For Neil Sullivan, the 40-kilometre-long island of Ambergris Caye off the mainland of Belize is a long way from his hometown of Winnipeg. But after visiting the Central American country on a whim five years ago, Belize is now home and he's chasing a big dream.
After graduating law school at University of Manitoba, Sullivan dabbled in real estate development while he ran a legal practice. In 2005, he bought a rundown, seedy apartment building in Wolseley and transformed it into an upscale condo development that quickly sold out. He and his wife, Alana, did the same thing in River Heights, turning an outdated home in real need of repair into a beautiful combination of new-house amenities and old-world charm.
Now 39, Sullivan has left the legal world and the cold Winnipeg winters behind to tackle his biggest and most ambitious project yet -- creating what some people are calling the Beverley Hills of Belize. He bought a parcel of virgin land in Belize just days after arriving on vacation in November 2004 and hasn't looked back since.
"I thought I'd retire a lawyer," says Sullivan. "I never imagined I'd be doing this."
'This' is developing the 20 acres of land that Sullivan now owns, which is almost all waterfront. He's quickly creating his own Shangri-La of real estate in an area called Costa Del Sol, which is a three-minute boat ride across the bay from the charming town of San Pedro on the island of Ambergris Caye.
Sullivan's growing real estate development is multi-faceted. Caye Winds is his signature project -- a series of grand, luxury homes that run for US$1.5 million. The 7,000-plus-square-foot homes are designed to offer owners the ultimate in comfort and can be fully customized to suit the buyer's needs. A complex of pools will be built in the centre of the housing development.
Three of these homes have already been built and construction on several others is set to begin shortly. While there will be a total of 21 luxury homes in the Caye Winds project, nine of them have already been sold. Two brothers from Quebec bought the first home and several buyers from the U.S. have invested in the others.
While most of the buyers are looking at the properties as income generators, Sullivan says a few people are leaving their own northern climate behind and moving down to Belize.
"One couple planned to move down here in 30 years," says Sullivan. "But now they are moving down imminently."
For those owners who don't decide to up and move to Belize and choose to use the homes as a vacation spot, they can put their home in a rental pool and offer it up as a luxury vacation villa complete with dedicated butler and the option of having a personal chef come in to cook all your meals.
Sullivan has another project that is a bit more affordable, but still offers owners a piece of luxury in paradise. Casa Linda, which was named after Sullivan's late mother-in-law and means "small home", offers buyers 1,946-square-foot-homes with a price tag of US$450,000. Eight of the 11 homes in the first phase of the project have been sold so far. A total of 21 of these homes will be built -- all pre-fab construction. The homes will be built in the U.S., shipped to Belize and then the structure can go up in just three days.
"No one has done that before in Belize," notes Sullivan, who points out the pre-fab construction is a way to deal with pricey supply costs and labour issues.
Sullivan's third housing project is called Casa Corbu. It's a 12-unit condominium development that is spread out over three buildings, all offering incredible views of the bay. Interest in Casa Corbu was so great, Sullivan says the project sold out in just four days.
"In four days, we had 20 people on a waiting list for 12 units," he says.
"Most of them have been bought by Winnipeggers -- all by word of mouth."
The condos will range in size from 1,160 square feet to 1,450 square feet and are priced between $359,000 and $459,000.
And then there is Casa Katerina, which was named after Sullivan's own mother who still lives in Winnipeg but manages to get down to Belize as often as she can. Casa Katerina is a luxury, 100-room hotel complex. There will be seven buildings, each with 14 rooms, and two suites in the reception building. Plans also include a full, state-of-the-art music production studio. For US$140,000, investors can buy a room in the hotel and be part of a rental pool just like Sullivan's other properties.
Sullivan is taking on a hotel project in addition to the housing developments because he sees great potential for Belize, particularly the island of Ambergris Caye, to really take off as a tourist destination. With only about 1,300 hotel rooms currently on the island, there is enormous potential to fill the anticipated demand. Construction on the hotel will begin in late summer.
While Sullivan's real estate development is two countries and many thousands of kilometres away from Manitoba, the connections to Winnipeg run deep. With Alana working alongside him, two of Sullivan's three brother-in-laws -- Greg and Glen Hinton -- have picked up and moved to Belize from Winnipeg to be part of the development from the ground up.
And not only have many Winnipeggers already invested in the homes and condos soon to be built, two Winnipeg architects helped put Sullivan's vision on paper. Greg Porth of Houseplant Inc. and Ernie Walter of Walter Development Corp. have both been involved in the design of the multiple projects.
For Sullivan, getting into the Belizean market when he did has made his vision possible. He says real estate values in Belize, particularly in the cayes or islands, are on the rise.
"This is one of the few places around that hasn't been impacted by the economic downturn," says Sullivan. "I was very fortunate to buy when I did."
Building on the land has now become a self-fulfilling prophecy, he adds with a chuckle. As soon as one home was built, the land value went up.
"A lot of people come down here with big talk and nothing materializes," Sullivan notes. "Land here escalated exponentially as soon as people saw my project was successful."
The best way to reach Sullivan is via e-mail: neilwsullivan@yahoo.com
