Marriott Vacations buys Marco Island resort condos

An affiliate of Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corp. has invested $84.5 million to consolidate its ownership of the 215-unit Crystal Shores Condominiums on Marco Island, according to Collier County property records.

The Orlando-based timeshare company’s acquisition marks its fourth major purchase at the four-towered condo project since July 2006, records show.

Then, Marriott Vacations invested $58 million for units. In April 2017, it spent another $33.3 million for 36 units and a pair of commercial spaces. Just under a year later, in March 2018, the company invested $23.65 million for another 20 units at the resort.

Its late December purchase was its largest to date, however: The company’s Marriott Ownership Resorts Inc. acquired 92 units.

Marriott Vacations bought the 600 S. Collier Blvd. units — as it had in the previous two transactions — from an affiliate of 54 Madison Partners, a New York-based financier.

In all, the company has invested nearly $200 million to buy up units at Crystal Shores, county records indicate.

“We’ve always had plans to buy down the units there in tranches,” says Ed Kinney, a Marriott Vacations spokesman. “Typically we do that in a five- to seven-year window, in keeping with our business strategy.”

Kinney referred to 54 Madison as a “partner” in the development.

The company, which operates timeshares affiliated with hotel operator Marriott International Inc. and others nationwide, was founded in 1984. It became publicly traded in 2011, Kinney says.

“Marco Island is an exceptional area, and the Crystal Shores resort itself is pretty spectacular,” Kinney says.