Almost back to normal at Royal Westmoreland

Royal Westmoreland, for those of you now acquainting yourself with the island, is a well-established and popular gated community on the West Coast of Barbados with about 300 built homes ranging from apartments to large stand-alone villas. Although membership is not mandatory, it offers golf, tennis, a gym and beach facility at Mullins as part of the amenities of the development. There are currently about 250 members.

As restrictions continue to relax in Barbados and social and sporting activities have been re-introduced into daily life over the past few months, Royal Westmoreland decided to push forward and squeeze in as many of their regular annual golf tournaments as possible before the conclusion of the membership year in January 2022. The rescheduling of the tournaments resulted in some being played only a few months apart and lots of activity in and around the clubhouse, socially distanced of course.

One of those tournaments is the West Coast Classic which my partner Joyce Bouvais and I won in November 2021. If you know how any net format works, you know I just drove the cart and kept the score while Joyce played out of her skin and brought home the prizes. We defended our title in February 2022 and decided we’d give some others a chance to share the winnings. Prize-giving type gatherings are still banned so, here we are, relishing the moment in spite of that.

Joyce Bouvais and I

Next up, The Buchanan, the most fun tournament of the year (in my opinion) was played in early March 2022 after an unusually rainy start for the end of February and play on scheduled days was washed out after 2 of 5 rounds had been completed. I thought this would be a savior for me with an extra week to work out a few kinks in my swing. Apparently not! And yes, due to my incredibly poor performance I’ve now booked a few sessions with Sean Edey who everyone raves about. I’ll be fixed in no time, right?

Now, why has this particular tournament always been my favorite? Maybe because the match play format lends itself to back-to-back days of banter between teams and I always played with the same fire-cracker of a partner, Janice Fields (member - guest invitational) until I became a member myself. Luckily for us, Janice and I won the shootout 5 years ago and took home the prizes in the last year we were able to play together. This year was special all over again as Covid has limited the numbers allowing for an only members event. The perfect storm 5 years after our big win - Janice and I were reunited again this year for the first (and maybe only) opportunity to defend our title!

Janice Fields and I

These tournaments mark an opportunity for more in-person conversations we’ve missed so much in the clubhouse. As always, it’s a pleasure to catch up with everyone on what’s going on with life inside and outside of the resort.

What’s also great about The Buchanan tournament is that it carries the name of past long standing members, Lady Naomi and Sir Robin Buchanan, who brought this format to the club and contributed towards planning and building up the social atmosphere at Royal Westmoreland from inception. This year they’ve added a prize for the memory of Tony Reid who was one of the pillars in keeping the tournaments organized and on schedule.

I’m also excited that Barbados Sotheby’s International Realty was given the opportunity to sponsor this event so look out for us for years to come!

It’s nice to be (almost) back to normal again. I won’t make all of the events, but I’m trying to get back out there. Check in with me for other updates!

What You May Not Know about Sotheby’s International Realty

I had the opportunity and pleasure of joining Sotheby’s International Realty in 2015 having already started my own business but never worked for an International Real Estate brand before. There is something about this brand that just drew me in. The company, at the time, somewhat wore the name but didn’t fully embrace or leverage the potential that Sotheby’s International Realty could contribute from a marketing and brand recognition perspective.

Previously named “West Coast Villas”, we were well-known on-island but the name was misleading once you ventured past our shores, outside of our 166 sq. miles the name meant something completely different. The decision was made in 2016 to drop the name and fully embrace the Sotheby’s International Realty brand for Barbados. And here is when I started to lean in and really learn and connect with what is Sotheby’s International Realty.

Founded in 1976, the Sotheby’s International Realty network was designed to support independent brokerages with powerful marketing connections and a robust referral program between companies worldwide to connect the most prestigious clientele with the finest agents and to represent them in the sale or purchase of luxury listings all over the globe. Due to the brand’s strong relationships with leading marketing houses and media outlets such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, as well as, our association with the Sotheby’s Auction House and their clientele, we’re able to generate incredible global exposure for our listings.

Sotheby’s International Realty is represented in the most significant markets in the world, acting as a catalyst for lead generation and the brand encourages and promotes a very strong referral program within our network. What I call “true” Sotheby’s agents will emanate loyalty and dedication to the brand that you can witness and experience even before you get into a conversation. Internal brand networking events were very significant pre-Covid and still are, but, in a virtual forum.

The brand continues to step up to the plate with the recent launch of the Sotheby’s International Realty®2022 Luxury Outlook report which is an ambitious exploration into high-end residential markets across the globe. 2021 proved to be a perfect storm for the high-end housing market as the starts-and-stops of the pandemic’s reopening fueled even stronger demand for larger homes and inventory struggled to keep pace. In this report, we follow the trends that are likely to shape the coming months across the world’s prime housing markets from the resurgence of urban cities to the return of the international buyer.

It’s not uncommon for Sotheby’s agents to visit other Sotheby’s offices when they travel and with the UK being our largest feeder market, it’s not a far stretch to think that our UK-based partners also frequent the island on a regular basis. Guy Bradshaw, Managing Director of UK Sotheby’s International Realty, is a long-time visitor of the island. In true Guy style, over text message, he tells me he’ll be in Barbados with the family and would like to look at a few properties while he’s here. No problem! He did mention something about filming and Channel 4 but I didn’t take him on too much until much closer to “the day” when it dawned on me what was actually happening!

As for the filming that day, it formed part of four episodes that Channel 4 jointly produced with UK Sotheby’s International Realty which aired, January 19! Have a look and let me know your thoughts!

If you’re outside of the UK and/or missed the show, email me and I’ll point you in the right direction!

So here we are... what next? I’m not big on resolutions but I’m making a conscious effort in 2022 to continue what Guy started, push my boundaries and leverage our brand even more than before. Plus, he makes it look like so much fun!

If you’re thinking about buying, renting, or selling a property in Barbados, I would be happy to get In touch. Drop me a line at muffin@barbadossothebysrealty.com or subscribe to my blog to stay up to date with what’s happening on Island.

A snapshot of our brand statistics:

Engaged Social Followers: 900 K

Highest Year on Record: $150 B

Annual Visits to www.sothebysrealty.com: 37 M

Sales Associates: 24 K

#1 Most viewed Social Media Channel on YouTube

Incomparable Social Media - We drive more eyes to your listing.

Real Estate - On and off the Golf Course

Ok, golf addicts! Before you get too excited, let me explain... This blog will not include tips for a better golf swing, break down the rules of golf or review any of the latest equipment. I can only promise my honest opinions and candid insights on communities, courses, clubhouses and everything inside or outside the gates of the major residential developments in Barbados, many of which have golf courses.

For those of you who don’t already know me, they call me “Muffin”, a nickname from childhood which has stuck for life. Unfortunately, no real stories to tell apart from the interesting introductions and awkward expressions that come with having a quirky name. Let’s just say, it serves as a good icebreaker at my expense and I’m ok with it. Think of me as, not just “the golfer”, but a real estate expert with over 15 years of experience in this industry who runs on lattes and espressos and knows all the ins and outs of luxury real estate on and off the major golf courses in Barbados. I’m not a terrible golfer either if you’re interested in having a chat over 9 or 18 holes, all handicaps are welcomed. If you’re not a golfer, no problem! You’ll still benefit from my unique perspective and years of first hand personal experience of these communities. My background is built on a university degree in finance paid for by a golf scholarship, propped up with a life of love for property and many years of proudly representing the island where I was born.

Needless to say, I’m no longer an avid golfer but golf and gated communities and all of the homes around them undoubtedly play a large role in my line of work as I’ve come to specialize in luxury residential real estate. Insomuch, golf is a daily topic with clients so I’ve spent a lot of time frequenting these communities over the years and getting to know them inside out. Whether it’s the practical aspect of what amenities are available and best fit your lifestyle or high stake questions that involve property values or opportunities for financial returns, I’ve pretty much become a knowledge bank on anything that ties golf and real estate into the perfect package. If I don’t already have the answers, I’ll get them for you.

This is my debut to blogging, quite a daunting feat for a relatively shy person (at first). But Covid has propelled us into a world more reliant on communication through social platforms as a standard instead of the exception and so I’ve decided to come out of the shadows and join in giving back to my clients and professional community. Plus, it’s really exciting to connect the dots between golf and real estate from my own perspective. This website will act as my platform to share my professional experience and knowledge of the residential market as I strive to provide valuable information to assist clients in their goals whether buying, selling, or renting in Barbados.

On top of that, there has been so much interest and sales activity in Barbados this year that there’s lots to chat about! You’ll definitely want to stay posted and subscribe for my regular updates on the major communities (Apes Hill, Royal Westmoreland, Sugar Hill, Sandy Lane and more) and any changes/activity going on in these developments as well as surrounding areas.

If you’re a buyer, seller or just interested, feel free to join me and let me know your thoughts on anything you’d like to hear more about. All feedback is welcomed! To receive updates on my next blog post click the subscribe button below.

Watch out 2022, here we come!