ST Ann is rapidly emerging as the place to be for savvy local investors intent on getting a piece of the luxury resort villa market. Benefiting from buzz around a planned bypass into St James and proximity to the now international airport in St Mary, there are several developments coming on stream.

In addition to two projects by Norbrook Equity Partners there is Palm Beach Villas in Runaway Bay, the work of Fredrick Moe and Andrew Desnoes.

Palm Beach has had strong interest from locals, according to real estate broker and development consultant Gabrielle Gilpin-Hudson.

“All of the persons who have bought into the development have bought cash. There are no mortgage purchasers in Palm Beach; and majority of them are Jamaican purchasers. Most of them are Jamaican businessmen that you’d be familiar with,” she told the Jamaica Observer.

“All of those units are going to be professionally managed by a hospitality company for the purpose of being income-generating vacation rental property. Owners are all going to be offering the properties for rent to high-profile travellers — that’s the purpose of the development — and a lot of the amenities are in line with that,” added Gilpin-Hudson who is also an attorney and vice-president of Realtors Association of Jamaica.

Buyers are encouraged — though not all choose this route — to opt for furnished units so as to maintain consistency in the quality, look and feel of the 22 villas and six condos. There are 11 five-bedroom beachfront villas, six five-bedroom ocean-view villas, and five four-bedroom lagoon villas. They’re all sold out except for two of the lagoon villas and three condos. The lagoon villas available start at US$2.625 million ($412 million), without furniture and appliances, while the price for the condos varies depending on proximity to the beach.

The 22-acre development sits on land owned, for 72 years prior, by proprietors of Unity House — an 18th century sugar warehouse-turned-vacation spot.

According to Gilpin-Hudson, most of the Palm Beach units were already sold when they officially hit the market.

“It’s always enjoyed a high level of sales. All of the ones on the beach and the waterfront have been sold out from the beginning — those were the first to go,” she said.

She attributes the brisk sales to what she described as a hunger, in St Ann, for “a property that is right in front of the water that is modern, newly built”.

“We’re not seeing a lot of beachfront luxury villas of this calibre available for sale on the market. That is why these types of properties — and even the ones done by Norbrook Equity — are selling so quickly. People want those things and are willing to pay for them,” said Gilpin-Hudson.

According to executive chairman of Norbrook Equity Partners Khary Robinson, interested buyers have been able to reserve units in their Banbou Cove Resort Residences in Drax Hall since last year, and demand has been healthy.

“We have not taken the units to market because it is a small, exclusive community that is being developed. We reached out to our existing database and have accepted reservations on a number of units,” he told the Sunday Observer.

“Within the first two months the majority of the units were reserved. At this time, of the 55 units only 10 are unreserved. The reservation fee is 10 per cent of the sales price. The reservation agreement can be cancelled at any time and is fully refundable,” he added.

The development consists of 35 condos and 20 high-end villas on 16 acres of beachfront land. Prices range from US$375,500 ($58.4 million) for one-bedroom apartments to US$2,190,000 ($340.7 million) for the four-bedroom units. In response to demand there was a slight tweaking of the original plan. Three of the smaller apartments on the ground floor have been converted into two three-bedroom apartments. The units that are still available include two four-bedroom villas, three three-bedroom villas, one two-bedroom ground floor apartment, and four one-bedroom ground floor apartments.

Robinson expects building approval by this summer, for construction to start before the end of this year, and that work should be completed by 2026.

“Banbou Cove is for people who are looking for a turnkey, fully managed, luxury vacation home that they would like to enjoy from time to time while also having the opportunity to earn from their investment. We’ve seen interest from a mix of local and overseas Jamaicans looking for an investment property on the north coast,” he told the Sunday Observer.

Owners may opt into adding their property to a rental pool programme which uses maintenance fees to cover the cost of operating units in the pool.

“Owners will each earn a share of the total profit of the villas/apartments in the resort, based on their usage and unit type,” explained Robinson.

“Owners who do not join the rental pool will be required to pay a monthly maintenance fee for central services and amenities, and they will be responsible for paying all other expenses related to their unit. Owners who are not a part of the rental pool cannot rent their unit directly — all rentals must be done through Norbrook Hospitality,” he added.

He is confident in the product being offered, and not concerned that the market will become overcrowded.

“We have a unique position in the market because we are a smaller, exclusive development of only 55 units with a wide range of high-end amenities. We don’t see ourselves competing in the broader space and have already proven, through our number of reservations, that there is the appetite and demand for this type of development,” said Robinson.

“Norbrook is not looking to be large-scale developers. Our projects are passion projects and are spaces that we personally like and want to reside in. We develop niche luxury developments for people that are looking for a second home that is turnkey and has been beautifully built with high-quality finishes and excellent amenities, as well as community that allows for a great second home experience,” he added.

The development, which borders Mammee Bay, is adjacent to Norbrook’s Bohio which consists of 14 four-bedroom villas that are also managed by Norbrook Hospitality. Bohio Villas was completely sold out before construction began.