Buyers looking for that perfect piece of real estate for their retirement sanctuary or vacation getaway have grown accustomed to rising property prices. But one company claims to have discovered a place where bargains still exist. There's just one catch: the property is not on Earth.

For a modest price (about $30 an acre), the Lunar Registry offers lunar land claims for sale over the Internet. The organization, which also advocates lunar exploration and settlement, donates 95 percent of each sale to the Kennedy II Lunar Exploration Project, a partnership between investors and aerospace contractors that hopes to develop permanent communities on the moon by 2015.

"Space law experts agree that actual occupation of the moon is the only legal method for ownership of lunar property," said David Ferrell Jackson, managing director of the Lunar Registry. "Through our partnership with the Kennedy Project, we plan to make lunar settlement a reality."

Property demand has driven prices upward at such an alarming rate that many investors are expanding their horizons to include the moon, which represents one of the last remaining outposts of peace and quiet for those looking to get away from it all, says Jackson.

Peace and quiet may be an understatement, as no human has stepped foot on the moon since Apollo 17 landed there in 1972. But numerous international organizations seek to return people to the moon over the next two decades, making settlement a distinct possibility.

Those who purchase land claims through the Lunar Registry would enjoy full rights to their property should the Kennedy II Lunar Exploration Project prove successful, says Jackson.

Buyers may select property from a list of specific lunar regions, such as the Sea of Tranquility, the Bay of Rainbows and the Sea of Dreams. Ownership packages include a personalized deed and a satellite photograph of the property.

According to Jackson, the Lunar Registry has already sold more than 400,000 acres of lunar property. The organization will only make two percent of the moon's nine billion acres available for land claims, meaning plenty of space is still available for that perfect vacation home.

Publisher's Note: This offer by The Lunar Registry is for novelty use only.