Condo Hotel Center: Property Alert

October 19, 2004

SAN MARCO RESORT

Pre-Construction Prices at Orlando Condo Hotel

Hello. Joel Greene here from Condo Hotel Center. Today I'm writing you about a property in a location that many of you have requested. Unfortunately, up until now there has been limited inventory in this area. I'm delighted to finally have something I'm truly excited to offer you in Orlando, Florida. And what's best is that this is a first-quality product available at pre-construction pricing.

San Marco Resort (originally called The Venetian Grand Resort) will be a luxury condo hotel in the Lake Buena Vista area of Orlando with an anticipated four-star rating. Because of our special relationship with the exclusive broker of this property, you are able to buy units at The Venetian before this property is made available to the general public.

Right now, only "friends and family" of the developer have reservations, about 40 total, or less than 10% of the building, so all prices are now at their lowest levels. I anticipate the first price hike to be implemented as soon as the 10% mark is reached. Let me tell you a little about this impressive property.

San Marco Resort - Rendering

San Marco Resort
Located on 8.5 acres, San Marco Resort will consist of two 16-story towers designed in the tradition of Venetian architecture. There will be 236 units per tower for a total of 472 one-, two-, and three-bedroom/PH units. Units will range in size from 671 sq. ft. to 1,444 sq. ft.

The two towers will be entered by way of an impressive four-story rotunda foyer with a marble floor encircling a large fountain. Forty feet above, the ceiling will be crowned by a hand-painted Italian mural from which a crystal chandelier hangs. A grand marble staircase will provide entry to the clubhouse and meetings rooms. Every aspect of the design will be in keeping with a high-end resort.

Construction & Management
Construction of San Marco Resort will begin March 2005 and is expected to be complete in early 2007. A world-renowned hotel flag operator will manage the property, however, the decision on which one has yet to be finalized. The development firm has told me that they are talking with as many as five companies and mentioned Hilton and Ritz Carlton by name.

A Quality Team Involved in the Project
The developer, Lake Buena Vista Developers, has assembled a first-rate team for the building of this condo hotel. Among them is Fugleberg Koch Architects, Inc. of Winter Park Florida. Established in 1963, the firm's hotel and resort work ranks among the national leaders. Typically, over $100 million in a variety of assignments are underway at any given time. They have completed $400 million in themed resorts for Walt Disney World alone.

The firm's client list includes numerous major national accounts, producing for them over 7,000 multi-family units, 2,000 hotel accommodations, and over 1,000 new vacation ownership units annually for virtually every major brand in the industry.

No Living Restrictions
While San Marco Resort will be a condo hotel, owners will not be forced to participate in the rental program. In fact, unlike most condo hotels that you find in my neck of the woods in South Florida, there are no living restrictions at The Venetian. Use your condo hotel unit one day, 10 days, or 365 days a year.

If you wanted to, you could even make San Marco Resort your permanent home, or you could become what we Florida natives call a snowbird and just use your Florida home during the winter months.

San Marco Resort Building Features

• Pool with winding lazy river, water slides, etc.
• State-of-the-art fitness center
• Over 6,000 sq. ft. meeting space
• Signature restaurant
• Lobby bar and pool bar
• Coffee shop
• Gift shop
• Newsstand
• Game room
• Day care center
• Valet parking

Unit Features

• Marble foyer, kitchen and baths
• Granite kitchen countertops and vanities
• European cabinetry
• Convection microwave oven
• Stainless steel appliances
• Designer bath fixtures
• Jacuzzi Roman tub
• Pre-wired cable TV and high-speed Internet

Services

• Full business center
• Secretarial services
• 24-hour room service
• 24-hour concierge services
• Laundry valet
• Children's activities program
• World-class, full-service spa and salon
• Rental car desk

San Marco Resort , Pool Area (Artist Rendering)

An Outstanding Location
San Marco Resort will be located in Lake Buena Vista, best known as the Disney area. It will have close proximity to International Drive which is Orlando's biggest activity center. Even if you skipped Orlando's theme parks, you could stay entertained for months there.

International Drive has numerous attractions (Wet 'n Wild, Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede, Titanic-The Exhibition, etc.), 150+ restaurants, 485+ designer brand-name and outlet stores, three stadium-style movie cinemas, the nation's second largest convention center (over 2.1 million sq. ft.) and a convenient trolley system that runs the entire length of the Resort Area.

San Marco Resort will be centrally located so you'd be close to everything that's great about the Orlando area. Let me give you some mileage estimates so you can see what a phenomenal location The Venetian will have:

• Disney theme parks including the Magic Kingdom, MGM Studios & Animal Kingdom - 2 miles
• Sea World - Less than 1 mile
• Discovery Cove - 6 miles
• Universal Studios Florida - 10 miles
• Islands of Adventure - 11 miles
• Orange County Convention Center - 9 miles
• Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores Outlet - 1/10th mile
• Belz Factory Outlet Mall - 10 miles
• Orlando International Airport - 12 miles
• East Coast beaches - 60 miles
• West Coast beaches - 70 miles

What's Orlando Got? Everything!
I love Orlando! Who doesn't! It's the world's #1 vacation destination, and for good reason. It has so much to offer for every age. In addition to all the great theme parks, there are dozens of other attractions, great restaurants, shopping galore, world-class spas, fantastic nightlife and over 150 golf courses in a 30-mile radius!

Orlando's First Brand-Name Condo Hotel
San Marco Resort will not be one of Orlando's first condo hotels, but it will be the first one with a quality franchise. For those of you with whom I've spoken personally, you know that in my opinion a good franchise with a strong reservation system is what I deem most critical to the success of a condo hotel and the likelihood that your unit's revenue will cover its expenses.

The condo hotel concept has only recently come to the Orlando area but already it is receiving lots of attention from investors within the state of Florida, throughout the country and even internationally. No doubt, as future developers break into the market, they will do so at higher and higher prices, and buyers who get in early will likely see their units appreciate.

Timeshare vs. Condo Hotel
Traditionally, Orlando has been "timeshare country" with all the major timeshare developers well represented. In fact, the city is considered the timeshare capital of the world. If you're wondering whether you'd be better to consider a timeshare in Orlando rather than owning a condo hotel unit, consider these facts.

Timeshares are typically for one to two weeks per year. At San Marco Resort , you can live in your unit for 365 days a year without restriction, or you can place it in the rental program and receive rental income.

Condo hotel units tend to appreciate while timeshares historically have not. With condo hotels, more of your dollar goes into "bricks and mortar" with high-quality finishes. With timeshares, a large percentage of the cost goes to sales commissions which can be as high as 40%-50%. This is logical because in a timeshare a developer must make 52 sales for every unit while a condo hotel unit is only one entity.

Over recent years, timeshare resale values have been poor because of the large number of resales on the market and a continuous stream of new developments competing with them.

The secondary market for reselling timeshares has never taken off. The fact is, most people who buy a timeshare will have it for life, whether they want to or not. Conversely, there are a limited number of condo hotels on the market. The result is that demand outpaces supply, resulting in property appreciation.

How to Reserve a Unit at San Marco Resort
San Marco Resort offers an excellent opportunity to get a condo hotel unit in exciting Orlando, Florida at the lowest prices. Prices range from $250,000 to $600,000.

To reserve a unit, a $15,000 deposit is required now. A 10% deposit will be required some time in November, and a second 10% deposit will be required after 90 days or ground breaking, whichever occurs first.

I do have a data sheet on this property. If you'd like to see it, send me an email at info@CondoHotelCenter.com, and I'll send it right out to you. If you'd like to see a full brochure, I can have that sent FedEx to you. Just be sure to provide me with your complete address (no P.O. boxes please) and a phone number (FedEx requirement).

Thanks for Your Interest
So there you have it, Orlando's newest condo hotel available at pre-construction prices. As always, thank you for your interest in our Condo Hotel Center Property Alerts. It is our mission to keep bringing you alerts on the newest condo hotel properties poised to hit the market before the general public gets the chance to buy.

If you know anyone else who'd like to receive our Property Alerts, have them sign up for this newsletter on our website.

Joel Greene, Broker-Associate
Condo Hotel Center
A division of Sheldon Greene & Assoc., Inc.
13499 Biscayne Blvd. Ste. 210
N. Miami, FL 33181
PH: 305-944-3090
FX: 305-948-0460
Info@CondoHotelCenter.com
www.CondoHotelCenter.com