Grafton, The Villas at Stonehaven RS363 TT$5,780,000

This villa development is one of the most attractive on the island with 14 individual, stand-alone villas on 9 acres of beautifully landscaped, gentle hillside above Le Grand Courlan Hotel at Grafton.  In addition to the villas, this gated development offers a lovely clubhouse/office/conference room plus infinity edge pool, terrace bar and The Pavilion Restaurant which is a very popular venue for weddings.  There is also a laundry, workrooms, Manager’s cottage, 5 staff studio apartments and a plant nursery on the site.   Ownership is not freehold but via share ownership so the owner of Villa 9 would be issued one share representing a 14th share of the business.  There is a shareholder agreement which set outs shareholder rights.  All income is shared by the shareholders and an elected board overseas the business, holding regular board meetings, an AGM and issuing annual audited accounts.  The Villas and grounds are maintained to the high standard required of a luxury hotel and upkeep costs are shared, as is Security on the site.  Hotel/villa income offsets the majority of costs of upkeep.  If the complex were ever closed, each owner would own their separate villa and a 14th share of a company that owns the land and other common buildings on the property.   Restrictions on villa owners include limited personal usage of 120 days (four months) per annum if the hotel is not full, and rental at reduced rates thereafter.     Villa 9 is similar to the other 13 villas on site, with a few notable differences.  It offers not 3 but 4 air-conditioned bedrooms with 4 ensuite bathrooms and a floor space of 4,100 s.f.   The fourth bedroom is located below the main ground floor and is the same size as the other three bedroom within the main house.  The property is being sold fully furnished with French Colonial style furniture and finishes designed by the renowned Architect, Arne Hasselqvist.   A 50 ft verandaoverlooks the sea and infinity pool to the north and the deck is some 200 s.f. larger than the other villas.  At the front of the villa looking south a 50ft veranda wider than normal adds 200 s.f. to the floor plan and overlooks the Alefounder bird sanctuary and hills.  Only 3 villas have two verandas.  Because the villa is located at the top of the central driveway up the hill, it has the most elevated view of Fort Bennet below and the only view of Buccoo Reef visible to the west.  It also has a large secluded garden at the top of the driveway on the eastern side which other villas do not.  There are 4 x 450 gallon water storage tanks below the pool deck and a Jacuzzi is fitted but is not yet commissioned.    Since this villa purchase involves the transfer of shares not the conveyance of real property, the sale is simple and only attracts 0.5% stamp duty as compared with up to 7.5% duty on the sale of a house.  Additionally, the property is a recognised DDA where foreign nationals may invest.