Extreme privacy draws the uber-wealthy to the Oil Nut Bay area of the British Virgin Islands.
Oil Nut Bay’s population is sparse. It spans 400 acres on Virgin Gorda, the third-largest island in the BVI but second in population (after Tortola). Most of Virgin Gorda’s population of 3,500 to 4,000 people is concentrated outside Oil Nut Bay, in Spanish Town, on the island’s southwestern corner.
The community is not only gated, it’s impossible to access by car.
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“You fly into Tortola and take a boat or a helicopter that Oil Nut Bay provides from Tortola to Oil Nut Bay,” said Christy Mack, who owns a home in Oil Nut Bay with her husband, former Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack. There are other resorts on Virgin Gorda: Rosewood Little Dix Bay and the Bitter End Yacht Club, she said, “but Oil Nut Bay provides that extra sense of security.”
The Macks’ neighbors include other ultra-wealthy people, including Betsy DeVos, the former U.S. education secretary, and John Lynch, a former governor of New Hampshire and retired CEO of Knoll, Inc.
Sir Richard Branson owns the 74-acre Necker Island across the bay, while Larry Page owns Eustatia Island, about half the size. “Branson and Page actually bought land around North Sound together and turned it into a conservancy, so it can never be developed,” Mack said.
Meeting the neighbors, however, is a different story.
“If you don’t meet someone by chance walking on the beach or in one of their restaurants, you don’t know who they are,” Mack said. “That speaks to the desire to be as private as you want and not feel pressure to be social. The main thing we all share is privacy.”
Prices and Housing Stock
Housing stock in Oil Nut Bay ranges from $3.25 million for a one-bedroom home up to $32.5 million for a seven-bedroom residence.
“We’ve sold 74 properties across the 400 acres, and 51 of them are built. We also offer a rental program where homeowners can choose to put their villa into rotation, and we have 32 villas in that program currently,” said Emily Oakes, vice president of business at Oil Nut Bay.
The mansions of Oil Nut Bay are highly customized.
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Take the Macks’ property, which is co-listed by the Agency CEO Mauricio Umansky and the Corcoran BVI team, including Mike Fabbri, for $24 million. The Macks put the villa through an $18 million renovation.
“I gutted it and converted it from a four-bedroom to a six-bedroom home. I didn’t change any structural walls or roof lines, but I converted the garages, which you don’t need there, into a prep kitchen and pantry,” Mack said.
The architects with repeat business in Oil Nut Bay are OMBI, Montgomery Townsend and Studio DFK, according to Oakes.
David V. Johnson, the developer of Oil Nut Bay and the chairman of Victor International, “feels strongly that when you’re out at sea looking back at Oil Nut Bay, everything should blend in,” Oakes said. “The styles have evolved over the years: some flat roofs, green roofs, thatched roofs [and] different exterior stones. Some homes lean more Balinese, others more European, but the color palette and guidelines ensure it all still feels cohesive.”
Other homes on the market include a three-bedroom villa with soaring ceilings and a Balinese aesthetic asking $14.95 million, and a contemporary, wood-clad house with six bedrooms asking $19 million.
Local development in Oil Nut Bay is limited because half of the 400 acres are reserved for conservation. Currently, 15 homes and 35 plots of land are on the market.
The Caribbean market has been hot thanks to citizenship-for-investment programs, relatively low taxes and scenic beauty. Umansky said while most of the feeder markets are from the U.S., especially the East Coast, the market for Oil Nut Bay is global.
Amenities
“All of our amenities and infrastructure are completely finished: a beach club, multiple restaurants, a full suite of wellness amenities, a fitness center, a spa that sits out over the water, tennis courts, pickleball courts and a full-service marina,” Oakes said.
The marina allows homeowners a place to keep their boats and serves as a jumping-off point to explore the wider BVI, which has around 60 islands.
“Many of our owners have boats and go island hopping on weekends or day trips,” Oakes said.
Quiet, too, is a noticeable feature.
“It is secluded. There are no cars. You drive around in electric golf carts, so they’re quiet,” Mack said.
Other than racquet sports, and beach volleyball, residents can participate in every imaginable water sport, including kiteboarding and sailing. “Boating, swimming, paddleboarding, beach clubs. The list goes on and on,” Umansky said.
“The BVI is relatively undeveloped compared to a lot of other Caribbean destinations, so the marine environment is really well preserved. You’ll see eagle rays jumping out of the water,” Oakes said. “We have a healthy sea turtle population. Turtles nest on the beach, and when the eggs hatch and the hatchlings scurry to the water, it’s always really exciting.”
Despite its reputation for gentle trade winds and safe waters, Virgin Gorda offers strenuous hiking options.
“My husband and I once walked seven and a half miles from Oil Nut Bay to Spanish Town. Very hilly, but a great challenge,” Mack said. “When I hike, I’ll be gone for two hours, climb the equivalent of 76 stories and walk eight or nine miles.”
The Baths National Park is a well-cited attraction, where “volcanic boulders have tumbled into the sea, and the snorkeling among them is spectacular,” Oakes said. “There are also hiking trails through the rocks on the land side.”
