The global financial crisis has driven down the price of tropical islands in Australia, creating big bargains for would-be Robinson Crusoes seeking a coral-fringed paradise retreat.

Richard Vanhoff, a realtor in the northeastern state of Queensland who has about 10 islands on his books, most located near the famed Great Barrier Reef, said Thursday that prices have dropped as the recession bites.

"The initial asking price on some islands was a bit high and they've now come in lower and are a lot more reasonable that what (sellers) were asking initially," he told AFP.

"Some were asking six million dollars (4.2 million US) initially, when their island was certainly worth in the millions, but definitely not six."

One of the properties Vanhoff's Coldwell Banker Capricorn Coast estate agency is marketing is Turtle Island, which he said Hollywood star Julia Roberts missed out on buying eight years ago.

She may want to renew her interest as Vanhoff said the island — complete with mansion, helipad and in-ground swimming pool — was now available for "any reasonable offer" down from an initial asking price of 6.75 million dollars.

Vanhoff's website described it as "fit for a movie star or reclusive celebrity," with a huge larder capable of holding months' worth of provisions.

Vanhoff said owning an island provided the ultimate Australian experience.

"Internationally, when you think about Australia, there's a number of things that come to mind — beaches, islands, reefs and kangaroos," he said.

"That's what we're offering."

He said clients — who include the head of one of Australia's largest wine exporters — were often seeking a change in lifestyle.

"(Their) whole idea is to have a family retreat and bring the kids up in an environment that's not necessarily Robinson Crusoe, but more Robinson Crusoe with a lot of luxury touches," Vanhoff said.

He said small islands were still selling to individuals, albeit at reduced prices, but islands with tourist resorts, which command much higher price tags and generally attract investment consortia, were proving difficult to shift.

It said industry sources believed the value of the islands had plummeted 50 percent or more since December 2007, with Dunk Island down to 25 million dollars from 52 million, and Lizard and Heron collectively falling from 200 to 100 million.

It said the value of the super-exclusive Bedarra Island, where two-night packages can cost more than 100 000 dollars in peak season, had sunk from almost 25 million to between five and seven million.

"The GPT islands are sensational, they're iconic assets and I can't for the life of me understand why they have not sold," said Vanhoff, who is not involved in their sale.

He was hopeful that interest from China would help lift the market after he pitched his islands to potential buyers in Shanghai last September.

"There was an enormous amount of interest but no sooner do I get back to Australia than we had the financial crisis and people started to suffer under the world economic meltdown," Vanhoff said.

"One of the things they said to me was that they had huge assets over in the United States they were concerned about and were salvaging what they could over there.

"But I can now say that I'm starting to get phone calls and emails. There's a tremendous opportunity there," he said.

AFP

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