By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Up to 50 percent of high-end, multi-million dollar Bahamian residential properties seeking buyers are being promoted “off-market” rather than publicly via the Multiple Listing System (MLS).

Ryan Knowles, founder and chief executive of Maison Bahamas, told Tribune Business this strategy is becoming increasingly popular among high net worth homeowners because it provides more “discretion and privacy” and enables them to weed out potential buyers who are either not serious or lack the necessary financial means.

He and his company, in a recent e-mail entitled The Ocean Club Insider, disclosed that 50 percent - or ten - of the 20 multi-million properties currently on the market for sale inside Paradise Island’s high-end Ocean Club Estates are being promoted off-market.

Mr Knowles, telling this newspaper that similar trends were also being seen in other gated communities, such as Albany and Lyford Cay, was quick to reject any notion that off-market sales are a method to avoid the VAT transfer tax on such transactions

The Government moved in the 2025-2026 Budget to tighten administrative procedures surrounding tax payments on real estate sales, estimating the Public Treasury is losing $100m in annual revenues in this area, but Mr Knowles said “off-market” merely refers to how a property is marketed/promoted and has no impact on the conveyance’s execution, recording and tax payment.

He added that Maison Bahamas international partner network, Forbes, had already moved to target this area by setting up an online platform dedicated to off-market sales some 18 months ago. Potential purchasers are “vetted, selected and identified” before they even see the subject property to ensure they are serious and have the means to purchase, with all access password controlled.

“I think it’s become more and more prevalent in the high-end market in general,” Mr Knowles told Tribune Business of off-market sales. “I don’t think it’s exclusive to Ocean Club Estates. It’s sellers who want privacy, perhaps want to test the market as they are not 100 percent sure they want to sell, but want to test the appetite among buyers.

“They can do it discreetly and privately while marketing the property to prospects. Selling off-market really has a lot of benefits. You really filter out the ‘looky losers’, the window shoppers, and you filter in the qualified serious prospects who are vetted before they are given information on the property.”

Asked how many high-end Bahamian residential homeowners are electing to go off-market to promote their properties to buyers, Mr Knowles said the number was in line with that for the Ocean Club Estates. “I would say it fluctuates depending on the neighbourhood, but 30-50 percent is a pretty safe range.

“I think this has really always been there at the very high-end. If you are a high net worth person, more often than not you want discretion. You don’t want your business plastered everywhere. In some cases, you may be selling for a particular reason - leaving the country or divorce. You want to maintain privacy while getting the home in front of folks who actually want to purchase.

“This has always been there. Now, because of social media, everything gets out there so quickly, and an off-market sale appeals because it’s less public.” Mr Knowles, though, was quick to refute any suggestions that so-called “off market” sales are a device to avoid paying VAT on the transaction.

He pointed out that buyers will still have to secure the acquisition of Bahamian real estate assets by bringing their conveyances for stamping and recording in the Registry of Records, which cannot be completed until VAT due on the sale has been paid. And the recent measures passed into law alongside the 2025-2026 Budget were designed to ensure these requirements are met.

“Not at all,” Mr Knowles replied, when Tribune Business raised the tax payment concerns some Bahamians will likely have. “The off-market strategy has nothing to do with the way the property is conveyed. It simply has to do with the way the property is marketed and sold.

“Properties trade all the time without being listed on the market and trade between owners. These are all conveyed the way they are supposed to be. It has no bearing on the conveyance. I also don’t want to give the impression that off-market is the better way. It comes down to the intent of the seller and what their strategy is.

“In some cases, if there’s a need to sell immediately and urgently, they will probably get a better deal with listing it [publicly]. It also depends on the type of property. It may not be suited to an off-market sale. It’s really on a case-by-case basis.”

Nevertheless, Mr Knowles said Maison Bahamas and its international partner have moved quickly to capitalise on the off-market trend. “We launched about a year-and-a-half ago an off-market platform; Forbes Global Properties launched Forbes Private Office,” he disclosed.

“It’s dedicated to off-market listings. It allows us to market off-market property listings where people have to log-on to participate. Everyone in that system is vetted and selected and cleared beforehand. Everyone looking at that property will be considered as a serious buyer with the means to purchase.”

Giving an insight into how the “off-market” strategy has caught on among wealthy Bahamian homeowners, Mr Knowles said: “I had one owner with a quite substantial estate in Old Fort Bay tell me he was happy to sell his home, and for me to bring him a buyer, but he didn’t want it publicly listed because he didn’t want his neighbours to question him why he was selling or ask him if he needed money.

“Even at that level you don’t want people in your business if you can avoid it. That’s the appeal of the off-market platform. You have more and more persons say they want to sell property but don’t want to have it on the MLS” which is operated by the Bahamas Real Estate Association (BREA) and provides an online platform for the listing and marketing of properties.

“I think it’s going to continue to be popular with those folks who, for them, the most important factor is having that private and discretion,” Mr Knowles added. “Having said that, there’s another set of individuals who want it out everywhere; they want it on Facebook, You Tube and Instagram and take it everywhere.

“There are two schools of thought. One is that the more exposure you generate for your property, the better, but if you are dealing with high net worth individuals in a sensitive situation or have a unique asset that will only appeal to certain buyers, it makes more sense [to go off-market]. But for the broader market, you want exposure, and listing it the traditional way is the best way to go.”