Advice on real estate in Belize

@Rickblanchard

I felt the same way about Ambergris Caye when I spent a couple weeks there in 2008. The next year I explored Placencia and loved it. Kept going back each year until I retired in 2015. I explored more areas around the country for several months, but ended up buying a place in Placencia Village in 2016. I like the feeling of community I did not find anywhere else. We can walk everywhere, if in a hurry, I ride my bike.

I know since the world came out of Covid shutdowns, the entire Placencia peninsula and the villages north of me have exploded in new construction, and places that did not sell previously, properties being on the market unsold for 4-5 years sold rapidly at high prices. Many sight unseen over the phone. Of course this drove the prices up. Will those prices hold? Or will folks not accustomed to the differences in Belize sell after a year or two? 😃

Hopkins is nice and offers a lot, but is spread out, to me lacks a central area unless it has evolved one in the last 2-3 years.

If I were looking today, I would look around Settee which is close to Hopkins,or along the Beautiful Hummingbird Highway.

Also suggest looking along the recently completed "Coastal Highway". It saves an hour off the 3 hour drive from the main Belize airport down to Dangriga/Hopkins/Placencia etc. There are new communities and developments going in along and near this new highway. 

@Rickblanchard I'll add that there is plenty of fishing in the Corozal area, but I don't see a lot fly fishing. I've never fly fished, so perhaps it's just not the preferred method for the folks we know. Lagoon fishing, inshore, and near shore are all popular.

While in the northern part of the country check out the Corozal side, but also the Cerros Peninsula (Cerros Sands, Copper Bank) and up to Sarteneja. They all have their own vibe. The Corozal-Sarteneja Road has recently been paved and they are finishing the second bridge along it to replace the hand-crank ferries. Hopefully it will be complete before your trip so you can experience all of the new infrastructure spurring interest in the area - I expect there to be more growth over the next decade as the travel becomes easier.

If you have time, go up through Orange Walk to Progresso Village and explore the Copper Bank - Sarteneja area before going over to Corozal and Consejo.

Yes, Hopkins is a lovely option, not as developed as further south but that means lots of scope for property appreciation and even beach front properties are still affordable.

@belize boy "not as developed as further south but that means lots of scope for property appreciation and even beach front properties are still affordable."

Errr..., no. Properties in Hopkins have appreciated rapidly already. Beachfront properties are NOT still affordable, matter of fact the prices for already built homes ave skyrocketed. Most likely because, last time I drove by, I only saw 2, maybe 3, waterfront lot left unbuilt. ALL the rest already have fairly large homes on them. Pretty much same story for Sittee River lots...

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    @belize boy "not as developed as further south but that means lots of scope for property appreciation and even beach front properties are still affordable."

Errr..., no. Properties in Hopkins have appreciated rapidly already. Beachfront properties are NOT still affordable, matter of fact the prices for already built homes ave skyrocketed. Most likely because, last time I drove by, I only saw 2, maybe 3, waterfront lot left unbuilt. ALL the rest already have fairly large homes on them. Pretty much same story for Sittee River lots...
   

    -@TexItalian

There are properties available in Hopkins. It just depends where you look and who you ask. The Jaguar Reef is expanding into a new phase. So, a lot of beachfront has been scooped up. Sittee Point is looking like Placencia(home sizes), but affordable is a matter of opinion. I wouldn't mind having beachfront property, but $75K+ USD for maybe a 1/10th of an acre is not affordable to me.

If not directly on the beach you can find cheaper and/or more land for the price.

Maybe closer to the village and away from the hotel zone in Hopkins is still an option.