Take a football field-sized cruise ship, step up the suites to accommodate year-round living, and throw in a monthly cruise to the Bahamas, and you have Waterfront Lifestyles International – a "boutique maritime lodging company" that intends to sell condos from $159,000 to $399,000 for the luxurious units.

SeniorHousingNews.com reports the pre-construction, or pre-cruise sales, should draw interest from those who want to retire now and for those purchasers that intend to buy at today’s prices and eventually move on-board in the future. A monthly fee pays for the "operating expenses of the ship including crew, staff, fuel, maintenance, insurance, three meals daily, port fees, the medical center, and housekeeping," according to the site.

Plans call for porting in Port Canaveral, Florida and the company intends to add to its fleet in Tampa, Jacksonville, Palm Beach and Sarasota.

Some of the bullet-points of interest include:

• All meals included

• Housekeeping weekly

• Condo-dwellers have fractional ownership of the cruise ship

• Ship leaves port during all shuttle launches from Cape Canaveral

• Amenities include: dining room, cocktail lounges, nightclub, shuttle bus to shopping and central Florida interests, sun deck, medical center, cigar bar, casino, and, of course, shuffle board.

The first two ships of the fleet will be brand new construction. "Subsequent ships will range from brand new to perhaps 30 years old, but all will have been completely refurbished and made new again," according to the group’s web site, www.CondoShips.com.

Published: April 20, 2009

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Mr. Carr is an award-winning real estate broker in Northern Virginia and authored "Real Estate Investing Made Simple: a commonsense approach to building wealth." He also contributed to Donald Trump’s book, "The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received," and is an active trainer and coach of top producers in the Washington DC market. As a sought-after expert on real estate, Mr. Carr has been featured on CNN, various broadcast outlets and was the former real estate editor for The Washington Times. He accepts questions at his blog www.RealEstateOlogy.org.