RESORT EQUITIES – Luxury Shared Ownership

Resort Equities was founded in 2004 and is the brainchild of Managing Partners, Kimball Small and Keith Cox. Kimball and Keith, along with the Resort Equities team, represent over 50 years of collaborative real estate development, business, resort and hospitality experience.

“When we founded Resort Equities we thought it just made good common sense for people to share use of a luxury vacation home,” recounts Keith Cox, Co-Founder and Managing Partner. “We wanted to enable people to match the use they desired with their ownership interest in a multi-million dollar residence and enjoy all of the benefits at a fraction of the cost without all the hassles of managing a second home. Plus, we’ve created an exchange program so our owners can choose to trade one of their weeks to stay in other
Resort Equities homes and destinations.”

Resort Equities prides itself on being a boutique shared ownership company – dramatically different from the big, impersonal fractional and timeshare outfits – headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area. The company offers unique, sensible, luxurious ownership opportunities coupled with attentive personal service. Resort Equities differentiates themselves by selecting only the most discriminating properties in the most sought-after resort destinations and then offering a superior ownership program.

Up to 10 deeded, undivided ownership interests are sold in a select group of handpicked, magnificent residences for less than the price of a typical down payment. Better still, Resort Equities oversees the maintenance and management of the residences and all expenses are split among the co-owners
- making ownership hassle-free and cost-effective. Plus, buying an interest affords owners the ability to exchange vacations at other participating, exclusive properties.

“We specialize in selling shared ownership interests in individual luxury vacation homes, which are professionally managed and outfitted”, Cox explains.  “Our owners typically considered buying a second or third home but decided, for all the obvious reasons, that buying the whole residence didn’t pencil out.
Instead, owners live out the vacation home dream and have many weeks each year to enjoy their residence. Also, buying a piece of a Resort Equities residence feels like a smart, capital efficient decision, which is especially important during these economic times.”

PROPERTY PORTFOLIO

1. Tuscany, Italy – The Bella Villa Collezione
For anyone who has a love affair with Italy, imagine owning a piece of its history, culture, allure and intoxicating beauty. Imagine visiting the panetteria (local bakery), macelleria (butcher shop) and the
mercato di verdura (produce market) to gather farm-fresh ingredients for tonight’s supper. Imagine sipping Chianti from your private veranda as the sun fades beneath a cypress tree-lined hillside. Imagine ownership
within a portfolio of unique, luxurious Italian residences – a base from which to explore Firenze, Siena, Roma, Lago di Como, Positano, Milano… Now imagine your dream of owning a second home in Italy –
experiencing the European lifestyle for more than just a few, fleeting weeks – becoming your reality. Introducing the Bella Villa Collezione (BVC), Resort Equities newly-released, unparalleled, international
shared ownership offering. This is a collection of 5 to 10 spectacular residences situated in highly desirable locations throughout Italy. The Bella Villa Collezione is commencing with a lavish Tuscan farmhouse – “Cologna della Via” – and future residences are slated for Firenze, Lago di Como, Positano and Rome. A maximum of 10 owners in each Bella Villa Collezione residence are entitled to at least four weeks usage in properties throughout the collection.

Cologna della Via
The essence of Italy is captured in Resort Equities ‘Cologna della Via’. This 500 year-old farmhouse has been restored with meticulous attention to detail and unsurpassed amenities.

Nestled in the Tuscan hills on nearly 20+ olive grove and cypress tree studded acres, the Cologna della Via ‘compound’ consists of four buildings including separate laundry and fitness rooms plus an infinity
pool and veranda, showcasing postcard-perfect, panoramic views of the Italian countryside. Cologna della Via’s main house offers four bedrooms, four and one-half bathrooms as well as two parlors, two kitchens, a wet bar, dining room and two outdoor verandas.

Cologna della Via is centrally located; Firenze, Siena and Cortona are within an hour’s drive and Roma and Milano are approximately three hours from the residence.

2. San Francisco
Amongst the most exquisite cities in the world, San Francisco is the ultimate urban playground. From the majestic Golden Gate Bridge to famed Alcatraz prison to seaside Fisherman’s Wharf and Pier 39,
San Francisco plays host to an abundance of iconic sites.

This City-by-the-Bay boasts authentic, cultural dining at neighborhoods such as Northbeach and China Town , unparalleled shopping at Union Square, celebrated theater and art. Outdoor enthusiasts can enjoy a stroll through beautiful Golden Gate Park, sailing on The Bay, mountain biking at nearby Mount Tamalpias or simply riding on a historic cable car.

Odeon Penthouse
Odeon Penthouse is a top floor, only-one-of-its-kind 2,516 square foot, three bedroom, two bathroom residence. Featuring double-high ceilings and oversized windows, Odeon Penthouse reveals dazzling views of the city excitement as well as San Francisco’s handsome buildings. Entertain family and friends in the two-level great room, showcasing the twinkling city lights and the romantic chime of the Powell Street cable car rumbling by. The residence’s kitchen caters to the chef in you with signature series Viking™, Dacor™
and Bosch™ appliances. Odeon Penthouse has an upper floor devoted entirely to a large, private master suite with an extraordinary walk-in closet and dressing room. Granite and exotic hardwood flooring are found
throughout. Union Square’s world-class shopping, exceptional dining, unsurpassed theater and galleries are a mere stroll from Odeon Penthouse.  Ghirardelli Square, Pier 39, Golden Gate Park and Napa Valley make for a wonderful day trip.

3. Hawaii
The Hawaiian islands have been coined a little slice of paradise and deservedly so. The second largest and arguably the most spectacular island is Maui. Resort Equities hand-selected Kapalua, Maui for its natural beauty coupled with an abundance of activities. Maui is home to Hana, a town accessed via an incredibly scenic, 53- mile route and known for its breathtaking waterfalls. Visitors can also enjoy the 10,000- foot Haleakala Crater as well as beautiful Wailea and the exclusive Grand Wailea Resort and Spa. Maui’s white sand beaches and championship golf courses are known as some of the world’s finest and the warm ocean waters are perfect for snorkeling and surfing. In the wintertime the migration of the humpback whales is an exquisite site along the coastline. Museums, shopping and dining can be found in the lively and charming towns of Lahaina and Ka’anapali.

Crestview Estate
Crestview is a 4,000+ square foot, four bedroom grand estate located in the private, exclusive, gated Pineapple Hill Estates neighborhood. This residence features a great room outfitted with sliding glass ‘pocket’ doors, showcasing sweeping ocean and golf vistas and a chef’s kitchen with professional series Themador™ appliances. The interior is beautifully appointed in elegant, Hawaiian style including rich, natural hardwoods, granite and marble and offers technological convenience including plasma screen televisions and a home office. Step outdoors to appreciate the lush tropical landscaping and be soothed by a warm island breeze. Owners can savor a breathtaking Maui sunset from the infinity pool, hot tub and sprawling lanai. White sand beaches, championship golf and celebrated dining are mere moments from Crestview Estate as well as charming Lahaina and Ka’anapali.

4. Lake Tahoe
Beyond being one of the most gorgeous alpine lakes anywhere, Lake Tahoe offers unlimited fun. From sailing a classic woody boat to kayaking calm, crystal waters, from mackinaw fishing to Sand Harbor’s white sand beaches, there’s something for everyone. Off the water visitors can enjoy limitless mountain biking and hiking trails, tennis, championship golf and camping. Tahoe also offers a variety of excellent restaurants, exciting nightlife and casinos. And when the snow falls Lake Tahoe showcases some of the best alpine skiing and snowboarding mountains as well as snowmobiling, snowshoeing and sleigh rides. The town of Truckee is known for its historic downtown and boutique shopping.

Silver Fox Estate
Silver Fox is a grand, 5,800 square foot estate situated in Truckee’s most prestigious neighborhood – Big Springs. Located less than a mile from Northstar-at-Tahoe Ski Resort and Village, Silver Fox is a custom four bedroom residence offering a great room showcasing enviable views of the Carson Range, a floor-to-ceiling granite fireplace and an adjoining wet bar. The home has dual master suites, a gourmet kitchen with stainless steel Thermador ™ appliances, an office and home gymnasium.  Ideal for entertaining, Silver Fox features a formal dining room, bonus/gameroom with home theater, a pool table and second wet bar as well as an 1,100 square foot deck with an eight person hot tub. Silver Fox offers convenient access to Tahoe’s best recreation including: downhill and cross country skiing, snowmobiling, sleigh riding, golfing, sailing, water skiing, hiking, fly fishing, mountain biking, horseback riding, rafting, boutique shopping,
nightlife, gaming and more.

5. Squaw Valley
Squaw Valley is synonymous with world-class skiing. Extreme skiers and those seeking the area’s best terrain ski Squaw Valley USA. Yet beyond the mountain Squaw Valley has much to offer: High Camp, perched at the top of Squaw Valley USA’s cable car, is an all-season resort with an ice skating rink, lagoon pool, spa, five tennis courts, restaurants and hiking trails, each showcasing some of Tahoe’s most spectacular panoramas. The Village at Squaw Valley is a European-style, pedestrian village with fine and casual dining, boutique shopping and spa treatments. Golfers can hit the links at Squaw’s 18-hole, Robert Trent Jones Jr., championship course, surrounded by majestic Sierra Nevada peaks, Squaw Valley is also just 10 minutes from Lake Tahoe, where outdoor recreation abounds including boating, hiking, fly-fishing, mountain biking, cycling, horseback riding and river rafting.

Graystone Lodge
There’s a reason why this home received Tahoe Quarterly Magazine’s prestigious Design Achievement Award and was nominated as Mountain Home of the Year. Simply put, Graystone Lodge is exquisite and one of the most spectacular residences in Lake Tahoe. Graystone Lodge is a grand, 5,500 square foot, custom, fourbedroom, four and one-half bathroom home, showcasing views of the surrounding Sierra Nevada Mountains. This residence features cathedral ceilings, massive stone fireplaces (five in total), hardwood, slate and travertine flooring. The centerpiece of this estate is a beautiful, hand-forged elevator. Graystone Lodge offers a dramatic great room, media room with home entertainment center, formal dining room, kids bunk room and lofted library/office. Ideal for entertaining, Graystone’s kitchen caters to the chef in you with Viking, professional grade range and dual ovens, chiseled-edge granite countertops, knotty-alder cabinetry and a walk-in pantry. Wine enthusiasts can savor the 2,000-bottle, temperature-controlled wine cellar, enveloped in an authentic, reclaimed wine barrel ceiling.

Step outdoors and soak up the panoramic views of Squaw’s legendary, breathtaking KT-22, Headwall and Painted Rock from the candle-lit hot tub, private deck or huddled around the firepit. And when it’s time to hit the slopes, owners have VIP, valet parking at Squaw Valley USA.

6. The Village at Northstar

Great Bear Lodge Residences
Great Bear Lodge represents the best of the best within the new Village at Northstar; boasting discerning features such as an elevator that opens into each residence as well as a location that’s perched directly above the ice skating rink. Great Bear Lodge offers the ultimate in mountain luxury living coupled with unparalleled ski-in/ski-out convenience.

Resort Equities has hand-selected two Great Bear residences (4206 and 4207), ranging from 2,780 to 3,292 square feet, featuring four bedrooms, each with an en-suite bathroom. Additionally, these residences offer an incredible great room, wet bar, separate office/den and a fully furnished outdoor terrace. Wolf™ and Subzero™ appliances, hardwood flooring, granite countertops and a natural stone fireplace are just some of the premium finishes in Resort Equities’ Great Bear properties. Owners also have access to the Tahoe Mountain Club, offering private amenities such as Alpine Club, Schaffer’s Camp, Old Greenwood Pavilion and Wild Goose lakefront restaurant.

Catamount Lodge Residences
One of the newest and most luxurious addresses in the new Village at Northstar is Catamount Lodge. Continuing in the Village’s tradition of excellence, Catamount Lodge resides just steps from the gondola and the legendary slopes of Northstar-at-Tahoe. Resort Equities handpicks its residences to exemplify the best of mountain luxury living and offer unparalleled ski village and exclusive club access. Resort Equities Catamount Lodge residences feature impressive, desirable floorplans, expansive living areas and bedrooms, chef’s kitchens with professional-grade appliances plus sprawling terraces, ski storage lockers and heated, underground parking.

Resort Equities portfolio of Catamount Lodge residences includes four extraordinary, discriminating, end-cap residences: three-bedroom, three and one-half bathroom Catamount Lodge (8214), Catamount Lodge (8314) and Catamount Penthouse (8414) as well as the four-bedroom, four bathroom “Mayor’s House” (Catamount 8202).

Iron Horse Penthouse
Iron Horse Penthouse offers generous living space of 1,205 square feet, two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a cozy great room with vaulted ceilings and picturesque mountain views, private terrace plus ski storage lockers and underground parking. The interior and furniture package pairs rustic, elegant appointments with modern technological convenience. A natural stone fireplace, slate and hickory hardwood flooring, granite surfaces and solid alder wood casing are just some of the premium finishes in Iron Horse Penthouse. This residence also includes an iMac computer, wireless internet access and optimal ski-in, ski-out access.

For more information;
50 West San Fernando Street,
Suite 320 San Jose, CA 95113
Phone: 866.655.9060
Fax: 408.275.9430
Website: www.resortequities.com
General email: info@resortequities.com

C.A.R.E. Launches Inventory Matching System At Conference

For as long as I can recall, C.A.R.E. members have expressed a desire for a bulletin board to communicate availability among its member companies. Now that C.A.R.E. is made up of over 160 member companies the concept of a having a bulletin board is finally becoming a reality.

Mike Pnematicatos,Merlin Software

After a year of research and development, followed by intensive Beta testing, the Cooperative Association of Resort Exchangers (C.A.R.E.) finally released the exclusive, C.A.R.E.-supported, online Inventory Matching System (IMS) to their members at their recent conference held in Wisconsin Dells. Known as the C.A.R.E. IMS this automated system was developed for C.A.R.E. by the team at Merlin Software.

While C.A.R.E. companies have definitely grown accustomed to completing exchanges and wholesale purchases by email, the volume of inventory being solicited and orders being sought to be filled today has made email more burdensome. Additionally, as email is an “open highway” for communication, it is perhaps not the best means to channel business communication from company to company with a trade association. Conversely, the IMS would channel requests to only would be suppliers while giving only CARE members in good standing a secure forum to conduct their business.

As more and more CARE Member companies use the IMS to exchange and purchase inventory from each other, business will be done faster and more efficiently while actually improving fulfillment opportunities. The IMS even allows for searches for inventory to remain pending for as long as a member company needs the search to continue without ever having to resubmit the inquiry. The only way only to accomplish this presently is to hope that your fellow CARE members are browsing through your old email blasts.

If one takes the time to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of emailing against the advantages and disadvantages of using the IMS that Merlin has customized for CARE, it is a no brainer.

There are currently approximately 25 C.A.R.E. members signed in the IMS with numbers growing daily. The objective is to have all members using the IMS by the end of the year.

“We are all very excited about this new IMS,” states Alain Carr, C.A.R.E.’s newly elected president, “and we could not have chosen a better company to work with either. Merlin has been terrific.” Alain added: “Our goal is to bring unique value added benefits to our members and with the IMS we believe we have made a huge leap in the right direction. The IMS does not belong to C.A.R.E. We simply facilitated its development and deployment for the benefit of all of our Members.”

The IMS that the Merlin team (lead by Mike Pnematicatos) brought to C.A.R.E. has been the product of years of dedication to the vacation ownership industry. Mike’s dream has always been to be able to use
technology to allow participants in the industry to trade with each other. When the opportunity to develop the IMS for C.A.R.E. came along Mike jumped at it and he used his knowledge gained over many years to
design and build the IMS.

Mike is an internationally known and respected authority on vacation ownership including timeshare, fractionals and points clubs. He commenced property development in 1983 and in 1987 pioneered the
development of one of South Africa’s very first points clubs. Not that well known is that he also undertook fractional ownership developments in the early 1980’s, well before this product became the buzzword it is today.

Together with his partners, he built one of South Africa’s largest timeshare and points club development and management companies with over 40000 members in four different points clubs and 16 managed resorts.

he business was vertically integrated and covered every aspect from property development through marketing and sales to after sales management. Integral to the success of this business was the fact that
the software on which the business operated was developed in house. He partnered with Roy Peres and Club La Costa, one of Europe’s largest and most successful timeshare developers to form the CRI Points System, the forerunner of RCI Points.

He sold his various timeshare businesses to RCI in 2000 and assisted them for close to three years in designing and launching the RCI Points program in Europe and the USA. He has spoken at international
conferences in Europe, USA and Australia on the future of timeshare and points clubs. He has also served on the boards of a number of timeshare resorts and owners’ associations and has occupied the position of
chairman on many of these boards.

His main business interest today is the ongoing development of software for the Vacation Ownership Industry. His extensive knowledge and firsthand experience of how to manage these developments and clubs means that the software he designs supports the best practices in vacation ownership business processes.

The IMS runs over the internet on a single database that is segmented into secure sites for each Member and is available exclusively for C.A.R.E. Members to use. In short, all Members can now for the first time trade
reciprocally with each other for rentals and exchanges using a secure online system. This system has replaced emails, telephone calls and faxes. While this “old” technology served them well, the time had
come for a new technology to replace emails jamming up inboxes and telephone calls too numerous to handle.

Accessing the IMS over the web using secure encryption technology is safe with no data being compromised. The IMS saves time and increases efficiency immeasurably. Balance of trade tracking is automatic as is tracking of who owes who for rentals. Access to the IMS is free for all Members to display inventory. And there is a small transaction fee paid by the Member who receives Inventory from the System.

Mike and his team, together with a dedicated group of C.A.R.E. Beta testers all worked tirelessly in order to deliver an easy to use System. The IMS allows members to display their inventory to each other in
a variety of ways to suit their business strategies. All Members run their operations differently and the IMS caters for all these operational nuances. In fact, it even allows members to choose who they do
and don’t want to trade with.

Based on the feedback from Beta testers the Merlin team was able to develop and deliver three ways to trade in the IMS:

1. Those members who have inventory available can display this for rental or exchange by depositing it directly into the IMS. Other members can then search or browse for what they need in the deposited inventory and then request a booking for rental or exchange

2. Those members who manage or operate large resorts and who don’t have the time or resources to keep depositing or updating their availability in the IMS are able to perform a onetime set up that allows them to display their full inventory potential. Those looking for inventory in these resorts can simply click to make an enquiry. If there is availability then the inventory is deposited to the IMS for the enquirer to book a rental or exchange.

3. And then finally the IMS allows those with inventory to set up the regions in which they have availability and those who are looking for inventory can make a general enquiry for a region and the IMS matches the enquiry with those who may just have inventory to deposit.

The IMS also acts as a business tool for those who use it and tells them when they have something to do. It does this by sending emails and also displaying all actions that need to be attended to in a Heads Up Display (HUD). As the Beta testers found, those using the IMS don’t really have to think about what to do next. The HUD actually tells them when there are tasks to be performed and a simple click though from the HUD gets them to where they have to be, to do what it is they have to do.

The left side shows you the units you have deposited and the requests against them. While the right side shows the status of request that you have made.

Drop downs open automatically when action needs to taken.

Merlin will show you how easy it is to set up your property.

They will teach you how to load or deposit inventory that you wish to move,and show you how to make a request for your members.

The IMS is unique in that something like this has never been done before in this industry. Mike often tells the story of how he has been to so many conferences and heard so many speakers urging the industry
to have a central system for inventory sharing. Now C.A.R.E is leading the way and proud to be pioneering a paradigm shift that will forever change the way business is done.

Huge Demand For Vacations In China

A Profile on Tianlun Vacation Development Co. Ltd

Tianlun Vacation Development Co. Ltd was registered in the State Administration of Industry and Commerce in Sep. 2000 and is the first timeshare / vacation ownership company which is authorized to operate nationwide in China.

In the early days, Tianlun Vacation spent a lot of time studying the vacation industry and worked closely with the Economic Management College of Tsinghua University on the feasibility study of the vacation market in China. Research showed that there was a huge demand for vacations from Chinese people and the research forecast that there will be 3.5-5 million families looking to take vacations in the next 15-20 years in China.

China, traditionally had a problem in regards to lack of credit in the market, but Tianlun developed the credit guarantee system with Changan Surety Bond Co. Ltd which has proved to be more suitable to China’s market than any other credit system being used in other countries.

They took advice from Chinese specialists and experts and found that that the points product which was being sold in the Western market at that time was the most suitable for the Chinese market.  Once this was established they commenced sales with the points product in 2003. It took a couple of years of  experimenting and improving the process and product but now they feel that they gained a deeper understanding about timeshare marketing, sales and services and have now rolled out a sales system which is proving to be suitable to China’s Timeshare market.

Today, Tianlun has four very busy sales venues in the Beijing business areas – Guomao, Xidan, Zhongguancun and Beitaipingzhuang. The response to timeshare in this region has been so great that they are operating and running presentations six days a week. A huge timeshare marketing database has been developed, which provides over 4000 families to venues and introduces 500 new timeshare families to Tianlun Vacation and the world of timeshare vacations each month. Healthy growth has been seen within the company since 2007 and sales have increased by 15-20% annually. Currently Tianlun is the largest
timeshare club in China with over fifteen thousand family members.

Tianlun Vacation would not have achieved a fraction of its success without the contribution of two influential figures in the company figures – Mr. Ding Aidi and Mr. Terrence. P. Brewer.

Today, Mr. Ding is the Vice Chairman of the International Leisure Industry Association.  He was one of the pioneers who studied Timeshare in the late 90’s and created Tianlun Vacation. Mr. Brewer has almost thirty years of timeshare experience gained in many countries around the world and has contributed his vast sales experience and management ideas to the Tianlun Vacation team and undoubtedly without this wealth
of knowledge the company would not have produced such excellent results.

Timeshare was only introduced into China in the late 90’s and it is still very much in its infancy compared to many other regions of the world but both Mr. Ding and Mr. Brewer believe there is huge opportunity for timeshare in China.

Last year Tianlun announced its new developments and plans for the future, one of which is to enlarge its own existing vacation apartment network, including Lijiang, Nandaihe, Haikou, Chendu, Yangshu, Xishuangbanna, Wenchang, as well as its affiliated vacation hotels and resorts. The second is to develop a “Multi-Nationalities / Culture Vacation Network”. China is made up of many nationalities and each nationality has its own unique culture and long history. Tianlun  Vacation will develop resorts in areas which
have a strong cultural history in the coming years and believe it will enable families within China and from other countries to experience these unique cultures. For example, Lijiang Tianlun Guesthouse is a Naxi building whose interior is decorated in Naxi traditional style.

Another focus of Tianlun Vacation is to develop quality international standard resorts. Tianlun Vacation and Lijiang Old Town is developing Lijiang Tianlun Center, which will be the first resort to achieve international standards.

Meanwhile, as the leading figure of China’s Timeshare Industry, Tianlun Vacation is actively promoting the development of Timeshare in the country and feel it is very important to set up a vacation model which is most suited to the Chinese market and equally important to institute a legal framework for the industry.

No different to many emerging markets, a number of years ago timeshare suffered a downturn due to the misunderstanding of the public about the industry mainly fueled by a few unscrupulous operators. Tianlun Vacation has worked to accelerate the establishment of the Timeshare Vacation Industry Association and worked to implement legislation for China’s vacation industry. They invited specialists in law, travel and officials from a number of governments to study the legislation for timeshare in China and they composed two drafts, the China Timeshare Management Rules and China Timeshare Management Measures. In March 2008, the two drafts were discussed on the China Vacation Management Measures Forum sponsored by the China Society of Economic Reform and this has accelerated the whole process of creating new laws to govern the timeshare industry in China.

Since 2003, Tianlun Vacation has been a member of ARDA and attended its annual conference to learn about the latest industry developments in a hope that they can create a product that also appeals to the international client.

Tianlun is committed to building the company to cover all aspects of the business – resort development, vacation product development, sales and marketing as well as providing vacation club services and is currently the largest timeshare resort / hotel network in China. They are happy to work with Dial An Exchange – the world’s third largest exchange company. In addition they have also formed reciprocal relationship with other vacation clubs from six different countries and are finding these international exchange opportunities are strengthening the Tianlun Vacation system. They are always keen to speak to other vacation clubs from around the world to form new and interesting reciprocal relationship which would give greater vacation choice to timeshare families around the world.

For more details visit www.tianlunvacation.com.cn or call +86-010-65187710 / 65187720 / 65187730

The Single Home In The Fractional Marketplace

Perspective Magazine met with Sherman Potvin at the Ragatz Fractional Interest Conference in San Francisco and we were intrigued to hear about the industry veteran’s new project, Fractional Homes International.

Perspective: Can you start by giving us some background on yourself and your company?

We have LuxuryFractionalguide.com which is the largest fractional website in the world, and we geared that website to be consumer oriented, We wanted to do two things: obviously make money in the long term, but what I had discovered 15 years prior is that the education of the general public is crucial if this was going to be a success. Because the website is consumer oriented, we write articles and updates and we now have a blog to further educate the public on the pitfalls and the promises of fractional sales and the benefits of course of why people are buying fractions and why developers are selling them.

Luxuryfractionalguide.com has been like a window on the world of fractionals for me that very few people have.

One of the things I learnt quickly was… have “Ask The Expert” on that website and I often at times want to just rip it down! Because I get so many questions, but I’m the sort of guy that will answer them, people take the time, so I answer them, so there I am 10, 11, 12 o’clock at night, I’m at my computer and sometimes I’m like “god these questions!”

So I thought I could alleviate some of the questions by writing a book because the questions are mostly from home owners around the world, I’m not talking just America, but Bulgaria and New Zealand, Australia and the Middle East and the Far East, everywhere, in fact it was amazing to see where they came from.

So, I wrote my book, as I said about 18 months ago, Fractionalize to Maximize, and it served a purpose to some degree, I’ve sold over 2000 copies from people all over the world, so the book has been helpful but yet it’s created even more questions as I had wanted to keep it in layman’s terms and there’s more to selling a property than just what’s in the book, this is more about how to get your property ready to sell.

So, I knew, and I’ve known for a couple of years that the niche within the niche of fractional ownership, is the one off standing homes, the single vacation home where people want to sell them in this economy and can’t, but even in good economies when, two, three or four years ago when the economy was rolling, people were wanting to sell in fractions to maximize their return, and, they understood that if they could sell some fractions of their home, keep a fraction, they could have their cake and eat it too. They could still go to visit their place but they didn’t have all the costs associated with ownership.

So, what with that, I started to think about developing Fractional Homes International, which is a franchise company, and basically, our goal here is to produce talented, knowledgeable, trained people – real estate related people – whether they’re real estate license agents or small developers or investors who want to buy a home and turn it into fractions. This company will serve all those people – with our “bible”, what we call
our training manual – which is 14 months in the writing. This will serve our franchisees with the knowledge to be able to, from A to Z, take someone’s home, and sell it out in fractions.

There’s nobody consulting today that wants to deal with a one off home because there’s no money in it. Myself and the six or eight other people who do consulting for the larger developers, we tend to stick with the larger developers because a) the homeowner can’t afford us and b) there’s not enough long term money in selling a one off home for us.

So, I know that the people who graduate and come out of our training as franchisees will be busy right away because the market’s so huge, especially with the economy the way it is, so much beautiful real estate for sale at bargain prices, and even at bargain price there not moving. This is a way to move the person’s home and get a fair price for it. So, in a nutshell, I’m hoping Fractional Homes International will be the vehicle to springboard the vacation home owner from around the world ahead faster, the true fractional industry is going to be growing, the first niche has got to come out of the box.

I believe that the industry itself is going to recover much quicker than whole ownership real estate. I think people are going to be looking for alternative ownership where they can have a little chance of an investment, not as much money, be able to vacation in a much more expensive, nicer home than they normally could afford with a fraction of the cost and I think that’s where the industry is going.

Perspective: So, you’re going to train people to then consult consumers on how to fractionalize their homes– are you also going to help advertise those homes for sale, through the website?

Absolutely – our website will have those homes on it, our Fractional Homes International website, but also those homes will be on Luxury Fractional Guide as part of the deal. So they’ll have two different avenues of advertising. I really plan on this company being Number 1 in the world a year from now in the fractional industry.

I’m going to spend the money to do it, I’m committed to it and we plan to put this website out by mid-summer in five languages. We truly want to be international because the market is international. The long term goal is to have a master franchise, someone for Europe, and in the UK, someone Down Under, and every country that seems to have taken to the fractional concept. South Africa has more fractional
programmes going on right now than we do, it’s crazy, its caught fire over there and so I would expect I would licence someone there to be a franchise for Fractional Homes International.

I envision this being a global company where they can all exchange inside the network and all the franchisees would have the advantage of being able to communicate with each other on what’s working and what’s not in different areas and what they did to a particular house to make it special, or where they put money that didn’t work etc.

I mean, the education within this company five years from now, with maybe four or five hundred or a thousand, even, agents, is going to be unbelievable, and it’s just going to make us all that much better.

Perspective: So for example, if someone owned a fraction of a home in San Francisco they could change it with someone in South Africa through you?

Of course. Right now we are bringing into play our own fractional exchange called Luxury Fractional Exchange but we envision maybe as soon as two years down the road, the company will have its own exchange system within the company as we’ll have that many homes being fractionalized and that will make it even nicer and more reason for people to join us.

Perspective: How would that work alongside some of the larger people you work with? Do you envisage being able to get the exchange company to a point where they’ll accept people from stand alone homes into theirs or do you think they’ll keep it totally separate?

No, not at all – I know all of the guys from the exchange companies , I’ve been in this industry all my life practically it seems, but, I know all the players, and they’re not particularly interested in getting into the one off single stand alone home as it doesn’t give them enough critical mass to be effective.
Our exchange will be unique to vacation home owners and small developers.

Perspective: What would you class as a small developer?

Ten units or less. Anything over ten units we wouldn’t allow them on, we wouldn’t want them to dilute the product.

Perspective: I’m looking at your training manual and its huge – what sort of things are included? What does it entail? And do you get some sort of certification at the end?

Well yes. And of course, we follow this manual all through training and during the whole week of intense training, day and night actually, we do a mythical home, we actually do a whole home all the way through sales and marketing – the whole thing.

But obviously this is all in depth, and we only touch the highlights through training, but when someone has this manual when they graduate, they take it with them. They never really own this, we always own it, they just have it on loan and if they ever lose it or someone copies it, they’re gone. This is really serious material.

But to answer your question, the manual was built like this because we really, really wanted our franchisees to be – when they’re confronted with a little bit of a problem such as a different house, different location, something different about that particular project – not to have to call our mentors on a 24/7 basis – 99% of what they’re looking for is going to be found right here in the manual.

Perspective: So would people come to you in a training centre?

Yes – our next training will be in Denver, Colorado in July

Perspective: And how many people would come along to that?

25 – We don’t allow any more than that – we want it to be intimate, get to know the mentors really well because that’s who they’ll be working with. We’re all going to mentor these people so that they don’t make mistakes and they get off on the right track.

Perspective: And that lasts for one week and then they have an exam they have to pass to get their qualification?

There is a mini exam at the end. They get a certificate and with the certification they get to use all our marques on all of their materials, on their websites, and they are an accredited fractional consultant. For a real estate agent it would be invaluable because they’ll have such a leg up on their competition by virtue of being able to say both on their website and on all their collateral and in their office with our emblem that they have in-house – a person that can fractionalise your home from start to finish. I think that’s going to add tremendous value a year down the road.

Perspective: Do the homes have to have certain criteria – or a certain value? Would it be you that would select those homes or they would have to come to you for approval or some description?

Yes, definitely, we have our operations manual and our standards, and our ethics. All of this is related to our relationship with the person that comes to us and wants to sell their home. It definitely has to meet criteria, location of course being first and foremost, but then the fit and finish, the furnishings, the surroundings, accessibility, the landscaping. It has to be really perfect to be successful – the owner has to understand what needs to be done in order for their home to be right and if he doesn’t we are going to walk away and go to the next one. Because, we really can’t afford to fail – that’s the bottom line, we’ve got to make every one of our projects work in order for the company to grow.

So yeah, we’re hoping that we set the standards for integrity and success in this industry. There’s a lot of people breaking out in this industry claiming to be fractional experts and they’ve never even been on a project before – it’s embarrassing – I see their website and go, “my god, I know that person, that person doesn’t even know anything about this” – but the average consumer doesn’t know this. A lot of people
don’t do due diligence and don’t make the phone calls and then they get themselves in trouble and they put thousands of dollars up and fail. So, we’re hoping that we can set the standard in the industry so that others will want to follow it and just to make it the right way so the consumer has confidence in this product; it’s an alternative product, not run of the mill real estate, as everyone knows and understands it. Now, if we all
do it right it’s going to be successful. That’s our goal.

Successful Luxury Fractional Marketing And Sales In The Current Economic Climate

By David M. Disick, Esq.

This Paper briefly summarizes the following techniques in marketing and sales that can maximize success:
1. State-of-the-art web based programs
2. Public relations/Strategic branding alliances
3. International marketing
4. Local broker programs
5. Some marketing and sales strategies

State-of-the-Art Web Based Programs
The Internet has evolved into a superior international marketing tool for maximizing results and minimizing costs. Webbased programs should be designed to reach out to the luxury and fractional community of brokers, agents, and prospective purchasers internationally; nationally; in the specific locales where the target audiences reside; and segmented by critical clusters of aficionados of particular venue types (such as metropolitan areas, mountains, beaches, golf and wine country).

Underlying these elements is the use of leading edge Internet and social network marketing methods to create an unprecedented international marketing reach. Leveraging Web 2.0 Internet marketing methods enables global reach, in contrast to the limited reach of traditional marketing methods and at a fraction of the cost of traditional marketing.

B2C Marketing Strategies.
The internet is a superb international marketing tool for directly reaching our target market, high net worth purchasers, in greater numbers, with greater precision, in a timely manner and with economies of scale. Listings can be syndicated globally on dozens of B2C websites. Distributions of listings over most Internet channels is virtually instantaneous. Regular reports can be generated so that the visits each property gets on each of these channels can be monitored. All listing brokers can display listings in multiple languages on their broker websites.

B2B Marketing Strategies.
One can maximize the use of the global referral network and international MLS, Proxio. Proxio, launched in April 2008, already has registered more than 1,700 agencies in 54 countries. Proxio will enable each local broker to form a global referral network with their peers in 50 states and 50+ countries. This will quickly put listings in the hands of thousands of potential referring agents who represent willing and able domestic and foreign buyers. All listings will be displayed in multiple languages on this platform.

Selecting brokerage firms to list properties based on their company’s global network of agents is another B2B strategy. Choosing different companies will maximize the potential for cooperation and synergy between companies that could result in greater sales volume for each company.

As a condition of listing properties, one should require that the brokerage firms invite their entire roster of international agents to attend webinars about the procedure for, and commission benefits of, selling luxury fractionals. The webinars will be promoted to all agents in each marketplace. The events will be recorded so that those who were unable to attend can be contacted again with a link to the recorded events. Listing agents can also use the webinars as a marketing tool to reach out to agents within their own firms. Further, the recorded webinar can be permanently featured on a number of luxury and fractional websites.

Web 2.0 Marketing Strategies.
Dozens of Web 2.0 marketing strategies executed simultaneously can compound the effectiveness of traditional local marketing by brokers, and the B2C and B2B strategies. Web 2.0 strategies include: Article distribution, optimized web PR, blogs, social networks, search engine optimization, and measurable Pay-Per-Click ad campaigns and web banner advertising.

Public Relations/Strategic Branding Alliances.
Public relations is an especially significant part of a luxury fractional marketing program given the national, and international, focus on fractional real estate ownership. Public relations initiatives can have three major elements. The first is to capitalize on the performance of luxury fractionals in the current market by showing how the particular project can take advantage of that performance. The second is a professionally planned “launch” reaching out nationally, internationally, and locally in appropriate venues via the web, print coverage, and local events on properties, inviting local brokers and opinion makers to attend.

The third is strategic alliances with synergistic luxury businesses, cultural institutions, and fine educational establishments. There are a number of luxury and fractional networking organizations that regularly meet with presentations of state-of-the-art marketing and sales methodology. Participating in these organizations can not only keep one abreast of effective techniques, but provide a platform for strategic branding alliances with luxury brands in various categories that can add to project credibility.

International Marketing
The interest abroad in fractional projects has grown exponentially in recent years, especially in Europe. There are a plethora of experienced foreign marketers with networks throughout the European continent and the Middle East. Affiliating with one of these networks can enhance marketing and sales success.

Local Broker Programs
While this Paper emphasizes utilization of the Web, one is well advised also to effectively utilize the local brokerage communities.

In addition to the dedicated brokers for one’s project, one should also institute programs to directly involve the entire local brokerage community such as:
• Focus group programs for top performing brokers
• Training sessions
• Periodic newsletters to the local broker community
• Invitation only open houses held on one’s property catering to selected area brokers and their clientele

Some Marketing and Sales Strategies
A digital format should be utilized for most marketing materials. Printed materials are expensive, bulky and difficult to adjust to the evolving needs of sales and marketing. Initial costs for digital are an investment that can be utilized in Webbased initiatives, print material and media publications, and over the course of the offering, can be adapted to the ongoing market input.

It is a proven fact that the average prospect requires three exposures to any given marketing directive to get their attention. With digital, one can create numerous ways to reach out to prospective purchasers in a costeffective manner, shorten response turnaround time, and create market updates such as digital client testimonials, portfolio updates, well known spokespeople, and additional lifestyle amenities. Print can be
utilized in small discretionary pieces for on site sales handouts, mailings to selected prospective purchasers, and transmissions to magazines, newspapers, and other media.

A sophisticated strategy in the nature of an “invitation” and not a sales pitch should be utilized. “Selling” will not occur in the traditional sense but will be a subtle, deliberate hierarchy of information to be implemented through carefullyplanned contact points.

Every aspect of contact points should form an integrated whole reflecting the quality of one’s properties. From the tone of answering phones, to website experience and reservation structure, the style of all materials and demeanor of all representatives all build a holistic message. Each contact point should be meticulously tooled to avoid the sense of “selling” and boilerplate marketing which treat consumers interchangeably.

One can plan tailor made presentations to specific lifestyle profiles. All affluent prospects don’t react in the same way. For example, the presentation to a conservative private banker advising wealth clientele would be different than a presentation to an aggressive hedge fund manager.

Readers who wish to learn more may contact the author at +1 4356599738 or ddisick@msn.com. Mr. Disick is among the pioneers of the fractional vacation home industry with his development of Franz Klammer Lodge in Telluride, Colorado in 1994. He is President of David M. Disick & Associates.

From Midtown To Downtown – Wyndham Vacation Ownership Leading The Way In Urban Resort Development

What comes to mind when you think of a vacation? Heading to the beach for some sand and sun? Or perhaps driving into the mountains in search of hidden hiking trails? While the cornerstones of the classic vacation are still alive and well, a new vacation trend has begun to emerge in recent years. And it’s headed in a new direction – towards the bright lights and bustling activity of major metropolises.

In early July, Wyndham Vacation Ownership (WVO) celebrated the newest addition to the company’s expansive urban resort portfolio with the grand opening of Wyndham Canterbury at San Francisco. Boasting more than 20 resort properties in 14 popular urban vacation destinations, WVO offers owners unparalleled access to some of the most highly sought after metropolitan areas in the United States, Canada and Australia.

“We’ve always prided ourselves on offering our owners a wide variety of vacation options, and we continue to capitalize on new vacation trends in an effort to bring even more to the table,” said Franz Hanning, president and chief executive officer, Wyndham Vacation Ownership. “This commitment to our owners has not only made us the world’s largest vacation ownership business, but it has also positioned us as a leading developer of urban vacation ownership resorts.”

During a recent WVO owner survey, nine of the top 25 destinations owners indicated that they would like
to visit in the future were urban locations, including Las Vegas, New York City, Boston, Honolulu, San
Francisco, DC, San Antonio and Seattle.*

Whether the destination is The Alamo, the bright lights of Las Vegas, or the Sydney Opera House, Wyndham
Vacation Ownership’s urban resort portfolio, which spans across its three brands Wyndham Vacation Resorts, WorldMark by Wyndham and Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific, brims with opportunities
to enjoy the sights and sounds of bustling cities.

Urban Vacations – A Choice of Two
As part of its urban resort portfolio, Wyndham Vacation Ownership offers two types of urban vacation experiences. The first style of urban resort features an array of traditional resort amenities including ample parking, swimming pools as well as full kitchens in the units. The second option offers resorts situated on the doorstep of downtown and feature space-saving amenities such as kitchenettes, intimate seating and lounge areas as well as limited amenities. Both types of urban properties provide owners with convenient access to the exciting shopping, dining and entertainment located in or near the epicenters of major metropolitan destinations.

“Having a highly established and diverse selection of urban resorts provides our owners with more options when choosing to travel to a metropolitan city,” said Gary Byrd, executive vice president and chief customer officer, Wyndham Vacation Ownership. “Whether our owners are looking for an urban resort with traditional amenities or a more intimate property truly in the heart of it all, they enjoy a choice.”

WVO urban resort properties include:

Wyndham Vacation Resorts
Wyndham Skyline Tower – Atlantic City, N.J.
Wyndham at Waikiki Beach WalkTM – Honolulu, Hawaii
Wyndham Grand Desert – Las Vegas, Nev.
Wyndham Nashville – Nashville, Tenn.
Wyndham Avenue Plaza – New Orleans, La.
Wyndham La Belle Maison – New Orleans, La.
Wyndham La Cascada – San Antonio, Texas
Wyndham Riverside Suites – San Antonio, Texas
Wyndham Harbour Lights – San Diego, Calif.
Wyndham Canterbury at San Francisco – San Francisco, Calif.

WorldMark by Wyndham
WorldMark Dolphin’s Cove – Anaheim, Calif.
WorldMark Anaheim – Anaheim, Calif.
WorldMark San Diego – San Diego, Calif.
WorldMark San Diego Mission Valley – San Diego, Calif.
WorldMark San Francisco – San Francisco, Calif.
WorldMark Las Vegas – Las Vegas, Nev.
WorldMark Las Vegas Spencer Street – Las Vegas, Nev.
WorldMark Las Vegas Tropicana – Las Vegas, Nev.
WorldMark Seattle at The Camlin – Seattle, Wash.
WorldMark The Canadian – Vancouver, BC

Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific
Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific Sydney – Sydney, New South Wales
Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific Perth – Perth, Western Australia

From the famous River Walk to the infamous Bourbon Street, WVO offers a selection of urban resorts that feature a varied and rich history. In fact, when WVO began an extensive, three-year renovation to transform the 100-year-old Franklin Press Building in the famous Warehouse District in New Orleans, La., into Wyndham La Belle Maison, they had no idea that their efforts would be abruptly interrupted by Hurricane Katrina, which devastated much of the Gulf Coast region in 2005. Not to be deterred, the renovations resumed soon thereafter and the property welcomed its first CLUB WYNDHAM Plus owners in late
2008. And in April 2009, WVO accepted the esteemed ARDY (American Resort Development Association) Award for Best Resort Design – Conversion during the 2009 ARDA Convention.

During the project, the team partnered with the Historic District Landmark Commission to preserve the
façade of the original structure and to maintain this important cornerstone of New Orleans’ history.

Its convenient location makes it a perfect home base for experiencing the unique sights of the Big Easy,
including Bourbon Street, the Shoppes at Canal Place and Riverwalk Marketplace.

From the Big Easy to the West Coast, the company’s resort conversion expertise truly spans the country.

Let’s Take a Streetcar
When WVO unveiled its newest urban resort in the heart of one of the most colorful and dynamic cities on the West Coast, the resort was an instant success, boasting full occupancy on opening weekend. The property, which blends a storied past with an updated, stylish present, has actually been a famed fixture in San Francisco for more than 70 years as the Canterbury Hotel and Whitehall Inn. The company transformed the historic property to offer owners and guests all of the modern comforts while preserving the classic elegance reminiscent of the 1920’s.

The original design of the property was subtly themed around The Canterbury Tales, a famous collection of short stories authored by Geoffrey Chaucer. While the property has undergone a comprehensive renovation, it still features the original 18 ft. wall mural depicting the story’s famous characters as well as a “Canterbury Knight” statue. The original, newly restored crystal chandelier still hangs in the lobby, which also displays an antique mailbox and authentic building nameplates for both the Canterbury Hotel and the Whitehall Inn. Owners may also ride on the original elevators in the Whitehall Inn, which have been updated and modernized, but still feature classic cast iron appointments.

Wyndham Canterbury at San Francisco is located within walking distance of the delightful shops and
restaurants of Union Square, and just two blocks from the city’s world-famous cable car system. Other great
city sites not far from the resort include the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf, Alcatraz, Chinatown and
the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Owners and guests may even take in a professional sports game.
For those who can’t get enough of the outdoors will want to check out the hiking and biking trails on Angel
Island. And for those serious night owls, San Francisco has a multitude of nightlife and entertainment options.

“In 2004, we began offering the Bay Area as a vacation option to our owners through our WorldMark San
Francisco property. Their response to this amazing city and its impressive vacation offerings has led us to
more than double our San Francisco inventory with the addition of this second Wyndham Vacation Ownership property,” said Hanning.

Around the Next Corner
Located just minutes from Washington, D.C., along the banks of the Potomac River, Wyndham Vacation Resorts at National Harbor will offer yet another urban vacation experience when it begins welcoming guests in 2010.

This luxurious vacation ownership resort will expand the company’s presence in the Washington D.C. market
complementing its existing resort in Alexandria, Va. Wyndham Vacation Resorts at National Harbor will
feature street-level retail and 250 condominium-style, fully furnished suites including 42 opulent, two-, three-, and four-bedroom Presidential suites and offer multiple amenities for owners and their guests including indoor and outdoor heated swimming pools; an outdoor terrace; and a health and fitness club.

Located in the heart of National Harbor, owners and guests to the resort will be able to enjoy the many
retail, dining and entertainment attractions in the area including South Moon Under, Jos. A. Bank, Swarovski, McCormick & Schmick’s, Ketchup and Rosa Mexicano, along with more than a mile of walking paths and waterfront activities.

“National Harbor is certain to become the premier entertainment destination in the region with unmatched
amenities and leisure activities,” said Hanning. “As the preeminent developer of urban timeshare, we are
committed to expanding our presence in metropolitan markets, and Wyndham Vacation Resorts at National
Harbor is destined to become a showcase location within our urban portfolio.”

Wyndham Vacation Ownership, a member of Wyndham Worldwide’s (NYSE: WYN) family of companies, is the world’s largest vacation ownership business, as measured by the number of vacation ownership resorts, individual vacation ownership units and owners of vacation ownership interests. Wyndham Vacation Ownership develops, markets and sells vacation ownership interests and provides consumer financing to owners through its three primary consumer brands, Wyndham Vacation Resorts, WorldMark by Wyndham, and Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific. As of January 1, 2009, Wyndham Vacation Ownership had developed or acquired approximately 150 vacation ownership resorts throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and the South Pacific that represent approximately 20,000 individual vacation ownership units and more than 830,000 owners of vacation ownership interests. Wyndham Vacation Ownership is headquartered in Orlando, Fla., and is supported by approximately 13,800 employees globally.

*Source: Based on a 2007 survey of 8,726 WVO owners that included 220 locations, primarily in North America.

Fractional Finance Finders

The March Group of Wells Fargo Advisors Aids Developers by Helping Prospective Owners Locate Purchasing Power Within Their Existing Assets

By Matt McDaniel

Nico March likes to use a medical analogy to explain a new service he offers for prospective fractional interest purchasers: “You’d never go in for surgery without first seeking a second opinion, right?,” he asks. “Basically, what our group does for developers – like St. Regis, Ritz-Carlton, and others – is say, look, most of your potential buyers probably have stock brokers or financial advisors already, and in today’s volatile marketplace, a second opinion on their overall financial wherewithal – that is, a complete review of their assets, liabilities and tolerance for risk – might not be such a bad idea.”

San Diego, California-based March has more than 30 years in the industry and is senior vice president of investments for The March Group of Wells Fargo Advisors.  So he know what he’s talking about when he notes that reports of the death of the fractional market are greatly exaggerated. “First and foremost, people are still buying fractionals – the high-net worth, überwealthy, or however you want to define the prospective purchasers…they’re still buying,” he says.

March notes that while most of these people with an ultra-high-net-worth may already have a team of financial advisors, his group ultimately serves the fractional developer. “This is something we designed for developers to let them know that if somebody is not able to carry the paper when conventional financing has basically dried up and gone away, what we have built is another way to provide a prospective buyer with some financing. A lot of people have portfolios that they shouldn’t liquidate, especially today, to purchase these properties; however, there is usually a way to provide these people with cash, helping them uncover alternative sources of financing so they can purchase a fractional.”

How It Works
For obvious reasons, the exact, step-by-step process that his team uses is confidential. Much of what the March Group offers is based on their years of experience, unique tools and techniques, and some proprietary software such as their exclusive “Needs-Based Analysis” and Structured Asset Management Systems. But, going back to the medical analogy, March and his team are sought-after specialists – it’s the expertise they offer that makes the most difference.

“The value-added piece we’ve put together for prospective fractional owners is a highly focused wealth-management team that can sit down with a high-net-worth individual, family or trust and look at their overall financial picture. We can then help determine where and how they could extract money to purchase a fractional piece,” explains March. He says typical purchases may run anywhere from “the lowend fractional of less than $100,000 all the way up to a Ritz-Carlton-type property of $3 million to $5 million – or more.” Regardless of the price range of the prospective purchase, March says his team’s task is “determining for them where they have financial room to move, safely.”

Suffice it to say that the markets, financing and the global economy have become more complicated in recent months. “In markets like we see today, volatility is tumultuous to say the least – some of these gyrations can affect valuations of even a professionally managed portfolio by hundreds of thousands of dollars daily,” March says.  “So in a situation like that, we take into consideration what their options may be
and determine if a portfolio should be reallocated, hedged or rebalanced. We can also look at various models to see if we can safely extract cash to allow the purchase of that fractional.”

March says it is “a very complex situation with most investors, because when you examine many of these portfolios today, most individuals probably shouldn’t be selling because of extremely low valuations or unrealized losses; however, depending on the particulars, we may be able to loan them money against their overall assets and other holdings. You also want to be conservative, because if the markets decline, the rules of the regulatory agencies require they either come up with cash or potentially liquidate holdings,” he says. “That doesn’t make any sense either, so that is where the art of structuring a portfolio and/or the potential credit facilities we can arrange against other assets comes into play.”

But why would a developer want to involve another party in the sales process? Perhaps the greatest incentive for the fractional developer to work with March and his team is that he is already part of the fractional industry – and has been for years, even as an American Resort Development Association trustee and committee member. Rather than a financial advisor who steers his or her clients away from shared
ownership, March is intent on making purchases possible for qualified buyers.

“The key point here is that while the markets have basically dried up in the conventional sense of the financing world, we’re providing an additional arrow in the developer’s quiver that they can utilize at the sales table or during the sales cycle that is a bit unconventional, sort of like the fractional ownership process” he says. “If the prospective buyer has not thought about all of their financing options, then this
a way that a developer can at least present one other alternative to help close the sale.”

Perhaps, then, a consultation with The March Group is a developer’s best prescription.

Your Very Own Piece Of Provence

There are about 750,000 British and Irish people owning properties in France and the average time they use those properties is just 2 ½ weeks. Having bought their dream property, many hardly ever use it, yet spend an awful amount of time furnishing and maintaining it, then trying to rent it to recover some of the costs. So the reality behind the romance of Provence for many British and Irish can become quite an expensive experience.

Recently Owners Perspective Magazine was invited to the region to view a development where an alternative option is now available for those who have dreamt of having a second home in Provence in the form of a luxury boutique resort situated just 4km from the historic town of Avignon and featuring a L’Occitane spa and Michelin star restaurant. The invitation came from luxury hotel brand Les Maisons de Baumanière and Avenio Prieuré who have just launched Le Prieuré – the first of three fractional ownership developments at properties in the region with two further properties planned in nearby Gordes and Aix-en-Provence.

Fractional ownership is one of several real estate products that you can buy around the world, and offers an alternative to outright ownership of a property. The buyer instead owns part, “a fraction” of the asset equal to the proportion of time they expect to be able to use the property. By not owning the whole property, buyers avoid the total cost and time involved in looking after a full ownership second home, yet still receive
all the same benefits of ownership as if they did.

You can buy a fraction from 1/12 of an apartment or a condominium up to a 1/2 and the typical price across Europe can be anything from €99,000 to €350,000. The average size of your property is usually quite generous with around 1600 to 2500 square feet of living space and the most popular purchase size includes two bedrooms, used for family vacations. The most successful properties so far are mostly in affluent areas in or near beaches, historic regions or locations that have strong cultural influences.

So why would someone choose to buy fractional ownership in Provence? We were told that people will buy in Provence because they specifically want to own a piece of Provence. They want to be able to say “this is mine, I own here”.

Historically when people bought in Provence, they would spend from approx €700,000 to €1million buying a property or piece of land maybe for a renovation and the primary reason was to use it as a holiday home. Not a modest purchase for an average of just 2-3 weeks use per year, yet the thrill and status has kept the buyers coming to the region.

During our introduction to Le Prieuré and before we had a look around the property we heard from Nick Turner, VP and head of new business development for The Registry Collection; a luxury exchange service for fractional owners. Nick said, “People are buying fractions because they like facilities. These people would like a second home but they like the security, comfort and reassurance that when they arrive after a long flight from New York or London they don’t have to go out to the supermarket that evening, they know that they have every facility on site, the most popular at the moment being the spa. Owning a fractional property is all about luxury – it’s that feeling of exclusivity and being part of a private club.”

We heard that buying fractional ownership is making a lot more sense for many people now, since the recent downturn in property and as a result, despite these difficult economic times this market is growing. There were just 40 fractional projects in Europe in 2008, but today there are now 91, showing tremendous growth and a move by consumers towards sharing luxury assets rather than having to do without them.

The question has been raised, and the answer provided – why spend €1 million in this market when you can spend €170,000 and have the same or a better experience?

With fractional ownership, there comes added advantages above and beyond the cost saving too. Unlike traditional property ownership, you can benefit from management of your property, an array of luxurious amenities, concierge services and exchange opportunities allowing you access to other fractional real estate developments around the world.

In the case of the Provence Vacation Club that we were viewing, members have access to the diverse portfolio of 160 luxury properties and resorts within the Registry Collection, so if you do not wish to spend your 6 weeks in Provence one year, you could exchange some of your time for a property in Dubai for a shopping spree like no other, take in a show in Manhattan, soak up the sun in Portugal or go skiing
in Aspen. But most importantly, whilst you are enjoying the lifestyle that comes with ownership in Provence, your asset is being managed by quality operators like Les Maisons de Baumanière.

“The world of luxury property is at your fingertips. To summarise the fractional concept – it’s about high value, low cost and exceptional choice.” Concluded Mr. Turner.

The Provence Vacation Club
Avenio Prieuré, a luxury resort development company has joined with the Les Maisons de Baumanière hotel portfolio in France to develop three fractional properties in Provence; Residence Le Prieuré, Villeneuve- Les Avignon, Domaine de l’Enclos, Gordes and Le Tholonet, Aix-en-Provence.

Le Prieuré is the first of the properties to be developed in conjunction with Les Maisons de Baumanière hotel portfolio, which holds the French equivalent of a five-star rating and is managed by one of France’s leading chefs, Jean-Andre Charial, known for his world famous restaurant, Oustau de Baumanière, located in Baux de Provence.

The property combines the peace and tranquillity of its 13th century surroundings with a contemporary interior design to create a truly unique property. Le Prieuré will be the first five-star category fractional property development in France and driven by Mr Charial’s vision and passion, will be exquisite and offer
extraordinary experiences.

Set to be completed in 2010, the new fractional apartments will be built on exceptionally spacious sites with superb views of either the Luberon Valley or one of the many surrounding historic villages. Located less than 4 km from the sophisticated and historic walled-town of Avignon, Le Prieuré offers a true year-round
destination renowned for its theatre, arts and excellent choices of culinary experiences – all just two and a half hours from Paris by train.



A Piece Of History With A Modern Twist
In 1933 cardinal Arnaud de Via, the nephew of Pope Jean XXII, had a palatial residence built in Villeneuve-les-Avignon. Shortly before his death, he bequeathed the residence to the Chanoine monks, for the creation of a priory. A cloister was added and the chapel expanded into a collegiate church. After the French revolution, the priory was sold and part of it became a family residence for painters. In 1943, Roger Mille and his wife bought Le Prieuré and transformed it into a hotel. Three successive generations of the Mille family dedicated themselves to making it known far and wide.

In late 2006, this Relais & Châteaux hotel / restaurant was sold and Jean-Andre Charial acquired the business. After months of intensive renovations directed by Genevieve Charial, Le Prieuré opened its doors again in April 2007.

A new lounge bar was created in the garden of Le Prieuré in June 2008. Hidden from view, with a peaceful, relaxing atmosphere, Les Piliers is ideal for sipping a glass of wine and sampling a menu of light dishes in those moments when you feel like having a little something. Bruno and his team welcome you in a relaxed atmosphere every day from 10am to midnight. Enjoy jazz, sushi or DJ evenings as well as many other
surprise themes that you can discover.

The Chanoine monks first created the garden of Le Prieuré in the 14th century. They exude a cool freshness and a lovely simplicity, over which wafts the delicious perfume of wisteria that drapes itself along the length of the trellises. Weather permitting breakfast, lunch and dinner can be served on the terrace beside
the gardens.

Right next to the garden walkways, the pool of Le Prieuré awaits the enjoyment of relaxation and tranquillity after strolling the ramparts of Avignon or wandering through the cobblestone streets of Villeneuve. In the summer, at lunchtime, you can be served a light meal poolside as you unwind.

The Boutique of Le Prieuré offers a large selection of decorative objects, household linens, wines, gourmet fare and other treasures for the pleasure of giving someone, or treating yourself to a gift while staying at the hotel.

Fabien Fage wanted his menu to not just reflect the Mediterranean but also to evoke the Gard department, where Le Prieuré stands. Villeneuve-les-Avignon, although only 4km from Avignon, is already a trip into another region of France. The Le Prieuré chef renews his menu four times a week, filling his shopping basket with fresh produce from Gariguette strawberries from Beaucaire to pigeons from Nimes.

Le Prieuré currently has 3 suites and 8 junior suites each equipped with flat screen TV, Wi-Fi internet, air conditioning, a mini bar and a personal safe. All suites include a separate sitting room and private terrace. Each of the 26 rooms at Le Prieuré are a tasteful blend of antique and contemporary styles with comfort in mind.

Les Maisons de Baumanière & L’Occitane
Within each resort will be a L’Occitane spa and during our tour of Le Prieuré we were shown that the area where the tennis courts currently stand has been designated as the location for the new spa and were told that it will be a full spa, not just one or two rooms, there will be wet rooms, dry rooms, a swimming pool, treatment rooms and many areas for relaxation.

The collaboration was an obvious choice really, as L’Occitane is a French company from Provence and fitted the luxury brand of Les Maisons de Baumanière. Just like L’Occitane, Les Maisons de Baumanière share the same values and have a very strong concept and true story behind them. Recently L’Occitane was listed and
elected by Conde Nast Traveller as one of the top hotels and spas in the world.

L’Occitane is about stories, so each new spa designed around a story that is present throughout its theme – a journey in Camargue. Camargue is in Provence in an area where you have lots of water. When you think about spas you think about water treatments, saunas, swimming pools so they decided to base all the architecture of the spa on the colours of Camargue which are very relaxing, very zen. Camargue is unspoilt, relaxing and all about nature, it’s a perfect fit for a L’Occitane spa.

The spa will have an outdoors feel with garden furniture and real feel of being in Provence, even the uniforms worn by the staff are reminiscent of the cowboys of Camargue. There will be a complete treatment menu including facials, massages and body treatments. Within the spa there will be a team of experts from all around the world experienced in many techniques including shiatsu from Asia and Swedish massage. All of the products within the spa as well as in the rooms and apartments are also from the L’Occitane range.

The show apartments are currently scheduled to open in July 09 and in the mean time potential purchasers can sample the Baumanière luxury experience in the on-site hotel.

We also had an opportunity to visit the second property which is nestled on the hillside area of Gordes, noted for its exceptional charm and architecture and is said to be one of the most beautiful villages in France, as well as home to many artists and film stars. A walk out to the village and bustling marketplace
gave us another contrasting taste of Provence life and how Provence Vacation Club could deliver many flavours to its members both in and outside of Jean-Andre Charial’s Michelin-star restaurants that would keep them coming back for more.

The fractional properties each have 24 residential two and three bedroom apartments where owners will have access to hotel facilities, spas and restaurants. At these first two properties the fractional product will be based on eight owners per apartment, owning periods of 6 weeks each. The average cost of a six week use period in a two bedroom apartment is 180,000 Euros.

For more information contact prestim@club-internet.fr or visit www.maisonsdebaumaniere.com/index.php?id=leprieure

Karma Announce New Private Villa Ownership In Bali

Karma Kandara is the latest addition to the family of Karma Resorts and is a place where you can holiday in unashamed luxury. Set to become one of Asia’s iconic destinations, Karma Kandara reflects a sense of back to nature spiritualism combined with cutting edge architecture and facilities. Such is its magnetic appeal that no visitor arrives without a gasping appreciation of the stunning scenery and laid-back ambience, nor leaves without an overpowering desire to return.

Personal holiday experiences are the keystone of Karma Resorts’ philosophy who embrace all bespoke lifestyle options to satisfy every requirement you could think of. Each Karma villa is designed to the highest international standards with state of the art fittings and furnishings that provide unrivalled comfort, elegance and privacy.

Karma Kandara is situated on the island of Bali which has an area of 5,632 square kilometres and measures 90 kilometres from north to south and 140 kilometres from East to West. One of the 18,000 islands that is Indonesia, Bali is graced with a cultural beauty that is both magical and mythical. With volcanic lakes, spectacular rice terraces, tropical beaches and ancient temples it is also a scenic and stunning cultural hub. This is highly evident to all visitors to the island that view many of the traditional dances and elaborate religious festivals. With warm welcoming smiles and gracious hearts the Balinese people are a large part of what makes the island of Bali so captivating.

Temperatures in Bali range between 20 to 33 degrees Celsius (68 to 93 degrees Fahrenheit) year-round. December to March is known as the wet season with high humidity, however, days on the coast are usually sunny with only night-time showers. June to September the humidity is low and rain is seldom experienced on the coastal areas. Bali is a melting pot of culture, beauty and excitement, which combines to create one of the worlds’ greatest holiday destinations.

Karma Kandara offers a rich mosaic of tailored guest experiences and activities that encompass culture, tastes, sights, sounds, romance, sports, adventure and family enjoyment.

Here, guests can discover the magic of unspoiled beaches by private speedboat and relish a picnic lunch. They can see Bali from the air in a thrilling helicopter ride, or sail by catamaran to nearby islands, relax on deck or snorkel among psychedelic fish in the coral gardens of an underwater paradise.

Others may wish to experience deep sea fishing, practice yoga on the clifftop, play a leisurely round of golf, or explore the culinary secrets, flavours, traditions and rituals of the local cuisine by participating in a Balinese cooking class. Karma Kandara will pamper guests with cocktails and canapés served at sunset on the cliffs of Uluwatu, which is also the setting of fabulous cultural performances of Hindu dance epics.

The Belvedere
HEAVEN FOR LESS
Starting at just US$197,000!
Own a private villa in the most privileged and spectacular location that Bali has to offer. The Belvedere is a collection of one, two & three bedroom villas that cascade down a steep hillside, just metres from the rearing limestone cliffs at the island’s southernmost reaches. The latest addition to award-winning boutique cliff-top resort Karma Kandara, The Belvedere offers a self-contained lifestyle in microcosm, complete
with its own destination restaurant, pool deck and landscaping designed to evoke not only the vivid lushness of the tropics, but also a hint of the Mediterranean.

Each villa adheres to the same exacting standards of build quality, interior design and amenities that have placed Karma in the vanguard of 21st century luxury boutique resort development. Interiors present a contemporary feel with comfortable low-profile couches and custom fittings mixed with artworks and
traditional elements from around the Indonesian archipelago. Bedrooms feature king and queen size beds made up with luxuriant bedding, kitchens are equipped with high calibre European appliances and the latest LCD TV, DVD and surround sound audio is to be found in the living area. Broadband WiFi Internet is
available throughout.

Signature Belvedere restaurant Mastiha is all about favorite indulgences, rare gourmet delights and elaborations on regional classics. Fine wines and classic cocktails, cold cuts and cheeses, sensual sea food creations…to be enjoyed at the laid back bistro, in your villa or prepared as an epicurean picnic. A pool deck with day beds and bar provides an intimate setting in which to enjoy pre-lunch aperitifs, late afternoon
cocktails – or simply to soak up the sun.

From its lofty setting, The Belvedere gazes out over the Karma Kandara site, which unfolds like a contemporary take on a Greek village – multiple levels dissected by meandering paths strewn with flora. Just a short walk or buggy ride away is di Mare restaurant and the rooftop Temple Bar. Poised at the edge of an 85m craggy incline, di Mare’s dramatic location is matched by its architectural audacity – a white elliptical curve framing the blue on blue vista.
Executive chef Raymond Saja’s seafood inspired menu takes diners around the Mediterranean with forays into the Pacific Rim. With its giant lanterns, Shisha pipes and Mid-East inspired tapas menu, Temple Bar is like a celestial palace out of the Thousand & One Nights.

Accessed via a cliff inclinator, Nammos Beach Club’s eco-friendly bamboo pavilion and whimsical thematic evocation of the Aegean – ivory sands, translucent waters and a Mediterranean inspired menu – have made it one of the most talked about venues in Bali, whether for parties featuring international DJs, kayaking and snorkelling activities, or endless Sunday afternoons accompanied by wood fired pizzas, freshly shucked oysters, cocktails and icy cold beers.

Karma Spa is centred on a trio of luxury spa shacks suspended at the edge of a vertiginous cliff, 100 meters above the Indian Ocean. A glass walled infrared sauna is the perfect detoxifier, especially when followed by a soak in the cliff hanging Himalayan salt bath. Every Karma Spa body worker is a certified Reiki practitioner, exhaustively instructed in a range of massage techniques, while visiting masters offer treatments and practices from Hatha yoga to hot stone therapy.

Now, you can become a part of the privileged Karma community for less than US$200,000.  What’s more, Karma Group guarantees returns for three years, whilst offering excellent prospects for capital gain. Financing is also available. With the banking world in flux, The Belvedere provides a proven investment opportunity and an unparalleled lifestyle at one of the world’s most exclusive boutique destinations.

The Belvedere at Karma Kandara – heaven… but with guaranteed returns.

For more information on Karma Kandara and The Belvedere visit www.karmakandara.com or call +62 361 848 2200.

In Thailand, discretely tucked into the hillside above a sheltered white-sand cove is Karma Samui, a five-tiered luxury resort with a village atmosphere set amidst the natural beauty of the forest with fantastic ocean views.

In Bali, located on a gentle hillside at the southern end of Jimbaran Bay, Karma Jimbaran’s traditional Balinese-inspired luxury villas bring the Bali experience right to your door to create a true sense of place, in harmony with its natural surroundings.

Further upcoming Karma Resorts are in planning to cover a wide spectrum of the world’s best holiday destinations including Western Australia’s Margaret River wine growing region, Karma Agung in east Bali, Goa and Kerala in India, Fiji, Dubai, Mykonos, Palawan in the Phillipines, Langkawi in Malaysia and Lombok in Indonesia.