Barbados already thriving real estate market appears to be being bolstered by a good performance in the long-term rental market and land sales all in favour of the prospective buyer or renter. It’s a buyers market that’s the description that some realtors have given 2009 real estate market in Barbados.
But President of the Barbados Estate Agent and Valuers Association (BEAVA), George Ramsay holds another view . He states, “Our market is reacting to external economic pressure and property prices have obviously declined as a result. I would not at this time, however, want to suggest that we have a buyer’s market. I would agree that a buyer will find a market that is by far more sympathetic to negotiation. Traditionally, the Barbados market may become soft but, to date, it has not followed the international markets where prices have tumbled.”
One real estate agent Chris Parra told Bimre, about the performance of the sector amid a global economic crisis and a slowdown in the local Barbados economy.
Parra who has been a realtor in Barbados for the last eight years and is the Managing Director of Caribbean World a real estate firm, noted in a recent interview with Bimre that there have been subsectors in the industry that have been performing. While noting that there opportunities out there for those looking to do long-term rentals.
He said, “Right now there have been a lot of land developments becoming available for locals. I wouldn’t say its in the lower range its more in the middle to upper range$250,000-$800,000. That’s land and property. There has been movement there, but that has experienced some difficulty as it has become difficult for some locals to get loans because they are security and…. They are concerned with how much you can put down at least 50%, in the past it was 10%. That was unrealistic.”
Parra said, “The other part of the local market that has seen a big improvement is the long term rental market. There are people who cannot afford to buy and are renting and those who own properties are now renting at better rates to pay their mortgages back. It is working out pretty well for the long term market, we have been seeing good deals for example you can get a three bedroom house with a one bedroom apartment with a big piece of land for $3000. That is very good.
He explained, ”You can get a nice three bedroom, for $2000. In Maynards it can come at $2500. There are also some good land developments going on as well, there is Locust hall. That is in St. Thomas, that has good value. These are small plots $300,000 within a community itself, with roads put in.”
Meanwhile the September issue of the Terra newsletter reports from the perspective of the investor, “The challenge today for investors is that while the sales prices have corrected and we are entering a difficult rental market with an over supply of apartments in the long-term rental segment. On the south coast alone there are over 100 apartments that will be added to the rental market in a12-month period. So while you can buy a great property today at an excellent price you will struggle for a couple of years to get it rented. Ridiculously low rental prices will not solve the problem. The reality is that there are only so many tenants in the Barbados market for these types of properties.”
