Yet another real estate firm in Barbados is expecting renewed interest in the islands’ property market for 2010.
In fact it is being suggested that there has been an increase in serious enquiries for property sales over the last two months.
These sentiments have been expressed by Cluttons Barbados as the realty firm expressed an optimistic view about 2010 figures. Over the last quarter there have been significant signs of improvement in property sales enquiries and actual transactions. The number of serious enquiries are up by 80% for the current period when compared with the same period last year, explains Cluttons Barbados.
Home buyers are attracted by the potential to negotiate a discounted price with high expectations of rental and capital growth. The attraction for property in Barbados comes with the stability of the economy, currency exchange rates, location and the quality of properties that Barbados has to offer.
According to executives from Cluttons Barbados, over the last year the global economic downturn created some opportunities in the Barbados property market as some vendors and developers reduced prices to increase enquiries and reduce transaction times. This phenomenon is extremely rare in Barbados and Cluttons does not expect this situation to last for too much longer.
However, Barbados has an extremely strong property market and the level of offers and sales increased after July 2009.
A Cluttons executive has stated: “Barbados is an extremely strong brand and clients want a safer market that can offer good potential on the upturn. If anything, this financial crisis has placed Barbados in a better position as competing and alternative destinations have faltered quite dramatically. Our homes are stunning; the people are lovely; the economy is stable; there are top end restaurants and beach bars everywhere; the pure white sandy beaches are heaven; and, the clear blue waters of the Caribbean Sea provide many with the opportunity to truly relax and escape the world’s woes.”
While Barbados does have a large upscale market that has attracted the rich and famous from all over the world. The islands’ property market on a whole has developed in such a way that there is now a diverse market with sale properties ranging from US$145,000 to US$40m.
Barbados’ premier five diamond resort, Sandy Lane Resort and Hotel has completed its soft furnishing refurbishment, valued at more than US $25 million.
This is the latest news from the top management of the exclusive west coast property, which is reporting a challenging 2009 but an impressive first quarter for 2010.
Telling the local media of a 100 % occupancy of the hotel for the festive season and 98 % occupancy for January 2010, hotel executives appeared satisfied and even excited about their new look.
With the beachfront of the upscale resort property now outfitted with beautiful pink parasols and lounge furnishings, the General Manager of the property, Robert Logan said, “The soft refurbishment was administered to keep the property state of the art.”
Logan, who was upbeat about the property’s new look said, “It was a multi-million dollar refurbishment by our ownership at a time when our owners knew that we were headed into an economic downturn. They still invested into the property with the understanding that anything that we did in 2008 would keep us at the top of the market and refreshed and keep us competitive.” He asserted, “At all times you need to be as competitive as you can, especially in a downturn.”
According to the General Manager, they reinvested into the physical plant and continue to bring in new furniture, even in the festive season. He explained, “We launched on the first of January with a glorious morning on the beach of pink. Sandy Lane now has new pink lounges, so we now have moved from the iconic blue to pink, which went extremely well. On the pool side we have an iconic blue for lounges and parasols. This again shows our reinvestment is strong. The owners are very suppportive and recognise that you could never stop continuous reinvest in your product if you want to keep it competitive internationally.
The Sandy Lane boss contended, “We added value and we ensured that there could be no perceptions of cutting back. The refurbishment of the soft furnishing was started at the beginning of the global recession but the need for it was seen as critical.”
The Spa of the property has also benefitted from some critical upgrades, with new facilities that bring an enhanced spa experience for guests.
The property, which has large source markets in the UK and Ireland, while attracting a number of celebrities and top businessmen from around the world, is one of the most popular resorts worldwide, particularly around the festive season.
The luxurious property has an inventory of 112 suites, penthouses and the Villa at Sandy Lane.
The newest South Coast condominium development in Barbados is bringing major benefits to the island and stands as clear evidence of the type of housing solutions that could be made useful in a country that has limited land resources.
This was the assertion made by Prime Minister David Thompson, as he gave the feature address at the official opening ceremony of the Condominiums at Palm Beach, Christ Church
Prime Minister Thompson acknowledged that he has been carefully scrunitising developments like Palm Beach to prevent any disruption in the agreed and established equilibrium in the use of land in Barbados.
Speaking about some of the advantages that come with the Palm Beach Condos, he noted: “First of all it has a relatively small footprint…the 59 units occupy a mere 4 acres. In the past this same spot was occupied by 15 houses; I believe this multi-storey solution to the problem of space is one we should resort to more regularly in order to solve the general problem of housing in our country.”
The Prime Minister also explained that an upmarket community such as the Condominiums at Palm Beach represents a reminder of the many advantages of communal living, which Barbados seems to have lost in the last 15 years of development. He said, “It is certainly reducing the pressure of resources like water with shared amenities like swimming pools and other joint provisions like security are paying dividends.”
He also believes that the development is helping to diversify the tourism product on the South Coast. According to the Prime Minister, the development is bringing both higher standards of living and an enhanced quality of life to a greater number of people. Thompson stated: “At a time when there is increasing competition for the standard tourist in search of sun, sea and sand for a fortnight, Barbados has to target a different clientelle. The demands for upmarket tourism products like this (Condominiums at Palm Beach) are far less elastic than mass tourism.”
Another benefit which was outlined by the Prime Minister is that the development is consistent with the third physical development plan amended in 2003, which is in keeping with the redevelopment of the tourism industry by redevelopment and modernisation of older beach front property. Palm Beach is one such site.
According to the PM, the development also constitutes a significant stimulus package within the construction and real estate sectors. He explained: “It has brought in an initial investment of no less than a BDS $100 million and is likely to generate and circulate considerably more on the sale of units. It is interesting to note that there is almost an equal representation of Barbadian and CARICOM nationals, British and American friends of Barbados who have bought condominiums. Because Realtors Limited is a Barbadian company, government and the people of Barbados stand to benefit from the foreign exchange and transfer taxes. It is through projects like this that Barbados is benefiting from a significant injection of capital now, to help ride out the recession, as well as the constant flow of foreign exchange from the short term letting of these units. In addition, creating 30 permanent jobs and more when it becomes more operational, I therefore commend Realtors Limited and pledge support of the Government of Barbados for carefully planned projects like this to enable the sector to remain buoyant during these trying times.”
Yet another real estate firm in Barbados is expecting renewed interest in the islands’ property market for 2010.
