st lucia investment information

Why Buy in St Lucia?

St Lucia is still unspoilt and undeveloped, although several new developments have recently been planned or built. The property market is at an early stage of growth and prices are still 60% lower than on Barbados.

This, combined with a rising international profile and direct flights from the UK, makes St Lucia one of the most dynamic real estate markets in the Caribbean.

St Lucia has a stable economic and political environment and property prices have increased by around 40% per annum for the last 2 years and are projected to continue to rise for the foreseeable future.

The focus on tourism and the increasing popularity of the island for holidays means that there is excellent rental potential.

Mortgages are generally available in the Caribbean at 70% loan to value, thus reducing the cash requirement for investment. Principal International firmly recommend St Lucia as a strong buy for capital appreciation and rental income.

St Lucia is renowned for its natural beauty, for its rainforest mountains, waterfalls, secret coves and long and lazy sandy beaches. Here the warmth of the Caribbean sun is matched by the welcome of the friendly St Lucians, whose rich and colourful Creole culture is reflected in music, dance and tempting island cuisine.

The tourist board in St Lucia is one of the most active in the Caribbean, staging international road shows all year round to continually improve visitor numbers for St Lucia. Promotional annual events such as the ARC (Atlantic Rally for Cruisers) and the Jazz Festival are now world-class events providing a significant boost to visitor numbers during the low tourist season
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The general crime rate in St Lucia is one of the lowest in the Caribbean, making it a safe haven for tourists and for living.

St Lucia is a member of the British Commonwealth.

St Lucia Tourism Information

Tourism is vital to St Lucia's economy and it is a key objective of the Government to increase visitor numbers over the coming years.

Tourism tends to be more substantial during the dry season (January to April). St Lucia tends to be popular due to its tropical weather and scenery and for its large number of beaches and resorts.

Many tourists visit St Lucia as part of a cruise, however, the Government is seeking to encourage the development of additional luxury resorts to attract visitors to stay on the Island.

Buying Property in St Lucia

The property purchasing procedure in St Lucia is similar to that in the UK, with the exception of the Alien’s Landholding License. Foreigners wishing to purchase land in St Lucia must first acquire an Alien's Landholding License. Laws were recently changed in St Lucia to make this process quicker and more flexible.

You will require the services of a local lawyer to register the licence, which is permanent and does not require renewal.

This process is usually little more than a formality and most reputable developers have clauses inserted in their contracts to return funds to the clients in the event that the licence is refused

Location

Saint Lucia is an island nation in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north of the islands of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, north-west of Barbados and south of Martinique.

Languages spoken in St Lucia

The official language is English, but a creole language is also spoken by 90% of the population

Religions of St Lucia

About 70% of the population is Roman Catholic. The remainder are either Seventh-day Adventists, Pentecostalists, Anglicans, Evangelicals or Rastafari

St Lucia Climate

The waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea are warm at all times of the year, being influenced by ocean currents from equatorial latitudes which unite to form the Gulf Stream to the north of the Caribbean. The area lies for the whole year under the influence of the north-east trade winds, or the North Atlantic anticyclone, which lies farthest south in the winter period.

The wettest months are from May to October. The area experiences no great extremes of temperature; winters are warm and sunny and summers are hot, but without excessively high temperatures so that heat stress is rarely felt.

Getting to St Lucia

St Lucia has two airports: Hewanorra International Airport in Vieux Fort, at the southern tip of the island, and Vigie Airport in Castries, near the main tourist area. International flights land at Hewanorra, while flights from within the Caribbean generally land at Vigie.

You can fly direct to St Lucia from London, New York, Miami and Toronto amongst others.

St Lucia Currency

East Caribbean Dollar (XCD). The XCD has a fixed exchange rate with the US$.

For detail about any of our Barbados property investment opportunities visit our contact page or call us on +44 1483 748 629 (Freephone 0800 038 0000).