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Recent Destination Club News

Desties said:
I wouldn't read too much into the lack of "destination club" usage. It was a short segment, and I'm sure Capes would have gotten to it, in time.
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http://www.fraxfinder.com/archives/...s-and-philip-mekelburg-of-equity-estates.html

It’s important, especially in this day and age, to know first what Equity Estates is NOT,” says Adam Capes, co-founder and President of Equity Estates. “It is NOT a destination club! Nor is it a REIT – a real estate investment trust. Rather, it is a Luxury Residence Fund."
Click to expand...
 
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Agreed that any publicity is better than no publicity .... BUT ... the takeaway I got from that 90 secs is that EE costs $200K - $600K plus $10K/yr for 15 nights in very nice homes (and something about investment).

I'm not sure that it's productive to try and explain the virtues of a complicated luxury use/investment like this in a sound-byte.
 
agreed.

actual details from article
For accredited investors, the membership interests range from Executive to Elite to Advantage, with an initial investment of $197,500, $375,000, and $545,000, respectively. Executive memberships have average annual dues of $9,250 with a 15-night usage allotment. Elite membership annual dues average $16,500 with a 30-night allotment. Advantage members pay $24,750 in annual dues and can use the properties for up to 45 nights.
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http://destinationclubnews.com/News_Exclusive_Resorts_Adds_New_Properties_In_Steamboat_Springs.php
says for 2010 ER has added 10 vegas, 5 steamboat, 1 tuscon (anguilla is last pending)
 
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pod or not?

http://www.illyusa.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/subcat_machines_machines_espresso-machines
pod $295 > $1975
non pod $380 > $3299

id imagine as DCs grow (or ER now) could get pretty good discounts on bulk buys of these kinds of things

from Q newsletter http://quintess.com/news/q2_2010/1
opening a third villa at La Samanna...expected to be available for Member stays around Thanksgiving of this year and we will follow up again when we are ready to begin the lottery for this popular destination.

We had 34 Quintess Members request dates for the first six TOUR CLUB destinations and all Members were granted their choice of destinations and dates, accounting for 120 nights in total.

Adding new Molton Brown bath products to Club homes and increasing the bottle size to 1.7oz, approximately double what we had previously

[options for each referral >]
- A seven-night complimentary Advance stay in any Quintess or TOUR CLUB residence
- A $10,000 credit toward any TOUR CLUB Extraordinary Experience...or a three-day all-inclusive Golf School at any PGA TOUR Academy
- The ability to carry over up to seven Base Plan nights into your next membership year
- The ability to reduce usage of up to seven Base Plan nights into your next membership year
- The Club will donate seven nights to the charity of your choice.
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http://destinationclubnews.com/News_The_Phoenix_Club_Outlines_Major_Obstacles.php
"The poor reputation that High Country Club left behind and our constant association with them is one of our chief concerns," said the club. "We must reiterate that we are a completely separate entity."
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genius.

will be interesting to hear how they and bourne are doing...
 
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Kagehitokiri2 said:
pod or not?

http://www.illyusa.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/subcat_machines_machines_espresso-machines
pod $295 > $1975
non pod $380 > $3299

id imagine as DCs grow (or ER now) could get pretty good discounts on bulk buys of these kinds of things
Click to expand...

I believe that we have the X7 units (or something similar). All of ours were purchased at one time when A&K took over.

Interesting Q newsletter linked. As noted in the newsletter, social media is definitely becoming important. A&K's and A&K RC's Facebook presence has mushroomed pretty quickly. I wonder if any of them are seeing any sales from it though. I guess at a minimum it provides a way to connect to members and friends of the Club.

Seems like an entry level DC is a no-brainer. Just wish there was an established brand behind one of them. Would make adoption a lot easier.
 
Kagehitokiri2 said:
will be interesting to hear how they and bourne are doing...
Click to expand...

To gain traction, the two core requirements were adequate funding and member trust. The funding is now in place with properties, website and rez system lined up. That was the easy part. Now the club has to gain member trust. :)

Is the final offering what I envisioned with Paragon? Relatively close but not the same. Is it something I am comfortable with? Yes. Is the new system more financially stable? Yes.

More to come...
 
Bourne said:
To gain traction, the two core requirements were adequate funding and member trust. The funding is now in place with properties, website and rez system lined up. That was the easy part. Now the club has to gain member trust. :)

Is the final offering what I envisioned with Paragon? Relatively close but not the same. Is it something I am comfortable with? Yes. Is the new system more financially stable? Yes.

More to come...
Click to expand...

Bourne

I lost track of this somewhere along the line ... Are you involved in just Paragon or also part of Phoenix? Or are some of the backers the same in both clubs?

I also lost track of who ended up with the HCC properties out of CH7. Can you enlighten us?

Thanks and good luck.
 
http://tugbbs.com/forums/showpost.php?p=904547&postcount=21

$588,500 - 74 Cresta Road, Unit 306, Arrowhead Village/Beaver Creek, CO [2BR] - eagle - 04/13/2010 ROBERT OWEN DICKEY 6738 GLENDORA AVE DALLAS, TX
$517,000 - 120 Tip Top Trail, Unit 6537, Keystone, CO [3BR TH-style] - summit - "120 tip top trl 6537 C"
$722,700 - 65 The North Road, Breckenridge, CO [4BR SFH] - summit - "65 north rd b"
$429,000 - 1111 Forest Trail, Unit 1121, Mammoth Lakes, CA [2BR] - mono
$418,000 - 1470 Masters Boulevard, Unit 311, ChampionsGate (Orlando), FL [3BR] - osecola
($2,675,200)

http://www.sheldongood.com/index.php?page=caseStudies
"SOLD AT AUCTION: $4.3 million"

wonder whats going on with these. 4.3 - 2.7 = $1.6mm
- 1600 Broadway, Unit 10E, Times Square, New York, NY [1BR] - 6/15/10 peter c derosa 7 redbud lane greenbrook, NJ
- 2006 Costa Del Mar Road, Unit 2, Carlsbad, CA [2BR] - san diego
 
I should have been more specific in my question. I was interested in the HCC properties that were "outside" of the CH 7 sale (never made it to the Sheldon Good auction).

At one time, I believe there were three parties that had plans to use these other HCC properties (I'll call them the "prime" properties) in some type of reorganized DC plan. There was the HCC investor (Phoenix), Bourne (Paragon) and the RE partners of HCC that owned several properties (OBX, TCI, Cabo, etc.). IIRC - There was discussion of several incarnations of these properties being used in clubs and/or combinations of ownership/backing/operation.

My question is really what happened to these other "prime" properties and what the current incarnation of potential DCs (Paragon & Phoenix) are made up with (properties, backing and operations).
 
1. Phoenix has rights to the "other properties" with an agreement worked out on some of the "Sheldon Good" properties wherever possible.
2. The new club brings together all the three groups mentioned in the previous post.
 
Bourne said:
1. Phoenix has rights to the "other properties" with an agreement worked out on some of the "Sheldon Good" properties wherever possible.
2. The new club brings together all the three groups mentioned in the previous post.
Click to expand...

Impressive that the three groups have gotten together. So who's in charge and when does the new club launch? Is it an equity club, at least as to new member deposits? Any thoughts about how Marriott's changes effects Phoenix?
 
Info on Phoenix Club: Phoenix Club Website

Pics on properties are exactly the same as HCC properties. Maybe they bought the intellectual rights from HCC also??

Membership starting at $10K.
 
$10K > $80K ($25K > $80K 75% refundable)

and these deposits support portfolio expansion?

no info on points yet, other than "During the off-season, the points can value as much as two to three times more vacation time"

price per point (annual / additional)
1.13 / 1.30
1.08 / 1.20
1.05 / 1.10
0.91 / 1.00
 
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Points?

Bourne or Others - Any indications on Phoenix Club what 'point' costs will be for various properties at various times of year? I looked on the website and did not see any information. Thanks.

Cattledog
 
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Thanks for posting, Kage. This is really well said:

"Darin Gilson, Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club's Senior Vice President of Sales and Business Development, offered us a vignette about a recent trip enjoyed by a member and three of his young children. "They had an amazing time and created some outstanding memories, and he said that if he were not a member of the club he simply would not have taken this trip," Gilson told us. "I have seen this time and again with members over the years - joining the club becomes a 'forcing device' to take the family vacations that ultimately create the best memories. While you don’t have to join a club to take family vacations, by making the commitment to a club and consistent family vacation lifestyle, you guarantee a set of experiences for your family that cannot be bought or found elsewhere. As the father of four kids myself, I am continually amazed at how fast they grow up, and I cherish our family trips because it allows you to 'freeze time' for a little while and just worry about being together and having fun rather than all the other stuff that you have to deal with on a daily basis at home.""

That was not our family that he cited, but I couldn't have said it better myself. I think we were doing one week of vacation a year before joining a DC, and would spend several weeks planning that one week of vacation. Looking back on the time spent for what we got back in return, it's just silly. Now we do six or seven trips, I spend hardly any time planning them, and they are vastly better in terms of quality and family time than before.
 
DC4MS sell out?

Apologies if this has been revealed already, but based on the following it looks like DC4MS sold destinationclubforums.com to UE for 16,667 shares of UE stock:

1. Destinationclubforums.com was founded by William Scherer:

“I originally started Destination Club Forums as a small area on the Internet where I could post messages and discuss exotic luxury travel locations with other destination club members,” said William Scherer, the founder.

(http://newsblaze.com/story/2010042010352000550.pr/topstory.html)



2. In UE's S-1, a William Scherer was the proud owner, and hopeful seller, of 16,667 shares of UE stock:

Selling Stockholders:
William Scherer 16,667 * 16,667

(see page 69 of http://sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1402364/000114420410031992/v187261_s1.htm)

3. UE bought certain assets from an individual for 16,667 shares of UE stock:

ITEM 2 — UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS
On January 5, 2010, we issued 16,667 shares to an individual from whom we acquired certain assets, as part of the purchase price of those assets.

(see http://www.faqs.org/sec-filings/100513/Secure-America-Acquisition-CORP_10-Q/)
 
What a disappointing bit of news. I was a long-time lurker on DC4MS and really felt well-informed and up-to-date on all the latest DC news without the hype of the various clubs' marketing machines. There really is a void and this little thread is so obscure to people who want to get the real scoop on the industry. Since it looks like DC4MS really isn't coming back I just joined this BBS tonight and made the suggestion to the administrators that the DC section be expanded and more prominently promoted. I would love to see a separate DC forum here or at the very least more activity
 
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Buon Viaggio said:
What a disappointing bit of news. I was a long-time lurker on DC4MS and really felt well-informed and up-to-date on all the latest DC news without the hype of the various clubs' marketing machines. There really is a void and this little thread is so obscure to people who want to get the real scoop on the industry. Since it looks like DC4MS really isn't coming back I just joined this BBS tonight and made the suggestion to the administrators that the DC section be expanded and more prominently promoted. I would love to see a separate DC forum here or at the very least more activity
Click to expand...

Great idea but the problem is that most DC owners won't find this forum. Many new DC owners/prospects found DC4MS because "Destination Club" was in the forum name and showed up in search engines by a generic "Destination Club" search. As a former mod on DC4MS, I discussed this with many first time posters.
 
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