Posts Tagged ‘timeshare properties’

Timeshare: Is It Right For You?

Thursday, September 9th, 2010

Many people buy timeshares after a lot of research and analysis. But same is not true with some people who simply buy timeshares hearing the buzz surrounding it with poor perception and ignorance about timeshares. Buying a timeshare is a huge investment and thus should be dealt with utmost importance. Before buying a timeshare you have to first question yourself whether is it really for you? How often do you go for vacation? Is that place right for you to go year after year? Do you want to buy a timeshare just for vacation purpose or you are buying it as an investment?

Even if you decide to buy a timeshare property you should start your research at least nine months before you buy a timeshare. But let us weigh in various factors to know whether timeshare is really for you or not. A vacation home might be a minor financial investment for few rich and wealthy but to many middle class people it is possible only in dreams. Middle class people badly needed an alternative to this costly investment. The search for an alternative resulted in the discovery of timeshare in Europe in 1970′s. This was a welcome relief to many people who could not afford to buy an expensive vacation home. This concept gained huge popularity with every passing year and today over two million Americans own timeshare properties which is a big number.

A timeshare is nothing but a real estate property split into many ownerships. The cost is shared among the owners. Timeshares are basically classified into two types of plans, deeded and non-deeded. In a deeded plan the owner buys the timeshare unit and the unit for 30-40 years. It can again be classified into fixed use and flexible use. A fixed use allows only a specific time and specific number of years where as a flexible use timeshare allows you to choose vacation at any time of the year but only on first come first serve basis as many people would like to go for that option. The other types of plan called non-deeded plan is also called right to use plan which is like a lease, you have the same facilities but only for specific period and you lose all the rights after the lease expires.

Having understood what a timeshare is and different types it is also important to dig into the facts of timeshare. Timeshares are usually common in a tourist place. The cost depends on the location and season of the year. Apart from cost of timeshare you have to pay the maintenance and various other fees also. This also may vary depending on the location. But one good thing about timeshare is that you don’t have to worry about the upkeep and maintenance of your timeshare unit. But you have to think is it really worth to pay hundreds of dollars every year in addition to the thousands you have already paid to buy the timeshare and that too to spend only one or two weeks in a year. This may be reasonable only if the maintenance fee is low which is generally not.

But if you see the other side of the coin, in long term a timeshare will be cheaper than a hotel or vacation home. If you add up the cost of hotel for thirty years and compare it with timeshare it will be way higher. But then again, if you decide to go to a different vacation spot every year hotel may be ideal for you. Although timeshare offer exchange of properties with other owners across the states and countries it may not be that easy to do it. Also one should compare the other alternatives to a timeshare available in that place. In some seasons timeshares could really be expensive due to their close proximity to beach fronts etc. So a quick market survey to find cheap alternative should never be ruled out.

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How To Avoid A Timeshare Fraud

Wednesday, September 8th, 2010

As with any kind of investment, the chances of your timeshare investment ending up in a fraud or scam are very much possible. A fraud or a scam can prove devastating for you both financially and mentally. It may take a while for you to recover from its backlash. Those of you who have already been a victim of these notorious frauds and scams can understand the trauma that they have experienced and gone through. That dream vacation that you may have been planning since a long time ended up being a nightmare for you. But if you think you are the first person to have been scammed hold on there are many more people may be in hundreds who have been the victim of this unscrupulous behavior of some individuals.

As a matter of fact the timeshares are one of the safest ways of experiencing many popular vacation places. How about a secluded journey to the geographical wonders of the world? How about that romantic getaway in a beach resort? Sounds exciting, but these are one of the marketing tactics used by the scammers to lure people into thinking about buying a timeshare. In fact this is their first victory in setting a trap for you. This does not mean that every timeshare company who uses this tactic would be a scammer. The essence of that is to be precautious and not get impulsive about it in the first go. Always think and rethink before making a decision on buying a timeshare. Restrain yourselves to the maximum.

One of the important criterions is selecting a right timeshare company. As a rule of thumb, always go with large, well established timeshare companies who have been in the business for years. In this way you know their history very well and their reputation in the market. They are less likely to fraud a person than a new or a small company. This is applicable when it comes to the resale of your timeshare property.

Many times the catchy style of marketing techniques of these scammers can easily raise red flags and you can avoid being scammed. It first starts with an invitation to a timeshare presentation. They offer you a gift if you attend the presentation which may look expensive but in reality is not. Sometimes they may also inform you that you have won a gift and you can claim it by attending the free presentation. And then once you fall prey to it and attend the presentation which turns to be nothing more than a gimmick, they start using pressure selling techniques and they won’t let you go out unless they have you sign something just like dealers selling used cars who say “we will sell you this car for this much price if you buy it today”. They may say the property is only 5 minutes walk from the beach but in reality it may turn out to be 15 minutes away from the beach. Sometimes the property might not be the same they described in their presentation taking advantage of the fact that nobody would go to Florida or Carolina to see the property themselves before buying it. And in some rare cases the property might not even exist at all. What we learn from this is to read the fine printed lines in the invitation if you are sent one. Never ever succumb to their pressure tactics and refuse to sign any kind of paper.

A much better idea is to consult a lawyer before signing any contract documents and see if all the promises that were made verbally are being fulfilled or not. Do your home work before buying a timeshare by researching the market prices in the location you are buying. And also ask for contact numbers of the previous customers. Make sure you call them and find out everything you want to know about the company and their properties.

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Tips On Selling Your Timeshare

Tuesday, September 7th, 2010

Many people would agree that reselling a timeshare is not as easy as buying one. You get loads of invitations in mails; get courtesy calls and emails to attend a timeshare presentation. They offer you bounties and favors in return for attending a presentation. Why all this? To convince you buy a timeshare. Buying is as easy as making a simple enquiry and many companies come knocking to your house to sell a timeshare. But, have you ever wondered is selling a timeshare as easy as buying one? The harsh truth is “no”. Reselling a timeshare can be a real pain in the neck. That is why many experts advice not buy timeshare as an investment. It is never going to rewards you with the returns of a real estate property. It is an investment in your life, dreams but not for financial returns. True that many people buy timeshare with the intention of vacationing only but certain unforeseen circumstances may force some timeshare owners to resale their timeshare unit. So this article is exclusively for those people and may also benefit others also who are contemplating selling their timeshares due to reasons such as change of taste, family has grown and you no longer want to go to the same location etc.

1. Check with the timeshare developer who sold you the timeshare. Sometimes the developers offer the original buyer an option to resell their timeshare back to the developer. If not find out if your timeshare is associated with a licensed broker handling timeshare resale.

2. You have to be realistic in your expectations. Do not expect wonders. It is a bitter truth that timeshare properties do sell at less than their original price. Not only that, it may be difficult to resale as well especially if it is in a not so popular destination, is a small unit for example a studio and if the time of use is in an off season. It might be a challenging task to sell a timeshare like the one discussed above. But in case of a property which is located in popular vacation destinations, is reasonably big and offers usage during peak season might sell easily. But again even if the property sells it might sell at 30-50% less than its original price. So be prepared mentally about that, think that it is like your car which depreciates with each passing year.

3. Make sure you do your home work first. Research the market well to know about the prices. Also know what you are selling by thoroughly studying all the documents. Try to ascertain whether your property is a deeded property or right to use one. Some right to use property values decrease considerably when they approach their expiry. Knowing all these facts makes you knowledgeable about your timeshare and helps you in reselling the property with confidence.

4. List your timeshare with a real estate agency. There is no dearth of online and traditional brokers. But do enquire whether there is any upfront fee for listing the advertisement or commission on sale of property. You may not want to go with a broker who charges very large upfront fee or commission. You can also list your timeshare in classified ads offered by many timeshare developers. The latest trend that is catching up is to list your timeshare for auction on sites such as e-bay which lest you develop your own ad campaign with your own ideas.

5. Do not fall prey to scammers who might dupe you by offering quick resale of your timeshare. Never believe their promise to resale it quickly as we have discussed in detail earlier how touch it is to resale a timeshare. There is no guarantee whatsoever that your timeshare might resell in a specified time period.

6. Also do not commit to any offer on phone. Do make decisions in haste. Take your time to make a decision and to come to a conclusion whether to accept the offer or not. Also request the offer in writing and also obtain written contract.

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