What It Costs to Buy and Live in St Kitts and Nevis

St Kitts and Nevis is cheaper to live on than some of its neighbours and more expensive than the aggregators suggest. The cost of buying is easier to pin down than the cost of living.

Buying

The government costs were set out in the legal and financing article earlier in this series. A non-national buying outside a Citizenship by Investment project pays an Alien Landholding Licence fee of 10% of the price, and approved CBI purchases are exempt. Stamp duty runs from 6% to 10% depending on location and value, customarily paid by the seller but negotiable. Legal fees are typically 1% to 3%, an Assurance Fund contribution is 0.2%, and the seller pays commission of about 6%. There is no personal income tax and no capital gains tax, and VAT is 17%.

The two items that guides disagree on, who pays stamp duty and the annual property tax rate, are flagged in that article and need local confirmation before you budget.

Rent

Rents have no official index. One data site puts a one-bedroom in the centre at about US$890 a month, another version of the same site at US$1,239. An expatriate guide gives EC$1,350 to EC$2,700, roughly US$500 to US$1,000, for a studio or one-bedroom in Basseterre, and a third guide US$1,000 to US$1,800 in a prime area. For a three-bedroom house, an expatriate guide quotes EC$4,050 to EC$6,750, roughly US$1,500 to US$2,500.

Electricity

Power comes from SKELEC on St Kitts and NEVLEC on Nevis, with rates averaging about US$0.19 to US$0.29 per kWh, according to a citizenship advisory guide. An expatriate guide says a monthly bill of EC$400 to EC$800, roughly US$148 to US$296, is not unusual for a family home with near-constant air conditioning. For a one-bedroom apartment, another guide quotes US$150 to US$250.

Food and health

Imported groceries cost a lot, and local produce and seafood are cheaper. Monthly groceries for one person are quoted at about US$400 to US$600 in two guides, and EC$1,080 (about US$400) in an expatriate guide. Private health insurance runs from about US$100 a month for a basic plan to US$200 to US$500 for comprehensive cover including medical evacuation, depending on age and coverage.

Putting a figure on it

Monthly totals for one person range from about US$1,240 for a frugal budget to US$2,480 for a comfortable one on a single data site, US$1,800 on an expatriate guide, and US$3,000 to US$4,000 on another. A citizenship advisory guide puts everyday spending, excluding rent, at US$700 to US$1,400. That threefold spread comes from different assumptions about housing, imported food and private cover.

What this means for a buyer

Fix the purchase costs with an attorney, since they are the part that is certain. Then build the monthly budget from a specific home on a specific island, ask a current resident what their electricity and health premiums actually are, and expect the Nevis and St Kitts figures to differ.