Eco-friendly property developments are likely to be the next big trend in overseas property according to experts at The Homebuyer Show (17 to 19 March, ExCeL London) where three alternative overseas developments are being showcased this weekend.

The public are more environmentally aware than ever before and property developers specialising in overseas developments for British buyers are following suit, aiming to reduce their impact on the environment and help local communities.

'Eco-friendly' redevelopment

Sambala Developments (www.sambaladevelopments.com) is one of the companies who will be offering opportunities for ‘eco-friendly’ investment at The Homebuyer Show. The company owns 20 square miles of land on Santiago Island, part of the Cape Verde islands located 1000 miles south of the Canaries, and is planning to build Sambala Resort combining a tourism village, villa developments, hotels, a golf course and a marina redevelopment on the island.

Although all this development will undoubtedly have a huge impact on the local environment, Sambala Developments are also taking steps to protect biodiversity and help the local community.  For example, the developments will include eco-stations and a conference centre within the village which will be used to teach local children about biodiversity and other environmental considerations.  Of the three beaches owned by Sambala, only two will be used for tourists and residents and one will be left for use by nesting turtles.  The company is utilising local skills and providing additional training to the local workforce for the construction work.

Jonathan Grepne, Chairman of Sambala Developments, comments “The Cape Verde islands are at present largely an undiscovered paradise and, although we want to share them with other people, it is very important to us that we maintain their natural beauty.  We hope that by undertaking the redevelopment of the island in this way we will be setting the standard for similar projects around the world.”

Eco-tourism in Bulgaria

A similar scheme has been taking place in Bulgaria where twin brothers Chris and Rob Downham and their partner David Hollands, have been promoting ‘eco-tourism’ through their company SimpliBulgaria (www.simplibulgaria.com).  Geshaview will be Bulgaria’s first ‘eco-tourism’ village, situated close to the country’s ancient capital of Veliko Tarnovo.

Due for completion next year, the village will comprise 120 properties with traditional Bulgarian exterior designs but state-of-the-art interiors.  The development is being built using local labour and environmentally-friendly construction techniques and the finished village will be free from cars and use local craft shops and a farm for supplies.  In addition, SimpliBulgaria have set up a charitable trust to benefit the local people and the area.

Chris Downham, Director of SimpliBuglaria, comments: “We were interested in the concept of ‘eco tourism’ and were keen to provide our own development targeting those tourists who valued the local environment and respected and wanted to sample the local culture.  We also felt strongly that anything we did should create jobs and provide investment for the local economy. Too many tourist developments and overseas properties are developed without any thought for their impact on the local infrastructure and economy and we wanted to be different.”

Geothermal in Hungary

Over in Hungary, a project from Casaro Hungary (www.casaro-hungary.com) is utilising the store of geothermal energy in the ground.  Esterhaz, the new apartment scheme from Casaro Hungary in the capital Budapest uses the geothermal energy stores in the earth for both the heating and cooling of the building.  The only electricity used is in the pumps to draw the liquid circulating in the heating and cooling systems, bringing the ‘free’ energy to the surface from a dept of 110 metres below ground.

Hungary is the biggest user of geothermal energy in Europe thanks to the favourable conditions in the country.  At a depth of 2000 metres the rock temperature is usually over 100 degrees Celsius, a resource which many public and private buildings use to their advantage.

Shlomi Shlomovitz, Managing Director of Casaro Hungary, comments: “Investors are increasingly looking for properties that consider the environmental impact – for heating and cooling, construction materials used, and the surrounding natural landscape. With the soaring costs of energy in Europe, Esterhaz is ideal for the environmentally-conscious investor.”

More details on all of these developments can be found at The Homebuyer Show this weekend, 17 to 19 March, at ExCeL, London. For further information on the Show including advance booking for tickets and seminars, visit www.homebuyer.co.uk.