Time-share scheme for Queenstown

Press, 29 August 1979, Page 23

Time-share scheme for Queenstown

. A Christchurch businessman, Mr David Bradford, is starting a holiday time-share scheme in Queenstown, which he hopes will become an acceptable way for New Zealanders and overseas visitors to spend their holidays.

Mr Bradford, better known <s the owner of Harlow Hair Group Ltd, has bought several two-bedroom townhouses in Queenstown which he proposes to lease to holiday -makers.

A person or orgnaisation would have to agree to lease a town-house for one week, or more, a year over a 10year period. The “Holiday Time-plan” conceived by Turner Heights Townhouses, Ltd, of which Mr Bradford is managing director, is that each townhouse be leased separately on a weekly basis 52 times a year over 10 years.

The rates vary from a peak-time 10-year period of $3450, or $345 a week, to a low of $ll5O, or $ll5 a ■week.

Mr Bradford intends that some of the town-houses will be available for casual renting, but the weekly rates for these will be higher than the longer term houses.

The casual rates projected for 1980 are $449 a week in peak times, compared with the weekly-leased rate of $345 on a 10-year lease, and a low-period rate of $175, compared with $ll5 weekly over 10 years. As well as the leased rate a service charge will be made on each town-house [for the week used. This charge covers electricity [consumption, the proportion [of management costs, maintenance, and insurance worked out in a 52-week period, and the housekeeping required to return the unit to its original standard of cleanliness.

Most people cannot afford a holiday home in Queenstown, where the capital outlay is between $30,000 to $60,000, Mr Bradford says. “A holiday home is hard to justify unless it is in use for more than six weeks a year, because of the continuing costs of maintenance, rates and insurance.

“The idea of a ‘Holiday Time-plan’ is good because a quality holiday house is available without a great capital outlay, no maintenance worries, and fractional insurance and rates compared with those of a. permanent holiday home,” he [says. According to the “Holiday I Time-plan” brochure, luxury motels in Queenstown charge up to $315 a week for four people at present, while luxury hotels charge up to $686 a week for the same number.

In both cases these prices are expected to rise by 10 per cent a year, the brochure says, but the townhouse charges will remain static over the 10-year leased period. The only change will be in the additional service fee, which will be adjusted each year in pace with inflation. Mr Bradford hopes time-plan scheme may be adopted by companies as an incentive to staff, or be used for management or executive meetings.

Another advantage may be that companies could claim the cost as tax deductible, although the brochure suggests contacting an accountant or the local Inland Revenue Department to make sure.

The philosophy behind a 10-year lease is that it is a hedge against inTation, both in accommodation prices and property values, Mr Bradford says. Subletting can be arranged if a person or organisation does not want to use the town-house in the period that has been chosen. The time-plan scheme has been running for a number of years in popular resort areas overseas, but Mr Bradford says that his will be the first to start in New Zealand. The Tourist Hotel Corporation announced last week thc.t it is going to lease two new villas being built at Wairakei on a time-share basis.