Ouch: Members Grab Desert Mountain At Bargain Bin Price

J. Craig Anderson reports on the Desert Mountain members buying their six Nicklaus courses, clubhouses and 500 acres of developable land for $73.5 million or a one-time assessment of $16,500 a member.

He said that the final negotiated price was about one-third of the seller's original asking price.
"The developer was hoping to get over $200 million from this deal," he said.

Kaplan said he and the other members knew in advance that they would have to contribute some cash, and that he did not consider the $16,500 a financial burden.

"I thought it was an amount that the majority of members were very comfortable with," he said.