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Buying a Condo-Hotel in Daytona Beach Area. Interview With GM

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Real Estate Broker/Owner with Daytona Condo Realty, 386-405-4408

Buying a Condo-Hotel in Daytona Beach Area. Interview With GM

This question comes so often that I should have written the explanation a long time ago, but better late than never.

"If I buy a unit here, can the Front Desk play games with renting the unit. Can they favor one owner over another?'

The answer is "Yes & No".

Why "yes"? Because you can't exclude something completely. Theoretically there is a way to screw everything, and fair rental are not the exception. However, if you ask me to weigh and give the value to "yes" and "no", "No" will have the value of 99.9% with only 0.1% to "Yes".

James DionWhy? Is it that only honest people work behind the Front Desk? Nice thought... I thought that it would be best to talk to people who know that from the inside. My guest is the General Manager of Oceanside Inn, one of the better Daytona Beach area condo-hotels, James Dion. He works for the rental management company called Integra, which actually owns the first floor in Oceanside Inn, a 191-room resort in Daytona Beach Shores right on the Atlantic Ocean.     

1. The point he makes is that it is very difficult to screw the system. The management system and the locks are set so that you can't open a room from the Front Desk. You have to run the plastic key with a magnetic stripe on it. And every time you run it, the machine keeps the record. They can go years back and check what key was used on a particular date, and when. The way they do it in Oceanside Inn is that they assign codes for every employee, so the machine record of entries would not only show that the unit was entered on certain date, but in case of employees, it will show who that was. And if the guest card was used, you need to see who issued the card on the Front Desk.

2. To register in the hotel you have to present a credit card, and it will be on file, and will be charged WHEN YOU LEAVE, so if a front desk employee tries to put someone in the room illegally, he/she would need to get cash.

3. After completing the night audit the auditor prints out the list for Housekeeping. It shows units that have to be serviced (someone stays), and units that are checking out. If suddenly the unit, that is not on that list, is dirty, they will notify the manager.

To circumvent the system, you would have to involve too many people, and for what. What are the rewards for doing it?

Does it mean that the unit rentals are absolutely identical? Or course, not. When guests get to the front desk, the software would kick the room number based on the least amount of money made. But when you come to the Front Desk in Daytona, they would ask you whether you want oceanfront unit or oceanview? There are 38 direct oceanfront units, so there is a good chance that units with eastern exposure would be rented more. Then they can ask you whether you want a unit with a King size bed or two double beds. If the system kicks you a handicap accessible unit, and you do not want it, they will go to another unit, or just the opposite, and if you need a handicap accessible unit, you will narrow your search one of 8 only. So yes, the Front Desk employee can override the software system, but they can't hide it. 

I asked Nick at the Front Desk about it, and he laughed: "No owner has ever come to me and ask to rent their unit first" he said, adding that he would not do it anyway.

This is how it is done in Oceanside Inn. Is it the same way everywhere? Pretty much yes, though the difference may be with the condo-hotels, where there is no uniformity in units. Some Condo-Hotels are uniformed, like The Plaza Resort & Spa, Ocean Walk, Oceanside Inn, Daytona Beach Resort & Conference Center, where unit may differ in size and orientation, but not in the decor, furniture, finishes... And there are those like Fountain Beach Resort, Daytona Inn, Pirates Cove, Castaways and others, where owners did what they wanted.

NickIn those resorts I can't blame the Front Desk employees when they would skip a substandard unit when the system kicks the number, so that they do not have to deal with an angry guest. In those resorts I suggest that owners really try to do something nice, so that this does not affect their ability to generate income.

I recently read on one of AR blogs (could not find it) about security. There was a suggestion to never return the key cards to the Front Desk when you are checking out. The blogger said that these cards contain all the information about you including your credit card info. I asked James Dion about it, and he laughed at this. He never heard of a system, where the information like that goes to the key card. "Why would anyone do that even if that was technically possible? And, by the way, let them keep the cards, we do not care about them, we get them fro free from a Pizza chain".

So, if you feel better keeping the cards, keep them. Nobody cares.

An interesting question, though is "Can a Front Desk employee use your credit card and steal money from you". I do not want you to think that it is totally impossible, so be vigilant. However, I asked Nick at the Front Desk how that works, and he told me that when he gets the card, he slides it, and the information goes into the management system, but the receipt shows only last 4 digits. And what is more important, he can't see the full number in the system once in has been scanned.

So, if the Front Desk employee takes the card from you and then goes to a back office, then you may worry. If not, you should be safe. That's what professionals told me.

If you have questions about Daytona Beach Area Condo-hotels, or any other type of Real Estate in the area, give me a call at 386-405-4408, or drop me a line in the e-mail.

We are only an e-MILE away.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Comments (4)

Anonymous
Stella

i have stayed there last year. Pretty nice place. I did not know it was a condohotel. What are the prices there now?

Jan 17, 2010 03:41 AM
#1
Jon Zolsky
FunCoast Realty 386-405-4408 - Ponce Inlet, FL
your Daytona Condo Agent

It takes more effort to do it wrong, than to do it right. I wonder why people often use all their creativity and energy to circumvent the system, when they could benefit more just by doing things right

Jan 17, 2010 03:44 AM
Inna Hardison
ha media group - Orlando, FL
Wordpress for Real Estate & Design, Print HaMedia Group

Jon - a pretty solid post...

On the credit card conrns, with most businesses nowadays credit card processing company will make sure that the organization is PCI compliant in order to even get the contract with Visa, MC and AmEx.  Part of that security compliance is predicated on the merchant NEVER having access to the entirety of the credit card info except for the time it's swiped, and a merchant CANNOT store the customer's card by any means past the point of sale/purchase.

The rules on it as established by the banks are pretty strict and one violation of it will negate the contract.  I highly doubt that any hotel management company will risk losing the ability to take credit cards.  So definitely not worth it:-)

Jan 17, 2010 08:43 AM
Will Nesbitt
Nesbitt Realty at Condo Alexandria - Alexandria, VA
Nesbitt Realty is a family-run brokerage.

Featured at Condo Benefits!

Jan 17, 2010 10:40 PM