St. Lucia falls into the Windward group of Islands, located 21 miles south of Martinique and 26 miles north of St. Vincent. More precisely, it lies between 60° 53' and 61° 05' West longitude and 13°43' and 14°05' North latitude. St. Lucia measures approximately 27 miles in length and 14 miles in width, with a land area of 238 square miles (616 sq. km). It is volcanic in origin, very mountainous with the main ridge running almost through its entire length reaching its highest point at Mt. Gimie which is 3,145 feet above sea level. Two unique topographic features are the famous and spectacular mountain peaks called the Pitons which rise straight out of the sea near the town of Soufrière, Petit Piton at 2,461 feet and, in the village of Choiseul, Gros Piton at 2, 619 feet, both along the west coast. St Lucia has 98 miles of coastline.

St Lucia was ceded to Britain in 1814 under the treaty of Paris and remained a Colony of Britain until 22 February 1979 when it gained full independence from the UK and is now part of the commonwealth.

St. Lucia's economy depends primarily on revenue from tourism and banana production, with some contribution from small-scale manufacturing. All sectors of the economy have benefited from infrastructure improvements in roads, communications, water supply, sewerage, and port facilities. These improvements, combined with a stable political environment and educated work force, have attracted foreign investors in several different sectors. Although St. Lucia enjoys a steady flow of investment in tourism, the single most significant foreign investment is Hess Oil's large petroleum storage and transshipment terminal. In addition, the Caribbean Development Bank funded an extensive airport expansion project. Although banana revenues have helped fund the country's development since the 1960s, the industry is now in a terminal decline, due to competition from lower-cost Latin American banana producers and reduced European Union trade preferences. The country is encouraging farmers to plant crops such as cocoa, mangos, and avocados to diversify its agricultural production and provide jobs for displaced banana workers. Tourism recovered in 2004, following the post-September 11, 2001 recession, and continued to grow in 2005, making up more than 48% of St. Lucia's GDP. The hotel and restaurant industry grew by 6.3% during 2005. Stay-over arrivals increased by 6.5%, and the United States remained the most important market, accounting for 35.4% of these arrivals. Yacht passengers rose by 21.9%. Redeployment of cruise ships, remedial berth construction, and high fuel costs prevented higher growth rates. However, several investors have planned new tourism projects for the island, including a large hotel and resort in the southern part of the island. St. Lucia's currency is the Eastern Caribbean Dollar (EC$), a regional currency shared among members of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU). The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) issues the EC$, manages monetary policy, and regulates and supervises commercial banking activities in its member countries. The ECCB has kept the EC$ pegged at EC$2.7=U.S. $1. St. Lucia is a beneficiary of the U.S. Caribbean Basin Initiative and is a member of the Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM). The country hosts the headquarters of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

International Hot property has Identified and researched property in St Lucia and has targeted the new 5 star resorts currently being developed on the island. St Lucia has huge potential for property growth on the island already being one of the Caribbean’s main tourist Islands but having lower property prices than its tourist rival Barbados thus leaving room for property growth and exceptional investment opportunities. The island is one of the most beautiful in the world and but still has room for development as it hasn’t been developed as much as some of the other Islands.

WHY INVEST IN ST LUCIA PROPERTY?

St. Lucia has a tropical climate that is influenced by sea winds and the prevailing NE trade winds. The wet season is from June to September and the dry season from February to May. Average annual precipitation varies from 1,500 mm to 1,750 mm (59 to 68 inches) on the north and south coasts to 4,000 mm (157 inches) in the interior rain forest. The average temperature is 25 degrees Celsius (77 degrees Fahrenheit) all year round.. The climate is perfect for all year round tourism.

St. Lucia's economy depends primarily on revenue from tourism and banana production, with some contribution from small-scale manufacturing. All sectors of the economy have benefited from infrastructure improvements in roads, communications, water supply, sewerage, and port facilities. These improvements, combined with a stable political environment and educated work force, have attracted foreign investors in several different sectors. Although St. Lucia enjoys a steady flow of investment in tourism. Construction continues with the implementation of several public projects mainly road maintenance and many new Hotel projects which were necessary to allow St Lucia to host the 2007 ICC cricket world cup.

St Lucia’s Tourism is the major economic mainstay of the Island and continues to grow year on year and due to the stable nature of the island and the St Lucia paradise effect Tourism will continue to be the mainstay of the Island and brining indirect investment into areas such as construction and property investment.

St Lucia property offers excellent opportunities for property investment due to the continued growth in Tourism and the under developed nature of the Island in comparison to some of the other Caribbean Islands. Capital appreciation and rental returns on property in St Lucia. There is a pretty much guaranteed demand for holiday rentals which in turn amasses property owner’s high yields. The tax benefits in the Caribbean Islands are also another strong incentive to invest is St Lucia property.

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