Timeshare Condos

Zoning laws that limit the length of stay or the size of a hotel unit are creating problems for developers of condo-hotels and fractionals in parts of the Florida Panhandle

Pensacola Beach Developers hope to replace a Clarion hotel*, damaged by Hurricane Ivan, with a new 216-suite fractional resort. Each unit in the resort property would be sold to eight owners, who would individually pay to use it six weeks per year. When the owners were not using it, the suite would be available for rent to short-stay guests as a hotel room.

According to Joe Endry, owner of JME Realty, as quoted in a Pensacola News Journal article of April 12, 2007, each of the fractional or hotel units would average 1,250 square feet in size and would rent for $275 to $300 per night. By comparison, a traditional hotel room is between 300 and 450 square feet in size and generally rents for $150 per night (or less) in that particular geographic location.

The crux of the problem is that some officials say visitors who stay longer and have the use of a kitchen and dining area will utilize these in-suite amenities and thereby dine out fewer times than short-stay guests who do not have access to kitchens and eating areas. The critics say that a fractional or condo-hotel component added to a project essentially turns the property into an apartment unit, rather than a hotel, creating a difference that would be felt sharply by local restaurants.

As legislators, including the Santa Rosa Island Authority and Escambia County commissioners, attempt to sort through the distinctions that define one type of property as a hotel, another as a timeshare, a third as a fractional, and still another as a condo-hotel, they are considering hiring a hotel consultant to assist them.

One thing is certain, as resorts more frequently become multi-use properties, this issue will have to be ironed out in board rooms and meeting halls across the country.

* Note to readers: While the Pensacola News Journal identifies the site in question as being that of the hurricane-damaged Clarion hotel, other sources have said that it is the site of an old Best Western motel or and old Holiday Inn.

Elysian Development Group is acquiring the luxury Hotel Jerome in Aspen, Colorado.

David Pisor, the CEO of Elysian Development Group is acquiring Aspen’s Hotel Jerome. Pisor currently owns and runs the Elysian Chicago hotel, which has 51 private residences as well as 181 guest rooms. The Elysian’s private residences reportedly sell for between $480,000 and $640,000.

While it has yet to be announced whether the Hotel Jerome will convert to a condo-hotel property, fractional, or timeshare resort, many anticipate such a move, based on Pisor’s business history. The Aspen Times (March 29, 2007) even referred to the Hotel’s new owner (meaning Pisor) as a “Chicago timeshare specialist”.

Timeshares have also been a touchy subject with some of the residents and council members of Aspen, which explains why the future of the Hotel Jerome remains, at this point, a little uncertain.

Nevertheless, there are other fabulous fractionals, timeshare resorts, and timeshare rentals in and around Aspen, Colorado, that are perfect for your ski vacation or just enjoying the great outdoors.

The award-winning, historic Hotel Jerome was built in 1889 and most recently owned by the Gaylord family who also owns Nashville’s Opryland Hotel, as well as the newspaper, The Daily Oklahoman.

If you are a true-blue fan of college basketball, isn’t it madness that you don’t use your timeshare to put you courtside for the action?

It’s NCAA hoops time, and again this year, the nail biting excitement of college basketball teams in competition for the title of national champs, will cause millions—that’s right—millions of us to be parked in front of our televisions.

Each year, some fans cheer for schools with storied basketball traditions, like Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, or North Carolina. Other fans watch with the hope that this year a Wichita State, George Mason, or Valparaiso will write a Cinderella story. They call it March Madness for a reason and true fans know that when it comes to college basketball, on any given day, any single team can beat any other team and become the winner.

Typically, audiences for the televised coverage of NCAA tournament competition are record breakers for CBS Sports. In 2006, CBS also set, or came very close to setting, (depending on whose statistics you trust) the record for the largest online simultaneous streaming audience, with “March Madness on Demand.”

If you don’t already have tickets for this year’s games beginning March 13, you can plan to be back on the couch again. Even if you have tickets, don’t expect to be able to book a hotel room or make a timeshare deal to see the Final Four in Atlanta, Georgia or even most of the cities hosting the regional rounds.

Accommodations have long been sold out to people who planned to be sitting in the stands, viewing the action first hand, and bought their tickets and reserved their hotel rooms or timeshare condos far in advance. But as all true basketball fans know, “there’s always next year.” So next year, or the year after, why not plan to be at the games in person?

Here’s a partial schedule of future dates and sites. Mark it on your calendar, buy your tickets, and schedule your timeshare condo to put you at the right place at the right time.

Tuesday, March 18, 2008 Dayton Ohio.

Thursday and Saturday, March 20 and 22, 2008 Anaheim, California; Omaha, Nebraska; Washington, D.C.

Friday and Sunday, March 21 and 23, 2008 Birmingham, Alabama; Little Rock, Arkansas; Raleigh, North Carolina; Tampa, Florida

Thursday and Saturday, March 27 and 29, 2008 Charlotte, North Carolina; Phoenix, Arizona

Friday and Sunday, March 28 and 30, 2008 Detroit, Michigan; Houston, Texas

Final Four: April 5 and 7, 2008 San Antonio, Texas

Tuesday, March 17, 2009 Opening round: Dayton, Ohio Thursday and Saturday, March 19 and 21, 2009 Greensboro, North Carolina; Kansas City, Missouri; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Portland, Oregon

Friday and Sunday, March 20 and 22, 2009 Boise, Idaho; Dayton, Ohio; Miami, Florida; Minneapolis, Minnesota

Thursday and Saturday, March 26 and 28, 2009 Boston, Massachusetts; Glendale, Arizona

Friday and Sunday, March 27 and 29, 2009 Indianapolis, Indiana; Memphis, Tennessee

Final Four: Saturday and Monday, April 4 and 6, 2009 Detroit, Michigan

I just found out about a great condotel resource. It’s called http://www.ownahotelroom.org and it’s filled with information about condo hotels, how to buy them, how to find a good one for you, and if you’re so inclined, how to go about developing them (you know, finding a hotel or apartment building at the right price and converting the space into condos which can then be rented like a hotel room when not owner-occupied). Let me know if this information is helpful to you, if you’ve tried a condotel or not, and what you think of them.

Happy Holidays!