Island property developments offer sun, sand and a relaxed life. With Britons spending £20 billion on overseas property in 2006 alone (according to the Association of International Property Professionals), and developments springing up in the Caribbean, many UK buyers will be attracted to this group of islands off the coast of the Americas.

Website NuWire has looked at a range of factors and come up with their top five places to buy property in the Caribbean. The considerations included natural beauty and weather, cost of land, risk of hurricanes and poverty and crime rates.   Top of the charts was Trinidad and Tobago (pictured) which, as the Caribbean's leading producer of oil and gas, is a relatively industrialised country. Tourism is also growing on the island and so property developments here may represent a good investment opportunity for UK buyers. The island is also below the hurricane belt, but buyers should only consider property developments in safer parts of the islands as there is a crime issue.
 
Interested parties have an opportunity to enter this property market at the Indigo Bay resort, Tobago, which consists of one-, two- and three-bedroom serviced-apartments with leisure, clubhouse, pool and restaurant facilities. A fully furnished 90-square-metre one-bed apartment will cost £145,079 on a long lease from  Property Frontiers.

Aruba was Nuwire's second pick and benefits from a booming tourist industry – the island welcomes more than 1.5 million visitors each year – and a prosperous residential population. 
 
In third place, the Dominican Republic has attracted investment from tycoons such as Donald Trump, and yet NuWire says there are still affordable property developments that will appeal to potential buyers.

Bonaire and Curacao – known as the Windward Islands of the Netherlands Antilles – came fourth for Nuwire as Curacao offers a new airport terminal and several hotel developments, while Bonaire has become a top destination for divers.

Completing the selection were lesser-known tropical destinations Roatán (Honduras) and the Corn Islands (Nicaragua), which offer house hunters beautiful Caribbean coastline, secluded charm and relatively cheap island property developments.
 
If eco-friendly living is also a consideration then Oceano Village, Honduras, offers Caribbean living in an environmentally   sound development. Whilst operating a 'net zero' eco policy  - with water, waste and energy recycling - the resort will also   offer residents and guests a wide range of leisure and recreation facilities around a 103-acre private beach-front. A two-bed villa is available for £225,946 from www.propertyfrontiers.com.

However, for UK buyers with bigger budgets there are numerous Caribbean island property developments that may even lead to permanent relocation.

The Raffles, St Lucia Resort is a five-star hotel offering more than 250 one- and two-bedroom apartments on 78 plots of land, a spa, five swimming pools and a Jack Nicklaus golf course. Flights between London Gatwick and St Lucia take approximately 13 hours. A two-bedroom apartment, a plot of land and two Jack Nicklaus Golf Club St Lucia memberships in this island development can be bought from Chesterton International for £787,013. Benefits include no VAT, no capital gains tax and no estate duties, and once the owner reaches the age of 60 – and is using the property exclusively themself – exemption from tax is granted .
 
Another Nicklaus-influenced Caribbean development available from Chesterton is the Fairmont Anguilla Resort. This development includes a five-star hotel with 120 rooms, over 300 one-, two- or three-bedroom apartments and facilities including a spa, swimming pools and Jack Nicklaus golf course. Anguilla offers some of the world's best beaches, world-class restaurants, and those hoping for winter sun will be happy to hear the driest months are February and March. A one-bedroom apartment, an estate lot and two Jack Nicklaus Golf Club St Lucia memberships will also cost £787,013.

Related Articles:
Bahamas property top for UK investors
Belize property a tropical hit with investors

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Article first published 16th October 2007