Saturday, May 27th
Got back into TripAdvisor.com, a site that gives user ratings for rental properties. So, decided to look up projects I've done or been involved in. Is this a self serving statement, but they all rated either four of five or five of five. Hummm. Well, we knew we wanted quality, and at least through this site it's being deliverd. For the shared ownership projects the reviews are from the sales period, when rentals occurred, or after sales if there is a rental program.
So, Manhattan Club scored big time, as did Northstar Club and Snowmass Club as well as Cristi Club. And, a-way back in 1974 we did Vail run, and lo and behold, 4 of 5 today! That is a suprise.
Our Avenue Plaze in New Orleans a kinda suprise 4 or 5. I thought it would average out at a 3.5 to 4.0. So much for what I know.
Not listed were Brockway Springs, the 1st timeshare in the World that gave a deed, Casa de la Playa in LaJolla, Cliff Club at Snowbird, Schooner Landing in OR, Kingsbury Crossing in NV and the Cottages at National, Pinehurst.
Saturday, May 27, 2006
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Monday, May 22, 2006
It's May 22nd rushing to June and the summer. I've been back from Ragatz for a few days now; time to reflect on the bonanza of deals there. There, and at ULI and those coming to Star via our reputation. This is not the feast or famine of the past. It's the wave that been building for some time.
We are now working with four sets of lawyers on different deals for Robles del Rio, Saguaro, Durando/Kirkwood and Tatanka Spirit. All involve the usual CC&Rs, but more importantly the use plans/reservation plans that really make the project go. From the timeshare days through to PRCs we have always been advocates of the proper use plan.
That does not mean the simple use plan, but the right use plan for the prospective owners at a project.
More on this later.
We are now working with four sets of lawyers on different deals for Robles del Rio, Saguaro, Durando/Kirkwood and Tatanka Spirit. All involve the usual CC&Rs, but more importantly the use plans/reservation plans that really make the project go. From the timeshare days through to PRCs we have always been advocates of the proper use plan.
That does not mean the simple use plan, but the right use plan for the prospective owners at a project.
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Saturday, May 20th, returned from the Fractional Conference in San Diego...last Ragatz/RCI meeting; next year they'll compete against each other. No love lost?
Georgi Bohrod had a great party Thursday night complete with lotsa pals. The quality of deals there was amazing to me. Last year the deals were speculative, no money, no zoning, no permits and in most cases no sense. This week they were ready to go in almost all elements. What a statement for the business!
The Star team saw potential projects from the SoCal coast to the Florida Keys, up to the Hamptons and out to Idaho with a stop at Snowbird, UT. I have an appetite to move forward, but our execution "guys", Chris, Christine and Ron, have the hard slogging to make them work. So, we’ll see which we can do.
. How good to see the lawyers four: Art Spaulding and Scott Turner, Steve Peterson and Roger Burk all in the flesh and not on the phone. As usual wonderful to see Annette Ragatz and Marcia Fabian the dynamic focus group pair. John Sweeney charges on as usual, amazing fellow. Ed, Sr. equally, and the same for Dick Bass squared! Lani from Ritz/Marriott is probably the best presenter and savvy big company exec I know, save for Big Bob of course. Howard N. continues to 'rap' the real stuff for ARDA.
Then, Dick Ragatz his self who has always looked down right ‘power exec’ in his navy blue suit, hosted his biggest clam bake since exception. I’m with him next year; staking out my allegiances.
Most vivid message to me: resident poet Jamie Klein from St Regis, for comparison of a timeshare sale to a fractional sale; the former took 90 minutes and the latter 250,000 minutes! No far off.
Plane ride back to Oakland was the cherry on the top with Rick Hulbert and Len Silverfine…two fine gents.
So, as many speakers used the term ‘from soup to nuts’ I have always thought who wants nuts for desert, so went to Google:
“Meaning: the whole thing from beginning to end
Origin: For centuries, any foods served at the beginning or end of a meal stood for the entire thing: the start and finish and everything in between. This expression was "from eggs to apples" and "from pottage to cheese." In the United States in the middle of the 20th century, the expression developed into "from soup to nuts." At many meals, soup is often the first course and a dessert with nuts is sometimes the last. The expression does not have to refer to only to meals, however. It could be the selection of goods for sale or classes offered.”
Georgi Bohrod had a great party Thursday night complete with lotsa pals. The quality of deals there was amazing to me. Last year the deals were speculative, no money, no zoning, no permits and in most cases no sense. This week they were ready to go in almost all elements. What a statement for the business!
The Star team saw potential projects from the SoCal coast to the Florida Keys, up to the Hamptons and out to Idaho with a stop at Snowbird, UT. I have an appetite to move forward, but our execution "guys", Chris, Christine and Ron, have the hard slogging to make them work. So, we’ll see which we can do.
. How good to see the lawyers four: Art Spaulding and Scott Turner, Steve Peterson and Roger Burk all in the flesh and not on the phone. As usual wonderful to see Annette Ragatz and Marcia Fabian the dynamic focus group pair. John Sweeney charges on as usual, amazing fellow. Ed, Sr. equally, and the same for Dick Bass squared! Lani from Ritz/Marriott is probably the best presenter and savvy big company exec I know, save for Big Bob of course. Howard N. continues to 'rap' the real stuff for ARDA.
Then, Dick Ragatz his self who has always looked down right ‘power exec’ in his navy blue suit, hosted his biggest clam bake since exception. I’m with him next year; staking out my allegiances.
Most vivid message to me: resident poet Jamie Klein from St Regis, for comparison of a timeshare sale to a fractional sale; the former took 90 minutes and the latter 250,000 minutes! No far off.
Plane ride back to Oakland was the cherry on the top with Rick Hulbert and Len Silverfine…two fine gents.
So, as many speakers used the term ‘from soup to nuts’ I have always thought who wants nuts for desert, so went to Google:
“Meaning: the whole thing from beginning to end
Origin: For centuries, any foods served at the beginning or end of a meal stood for the entire thing: the start and finish and everything in between. This expression was "from eggs to apples" and "from pottage to cheese." In the United States in the middle of the 20th century, the expression developed into "from soup to nuts." At many meals, soup is often the first course and a dessert with nuts is sometimes the last. The expression does not have to refer to only to meals, however. It could be the selection of goods for sale or classes offered.”
Monday, May 15, 2006
Life is Berry Berry Good
I've just been a part of the Commencement at my alma mater, the University of Idaho. Lots of changes since graduation in the '60s...naturally. Among the most clearly delineated was the call, by all the spakers in various ways, for community involvement as the cornerstone of our democracy. One speaker quoted lyrics from a song that went something like: "when the music plays you can it it out or you can dance."
Idaho is adding service learning into its curriculum, so students get a taste of the outside world while taking their classes. The "me-too" attitudes that seem so prevalent at times in our society can be revived to a "with you" attitude. The understanding that one gets more than they give is a valuable lesson to learn early on.
ARDA, the trade group for divided interested real estate, took years to get into the outreach business long after many projects had done so themselves. It took Christel DeHaan, after selling RCI to Cendant, to really move ARDA forward into community thinking with her charity, Christel House.
I spent last week at ULI's Spring Council meetings, rubbing shoulders with the "big guys" in our industry.
Urban Land Institute has a long tradition of giving back. Maybe urban developers began out of self-interest, but regardless...the concept is fully imbedded with ULI. Good for them!
I've just been a part of the Commencement at my alma mater, the University of Idaho. Lots of changes since graduation in the '60s...naturally. Among the most clearly delineated was the call, by all the spakers in various ways, for community involvement as the cornerstone of our democracy. One speaker quoted lyrics from a song that went something like: "when the music plays you can it it out or you can dance."
Idaho is adding service learning into its curriculum, so students get a taste of the outside world while taking their classes. The "me-too" attitudes that seem so prevalent at times in our society can be revived to a "with you" attitude. The understanding that one gets more than they give is a valuable lesson to learn early on.
ARDA, the trade group for divided interested real estate, took years to get into the outreach business long after many projects had done so themselves. It took Christel DeHaan, after selling RCI to Cendant, to really move ARDA forward into community thinking with her charity, Christel House.
I spent last week at ULI's Spring Council meetings, rubbing shoulders with the "big guys" in our industry.
Urban Land Institute has a long tradition of giving back. Maybe urban developers began out of self-interest, but regardless...the concept is fully imbedded with ULI. Good for them!
Life is Berry Berry Good: May 2006The Star Resort Group Newsletter will be out shortly, with details about our May 8 move to our new headquarter's location in Old Town,Scottsdale, on Craftsman Court, which we purchased a few months ago. Our other tenant is the Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce. Old Town is in a renaissance with major, mixed-use retail and residential projects going up on all sides.
Life is Berry Berry Good
Lake Havasu, AZ, home of the London Bridge, with its beginning as a land development deal, the first project to have an air force to fly in bueyrs and put them under the ether. Now, 40 years later: lo and behold it's a city of 50,000 and the #1 draw for the muscle boat crowd from Southern California and Arizona. I was there on Saturday May 6th for Star's condo hotel sales event coverting one of the hotel buidlings. With the background of the deep-throated roar of the power boats leaving our marina we sold out the building to our timeshareowners.
The next building will be sold to past guests of the Nautical Inn. Star owns the hotel and timeshare complex, golf coures, food and beverage operations, etc. Naurtical has the prime location on all of Lake Havasu. Our Rich Feldheim, Ron Taskey and Christine Zahedi managed the event along with Vern Porter, who has recently transferred from our Northstar at Tahoe fractional project sold out four years ago.
Lake Havasu, AZ, home of the London Bridge, with its beginning as a land development deal, the first project to have an air force to fly in bueyrs and put them under the ether. Now, 40 years later: lo and behold it's a city of 50,000 and the #1 draw for the muscle boat crowd from Southern California and Arizona. I was there on Saturday May 6th for Star's condo hotel sales event coverting one of the hotel buidlings. With the background of the deep-throated roar of the power boats leaving our marina we sold out the building to our timeshareowners.
The next building will be sold to past guests of the Nautical Inn. Star owns the hotel and timeshare complex, golf coures, food and beverage operations, etc. Naurtical has the prime location on all of Lake Havasu. Our Rich Feldheim, Ron Taskey and Christine Zahedi managed the event along with Vern Porter, who has recently transferred from our Northstar at Tahoe fractional project sold out four years ago.
Saturday, May 06, 2006
Life is Berry Berry Good
Our world is full of concentric circles and that holds true with the fractions business.
The Black Hills of South Dakota..who'da thought that next to Mt. Rushmore, where the buffalo roam, that fractional resort real estate would flourish. We're proving that right now. The folks there say the Black Hills are the highest mountains between the Pyranees (separating Spain and France) and the Rockie. That's a divided interest statement, a marketing statement. Sell the condo once and you say Alps to the Rockies. Divide up the condo (hey, that's a marketing idea!) and you've got fractions.
When I was in Patagonia last January, hiking the Andes, we got an offer to see a proposed fractional project in that general venue. Too far away from the markets, so we did not go and check it out; but it's proof that it is not hard to bump into fractions these days.
Our world is full of concentric circles and that holds true with the fractions business.
The Black Hills of South Dakota..who'da thought that next to Mt. Rushmore, where the buffalo roam, that fractional resort real estate would flourish. We're proving that right now. The folks there say the Black Hills are the highest mountains between the Pyranees (separating Spain and France) and the Rockie. That's a divided interest statement, a marketing statement. Sell the condo once and you say Alps to the Rockies. Divide up the condo (hey, that's a marketing idea!) and you've got fractions.
When I was in Patagonia last January, hiking the Andes, we got an offer to see a proposed fractional project in that general venue. Too far away from the markets, so we did not go and check it out; but it's proof that it is not hard to bump into fractions these days.
Thursday, May 04, 2006
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