A discreet exit requires more than a residence sale. This family-office checklist separates condominium obligations from marina agreements, with practical controls for private marketing, broker access, approvals, documents, and transfer charges.
For a yacht-owning family, a South Florida residence and a berthing arrangement may represent one lifestyle decision. They should not automatically be treated as one transferable asset. The family office’s task is to establish what can be sold, assigned, retained, or terminated before introducing a prospective buyer.
Start with a written exit brief: the preferred sale sequence, whether the yacht will remain locally, and whether the residence sale depends on a satisfactory marina outcome. These are negotiating objectives, not assumed contractual rights. Ask counsel to translate them into conditions and deadlines supported by the agreements.
For a buyer considering St. Regis® Residences Bahia Mar Fort Lauderdale, this distinction should guide the review: evaluate the residence documents and any proposed berthing agreement separately, without inferring transfer rights from the residential offering.
Create two document files and a coordination sheet showing where their obligations intersect. For the residence, identify the owner, governing documents, approval provisions, resale disclosures, and charges. For the marina, establish what legal interest the agreement creates, who holds it, and whether an exit requires another party’s consent.
Do not assume a residence purchaser can inherit the seller’s marina position. Request written confirmation of:
Whether the arrangement can be assigned or the buyer must enter a new agreement.
Whether selling the residence triggers termination, notice, or another obligation.
Whether the seller can retain berthing rights after the residential closing.
Whether vessel acceptance and buyer acceptance are separate decisions.
Treat these as diligence inquiries, not universal marina requirements. In a Brickell search involving Una Residences Brickell, the same discipline applies: interest in a residence should not substitute for documentary confirmation of any separately proposed yacht arrangements.
Ask Florida counsel to confirm the current condominium resale disclosure requirements for the transaction. The preparation checklist should address the declaration, association articles of incorporation, bylaws, rules, financial information, and any required association frequently-asked-questions document. Confirm which documents the seller must provide and who bears the delivery expense.
Ask the association about the process and expense for obtaining current official records, and have counsel confirm the owner’s inspection and copying rights. Assemble the residence file before negotiations become time-sensitive rather than relying on an old purchase binder.
Assign one family-office contact to maintain a dated document index and delivery record. Keep governing documents separate from marketing materials. Flag unresolved questions rather than allowing sales language to fill the gaps. A well-organized file supports informed negotiation; it does not establish that a transfer will be approved.
Private marketing should begin with instructions, not assumptions about confidentiality. Agree with the broker on who may receive the opportunity, what identifying information may circulate, and when fuller documents become available. Ask counsel whether confidentiality undertakings are appropriate and what they can realistically protect.
Consider a staged release: an initial description, a qualified discussion, then controlled access to the transaction file. Keep statutory disclosure obligations distinct from discretionary marketing choices. Discretion is not a reason to withhold required buyer documents.
For a family evaluating Onda Bay Harbor alongside other residential options, this protocol can organize the search without implying that the project follows a particular off-market process. Written circulation instructions are a recommended control, not a guarantee of privacy.
Ask the relevant residential and marina contacts to confirm access procedures before scheduling visits. Establish who may accompany the broker, whether appointments require advance confirmation, and whether photography or document circulation needs permission. Do not presume a single access rule applies across properties or operators.
Separate permission to tour a residence from permission to enter a marina or board a vessel. If the yacht is not part of the sale, instruct the marketing team accordingly. Decide who will host each visit and how requests will be logged.
For a Coconut Grove shortlist that includes Vita at Grove Isle, use this access checklist as a diligence framework, not a description of that project’s rules. Confirm access arrangements for the specific property and transaction.
Before contracting, establish whether association approval of the buyer is required. Ask counsel whether the contract should be contingent on obtaining that approval by a specified deadline. Application submission and receipt of approval are separate events; the family office should track both.
Determine separately whether a right of first refusal applies. This is distinct from buyer approval and warrants its own review and completion record. Do not describe either process as satisfied merely because an application has been delivered.
Build a calendar from the executed contract and amendments, assigning responsibility for each submission, response, and follow-up. Ask counsel to address what happens if residential approval arrives but any necessary marina consent does not. Where coordinated completion matters, negotiate that dependency expressly rather than relying on everyone’s preferred timetable.
For a proposed condominium transfer fee, ask counsel to verify whether association approval is required and whether the declaration, articles, or bylaws authorize the charge. Confirm how applicants are counted, including any applicable treatment of spouses or a parent with a dependent child.
Request an itemized schedule identifying each charge’s recipient, contractual or statutory basis, payment trigger, and expected payer. Have counsel verify the currently applicable condominium fee limit, including any statutory adjustment, rather than relying on a remembered dollar amount.
Do not automatically apply condominium transfer-fee restrictions to a separate marina or club agreement. First establish the legal regime governing each charge. For proposed marina charges, ask whether payment relates to assignment, a new agreement, termination, or another event, and request the supporting provision.
Before authorizing completion, consolidate the open points into one decision sheet: residence approvals, any first-refusal issue, marina outcome, document delivery, confirmed charges, and responsibility for unresolved items. Mark each as documented, pending, or requiring a negotiated solution.
The objective is a controlled transition, with lifestyle expectations matched to enforceable terms. Confirm any temporary berthing or delayed-exit arrangement before the family relies on it, with transaction-specific advice from Florida counsel.
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Begin a quiet conversationNot automatically. Review the residence documents and marina agreement separately, then identify any contractual dependencies between them.
Do not assume it does. Confirm whether the marina arrangement permits assignment, requires consent, or calls for a new buyer agreement.
Ask counsel to confirm the required disclosure package, addressing current governing documents, financial information, and any required association frequently-asked-questions document.
Have counsel confirm the seller’s document-delivery obligations and who bears the expense for the transaction.
Ask the association for its records-request process and costs. Have Florida counsel confirm the owner’s inspection and copying rights.
Private-marketing instructions should remain separate from required buyer disclosures. Discretion should not be used to withhold required condominium documents.
Request confirmation of appointment procedures, permitted attendees, and any permissions needed for photography or circulation. Confirm residential, marina, and vessel access separately.
No. They are separate questions, and application submission should also be tracked separately from receipt of approval.
Ask counsel to verify the approval requirement, the governing documents’ fee authority, and the applicable statutory limit. Confirm how applicants are counted before budgeting the charge.
No automatic application should be assumed for a separate marina or club agreement. Identify the legal regime and supporting provision for each charge.
