The luxury residential marina and resort of Porto Cupecoy on St. Maarten is nearing completion, and the developers are running a special discount on new units through the end of April. This cosmopolitan harbor village has 180 residences from 1-4 bedrooms set among a promenade of shops and restaurants on the western end of Simpson Bay Lagoon.   The village is being constructed around the premier harbor in...

African Homesteads is a joint venture with the Getty family, which has teamed with andBEYOND to keep a game reserve in pristine condition. They Getty family also has a well-known house on the reserve that they rent out and the Phinda Game Reserve is home to lions, leopards, rhinos and elephants. Each homestead that is being sold as part of the venture includes 4 hectares of land, a safari vehicle, services...

It seems that Taiwan real estate market may be bucking the global trend with some very positive activity taking place. Property shares are on the up in Taiwan as new hope that the Taiwanese relaxation of its property laws could trigger more investments in the sector.   The main TAIEX share index had risen 61.65 points to 5,843.61 around an hour into trade, hitting its strongest intraday level since Oct....

St. Petersburg, Russia. A substantial increase in the number of visitors at the St. Petersburg International Property Show held 03&04 April, further indicates the potential for International Real Estate sales in Russia’s second largest city.   A total of 5,110 unique visitors visited the St .Petersburg International Property Show held for the second time in the Exhibition Centre of North-West...

Hilton Hotel’s upscale Doubletree brand is set to open its first property in Malaysia. The Crown Princess Hotel in Kuala Lumpur will undergo a huge, multi-million dollar redesign and renovation over the next few months. When the hotel reopens in the second quarter of 2010 it will be the Doubletree by Hilton Kuala Lumpur City Centre. The 540-room hotel will host both business and leisure travelers to the...

The budget hotel chain Travelodge has recently made deals for 12 new hotels in the UK with a combined investment value of £77 million. The company will add 1,334 rooms and create 200 new jobs.   Travelodge is the UK’s fastest growing hotel chain, and in these economic times it is easy to see why a discount chain is doing well. Additionally, another 16 hotels in the UK are under construction, which...

Several property markets in Indonesia’s capital city of Jakarta did surprisingly well in the fourth quarter of 2008, according to reports from property analyst DTZ. The office market had an average occupancy rate of 91 percent, and the high-end residential market also did well.   Due to the limited supply of condominiums in the city, the overall absorption rate of high-end units was very high, at 88.3...

The African island nation of Cape Verde saw a 6.5 percent increase in the number of tourists visiting in 2008. That good news is according to the National Statistics Institute (INE), and it comes as the international economic crisis has taken a bite out of many popular holiday destinations.   Cape Verde’s hotels saw approximately 330,000 guests during 2008 according to the INE, which is an increase of...

Property prices in Bulgaria have dropped to 2007 levels, according to the latest survey from Raiffesisen Real Estate Agency. The price falls are spread across the market, thought the luxury real estate sector has been relatively stable. The company used date collected from 2006 to 2009 and is regarded as one of the best and most reliable for information on the Bulgarian property market.   The largest...

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio da Silva replaced the head of the federally controlled Banco do Brasil SA in an attempt to lower interest rates in the country. The new president is Aldemir Bendine, who was formerly vice president of credit and debit cards for the bank. He replaces Antonio Francisco de Lima Neto, who had taken over as president in 2006 and was asked to step down.   Lula said in a report...