island
April 2014
FREE
property The place to find homes for sale and rent. Available free each month from news stands and real estate agents islandwide.
Edgehill
Edgehill, built circa 1830, sits atop a glorious vista in rural Paget with spectacular views of Hamilton Harbour, and north west towards Two Rock passage and beyond into the Great Sound and Dockyard. This charming three bedroom house has two full bathrooms, boasts a magnificent living room with cathedral ceilings, cedar beams and a working fireplace, a separate dining room, a breakfast area, security system, Brazilian Cherry hardwood and tiled floors, new windows, split system AC throughout. Substantial custom-made cedar closets have been installed in two of the bedrooms; fine examples of Bermudian craftsmanship. The house has three water tanks totaling approximately 18,000 gallons. The kitchen and bathrooms have all been renovated within the
NEWS
last eight years including allelectrical work and plumbing. There is a fitted wall safe and attic with a pull down ladder for storage. Out back there are a series of gardens: the first enclosed and flat ideal for small children and perfect spot for a swimming pool. Beyond, the hill slopes down and away from the house with a maze of cherry trees en-route to a lower field with a bountiful fruit orchard. There are a series of delicious mature loquat trees, a peach tree and an orange tree. Two thirds of the way down the garden we find a substantial dry structure for storage in fine condition, already with electricity, it can be an excellent work shop with potential to be transformed into any number of possibilities from an external office to perhaps a small cottage. Originally, this was a larger estate and it is being subdivided so that the parcel for sale including the main house and storage shed amount to approximately 0.68 of an acre. There are series of impressive trees throughout the property including a regal Poinciana, which bestows perfect shade on the front garden, which in turn provides a copious area parking area for both owners and their guests. Priced at $1,675,000. Call William at The Property Group.
Happy Easter
island
property
NEWS
IS YOUR PROPERTY EXEMPT? Cheri Minors, Associate, Cox Hallett Wilkinson Limited We hear the countless stories of families talking about how long it took for their loved one’s estate to be probated. Some families may state that the estate administration took several months from others stating that the estate administration took several years. On many occasions the additional time involved in successfully administrating a deceased estate is caught up in making an application to The Office of the Tax Commissioner for a Primary Family Homestead Exemption Certificate. Such application can take up to several months to process. Many of you may ask what is a Primary Family Homestead Exemption Certificate? The answer to this is quite simple. This is a Certificate given by The Office of the Tax Commissioner whereby a person can designate his/her real property as their Primary Family Homestead. As a result of such designation the designated property becomes exempt from estate stamp duty (i.e. death tax) when the owner of the property dies and their estate is probated. For owners of multiple properties if such designation is made during life then the property with the greatest value can be designated as the Primary Family Homestead. On death there is no choice of which property is designated. The Office of the Tax Commissioner will designate the property that the deceased resided in at the date of death as their Primary Family Homestead. If the deceased did not residing in either of the properties owned then the property with the least value at the date of death will be designated. Therefore lifetime designations should be considered in order to minimize tax implications on death. The application process is pretty straightforward. Currently the application fee is only $25.00. There is an application form available
at The Office of the Tax Commissioner that needs to be completed and submitted along with several supplementary documents. Such documents include certified copies of the following: (i) conveyance, voluntary conveyance or lease proving ownership of the property dating back at least 20 years; (ii) site plan of the property; (iii) Government issued photo identification (i.e. drivers license or senior’s card); (iv) Bermuda passport (along with confirmation of Bermudian status stamp or a Certificate of Bermudian Status); and (v) birth certificate. It should be noted that only one property can be designated by an individual to be their Primary Family Homestead but making an additional application to The Office of the Tax Commissioner can change such designation if required. The designation by an individual of their property as their Primary Family Homestead during life is beneficial in two ways: (1) an individual can use estate planning techniques in order to ensure they designate the most cost effective property as their Primary Family Homestead for tax purposes on death and (2) an individual can reduce some of the additional time and expense incurred with the administration of their estate on death. If you have any trouble making the application, you can always contact your lawyer who will be happy to assist. This article contains information of a general nature and should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional legal advice given with respect to a particular factual situation. This article contains information of a general nature and should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional legal advice given with respect to a particular factual situation.