Share
Imagine owning a home where you can enjoy warm sun, soft sands and a breathtaking view of the Indian Ocean. This is now possible as Club Med is offering foreign investors the opportunity to own a luxury villa in the exotic isle of Mauritius.
The Albion Villas, launched last year, is the international resort chain’s first real-estate offering and consists of 40 villas on 11ha of freehold land. It is located in Club Med La Plantation D’Albion on the west coast of Mauritius about 40 minutes away from the airport. Twenty-four villas have already been built and sold and another two villas have been completed and are available for sale. The remaining 14 villas will be built upon the completion of sales.
The two, three and four-bedroom villas have built-ups of 1,400 sq m, 1,700 sq m and 2000 sq m and are going for €1.2 million (RM5.15 million), €1.6 million and €2 million respectively .
Qin Shen, Club Med Services (Singapore) Pte Ltd vice-president of sales and marketing for Asia Pacific, says the island nation off the coast of Africa was chosen for its strategic location. “The small time difference of four hours for Asia and three hours for Europe makes it an ideal spot for both Asians and Europeans.
“Many celebrities like to visit Mauritius and it is surrounded by one of the world’s largest coral reefs. It is also a global reference in luxury-hotel services, offers quality hospitality and services and has a favourable climate ranging from 20 to 30 degrees celsius, depending on the season,” she says.
Designed by Marc Hertrich and Nicolas Adnet, the villas incorporate a breadth of Mauritius culture, which has Creole, Indian, Asian and African influences. The villas come with a verandah, private garden and swimming pool and residents receive personalised butler services. 
Owners can opt to purchase a villa for private use or lease it to Club Med, which will manage and maintain it on their behalf while offering them a chance to receive returns from their property. They will need to sign a lease for Club Med to manage and maintain the villas until August 2022. Currently, 19 owners have leased their villas to Club Med.
With the lease, owners and up to five guests are allowed to stay for six weeks a year in the villa. They can enjoy the villa as well as have full access to the resort’s facilities. As part of the management fee, 75% of the gross revenue from rentals will go to maintenance and a reserve fund, while the remaining 25% will be put into a collective pool to be distributed evenly among owners every quarter.
“The insurance and everyday upkeep and maintenance will be provided by Club Med and owners will not be charged for the upkeep of their villas that involve things such as cleaning, plumbing, electrical consumables, air-conditioning maintenance, swimming-pool maintenance and the garden,” says Shen.
She adds that the potential overall profitability of a villa ranges from 9% to 15% per annum. This includes the six weeks set aside for the owners’ occupancy, with unlimited access to the resort valued at €80,000 to €160,000.
“The potential return in cash would be approximately 4% based on a 50% occupancy rate after common levies and fixed charges,” explains Shen.
Although she declines to reveal the current occupancy rates of these villas, she says Club Med is optimistic as demand for the rental of the villas has been positive.
“From last November to February this year, the villas were mostly rented out. We are expecting the same this Christmas.” Rentals are €1,600 per night for a two-bedroom villa, €2,500 for a three-bedroom and €3,500 for a four-bedroom.
If owners are not keen to spend their holidays in Mauritius, they can take up the Freedom Privilege option, where they exchange their six-week stay in their villa for a stay at one or up to five Club Med resorts across the world.
“This way, owners get two forms of ‘returns’ from buying the villa — the rental returns from the villa and the opportunity to stay there or at [a Club Med location] for their holiday,” says Shen.
The Club Med La Plantation D’Albion is classified as a Five Trident resort, which is the highest luxury rating given by Club Med to its resorts. It spans 21ha with a wide range of recreational and sports facilities such as two large swimming pools, six tennis courts, a golf driving range, trapeze, archery range and beach volleyball court, as well as facilities for snorkelling, kayaking, sailing, scuba diving and spa treatments. There are specially tailored activities for children aged 4 to 18 in the Petite Club, Mini Club and Junior Club.
Club Med has plans to offer more of such real-estate investment products, including apartment-chalets scheduled for sale in Valmorel in the French Alps this December.
This article appeared in City & Country, the property pullout of The Edge Malaysia, Issue 881, Oct 24-30, 2011
