BARBADOS’ LARGEST PARISH, St Philip, is ripe for further development and new residents.
Real estate firm Terra Caribbean said rural Barbados had become “the focus for local and overseas investors”, and St Philip was “the most noticeable case of this”.
“Now, the quiet, south-eastern countryside of Barbados is beaconing with residential and other developmental opportunities, positioning it firmly as one of the most desirable parishes to live in on the island,” the company said in a recent assessment of the real estate market.
“Geographically speaking, St Philip is the island’s largest parish, and is broadly characterised by pockets of development, both residential and commercial, as well as vast traces of ruralness which includes plantation homes and large amounts of agricultural land.”
It added: “The feeder city centre of the parish is found in Six Roads, and enjoys a location that is central to most St Philip neighbourhoods and easily accessible from the neighbouring parishes of St John, St George and Christ Church.”
Terra Caribbean also noted that “despite its distance from the capital Bridgetown, there has been notable success of several residential developments – something which has been measured by the growing demand and interest from prospective homeowners in the parish”.
It added: “In 2016, the transactions per parish measured under the [Terra Caribbean] Land Price Index showed that St Philip received the second most transactions over that period – only outpaced by neighbouring Christ Church.
“This could very well be thanks to the perceived value for money linked to investing in the parish on the precipice of its boom, since the 2016 median price per square foot by parish indicator showed that St Philip ranked seventh highest median out of the 11 parishes.”
The real estate company noted that, currently, St Philip’s residential offering “falls into the categories of land, villas and houses, and apartments and townhouses”.
Up to the time the last Population Housing Census was published, St Philip had an “estimated resident population” of 30 662, the third highest after St Michael’s 88 529 and Christ Church’s 54 336.
These numbers have grown since then and one unofficial estimate suggested St Philip now has about 40 000 residents. (SC)
(Taken from this week’s BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY.)
