The Cayman Islands Realtors Organization has responded to Parliament’s 25 June motion to restrict non-Caymanian real estate agents.
The motion proposed restricting the granting of new real estate agent licences to Caymanians; those holding Caymanian status with full and unrestricted rights to work in the Cayman Islands; or those who are holders of a valid Residency and Employment Rights Certificate granted on the basis of marriage to a Caymanian, and who possess full legal rights to work in the Cayman Islands.
The larger and more established Cayman Islands Real Estate Brokers Association already weighed in on the debate by writing a letter to the Compass on 1 July. But on 16 July, Roger Southam, the managing director of one of organisation’s founding members MyRealtor, contacted the Compass to share CIRO’s view.
“As an organisation, we think the parliamentary approach of having Cayman first for real estate is eminently sensible,” said Southam.
One of the chief justifications for the motion, which was passed with cross-party support, is that Cayman’s politicians are confident the jurisdiction’s desirable qualities make its real estate a relatively easy sell.
Southam agrees, saying, “I do not think there is anything overly complicated about it. People make things complicated because they can, but real estate is so trainable and learnable that it is ridiculous if it is not a Caymanian-first profession.”
Southam noted that Cayman Islands Realtors Organization, which was founded in 2023, is running a real estate course for Caymanians with Inspire Cayman.
CIRO still sees a role for international realtors
Southam does believe non-Caymanian realtors have a role to play in Cayman. “Where there is merit in having some expat perspective is in the link-up to other countries, where you are connecting across a network of agents or into a wider field,” he said.
The Cayman Islands Realtors Organization’s view is that domestic transactions, with locally based sellers and buyers should be handled by Caymanians, while some complex, higher-value deals would benefit from the wider pool of potential buyers that international real estate agents can bring.
“Real estate is all about network,” said Southam. “It is about who you know and having the biggest and widest network possible. Whatever you can do to expand that network is a good thing … But for the Cayman market, Caymanians should be running the real estate profession.”
CIREBA’s response had warned that international trust in Cayman real estate risked being “inadvertently lost in the exuberance to push forward a popular change”.
Yet Southam believes that is not a risk. “You have a very robust land registry system. You have a very solid legal system. Those two things, hand in hand, make it very reliable, trustworthy and responsible, and give people confidence,” he said.
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