On the ABC islands, a beautiful house can sit on land you don't own outright. Erfpacht (long-lease) land reverts on a fixed date and can complicate financing; eigendom (freehold) is yours. Most portals never mention it. Caribbean Listings shows tenure, expiry year, and conversion status on every single listing — so a short lease never surprises you at the closing table.
e.g. expires 2049 — we flag the year and the renewal terms.
Short lease · Flag
Under ~15 years left
Marked in amber. Often a financing problem — you'll know before you offer.
The Caribbean Listings standard
Verified is not a badge. It is the work.
Anyone can call a listing curated. We do the unglamorous part — so that what you see is exactly what is for sale.
01
Every listing examined
We confirm the particulars, the photography and the asking price before anything is published. No phantom entries, no zero-bedroom placeholders.
02
Tenure made plain
Freehold or erfpacht, the year it expires, the terms of renewal — set on the listing itself, never buried in a document you receive too late.
03
People you can reach
Behind every listing stands an owner or a licensed agency you can contact directly — never an anonymous re-posting of someone else's work.
One portal, three islands
Compare across the ABC, in one place
The single-island portals can't do this. Weigh a Curaçao sea-view condo against an Aruba villa against a Bonaire plot — same search, same standards.
A — Aruba
Aruba
Florin economy, constituent country, the most developed rental market of the three.
B — Bonaire
Bonaire
USD, special municipality of the Netherlands, diver's island, salt-flat pink coastline.
C — Curaçao
Curaçao
Guilder, constituent country, restored Pietermaai monuments and deep-water harbours.
Every listing, mapped
See exactly where each property sits
A real MLS shows you location, not just photos. Filter by island and explore each home, lot and business on the map — coastlines, neighborhoods and all.
Island information
Three islands, three different rulebooks
Currency, legal status and the way you buy differ across the ABC. Here's what actually changes from one island to the next.
Where to live
The neighborhoods, decoded
From Sabadeco's gated terraces to Pietermaai's restored monuments — the character, and who each area suits. Tap one to see it on the map.
Business sales — a Caribbean Listings first
Buy the business, not just the building
Dive shops, guesthouses, restaurants and tour operators — sold on what they earn, not just price per m². Confidential listings; sign an NDA to see the financials.
Owners and agencies both welcome. Every listing — yours included — is verified for accuracy and tenure before it goes live. That's the product.
For owners
Verified Owner Listing
$10/month
First 6 months free
One property or business, listed direct
Verified badge + tenure shown
Appears across all three islands' search
Inquiries sent straight to you
For agencies · most popular
Featured Agency
$149/month
First 6 months free
Up to 40 active verified listings
Agency profile across all three islands
Priority placement in search
Lead routing + basic analytics
For larger firms
Premier
$399/month
First 6 months free
Unlimited verified listings
Top placement + featured carousel
Full analytics dashboard
Dedicated account support
Listings are reviewed before going live — that's how we keep the verified promise. Billing runs in USD through Caribbean Listings' US entity.
Market intelligence · sample
The three-island market, in numbers
Most portals report one island. Caribbean Listings compares all three. (Figures below are illustrative placeholders until live data is wired in.)
$535,000
Median asking · Bonaire
Sample · Q2 2026
$612,000
Median asking · Aruba
Sample · Q2 2026
$468,000
Median asking · Curaçao
Sample · Q2 2026
$347/m²
Median price per area
Sample · Q2 2026
Buyer information
Buying on the ABC islands, start to keys
Foreign buyers can own freely here — but the process, the costs and the land tenure differ from the US and mainland Europe. Here's the honest walk-through.
Find & verify
Shortlist across all three islands. On Caribbean Listings, tenure (freehold vs. erfpacht) and its expiry are shown before you enquire — so you screen out financing problems early.
Offer & purchase agreement
Agree price and terms; a koopovereenkomst (purchase agreement) is signed. A deposit of around 10% is typically held by the notary.
Due diligence & financing
Confirm tenure and any erfpacht renewal terms, arrange a valuation, and line up financing. Local banks usually want a sworn taxateur appraisal; short leases can block a mortgage.
The notary (notaris)
A civil-law notary handles the transfer deed and registration — the islands follow Dutch civil law, so the notary, not a title company, is central.
Transfer & registration
The deed is signed, transfer tax and fees settle, and ownership is registered in the Kadaster. You get the keys.
Typical buyer costs
Transfer tax (overdrachtsbelasting)~5%
Notary & deed~1–1.5%
Registration (Kadaster)~0.5%
Mortgage setup (if financing)~1–2%
Illustrative ranges only — rates differ by island (Bonaire/BES vs. Aruba vs. Curaçao) and change over time. Confirm current figures with your notary and lender.
Good to know
Who can buyNo nationality limits
CurrencyUSD · AWG · ANG
Land tenureEigendom or erfpacht
Questions, answered
The things buyers actually ask
Aruba · Bonaire · Curaçao
Three islands, one trusted place
Verified homes and businesses across the Dutch Caribbean — the whole archipelago in a single, honest search.
For sellers
Thinking of selling on the islands?
Get a free, no-obligation valuation from a trusted local agent — and reach verified buyers across all three islands.
By invitation
The private list
New verified listings and the occasional quiet, off-market opportunity across the islands — sent seldom, and only when it is worth your attention.
Estimate & plan
Two quick tools before you fall in love
A rough indicative value for a property, and a proposed monthly mortgage. Estimates only — always confirm with a licensed taxateur and your lender.
Instant home valuation
What could it be worth?
Modelled on typical asking prices per m² by island and neighbourhood, adjusted for property type. The real figure moves with tenure (freehold vs. erfpacht), condition, sea views, plot size and finish — treat this as an orientation, never a substitute for a licensed taxateur.
Proposed mortgage
What might it cost per month?
A standard repayment estimate (principal + interest). Island banks set their own terms and typically lend up to ~70% of value for non-residents, against a sworn appraisal; financing from your home country is common too. A short erfpacht lease can reduce or block eligibility — one more reason we show tenure on every listing.
Beyond the sale
Settle in like you have always been here
The notaries, the banks, the schools and the sea — the local knowledge that turns a purchase into a home.
Living on the islands
Everything around the purchase
Buying is the straightforward part. It's the notaries, the banks, the erfpacht and the schools where local knowledge earns its keep — a plain-English guide to each piece, written for Aruba, Bonaire & Curaçao.
Sell by owner
Sell it yourself — verified, in four steps
No agency commission. List directly, get verified, and reach buyers across all three islands. You stay in control of every enquiry.
01
Create your listing
Add photos, price, built and plot area, amenities and the all-important tenure details in the member dashboard. About ten minutes — in English or Dutch.
02
We verify it
Our team confirms the particulars, the photography and the ownership status — freehold or erfpacht, and the expiry year — before anything goes live. That's the verified promise.
03
Go live on three islands
Your property appears in one trusted search across Aruba, Bonaire & Curaçao, carrying the verified badge, seen by buyers who can't find it on single-island portals.
04
Talk to buyers directly
Enquiries — by form or WhatsApp — come straight to you. No middleman, no agency commission on the sale. You keep control of every conversation.
What you keep: a local agency commission commonly runs 3–5% of the sale price. On a $500,000 home that's roughly $15,000–$25,000 — money that stays with you when you list direct. You still get the verification and the three-island reach.
Already selling on the ABC islands? Claim your agency profile, add your active listings, and get the verified badge in front of buyers searching all three islands at once.
