The verdict in three sentences
In Nassau, a prime agency website redesign rarely fails on design: it fails on DNS cutover day, when email stops arriving or a Lyford Cay buyer's enquiry lands in an inbox nobody reads. Design and build sit between $2,900 and $8,900 at Kolonell, in 3 to 4 weeks once content is ready, with the listings feed on quote. A written, tested and dated cutover plan prevents most incidents.
Which signals say it is time to redesign?
Second-home buyers looking at Old Fort Bay, Paradise Island or Albany compare agencies from abroad, often late in the evening. If your site takes more than 4 seconds to load on mobile, if listings no longer match the network feed, if forms still send to a former colleague's address or if nobody knows who manages the domain, the redesign becomes urgent. That last point is common in franchise offices: the domain was registered by a previous manager or by a web agency that no longer exists.
What budget should you plan?
Local ranges are a 2026 ballpark based on typical Nassau agency quotes and public agency rate pages.
| Option | Design and build | Timeline | DNS and email handling |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local agency, Nassau | $12,000 to $40,000 | 8 to 14 weeks | Often included, on site |
| Freelancer | $3,500 to $10,000 | 6 to 10 weeks | Variable, check it |
| Kolonell Starter | $2,900 | 3 weeks | Cutover plan included |
| Kolonell Growth | $4,900 | 3 to 4 weeks | Cutover plan and form tests |
| Kolonell Premium | $8,900 | 4 weeks | Same, the multilingual tier (languages set in the quote) |
| Network listings feed or CRM | On quote | Scoped separately | Depends on the provider |
Every tier includes a project manager reachable in your time zone, native English or French copywriting, delivery in 3 to 4 weeks and 3 months of support; maintenance afterwards is on quote. Photography, video, drone and floor plans are third-party costs (local photographer). See the international offer.
How do you switch with no downtime and no lost enquiry?
The project runs 3 to 4 weeks: URL and form inventory (week 1), wireframes (weeks 1 to 2), build and migration (weeks 2 to 3), 301 redirect map, compliance review of marketing copy and a cutover rehearsal (week 3), go-live (week 4). The cutover itself is planned hour by hour:
| When | Action | Owner | Check |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-7 | Full DNS inventory: MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC, subdomains | Provider | Zone export archived |
| D-2 | TTL lowered to 300 seconds | Domain holder | Propagation verified |
| D-1 | Forms tested on staging to the final address | Provider and agency | 3 submissions received |
| D 9 am | Web records changed only, MX untouched | Provider | Site served by the new host |
| D 10 am | Every form and click-to-call link tested | Agency | Receipt confirmed |
| D+1 to D+7 | 404 monitoring in Search Console, spam folder checks | Provider | Daily report |
Golden rule: never touch MX records during a website redesign, unless a mail migration is a separate, planned project.
Enquiry routing. Every form must name its recipient: listing enquiries to the responsible agent, general enquiries to the office, rental enquiries to the lettings desk. A copy to a shared inbox stops one absence from blocking everything. Messages go through an authenticated sending service so they do not end up in spam.
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Other risks. Traffic loss on listings that already rank (inventory and 301 map, sold listings to the area page, never a 404), network feed integration to be tested before the switch, and compliance: real estate agents in The Bahamas practise under licence through the Bahamas Real Estate Association, and licence notices must stay accurate. Form data falls under the Data Protection (Privacy of Personal Information) Act 2003: name, contact, property reference and an optional budget are enough; anti-money-laundering checks stay within the agency's own process. This is not legal advice.
Questions to ask: who holds registrar access? Are MX records excluded from the switch? Are forms tested on staging? Who monitors the first 7 days?
When a local agency is better. If your network requires an approved provider, or if you want a Nassau team that also manages the office's IT and email.
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Palmcrest Realty Nassau, a franchise office of a national network, runs its own local site alongside the network site. Assumption: the site receives 5 enquiries a day. A failed cutover that breaks forms for 2 days would lose 10 enquiries, each potentially about a second home. The office picks Growth at $4,900, with the cutover plan and form tests included. Aerial images of 6 properties by a local drone pilot, a third-party cost as a market assumption: 6 x $450 = $2,700. Budget excluding the network feed: $4,900 + $2,700 = $7,600.
FAQ
Will the site go offline during the switch? With TTL lowered to 300 seconds 48 hours before, the transition usually takes under an hour, with no blank page.
Can email be cut off? Yes, if MX records are changed by mistake. A DNS inventory at D-7 and untouched MX records remove that risk.
Is the network feed included in the $4,900? No, it stays on quote because it depends on the provider and format chosen by the network.
How many forms need testing? All of them, with at least 3 real submissions each before and after the switch.
Do we need a French version for Canadian buyers? Premium at $8,900 is the multilingual tier, languages set in the quote.
For your office, request a free quote.
Let's scope your project. A prime agency redesign in Nassau with a written DNS cutover plan, $2,900 to $8,900, in 3 to 4 weeks. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
