Property outlook improving in Fiji
Fiji set for a market turnaround as election looms and development picks up, writes Peta Tomlinson
Fiji once claimed to be the happiest place on earth, based on a 2011 global barometer, and it's easy to see why. A glorious climate, pristine beaches and laid-back, smiling locals who seemingly don't have a care in the world - no wonder nine out of 10 people surveyed said they were happy, compared to just 53 per cent of the global sample.
Perhaps Fijians just don't worry, because if they did, like so many who obsess over the ups and downs of stock and property markets, there hasn't been much to smile about as of late.
Despite possessing what the International Monetary Fund (IMF) calls "a richly endowed economy", Fiji has been stuck in the growth doldrums for decades, dogged by political instability, external shocks and slow progress on structural reform. However, indications suggest all that is changing. Much hope is pinned on the democratic elections scheduled for September and this, combined with other favourable fiscal factors, equates to an environment the IMF deems to be a "rare window of opportunity to make a clear break with the slow growth of past decades, and lay the foundation for a transition to a higher growth trajectory".
Philip Toogood, chairman and managing partner at Bayleys Real Estate (Fiji), concedes the market has been "challenging", but says the outlook is brighter for South Pacific's most high-profile island nation.
The "pricing correction", which affected all global property markets post-global financial crisis, was not as significant in Fiji as in some other countries, and values in the worst-affected areas have returned to pre-crisis levels, he says.
"In some instances - vacant building sites on Denarau Island, for example - prices have increased by around 10 to 15 per cent above 2005 peak levels."