St. John Real Estate Terms: Definitions and Explanations

If you are interested in purchasing a property here on St John you have probably run into terms which may be new to your vocabulary. The following list should be helpful in navigating various documents and descriptions.

Address Designations

Properties on St John usually do not have direct street mail service and as a result the address descriptions may be a bit different. (Mostly people use PO Boxes)

For example vacant land is referred to as a Parcel, as in Parcel # 6-3-79 Carolina.. This designation tells me that the number of the parcel is 6-3-79, and that it is located in Estate Carolina which is part of the Coral Bay Qtr, on the island of St John. There are 50 different Estates on St John and 5 Quarters (QTR) Cruz Bay, Maho Bay, Reef Bay, Coral Bay and East End. The National Park owns land in all of these quarters, but traditionally the Cruz Bay Qtr and the Coral Bay QTR have the most for sale properties. However at this time, (May 2007) there are a record number of listings, home and land, so all Quarters are currently represented on the MLS.

Incidently all real estate companies which use the St John MLS are members of the St John Board of Realtors. MLS stands for Multiple Listing Service. Look for the MLS symbol.

Land Grade

Since most of St John is on a grade, (that is hilly and sometimes mountainous) you will hear and see various terms used referring to that grade. Terms such as gentle, sloping, moderate and steep. Occasionally a parcel has a flat grade designation, these parcels are usually in the valleys or near the base of a mountain. Unless it is a waterfront parcel or in close proximity to a waterfront parcel, one must look carefully at the view window. Is it hillside, valley or water? The reason St John has so many fantastic water view parcels is because it is so hilly.

Surveys

When beginning the building process it is essential to hire a surveyor to perform a topographical survey. A topographical survey is very helpful to determining the best building site and house orientation for a particular parcel. Survey lines are shot at different levels and show the actual grade of the parcel.

When buying a property on St John the bank will ask for an As Built Survey. This survey describes the parcel in terms of everything that has been added to the parcel. It is very important to make sure that setbacks have been followed and no building encroaches. Setbacks are defined by the particular zoning of a parcel.

Tax Numbers and Bills

St John land parcels have 2 numbers associated with them.

The Tax Map ID# is the number which references the tax bill of the parcel. It is a long number with 3 sections and it always begins with a 3-. This Tax ID number is always found on the top right hand side of a tax bill.

The second number associated with parcels is the OLG number. OLG stands for Office of the Lieutenant Governor. It is the number which is assigned to the official survey map for the parcel, and is found on the stamped survey map. This number stars with a letter followed by a number and is in 3 sections.

All properties on St John were reassessed in 2004 and tax bills are just being mailed which reflect the reassessment. Tax bills are mailed to owners, it is important to check with the Tax Assessors Office to make sure they have the correct address. To pay a bill, make sure you make a copy of the bill and of the check you are paying it with, front and back. If you are paying in person, get the copy as well as the original stamped. Keep these copies in your files, they are essential if you should ever sell your property.

Tax Assessors Office
PO Box 488
Cruz Bay St John, VI 00831
Phone: 776-6737