I was fortunate enough to spend the day with Dolf De Roos this month while he was on a round trip of South Africa. Passionate about sharing what he has learnt over the last three decades investing in property himself, Dolf is the author of 11 books and has appeared in hundreds of radio and television interviews around the world. It was fantastic to see how bullish he is about the country as he truly does view opportunities from a global perspective. One of his views is to invest while the market is low, before it picks up again. Property is cyclical and if you’re in it for the long term, you’re going to reap the rewards of at least the next two up turns in the cycle.

On that note, we have seen a significant uptake on Blythedale Coastal Resort this month. Unfortunately some buyers cancelled reservations due to the land claim not being resolved as soon as expected. However, those same sites were filled within the week of them becoming available! Investors know that the time we have all spent waiting for the claim to be resolved has only helped us as we have gained huge capital appreciation on the land already. Subsequently we are significantly far down the track to resolving the claim – a settlement has been firmly agreed upon by all parties involved.

Lastly, we’ve been spending a lot of time this month calculating returns on Domaine Bonaventure from a speculators point of view. The Hotel Villas and Apartments are truly financially rewarding and a hedge overseas; the returns are unparalleled to any product I have seen on offer yet! We’re soon to launch an investment calculator which will assist you in calculating returns under varying economic climates.

As always, warm regards,


CEO The eLan Group

Following the public launch of Domaine Bonaventure last week, interest in the Mauritian development has escalated. Just over 50 sales reservations have been made and we are seeing a fifty-fifty split between people who have bought as a residential option and those who are buying from an investment point of view.
 
Location, climate, permanent residency and return on investment are just a few of the draw cards of the development. Favourable interest rates and various tax benefits have also piqued people’s interest. The ability to settle a 70% bond within a six year period is attracting both investors, and people looking for a permanent residence or offering short, medium or long term rentals.

562 villas, 44 hotel garden apartments and 104 hotel apartments. Villa prices start from US$870 000 Garden apartment prices start from US$720 000. The hotel component will be launched soon and construction on the new development will commence in six to seven months time.

The Domaine Bonaventure website has launched! It is highly visual and totally interactive and has been designed to furnish you with as much information on the development as possible! Easy navigation makes for an enjoyable journey as you click your way through downloadables, a gallery of images and the various purchase options.

If you have an online enquiry, we will respond within 48 hours and link you to one of our worldwide sales agents who is the closest to assist you.

Our interactive site map links to a real-time price and availability schedule which is managed by our sales administrators in South Africa allowing you to know exactly what stock is available, around the clock.

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We currently have seven magnificent completed homes on Simbithi for sale. All homes are totally complete, and set within magnificent landscaped environments within the Eco-Estate portion of the Estate. Call our dedicated on-site sales team to find out more about these luxury homes…

All quadrants at The Centenary are sold out in terms of commercial space, and in Quadrant 1, 2 and 4 there is only retail space left. Value in the last 18 months has seen prices rise from R14 500 per square meter to over R18 500 per square meter.

Construction roll out is as follows:

The eLan Group will be taking up office space in Quadrant 4.

Environmental News
The eLan Green Policy is progressing well and coincides with the green issues that are becoming very relevant in South Africa. The policy is supported by standards and guidelines for both the Estate and individual homes.
A number of meetings have taken place with suppliers of green products, the most recent being solar water heaters. Imagine using the sun to provide hot water for free! If 1 000 homes converted to solar geysers, we could prevent 4 000 tons of carbon emission per annum into our country.
 
Avenol and New Forest
Good progress is being made in the development plans for Avenol, in the Midlands. Avenol will be unique as it will consist of farm living housing opportunities for investors integrated with sustainable farming activities and conservation programs. A variety of farming actives will be available from livestock to varying crops (we are currently investigating the sustainability of vineyards). All homes will be green in terms of design and materials used. The project aims to be self-sustainable with regards to water, waste, food and energy needs.
We envisage owners taking ownership of the farming activities with crops bring sold to residents and surplus to the public at a tourism facility at the entrance to the farm. On a wildlife note, the staff at Avenol have had two sightings of caracal in the last month and I was fortunate to see a black backed jackal on the farm.

Gumbi
At Somkhanda Game Reserve west of Mkuze, eLan is progressing with a due-diligence exercise. There is an existing reserve of 12 500 hectares with the potential to grow to 19 000 hectares. The reserve is owned by the Gumbi Community, recently acquired land through a land claim under conservation. Both white rhino and black rhino have been introduced and the first black rhino calf was born recently. The wildlife aspect of the due diligence has been completed and findings indicate that this reserve is a perfect example of natural Zululand with great wildlife potential!

Mojo’s at The Riverside has gone through an extensive refurbishment programme which has left it looking stylishly modern in a sophisticated environment of black, white and silver. The comfortable lounge seating and 2 LCD screens make it the perfect place to connect after work and throughout an evening. Mojo's opens onto the terrace and pool area of The Riverside Hotel with TGIF sessions every Friday afternoon from 6-8pm including live entertainment.

Motorists on the N2 will be amazed at the 55-metre high construction that is being built near the N2 at La Mercy. This is the skeleton of the control tower for King Shaka International, KZN’s brand new airport which will be complete by April 2010 in time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Building is taking place at a phenomenal rate and relevant structures like the passenger terminal, control tower and runway will be completed by December 2009 ready for three months of cold testing. Geotechnical surveys at a site near the Tongaat Toll Plaza are also underway for a motoring interchange. The agrizone adjacent to the airport will include greenhouses, pack houses, import and export trading facilities, a training centre and a nursery. The airport is expected to generate at least 8000 new jobs, stimulate economic growth on the already burgeoning North Coast as well as fuel a need for affordable housing in the area.

The Inaugural eLan / SARLA Challenge

The 16th and 17th of May saw eLan management and staff take on the South African Rugby Legends in our inaugural annual eLan/SARLA challenge.  This challenge consisted of four events kicking off on the first day with the deep sea fishing event on board the Spirit of eLan, followed by a grueling 17km mountain bike race through Blythedale Coastal Resort in the afternoon. Saturday began with a round of golf at Simbithi Country Club and concluded with a cook off at the Riverside Café at the Riverside Hotel.  The two days where filled with fun, laughter and superb weather and eLan was up against the greats of past rugby legends namely, John Allan, Andre Snyman, Pieter Muller, Chad Alcock, Jeremy Thompson and John Slade to name a few. 

Although the first eLan/SARLA challenge was won by SARLA, we look forward to getting a team together consisting of our Brand Ambassadors and Platinum investors to re-challenge SARLA for the Trophy next year!  We will keep you posted on this upcoming event.

PS - The challenge was filmed by SuperSport and will be aired on the SARLA programme on SuperSport and MNet during May and June – visit www.sarugbylegends.com to catch the viewing times.

Investor Club Manager