Hotel condominiums offer the opportunity to own and live in a condo where you never have to cook or clean and where room service can be yours at the push of a house-phone button. The concept has been around for 50 or 60 years in such old-style New York hotels as the Pierre, Carlyle, and Waldorf-Astoria. However, in recent years a strong interest in this form of ownership has begun to flourish in other cities and we are seeing quite a few offerings in Florida.

Condo hotel properties are enticing because they provide amenities not usually found in conventional condominium buildings. Residents may have the same privileges as an overnight hotel guest, such as full concierge services and signing privileges at the hotel's restaurant, bar and retail shops. For a fee, the hotel condo owner may utilize hotel staff for cleaning and maintenance of the residence.

The units are generally sold designer-furnished and may be placed in a hotel "rental" program when not in use by the owner. Generally, they are more expensive than comparable non-hotel condominiums and monthly maintenance charges may be considerably higher. They tend to be small in size and may or may not have a kitchenette. Studios may be combined with an adjacent one-bedroom unit to create a "two bedroom" hotel condo.

Hotel condominiums are found in sophisticated urban business areas and in exclusive resorts. Among the noteworthy hoteliers offering such residences are Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons, and Starwood. The typical buyer may own several other homes.