Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 10, 1990 TAG: 9006110320
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
VHDA is the general partner in the project and Dominion Bankshares and Greater Hampton Roads are the limited partners.
Over the past 14 months, Dominion banks have invested or committed to invest in $21 million worth of housing for low-to-moderate income families, according to Brenda L. McDaniel, vice president. The properties have typical rents of from $250 to $325 per month for a two-bedroom unit in rental markets where the usual two-bedroom rate is $375 to $475.
Paul E. Norris, vice president of Dominion Trust Co., heads the special investments group that puts together the housing transactions for Dominion.
The Tax Reform Act of 1986 made available up to $3 billion in low-income housing tax credits annually to organizations that would make such investments. The program runs through 1990. - Staff
Timesharing image starting to improve
Timesharing burst on the vacation scene close to 15 years ago, offering what sounded even better than owning a private villa on the Riviera: owning only a carefree piece of one.
For a one-time payment of a few thousand dollars, plus a small annual maintenance fee to cover upkeep, you could use your fully equipped unit during the same chosen time period each year, usually for life. How many catches could there be?
Plenty, it turned out. Countless developers sold pre-construction shares to finance projects and then went into bankruptcy, leaving early-bird purchasers holding worthless deeds to resorts that would never open. There also was considerable misrepresentation - about facilities, management responsibilities, exchange and resale possibilities.
In recent years, most states have enacted laws requiring escrow accounts and providing a period during which buyers who believed they were pressured into a deal could back out. Regulatory agencies report that problems now have shifted from purchases to rentals and resales.
Upscale euphemisms are helping to bury timesharing's tarnished image, and familiar names like Marriott are lending added respect. "Shared vacation ownership" is even on the Disney drawing boards, and why not? Timesharing is a developer's dream come true: A resort can sell the same $50,000 condo unit 52 times at, say, $10,000 each and collect annual maintenance fees from each owner as well.
The American Resort and Residential Development Association, which represents 90 percent of U.S. properties, says the average price per week of timeshares is about $7,000 and the median maintenance fee is $200 a year. Project the total over 20 years, and even if maintenance stayed the same, ask yourself if you'd be likely to spend $14,000 or $15,000 on hotels over that period.
Swaps are possible, of course, but only for something comparable. You can't expect to trade a midsummer week at a no-frills desert bunkhouse for a winter stay on the ocean in Hawaii. - Newsday
Computer will list homes for sale nationwide
The National Multiple List Inc. has set up a computer ads for homes on the market throughout the country. In its three years of operation, the Columbia, Md., listing service has been concerned primarily with properties in its region, but its national sales director, Robert J. Wirth Jr., says the company now is seeking listings from real estate agents, builders and homeowners nationwide.
Ads can be placed by computer or mailed to the company. Requests for properties for sale in certain areas are sent by facsimile machine or by mail. Cost for an ad is $25 a month for an individual, $50 a month for an agent and $75 a month for an entire real estate office. The company is toll-free number if 1-800-262-2241.
The company was founded by John Abbott, a consultant in information systems, and Sandra Blaker, a real estate agent and broker. - Staff
Waldrop Realty honored for cost management
Waldrop Realty was honored by PHH Homequity, a relocation service, for having the best cost management in the Eastern Region. Homequity has more than 60 real estate firm representatives in the region. Tom Stover is executive vice president for relocation at Waldrop, which also was recognized for outstanding performance in assisting corporate referral clients and customers.
- Staff
by CNB