Rising occupancy levels in Caribbean resorts are making them popular with investors looking for an alternative to poorly performing pension funds.

There has been a recent surge in interest for SIPP approved property in the Caribbean, a UK based property agency has reported. Property that is approved for a SIPP, or Self Invested Personal Pension, plan must meet certain conditions, however, being classed as commercial rather than residential means it often offers high rental yields.

A number of Caribbean islands are home to new 5-star resorts, such as Buccament Bay on St Vincent, where SIPP approved ownership opportunities are available. This year, occupancy levels in these resorts has been bullish, reportedly reaching 80%-90%, with 40% already secured for 2012. This is an improvement on this time last year when no advance bookings had been made.

Jon Ainge, director of International Property Success, comments: “I believe Caribbean property offers investors an unprecedented opportunity to benefit not only from great mortgage deals, but also another place to invest hard earned cash sitting in a pension and earning very little. In the current climate the Caribbean offers far more than sun, sea and sand to those seeking to get away from it all – and that includes the gloom in Europe at the moment.”

The Caribbean has also been one of the world’s major recipients of foreign direct investment and complementing this, the recently announced $45m airport terminal in Antigua will bring more jobs and tourists to the islands. To cater for the expected increase in tourism, the Caribbean is undergoing a period of major modernisation of infrastructure to cope with the developing needs of an economy that has boomed despite the slowdown being experienced in the US and Europe.

One way to save money when buying property in the Caribbean is to use a currency specialist when transferring your pounds into dollars, or other local currency. For more information on this, contact Smart Currency Exchange. See Rightmove Overseas’s listings for details of more property for sale in the Caribbean.

To understand the full step-by-step process to buying a property in Caribbean, collect The Overseas Guides Company’s ‘Caribbean Property Buying Guide’