Wraps off Cape Verde’s new flagship development

The Bath-based firm behind a new residential waterfront development in Cape Verde is pledging thousands of pounds to help improve the local economy on the island of Santiago.

This month Cape Verde Solutions Ltd (CVS) took the wraps off its Vila Jardins do Oceano scheme comprising 40 two- and three-bedroom detached villas. It is set within landscaped gardens on a 3.5 hectare (8.6 acre) site in the Cidade Velha area on the island’s south coast.

The development will be just 25 minutes from Santiago’s international airport at Praia when a new ring-road round the city is completed at the end of next year. Direct scheduled flights from the UK to Praia are expected to start before completion of the properties in December, 2008.

The Overseas Property Agency (TOPA), which is selling the villas off-plan, describes Vila Jardins do Oceano as ‘a flagship development for Cape Verde which sets the standards for future island developments.’

TOPA is selling properties at Vila Jardins do Oceano in four different designs. All the villas are positioned to make best use of the contours of the site, so the roof terrace of every home enjoys panoramic sea views.

Every property comes with a pool designed to meet the stringent safety standards of the World Health Organisation (WHO).

In addition, residents will have use of a communal infinity pool overlooking the sea, as well as facilities which include a clubhouse with a bar, restaurant and tennis courts. A new golf resort planned nearby will be less than ten minutes away by road.

“This development, the first of several planned by CVS, is in a beautiful location well away from tourist areas so it is expected to appeal to mature investors, including those seeking a home in the sun for the winter months,” says Louise James, managing director of TOPA.

“The strict construction criteria adopted by CVS surpass UK building standards,” explains Louise who revealed that detailed research into the topographical and climatic conditions of the archipelago off the West African coast have prompted CVS to introduce eco-friendly building methods said to be ideally suited to the tropics.

The walls of the single-storey villas will be constructed using reinforced concrete poured between a ‘sandwich’ of 50 mm thick pre-formed polystyrene panels - 250 mm thick in bedroom ceilings - providing exceptionally high levels of thermal insulation, thus keeping to a minimum the cost of running air-conditioning systems.

Year-round water supplies will be assured by CVS which is installing desalination systems designed to produce up to 350 litres of water per day for each resident at Vila Jardins do Oceano - despite the fact that studies show consumption normally averages 290 litres.

This means that, even if the number of people occupying Vila Jardins do Oceano is one-fifth higher than that it is designed to accommodate, just under half of the desalinated water which can be produced will actually be used.

Surplus supplies will be stored in a custom-designed reservoir with capacity for 450 cubic metres (450,000 litres) of water.

Says Louise: “Local people have given a warm welcome to new developments like this one because construction and operation of Vila Jardins do Oceano alone is expected to provide them with around 100 jobs.”

In addition, the developer is ploughing €5,000 a year into a local charity, ICASE, in a bid to help raise the standards of educational opportunity and career prospects for children in Cape Verde. CVS also wants to establish a local co-operative, helping to create jobs in new service organisations and sustainable businesses.

The prices of properties at Vila Jardins do Oceano start at €236,000 for a two-bedroom villa with a floor area of 100 sq metres plus a veranda and roof terrace.

If the purchaser pays 50 per cent of the price, a local bank repayment mortgage of up 50 per cent of the value of the property may be available through the developer. The bank charges a 1 per cent set-up fee and the mortgage term is between 10 and 15 years. Currently the interest rate is between 7 and 8 per cent. Professional indemnity insurance at £5 million per annum will be in place to protect clients and ensure the delivery of well-constructed properties, reports CVS.

CVS predicts that investors will receive annual rental returns in the region of 9 per cent to 14 per cent based on 26 weeks occupancy each year.

For more information about Vila Jardins do Oceano, visit topa.co.uk.