Irish, English and Scottish buyers make up 50 per cent of buyers of property surrounding the Vila Sol golf and country club, in Morgadinhos, in Portugal's Algarve. The other half are mainly a mix of Dutch, Germans, Scandinavians, Portuguese and Iranians.
While the nationalities Vila Sol attracts are diverse, most have a fairly uniform reason for buying villas and apartments there - the golf.
To build your own villa will cost from £250,000 sterling. Apartments start at £110,000.
Vila Sol is following in the footsteps of the nearby golf haven, Quinta do Lago. Founded in the early 1970s, Quinta do Lago was bought by the family of Denis O'Brien of Esat fame in 1998 and has Denis O'Brien senior as its chairman. It has burgeoned from modest beginnings to include four of the highest rated 18-hole golf courses in the country, one of which, the Quinta do Lago course, has hosted the Portugese Open seven times.
Vila Sol had a relatively recent beginning in 1994. It has an 18hole golf course designed by Donald Steel, which has been described as "challenging", and a further nine holes are under construction. The course has several man-made lakes, complete with swans, and is meticulously maintained with an army of rangers who inconspicuously circle the course in golf buggies.
The wood-panelled colonial-style Members' Club has a golf pro shop, meeting and changing rooms, a bar and restaurant and a timber-floored terrace overlooking the course.
The villas don't come ready to move into - you either have to buy a plot and bring in your own builders or opt for a package deal. With the package deal, Vila Sol use their own builders who will adapt the designs of the buyer's chosen architect to their requirements. The villas generally range in size from 2,300 to 6,000 sq ft and cost from £250,000 to £1 million to build, depending on their size and their proximity to the golf course. While there are over 100 styles of package villa, named after their architects such as the Modelo Vaughan Davies and Modelo Salazar, the plans can be adapted to suit the lifestyle of the buyer. They all come with air-conditioning, high ceilings, expansive rooms, and a swimming-pool.
The standard Modelo Vaughan Davies is a two-storey, four-bedroom villa with shower room, two en suite bathrooms, a spacious lounge and diningroom, kitchen and utility room. The Modelo Salazar has three double bedrooms, three bathrooms, a shower room, roof terraces with pergolas and a two-car garage.
The maintenance charge, which includes 24-hour security, garbage collection, gardening and pool maintenance, depends on the size of the house but roughly works out at about £300 per bedroom per year.
The first phase of 40 apartments sold out earlier this year and the second phase of 24 two-bed apartments was launched in August, of which five have been sold. Designed by Regino Cruz, who was responsible for the Utopia Pavilion at Expo 98, the 1,452 sq ft apartments include fully fitted kitchens with a range of appliances, soladrilho floor tiling and private verandahs. Membership of Vila Sol golf club costs about £30,000 and lasts 15 years. Owners of Vila Sol package villas are entitled to a free lifetime membership which they lose if they sell up. If you build your own villa then you are entitled to a 50 per cent discount on membership, which also lasts a lifetime. Apartment owners don't get a membership discount but do get a 30 per cent discount on green fees.
The golf club has an active membership - 55,000 rounds of golf were played last year. But don't expect to be let loose on the golf course if your handicap is above 25 if you are a man, or 35 if you are a woman. If you are holding up play, rangers will ask you to leave the course and you will be sent packing to the nearby academy to improve your skills.
Vila Sol is privately owned by Luis Farinha dos Santos. It is planned to turn it into a full-scale village with a commercial area, medical centre and a 180-bedroom hotel.
Those who buy property there tend to be retired business people over 55. About 20 per cent of owners live there full time. Vila Sol's marketing people reckon that the scheme is a good prospect for investors as there are "no low periods". The peak golfing season spans February to May, the tourist season, June to September and golfing activity resumes in the mild autumn and winter months.
Vila Sol is beside Vilamoura, which has an impressive marina with waterfront cafes. It is 10 minutes from the commercial centre Almancil, and is near Quinta do Lago, which has 17 restaurants and shopping centres.
