Live in Barbados

The credit crunch has had a strange and wonderful effect on Caribbean property markets; it has made them affordable.

According to an article in the Telegraph October 24th demand for Caribbean property has been increasing since the spring, because a number of factors have converged to make Caribbean property more affordable than at any time in the last decade.

Briefly the factors were:

* Caribbean property prices have fallen between 15 and 20% since the peak in 2007.
* Developers are removing non-essential luxuries like moorings and spas to make properties even more affordable.
* And Caribbean property is priced in US Dollars for the most part, giving British buyers a further advantage in that the Pound is currently worth about 30c more than it was at the start of the year.

The rising demand is evident in the fact that you can read such a positive article in the Telegraph. For the last year or so, when there has been very little appetite for overseas property from the British public, there has been very little coverage in the UK press. Now that the appetite is returning we can see positive press coverage of overseas property markets increasing also.

See full article…

Two of our properties have been reduced in price!

A property in Holetown called Buccaneer, which is a cute 6,195 sq. ft three bedroom villa with a lovely garden and a small pool is now being offered for sale at a reduced price of $475,000 US (From an original price of $550,000 US).

Also available at a reduced price is Unit 121, a lagoon view villa at Port St. Charles.  Unit 121 is a three bedroom villa which is located within the lagoon, has its own private berth and is now being offered for sale at a reduced price of $1,700,000 US (From an original price of $2,100,000 US).

The highly anticipated Apes Hill golf and polo gated community has its first villa under construction.

THE high-end segment of the multi-million dollar Apes Hill residential development project has gotten under way.

This was revealed last week by James Burdess, Sales Director of Moonwalk Construction Inc., the developers of the “Moonshine Ridge” segment of the much-talked- about St. Thomas project.

Burdess told Business Monday at a site visit to mark the commencement of the construction of the company’s show home, that when completed in approximately five years’ time, the project, which is being developed on an area of about 25 acres, will have a total sales value of between US$150 million (Bds$300 million) and $160 million (Bds$320 million).

He stated that 31 lots are being developed for sale, with each lot being between a half acre and an acre, with the houses being built on them ranging from approximately 4,200 square feet to 9,500 square feet.

See full article in today’s Barbados Advocate: Ground broken on housing project

Interesting article on island real estate opportunities focusing on St Lucia and Barbados!

A recession may seem the worst time to consider snapping up a Caribbean holiday home, but two factors are combining to make property in the region more affordable than for many years.

The first is that prices have fallen on sun-kissed islands just as much as in rainy Britain. “In Barbados, the island with the best access from Britain, prices are 15 per cent down on 2007 levels. On smaller islands with less developed infrastructure, prices are down 20 per cent or more,” says Georgina Richards from Knight Frank, who has been selling homes in the Caribbean for a decade. With sales in the region down by more than 50 per cent and tourism rates down by 30 per cent, estate agents and developers are anxious to keep prices competitive.

See full article.

A very popular guide to Barbados’s real estate scene, now easy to download and have at your fingertips!

Click here!

Article in today’s Nation newspaper quotes Nick Paravacino (Realtors) and Paul Altman (Altman real estate) both suggesting this winter will see an improvement in Barbados’s real estate sales…….see here for full article!

In this month’s newsletter, Andrew Mallileu, Managing Director of Terra, takes an aggressive stance on today’s investment opportunities available in the real estate market.  In the newsletter titled, “Are you buying or are you waiting,” Mr Mallileu summarizes by saying, “…there is great real estate available today in well located and appointed developments…”

See this link for access to full newsletter and also Terra’s previous monthly newsletter releases.

Look forward to receiving some of your feedback.

I dug out an old article posted on August 28th that I found to be an interesting read.

It has some stats suggesting the property market has dropped by as much as 30% and also gives a short history of the first settlers to current homeowners detailing a little on the history of who has owned here and the effects on property prices!

What are your thoughts? Accurate?

The British make up at least 36% of buyers, and Richard Eames, of estate agents Savills, estimates an astonishing 95% of his clients are from the UK.

‘The market is like the South-East of England,’ he says. ‘The high end, which is for properties above £3.2m, is still active, though prices have come down by about 25-30%. That’s mainly because ours is a predominantly UK market, which has been affected by the drop in the pound against the dollar as well as the global downturn.’ Property abroad: Bet on Barbados | This is Money.

Country Life has warned those thinking of moving abroad, buying a property or settling down to become an expatriate should avoid Bulgaria.

The reasons are largely due to the global crisis taking a stronghold on the economy.

Most likely they are thinking this would affect one’s investment in the local property market and not knowing how far it could drop.

On the other hand, Barbados was quoted as still being a sound investment and popular for expatriates.

Those looking for further information on becoming an expatriate in Barbados, feel free to ask some questions and BPL will get you the answers!