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Homesteading In Belize
By Bill & Claire Gray
Bill & Claire Gray are the couple others turn to when answers are wanted about moving to Belize They live there and they love it. They've written the only available book on the subject. 
They are much in demand as lecturers on moving to Belize. They work with retirement organizations who bring tour groups to Belize. They are the authorities on moving to Belize.

Peaceful, tropical and nestled on the Caribbean coast,  Belize has an abundance of something it's island neighbors lack... land. It is twice the size of Jamaica  and with a population of only 220,000,  sparsley scattered over it's 8,886 square miles it is largely devoid of human settlement. As a foreigner not only can you buy land and own it  outright, the government of Belize will actually give you land practically for free.

Here is how it works: you apply to the Deparment of Lands and Survey for a piece of land, generally they will assign you a parcel of land, but at times you may be able to choose the piece of land you will recieve.

We had a friend who had his eye on a half acre not too far from the international airport. He looked up the property on the government survey map and found the number it had been assigned, and when he applied for land he requested that particular piece and got it. He has since built two beautiful houses on that land.

Once your application has been approved you will notified by the Lands Department. You can then go to the local Lands office and sign your lease with the government of Belize. You will pay your yearly lease which will cost anywhere from $5-$17.50 depending on your lands location and size. Technically you will be leasing the land from the government until you develop it, at which time you can buy it from them at a cost of around $250.

Don't let the phrase "developing" your land scare you off. This doesn't mean building a resort on it.

Something as simple as clearing the brush from your land and/or laying a foundation on it will probably satisfy the government. Even if you don't build anything on your land for years, if youv'e at least put some effort into it the government will probably let you keep it. The idea is to give the land to somebody who will do somehthing with it, and if they don't lease it to somebody else who will.

Who qualifies to lease and subsequently buy land at such a low cost from the government of Belize? Citizens and Permanent Residents of Belize, with Belizean Social Security numbers.Those are the only requirements, so it is quite possible for a foreigner to qualify.

We are not saying that there isn't any red tape involved but it is certainly minimal. For example:

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Belize Residency = Belize Passport
Belize Residency - Passport
Become A Permanent Resident Of Belize - Obtain A Belizean Passport Residency In Belize. Get It While You Can!
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To become a Permanent Resident of Belize can take as little as a year, costs $625 US, and does not require that you actually live in Belize permanently.

You do not need to hire a lawyer to apply nor invest a certain amount of money in the country.

In the 1950's 5 Mennonite families originally from Canada emigrated  to Belize, seeking religious freedom. They got thousands of acres of, for $5 an acre. They have  transformed that "raw bush" as it's called in Belize to farmland and today they literally feed the country.

Poultry, Diary products, rice, corn and  beans are just a few of the crops the Mennonites raise. The year round sunshine gives them 2 growing seasons a year so succesfull was their homesteading that today there several thousand Mennonites in Belize.

If you would like more information on Belize feel free to contact us at Preview Publishing, Box 107, Corozal, Belize  Tel/Fax 501-4-23406 Email:prepub@btl.net

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