6. Links on Roatan, to know more about the island
Each link can lead you to many other links, one can spend days surfing, there is a very rich base of information…
- The best site presenting Roatan: Roatanet, with many articles and connections: http://www.roatanet.com/
- Example of retirees’ views on cost of life, advantages and disadvantages of living in Roatan and mailand Honduras (I do not advise mainland as crime rate is high). Another good site is International living site, speaks very well of Roatan but mentions that prices are climbing very high…: http://htw.marrder.com/hondo1/data/retirement.htm
- Visit real estate agents and learn on the many facets of Roatan. A good entry point is the website of Roatanet:">http://www.roatanet.com/ You can find answers to many Frequently Asked Questions on many websites of real estate agents such as REMAX. Take the opportunity to compare lot 3 with other lots for sale in the island. You can easily find many cheaper lots, but be aware that these are far from services and often isolated. Some are in gated communities, with expensive Home Owners Association monthly fees!
- Free tax law Retirees do not pay taxes on their outcomes from outside Honduras. Many sites of Real Estate Agents explain this in details. Furthermore, the government of Honduras prepared a new law in December 2006. The law will be officially promulgated in June 2007. Preparation for its implementation is under way. Under this law, incomes from most economic activities in Roatan will only pay a very small tax (around 2%). Capital gain (if you make big profit in reselling a property in Roatan) will be taxed at a flat rate of 4%. This is a very strong incentive for purchasing a property in Roatan, compared with other countries in the region. You can find details on the law in the following link: http://www.roatanfreezone.com
- Examples of Honduras press, with many books on retirement in Honduras, on first page (sold by AMAZON). Honduras is well known, well rated for retirement, many fiscal advantages. But as Roatan is quite big, there is no feeling of being among foreigners. And it is easy to "get lost" among locals, mainly in La Ceiba: http://www.marrder.com/htw/classifieds.htm
- List of hotels and resorts
in Roatan: it’s impressive, remember, Roatan is a major tourist destination.
Still, again, most tourists go in large resorts and one does not see crowds of
tourists around, mainly in the Guava beach Villas area, which is in a
residential area, between two hot spots, West bay and west End. You will find details on the Roatanet website above.