ignorance, but does that mean he can take plans that have been drawn and oversee the building process, or is he aligned with a construction company that does the building? Again, we are new to this so just trying to learn the ropes. Feel free to PM me if that works better.

Thanks :)
Sherwood

Re: Building a house (while living off-island)
 

Hi again Sherwood, Aubrey is an independant Architect working for himself - and yes , he can and has overseen construction and also been responsible been the actual construction of properties with his own "workmen" - when you are next on the island maybe you should come and speak with him, he can give you good advice or you could phone -Its a minefield out there and picking the right people for such an important project is essential.
Feel free to call anytime ( 246) 421 6682, or Aubrey's cell( 246) 256 4379
Wondering if Sherwood is your name or where you are from , - I am from Nottingham and Sherwood is a suburb of Nottingham.
Non ( pepper27 )

Re: Building a house (while living off-island)
 

Hi guys ..its great that you could help each other but the site advises you to keep personal details ie names and numbers etc to pms - it would be best if you pm each other this info and then delete once you have just for your own privacy sake

Dips

Re: Building a house (while living off-island)
 

PM sent your way, thanks.

Re: Building a house (while living off-island)
 

It is advisable to have someone you can trust. Hubby and I moved to Barbados and rented until he built our house to a stage we could move in and continues to build.