Martinique

Martinique is a typically French island located in the Windward Islands between St Lucia and Dominica. The island is roughly 425 sq miles in size with topography ranging from the fairly flat southern half with some rolling hills (where most of the resorts are located) to the northern portion of the island, which is more steep, lush and naturally vibrant - including the 4,600' volcano, Mt Pelee. Martinique is technically an "overseas departement" of France with all the good and bad that come with it. Advantages include stable government, good roads, social services and infrastructure together with such French niceties as gourmet food, excellent grocers, fairly good cell phone service and the like. Disadvantages are primarily significantly higher costs - everything from airfare in to food and groceries to high taxes (property, transfer, etc.). There is also very little of any language spoken outside of French on the island (and the Creole spoken by many non-French natives), so be warned if you do not speak at least some French. This can be an issue if renting a car, trying to get around, order in restaurants or the like. The population is just short of 400,000, a fourth of whom live in or near Fort-de-France. Weather can be quite a bit rainier than many drier Caribbean islands, as well.

map of Martinique

Very few online or international real estate resources are available for Martinique (like most of its French Caribbean counterparts). If you have an interest in investing on Martinique, your best bet is going to the island and visiting as many local (all small) real estate agencies as you can, as well as talking to as many locals as possible - many available options are not formally listed with brokers. If you reside in Paris or Montreal, there are several local real estate professionals with connections on Martinique, though they can be a challenge to find.