Legacy homes


The generation game T


HE words ` family seat' conjure images of a chilly evening in a foreboding historic house that has descended through the gene-


rations, complete with draughty windows and beds that collapse in the middle. But this could all be set to change. American developers have given the idea a makeover and are converting the concept of the family seat into the ` legacy home' . As David V. Johnson, chairman of Victor International, one of the leading developers of upscale residential resorts in America, explains:


` A legacy home is a generational gathering place for families to come together, to reconnect and share life experiences.' A swimming-pool accident led Mr John-


son to realise the importance of spending quality time with his familyÐ a simple enough aspiration, but, in an age full of distractions, one that' s not necessarily possible. His solution was a special second home where his family could reunite at different times of the year: somewhere they could acquire ` the memories we would share forever' .


`A house abroad offers


ª the sort of environment that is conducive to good humour and which provides a bonding experience that you don' t get at homeº


' He built this concept into a multi-billion-


dollar business by creating resorts of what he now calls ` legacy communities' , geared towards ` providing educational experiences for children and adults, such as adventure and outdoor experiences' . Such is the suc- cess of his legacy-homes model that Victor International is responsible for developing 43 separate ` generational communities' , including Bay Harbor in Michigan and Oil Nut Bay in the British Virgin Islands (BVI). If this legacy-home concept sounds a little


corny to British ears, rest assuredÐ the Oil Nut Bay community is anything but. Located on Virgin Gorda, the BVI' s second largest island, it looks set to blow anything else in the Caribbean out of the water. It' s on a sharply sweeping peninsular with views


58 Country Life International, Spring 2011


Increasing numbers of people buying homes overseas are doing so with future generations in mind. It's a trend that has crossed the Atlantic, says Catherine Moye


so rich they can barely be digested, and comprises 88 legacy homes, 10 of which are to be built right on an unspoiled beach. It' s hard to imagine a piece of waterfront real estate anywhere that compares with it. The plots alone at Oil Nut cost upward of $2.5 million; build cost starts at $600 per square foot for villas that are typically about 36,000 square feet. According to Stuart Baldock of buying


agents Property Vision France, the British idea of a home where the family can gather has also mutated. The place in question is increasingly likely to be a second home abroad. ` We see more and more British families saying ª We want to buy a property that our children will want to come back to when they' re married and with families of their ownº ,' explains Mr Baldock, adding that one reason for this is that the profile of overseas buyers has changed dramatically. ` Twenty years ago, people couldn' t afford


a second home abroad until they were fairly old,' he says. ` Now, they' re richer far younger and more geared toward moving around the world. They tend to have very young kids who benefit from going back to the same place two or three times a year to play in the pool and ride their bicycles around.' Whereas, 20 years ago, such people were


more likely to have a second home in the UKÐ typically, a house on the coast in Cornwall or somewhere in the Scottish HighlandsÐ today, they lean towards a house overseas. ` Low-cost airlines mean they' re cheaper to reach and modern tech- nology makes them easier to run.' Furthermore, as most modern fathers are


in a position to take the office with them, the whole six-week summer holiday can be spent as a family in a completely different setting. Friends and other families can join them. ` It' s a complete change of scene for a family. The sort of environment that is conducive to good humour and which provides a bonding experience that you just don' t get in your own backyard.' In other words, just as Mr Johnson con-


tends, homes are as much about building an emotional legacy as the inheritance potential of the physical bricks and mortar


Ð or should that be stone and roof tiles? Even then, Mr Baldock believes a family


home overseas is more likely to have tradi- tional ` legacy' value. ` When a lot of children inherit properties, they choose to sell family homes because they can' t affordÐ or don' t wantÐ to keep them,' he observes.


` Many brothers and sisters don' t want to spend a lot of money maintaining an old house in deepest Dorset. But chances are, they spent the happiest times of their lives in an overseas property, and are more likely to continue to want to gather there with their own families in the future.' Forming a relationship with another


country, its language, culture and climate is also a profoundly bonding experience for any family, reckons Rupert Fawcett, head of Knight Frank' s Italian department. ` The allure of abroad is very strong, and if you have spent part of your childhood growing up there, it' s even stronger.' Teenagers especially are more likely to


join parents holidaying in a second home abroadÐ and bring friends with them.


www.countrylife.co.uk/international


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