US based Lifestyle Assets chooses Merlin Software as its software provider

April 11, 2011 - PRLog -- Merlin Software for Vacation Ownership is delighted to announce that a new vacation property management company, Lifestyle Asset Group, has selected Merlin to provide software for its operations.

Described as “the next generation of luxury vacation ownership” the US-based Lifestyle Asset Group offers a variation on the fractional ownership model.  Lifestyle Asset Group is launching “collective asset ownership” in which 100 participants collectively own, debt-free, 12 residences with an average value of $2.5 million.  The equity owners get to use these residences for their own vacations. With a one-time capital contribution of $300,000, each equity owner will enjoy seven years of access to the residences that are booked on a first-come, first-served basis using credits, and at the end of the term, the company sells the residences and returns the proceeds to the owners. Equity owners have the option to transfer their interests at any time without penalties or fees. Lifestyle Asset Group will start with two groups, one focusing on travel destinations in eastern North America (Eastern Region) and the other in western North America (Western Region). Lifestyle Assets provides a level of choice, flexibility, and financial peace of mind unmatched by fractionals, private residence clubs, or destination clubs.

“As Lifestyle Asset Group purchases a collection of residences on behalf of its owners and then serves as the management company, it is essential we have software that can support our structure and nationwide operations. Merlin is highly sophisticated and includes the modules we need to run our business,” explained Ed Powers, president and COO. “As Merlin also runs in the Cloud we are able to take advantage of the benefits of this kind of service provision including simple pricing, no large IT department requirements and no expensive hardware and communication links. This is essential for our type of operation,” Powers continued.

“Merlin’s new online interactive pages will allow our equity owners to go online, make and amend reservations, view their account and transact in real time. This is the type of service our equity owners now expect,” Powers added.

Merlin Software provides a complete, single software solution for today’s resort business from single timeshare weeks to complex fractional ownership and destination clubs. Developed as state of the art Business Application Software, Merlin is the only software available that is intrinsically 100%web-based and served totally over the internet using cloud computing technology. It is not functionality that has been added as an afterthought in order to keep up with modern trends. Users access their Merlin accounts securely via a web browser from anywhere. Functionality includes the Merlin marketing, sales, front office and back office modules, stand alone exchange facility and website integration.

The technology platform for Merlin consists of a Microsoft SQL Server database back end with the front end built using Active Server Pages (Browser Front End).

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Developed by Mike Pnematicatos with 25 years’ experience in vacation ownership, Merlin is the complete software solution for resorts. It is web-based, highly interactive and includes property managment, sales, marketing and accounting functionality.