Valley of the Rainbow Newslog

THE Valley of the Rainbow Estate and Nature Reserve is situated in the eastern highlands near the towns of Dullstroom and Belfast, which is about a two-hour drive on the N12/N4 from Johannesburg/Pretoria. This eco-development, which has been rezoned as a resort, combines the beauty of the natural landscape with the hospitality of a luxury resort.It covers almost 1000ha and is cradled in a valley, while it is surrounded by mountains with indigenous forests, lakes, rivers and waterfalls. With services within Valley of the Rainbow complete, phase one of the resort will be launched at the end of this month. It will encompass three different development nodes, namely Lake Estate, Forest estate and a 5-star eco boutique hotel. Central to these development nodes will be an indigenous water park with ponds, wetlands, bridges, walkways and a variety of water birds and small game.Lake Estate is a 13ha property which will include 10 nature studios overlooking the lake, wetlands and a river in the valley, while the Forest Estate is a 460ha property which will include 30 nature studios overlooking indigenous forests, wetlands and a river in the valley. The 5-star eco boutique hotel will replace the present Manor House and will be situated on a 13ha property.Lake Estate will encompass indigenous forests which will extend onto the ridge and river bank, a large lake for fishing, ponds and wetlands, broad walks with bird hides over ponds and wetlands, stone bridges over streams, and fishing and picnic areas on the river bank.The Forest Estate node will be designed around its indigenous forest setting with ponds, wetlands, paths, stone bridges and walkways over wetlands, with water birds and small game. There will be service roads to each studio as well as access walkways to the units. In line with the environmentally conscious nature of this development, the studios will be built according to environmental sensitive construction methods. The design is based on the eco designs of Glenn Murcutt, an acclaimed Australian architect, who has ensured that only the highest quality European designed furniture and fittings will be used. The units will feature an open-plan living, dining room and kitchen. Living areas will open to decks and a pool through sliding aluminium glass doors.The contemporary design combines high-tech, low maintenance steel, aluminium, glass, stainless steel and composite wood decking, with natural elements including surrounding stone walls.The eco boutique hotel will be the main attraction in Valley of the Rainbow with its numerous lifestyle facilities and attractions.It will include 20 nature suites, a conference centre, an arts and craft studio, a natural wellness centre, and a restaurant and tea garden. This hotel will also house a recovery and recuperation health centre, providing professional medical and pre- and post-operative treatment to international medical tourists.The developer’s own qualifications and involvement in the fields of medicine, pathology and pharmacology are extensive and add to the resort’s viability. Valley of the Rainbow is being marketed to international and local property investors in the leisure market and the corporate market, as well as to the medical tourist market. Interested buyers can purchase nature studios in this resort on a sectional title or fractional title ownership basis.The units range in size from 100m² to 160m² and prospective buyers can choose their finishes within certain specifications.The Lake Estate and Forest Estate studios are available in two-bedroom options, while the studios in the hotel are available in one-bedroom options. The units will include furnishings, services and standards to qualify for affiliation with exclusive luxury international collections.Purchasers will also have the option to place the studios into a rental pool system. Activities currently on offer or planned for Valley of the Rainbow include a leisure garden with golf and croquet; a clay-pigeon range and a field archery range at Konterdanskloof; fly fishing in the lakes and rivers; an equestrian centre; 4×4 game viewing trails; mountain bike and hiking trails; canoeing; abseiling; hot air ballooning and hang gliding. Possible additions to this development include the Tierkloof Mountain Estate in the mountains on the Witpoort property and the adjacent Konterdanskloof Nature Reserve. PRICE: Nature Studios Fractional share prices: Lake Estate R290000 (excluding VAT and transfer costs)
CONTACT: Valley of the Rainbow Jamie van Zijl 083 678 8318Morning: 018 468 9000 Afternoon: 018 293 0573

Fractional ownership is shared ownership of an asset, with the associated benefits of ownership, such as proportionate allocation of usage and the rewards of capital escalation.  The concept was introduced in the US in 1986 by Richard Santulli who wanted to purchase an aircraft but could not justify the expense of acquiring and operating his own plane.  He approached other interested parties and devised a shared-use program to manage the operation. This model evolved into what is now known as fractional ownership, allowing users to purchase flight time with guaranteed availability. Before long, the model was adopted by the boating industry and later migrated to the leisure property market.  Often referred to as private club ownership in the leisure property market, fraction ownership offers the benefits of equity based holiday home ownership, together with the status and exclusivity of a private club membership.  Although the concept has been growing in popularity in many parts of the world, it only recently became available in SA. Since this year the concept hit the South African market form several sources for the first time. In keeping with the international model, these were products offering fraction ownership of individual properties with no inter-changeability option. The model is not new from a global perspective but is in the infancy stage as a trend in The Sough African market, specifically when it comes to the ownership of luxury leisure property. Fractional ownership can be compared to a group of people pooling their resources to purchase a property. This can be done in various forms. An example being the purchase done via a closed corporation of which the parties are members with various percentage interest shares in the cc. Most often the asset, such as an apartment, is held in a (Pty) Ltd company, in which shares proportionate to the ownership split are issued. An independent director is appointed, who is under mandate to manage the affairs of the company and not to encumber it in any way. With respect to the utilization of the asset, roles are drawn up amongst the parties involved. One of the major differences between times share and fractional ownership is recognised as an asset, whereas time share is not. Another advantage is that fractional ownership asset usage is proportional to shareholding so their is no over subscription, which is a common problem in many time share schemes.  Although time share products will always have a place for entry level leisure or lifestyle purchases, private club ownership is growing in popularity, especially among individuals looking to buy into lifestyle assets for pure investment reasons. Added to his is the corporate perspective, where companies are able to offer holiday incentives to staff and use the accommodation for business travel purposes. Fractionals are for more exclusive and include may more luxury amenities and services than time shares. They tend to be larger homes, usually two to four bedrooms. Timeshares usually allow you use for just one to two weeks per year, fractional offer from two to 13 weeks and those don’t necessarily have to be consecutive weeks. Pick the weeks you want.  With regard to financing, obtaining a bank or mortgage company loan on a timeshare is difficult. Rates are high, regardless of how good your credit. This is because it’s a well-known fact that most timeshares depreciate over time.  Conversely banks and mortgage firms consider fractionals to be appreciating assets and will often treat them like any other second-home purchase. In high end resort real estate markets, fractional ownership and private residence clubs have emerged a rapidly growing alternative to whole ownership of luxury vacation homes. According to industry statistics, this area of ownership is growing at over 150% per year and is in its infancy. Research shows that while most private club owners could afford a whole owned vacation home, they selected to purchase a co-owned interest because of the logic of owning only the time they will spend at their vacation residence combined the added benefit of service and amenities that would not be available with ownership of a private home.