usvi-on-line
Caribbean Villas
I spoke with another STJ villa manager about that 5% and they told me that CV was covering some kind of VI 5% business tax with that (can’t remember exactly what she called the tax but do remember her saying that it applies to all villas, maybe she even said all accommodations) and that other villas bake that business tax into their rate but that CV doesn’t. Now this on-island manager didn’t come right out and say so but the implication was there that adding it on at the time of rental as an "oh, by the way" and kind of burying it on their website allows CV’s pricing to initially appear lower for comparable properties. Not so sure I like that but once you know it's there, then you know how to compare - kind of like you only "don't know" once. Based on our own experiences with CV managed properties – my opinion is that if you are renting a relatively new villa or if the villa owner is a good owner that keeps on top of maintenance and replacements then you will not have a problem. However, we all know that there are owners who are not so on top of their properties and if your wish-villa is owned by one of those then there may be some problems with the reality living up to the photos and description. CV just does not seem to manage their owners as well as some other on-island managers – that’s just been our experience. But, if our wish-villa was only managed by CV we would not hesitate to rent through them after doing as much research as we could on the current condition of the property and what other recent guests had experienced there.
and BINGO was his name-o.Margy Z wrote:that other villas bake that business tax into their rate but that CV doesn’t.
I work in purchasing and buying and work with a troupe of roving morons.
"Vendor A doesn't charge me programming" they whine.
"Yes they do. Why on Earth is their per-piece $.45 instead of everyone's $.12? Programming...Now go back to your desk. Here's a cupcake for your troubles."
It's the same thing. They're just itemizing it out.
We chose Blue Skies (the villa that got this started) and went with CV because we liked the house best. I had used VIVA before, and wanted to again, but they didn't have a house that suited our wants/needs.
The woman I spoke to at CV was very open and honest with me about everything. It was like talking to myself...she kept going and probably gave away a little too much information. But, she stayed on the line for a while and by the end I was comfortable with our decision and am chomping at the bit to get down there and see the fruits of all my searching.
Well, if it covers a tax, then I'm somewhat more OK with it. I'm just glad for all y'all or I'd have been blindsided when I got my rental agreement just like everyone else is. It is on their Web site, but you do have to dig.
I know this because the girls keep giving me villas "in our price range" and I have to explain that once you add 13 percent, they aren't really a bargain.
I have seen some bad reviews on some of their houses. The image I always get is California Girl's photo of the deck furniture.
I'm not sure if we'll find our dream villa, but we're going to try...
I know this because the girls keep giving me villas "in our price range" and I have to explain that once you add 13 percent, they aren't really a bargain.
I have seen some bad reviews on some of their houses. The image I always get is California Girl's photo of the deck furniture.
I'm not sure if we'll find our dream villa, but we're going to try...
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sailorgirl
- Posts: 1644
- Joined: Mon Oct 30, 2006 3:03 pm
Not to pour more fuel on the fire, but the "tax" answer seems off to me considering there is already a standard 8% "hotel" tax which applies to Villas which CV must charge as well. I think the real answer is they charge the 5% because they can, pure market economics operating. If paying the 5% is problematic on an economic or philosophical level that's the choice each renter has to make for themselves.
Happy Hunting, the "perfect" villa is out there. My view, any day on St. John is a good day, even if a "less than perfect" place.
Happy Hunting, the "perfect" villa is out there. My view, any day on St. John is a good day, even if a "less than perfect" place.
Personally, I'm fine anywhere on STJ. I was looking at the recent posts on Maho thinking maybe that was the way to go... Unfortunately, when you have new folks who have never been there before you deal with a lot of their wants. STJ is always perfect for me, even when I'm getting eaten by skeeters or I got the wrong drink order (as long as it doesn't have banana). I could sleep in the Jeep and be OK. Others, especially those who haven't been there, I think tend to be a bit more picky. Thus, the pressure to find the perfect villa.
I'm just trying to believe in the goodness of people when it comes to this 5 percent fee. In the past I've said that I'd never rent from them, but it's hard when your group loves all the houses they have to offer.
I'm just trying to believe in the goodness of people when it comes to this 5 percent fee. In the past I've said that I'd never rent from them, but it's hard when your group loves all the houses they have to offer.
Wal-mart has to pay taxes to do business. They just add it into the cost of my Fruit Loops and Scotch tape, and I never see it, nor do I think about it. And I suspect if they added it on to my bill at the end, it would be illegal and I would stop doing business there.
I thought it'd make me less hostile about it if it WAS a tax, but now I see that they really do their rates that way so people will fall in love with their villas at their "lower" rates when everyone else is just telling you up front what their true rate is.
I kind of wish someone from CV was reading this so maybe they'd level the playing field and do business like everyone else. Because even Walmart doesn't do business this way.
My travel mates are probably going to hit me if I make this my moment to take a philosophical stand. I guess I'll offer many options and if I'm outvoted I'm outvoted.
I thought it'd make me less hostile about it if it WAS a tax, but now I see that they really do their rates that way so people will fall in love with their villas at their "lower" rates when everyone else is just telling you up front what their true rate is.
I kind of wish someone from CV was reading this so maybe they'd level the playing field and do business like everyone else. Because even Walmart doesn't do business this way.
My travel mates are probably going to hit me if I make this my moment to take a philosophical stand. I guess I'll offer many options and if I'm outvoted I'm outvoted.
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sailorgirl
- Posts: 1644
- Joined: Mon Oct 30, 2006 3:03 pm
My issue (and its well documented in the archives I am sure) with CV is not really the 5%, but saying its a service fee and then delivering sub par service. That is just not cool.
We rented 2x with CV before we even realized other rental agencies don't charge the extra 5%. We've rented 2x with Destination St. John - no extra 5% and far superior service in my opinion.
Also, from my experience (and the experience of several groups of friends) the inventory of CV is getting shabbier and shabbier, of course, even with the 5% it might be cheaper, but I don't want to have to worry about a house that looks good in pics and doesn't look so good in person.
Every DSJ house I have rented proves to be under represented by the photos vs. over.
There are so many great houses at so many price points, that it is my personal preference to not rent through CV. But the great thing about a forum like this is that at least the folks here know what they are getting and can use that information to compare apples to apples.
There is another co. - I can't remember which one - that charges a $35 fee for booking and a $35 fee for a damage waiver. In my spreadsheet I am sure to add all of the little quirky fees so that I always compare the bottom line to the bottom line of each house.
We rented 2x with CV before we even realized other rental agencies don't charge the extra 5%. We've rented 2x with Destination St. John - no extra 5% and far superior service in my opinion.
Also, from my experience (and the experience of several groups of friends) the inventory of CV is getting shabbier and shabbier, of course, even with the 5% it might be cheaper, but I don't want to have to worry about a house that looks good in pics and doesn't look so good in person.
Every DSJ house I have rented proves to be under represented by the photos vs. over.
There are so many great houses at so many price points, that it is my personal preference to not rent through CV. But the great thing about a forum like this is that at least the folks here know what they are getting and can use that information to compare apples to apples.
There is another co. - I can't remember which one - that charges a $35 fee for booking and a $35 fee for a damage waiver. In my spreadsheet I am sure to add all of the little quirky fees so that I always compare the bottom line to the bottom line of each house.
Suite St. John also charges an extra 5% as we found out when we rented Peace & Plenty from them this past September.
I emailed them to inquire about the 5% charge after a similar discussion on this forum. This is the reply I received:
"Several companies that are successful charge this fee, much as do all the other Caribbean Islands. Tortola properties often charge 10%. Why is this? These properties are generally somewhat remote and providing guests support 24/7 is quite expensive. I can tell you that our monthly gasoline charges often exceed $1000 per month not to mention labor costs. Our other choice is to provide no service fee and ignore phone calls when there is a problem which is what some companies do. Some companies pretend to be property managers but are simply brokers stateside with no support staff on the Island. In the last year, I have paid anywhere from 5% to 8% above the local taxes at Ski Resorts, Golf Courses, as well as Hotels in NY. In NY, my bill tacked on another $25/D for parking. I guess you just get what you pay for.
We've charged the service fee for several years now and have not had any guests leave the Island unhappy. Hope this helps."
This answer provided me with irrelevant information which I felt was an insult to my intelligence; I was offended by the underlying tone...but we loved the villa and had already paid our deposit. I doubt that we will do business with Suite St. John again.
I emailed them to inquire about the 5% charge after a similar discussion on this forum. This is the reply I received:
"Several companies that are successful charge this fee, much as do all the other Caribbean Islands. Tortola properties often charge 10%. Why is this? These properties are generally somewhat remote and providing guests support 24/7 is quite expensive. I can tell you that our monthly gasoline charges often exceed $1000 per month not to mention labor costs. Our other choice is to provide no service fee and ignore phone calls when there is a problem which is what some companies do. Some companies pretend to be property managers but are simply brokers stateside with no support staff on the Island. In the last year, I have paid anywhere from 5% to 8% above the local taxes at Ski Resorts, Golf Courses, as well as Hotels in NY. In NY, my bill tacked on another $25/D for parking. I guess you just get what you pay for.
We've charged the service fee for several years now and have not had any guests leave the Island unhappy. Hope this helps."
This answer provided me with irrelevant information which I felt was an insult to my intelligence; I was offended by the underlying tone...but we loved the villa and had already paid our deposit. I doubt that we will do business with Suite St. John again.
Last edited by mia on Thu Mar 06, 2008 2:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.
It takes both the sun and the rain to make a beautiful rainbow. --Unknown
I have reservations at a villa that recently switched from CV to Island Getaways. I reserved the villa through CV and paid 1/2 the amount for deposit. The villa owner switched management to IG and I just sent the balance to them. My ending balance was 5% less because IG doesn't charge the fee that CV did. It was a pleasant surprise to say the least!
On a side note: Many years ago (our 1st visit to STJ) we rented through CV. The villa we were at had construction going on right next door. They were building a new house. Jackhammers, bulldozers and dust at 8:00am pretty much ruined our villa experience, meaning we HAD to leave every morning and not return until they were done. While it didn't ruin our vacation completely, at the time we felt it ruined our stay at the villa. We tried switching villas but there wasn't anything we liked available. We told CV about it and they talked to the villa owner who offered to return half of our money!
On a side note: Many years ago (our 1st visit to STJ) we rented through CV. The villa we were at had construction going on right next door. They were building a new house. Jackhammers, bulldozers and dust at 8:00am pretty much ruined our villa experience, meaning we HAD to leave every morning and not return until they were done. While it didn't ruin our vacation completely, at the time we felt it ruined our stay at the villa. We tried switching villas but there wasn't anything we liked available. We told CV about it and they talked to the villa owner who offered to return half of our money!
A mind is like a parachute. It only works when it's open.
Mia - I agree that explanation was pretty much talking down to you. I don't get the part where they tried to explain villa brokers to you. Maybe I'm under the wrong assumption but my understanding of the broker relationship is that the broker gets a small fee for obtaining the rental client but that the on-island manager still gets a large percentage of the rental revenue and that they are the ones who respond when there is an issue. We have booked through brokers but the few problems we have had (even to running out of BBQ gas) were addressed by the manager - sometimes through a call to the broker but often through a direct call from us. The greeters who met us were sent by the managers and provided us with the on-island managers' contact info when they did the villa orientation. That part about how maybe they sdhould just not respond to calls for assistance is just nuts. Isn't the villa owner paying them to maintain the property and provide guest services??
