Nearly $700 million worth of property has changed hands in the Virgin Islands in the past five years, according to a new report by realtors Smiths Gore and Christie’s.
Tortola accounted for more than half the $692 million in total sales between 2020 and 2025, with 1,113 transactions worth $350 million, the report stated.
Virgin Gorda’s Oil Nut Bay came in second, with $199.4 million raked in on 32 deals over the period.
The rest of Virgin Gorda recorded $114.5 million spent on 138 transactions, with the remaining $26.8 million spread across Jost Van Dyke, Anegada, Great Camanoe, Scrub Island and Mosquito Island, according to The BVI Property Review 2025.
Post-Covid peak
The market peaked as the VI emerged from the ravages of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2022, when sales hit $158 million, according to figures recorded by the BVI Land Registry and used in the study.
The annual figure dropped to $96 million in 2023 before climbing to $102 million in 2024 and slipping to $97 million last year.
“The market peaked in 2022, just after Covid, in line with most real estate markets,” said Smiths Gore director Edward Childs. “2023-2025 has been relatively flat in terms of real estate sales.”
Belongers
Most buyers were Virgin Islanders and other belongers, whose purchases peaked at 280 in 2021 compared to 32 purchases by non-belongers that year.
Last year, the belonger/non-belonger ratio was 170/22 — similar to the 178/25 split registered in 2024. Post-Irma activity
“After Hurricane Irma, many damaged properties came to the market which were, for the most part, purchased by belongers,” Mr. Childs explained.
“In Covid, the government introduced the stamp duty waiver for belongers, which also helped increase sales. Sales to belongers have been steady since 2022.”
Non-belonger purchases, by contrast, have declined each year since then, he said.
Sales under $1 million dominate the market, according to Mr. Childs.
“Relatively few homes are sold over $2 million — six in 2025,” he explained.
Last year saw three homes worth more than $3 million purchased, a drop from five in 2024 and down from nine in 2021.
Lot sales play a major role in the market as well.
“The majority of lot sales are in the $50,000-to-$100,000-per-acre price range, with most of them on Tortola,” the realtor said. “That market peaked in 2021 as a result of the stamp duty waiver and has slowed or been steady since.”
Sister islands
During the 2020-2025 period, Jost Van Dyke saw 28 sales valued at $7.8 million and Anegada had 47 worth $5.1 million. Scrub Island saw one deal worth $1.5 million, Great Camanoe recorded 13 worth $6.4 million, and Mosquito Island added one worth $6 million.