Criteria to Consider for Caribbean Island Developments
The following is an article posted by Jim Walberg of Caribbean Islands Realty.
What criteria are Caribbean resort/fractional developers considering when buying Caribbean real estate?
With the Boomers from the U.S., the Brits and the Europeans, the Canadians, and the buyers from South America flocking to buy up Caribbean properties, developers are getting much more picky with the islands and the properties they are considering for their resort developments. It doesn't matter if it is full ownership properties or fractional ownerships, at some level the price point becomes out of reach for their target market buyers within the above geographic groups.
One of the invaluable resources we have discovered to assist with evaluating Caribbean property development is Tom McPeak, Ph.D., out of Florida. Dr. McPeak is a “land economist” whose focus is on the responsible development of the Caribbean islands. Dr. Tom McPeak, Ph.D., out of Florida. Dr. McPeak is a “land economist” whose focus is on the responsible development of the Caribbean islands. Dr. McPeak has created a list of sixteen criteria he uses with his developer-clients when they are considering what island and property they are going to purchase and develop next. Below are his critieria;
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- Naturally beautiful, and where the beauty is protected.
- No standing army (consequently, no junta).
- A stable and progressive government.
- Very low crime rates.
- Low government social costs (not a welfare state).
- A favorable tax environment.
- Direct flights from major U.S. airports - primarily from Dallas eastward
- Small local population relative to the land mass of the island/country.
- Economy based primarily on tourism, banking and insurance.
- Good wireless telecommunication coverage and high-speed internet services.
- The currency is tied to the U.S. dollar.
- The primary language is English.
- A warm and friendly population.
- A traditional values-based culture.
- Primarily a resort experience rather than a cultural experience.
- A feeling of privacy, safety, and exclusivity.
Some of the destination/islands that currently fit these criteria, from Dr. McPeak's perspective, are; Belize; Turks & Caicos, St. Kitts, Barbados, St. Vincent & The Grenadines, and St. Lucia. Please contact Dr. McPeak if you would like to further discuss his views on profitable Caribbean development criteria. You may remember from some of my past blog postings that I would also consider Dominica, The Dominican Republic and Aruba.
Post authored by Jim Walberg of Caribbean Islands Realty.
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January 25th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Thank you for including our comments about the responsible developement of Caribbean island properties. You will enjoy meeting Dr. Tom McPeak as a resource for any of your developer clients. He has a very important perspective as a land economist.
January 25th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
This is a very good blog created by Dr. McPeak. I am fortunate to have him our Sales Administrator with the marketing of South Beach Belize project.
January 25th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
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October 9th, 2008 at 8:54 am
Good one. Go through the following.
Anguilla is in a much better position toady that she was in prior to the start of Viceroy and Flag as work in progress is much better than failed shells in ruin–one only has to look at decaying debris of Mullet Bay Resort in St. Maarten for confirmation of that grim fact. However, with the foregoing in mind, one must be concerned about the apparent troubles both Viceroy and Flag have encountered during their construction phases—and the pressure that has put on other managed residence communities that are being or have been planned… such as the projects at Rendezvous Bay, at Shoal Bay West, at Conch Bay, and at Shoal Bay East, et al. Interestingly enough, the construction issues facing Viceroy and Flag (along with the macro economic issues facing the global economy that are negatively impacting real estate investment and lending) might actually be seen to be having a positive impact on the pace of development on Anguilla as there are many who feel “too much too soon”—which is, of course, why Government put in place a moratorium on foreign owned large scale tourism investments…a moratorium which was at least partially offset by Anguillian owned projects that were approved after the moratorium was instituted (in particular: at Rendezvous Bay, Conch Bay and Shoal Bay East).
January 13th, 2009 at 4:47 am
Those are some helpful tips!. Thanks for this kind of topic.
-Sarah