Tom Hage (Timeshare owner): Here they treat us very well. They have good, you know, people contact, you know. We’ve never been turned away from any reservation. I think it’s worth it but, you have to get into the system to believe in the system.

So, how does the system work?

Lesson one is that while a timeshare involves real estate, it’s not really an investment like real estate. A timeshare is really more like prepaying for a hotel room or an apartment. A typical deal might be one week a year for twenty years. And the cost? All over the place but, fifteen to thirty grand is common. You’ve also got annual maintenance fees; couple of hundred bucks, maybe more.

You can buy a timeshare new from big names, no names, or buy ‘em used from specialty sites, even eBay. Either way be careful. There are lots of questions you should ask: How long does the deal last? Some are ten years. Some are deeded and can be passes down to your kids. Ask about annual fees. Are pets okay? Is your time a fixed week each year, or can you change it? Can you exchange for time at other resorts?

And don’t forget to shop around. Visit the resorts you’re interested in. You might even get a free or heavily discounted stay. Another way to protect yourself is deal with the majors; Disney timeshares, Hyatt, Marriot, Wyndham.

Bottom line, a timeshare can be a bargain if you know you can use it, and if you buy a timeshare right. But don’t let a quick decision get you in hot water. These things are easy to buy not so easy to sell. From money talks, I’m Stacy Johnson.

Buying a Timeshare should be done with a great deal of caution and awareness of the potential risks. Think carefully about all the benefits as well as all the risk as you consider buying and of course, always read the fine print before you sign anything.

There are two types of Timeshare properties: Deeded and licensed to use. A licensed to use Timeshare is not a purchase so much as it is a long-term rental. These Timeshare agreements have defined expiration dates with the buyer paying for the right to use the property for the duration of the contract. A deeded Timeshare on the other hand is much more like a conventional real estate property purchase with the buyer receiving a deed which can be transferred in one’s will to their heirs. The price of a Timeshare depends on how much time per year the buyer receives and the right to use the property and what at time of year these dates happen to fall. It could also not be a fix week but a flexible week. Generally, flexible week Timeshares carry a larger premium than a fixed week depending on the week. The increased premium is due to the flexibility of use.

Buying a Timeshare is an important decision and it is not one to be rushed into. Read over any documents and contracts very carefully making sure that you understand all the terms and conditions spelled out there in. Never sign anything unless you completely understand what you’re agreeing to. You may want to have your lawyer look over the contract before signing and you should definitely speak to someone who owns a property at that Timeshare resort.

Before you buy a Timeshare, keep the following points in mind:

• If you’re buying a Timeshare from a real estate company, verify that they are a licensed broker. If you’re buying from a timeshare resale company you are especially going to want to verify that they are a licensed broker. An easy way to verify this is for asking for their license number. Then you can verify it with the state department which deals with these kinds of transactions and knows the history of the broker. Be vigilant when you’re buying a Timeshare from a non-licensed firm. Your money is at stake and the non-licensed firm wouldn’t have much to lose. So, a greater chance of fraud exists.
• A Timeshare is meant to be a vacation property rather than an investment. You may not necessarily receive a good investment if you choose to resell it.
• License to use Timeshare should be approached with a degree of extra caution. If the company goes under or files for bankruptcy, you could lose everything.
• If the property you are looking at does not have all the features finished being constructed, you may want to get it in writing that they will be completed by a specific date. This helps insure that they actually go through with finishing the project.
• Don’t give too much credence to claims by the seller regarding the market value of the real estate or the resale value especially. These tend to go down when you resell them.
• Do not be impulsive when buying a Timeshare. Read each and every paper very thoroughly and take adequate time in researching, analyzing and making your decision to buy a Timeshare.
• And of course, get everything in writing.
• Lastly, before you make a purchase, make sure the Timeshare company guarantees their exchange program. Many are involved in larger exchange networks such as RCI or Interval International but, not every company does this and it’s necessarily worth to purchase a Timeshare without a solid exchange program unless you’re certain that you’re interested in vacationing at that same property every year.

If you’re thinking about Timeshare ownership and want to learn more, you should visit WeOwnTimeshares.com. There’s a wealth of Timeshare information on this Timeshare ownership social network. It is free to join and you can setup your profile in minutes and you can begin sharing your Timeshare experiences and reviews of different properties across the world. Begin asking questions in the forum. Visit today and we’ll see you there.

Jason: The resale market is kind of interesting because, you know, really until just the last few years there really weren’t a lot options, you know. If you purchased a Timeshare and say, 10 years later the kids grew up and you no longer had a need for it, you’re no longer traveling the way you used to travel and so, you decided to sell what would you do? And so, in some cases people would put an ad in the local newspaper. So, they run the Sunday ad, they spend a couple of hundred dollars and nothing happens. So, then maybe they call a local realtor, you know, and say “I’ve got this Timeshare I’d like to sell, can you help me sell it?” Of course your local realtor really isn’t going to have an interest or really the market for a Timeshare property. And so, it’s really a challenge and it’s really been the last few years with the growth of the internet that there really are legitimate, effective, viable means for selling a Timeshare.

There’s really two basic options inline. One is you can go to the broker. We actually are involved in a brokerage company called TimeshareHotDeal.com and there are some people that just really would prefer to have the assistance of a licensed real estate professional walk them through the sales process and I can certainly understand that.

Another option, and a candidly more popular option we’ve experienced, is the For Sale By Owner Model. Because what it allows you to do is spend a fairly small amount of money, advertise the timeshare and essentially advertise until it’s sold and closed for no commission. So, at the end of the day when those proceeds are distributed you get a 100% of those proceeds. You’re not paying a hefty commission to a broker.

You still need to be careful because anybody can have a website. The sixteen year old down the street can probably build you a Timeshare website by this time tomorrow. The key is, when you’re looking to use a Timeshare resale company, For Sale By Owner website, the key is to make sure that they really are going to have the best chance of delivering the results that you want to get that properties sold. And what that means is they need traffic, they need buyers. You’ve got to have exposure. And if you’re looking to sell Timeshare, it really boils down to two things: You need exposure and you need to price it right.

So, we talked a little about pricing. You could have an incredible property but, if you’ve over priced it, if there is many-many options out there for less money, it’s not going to sell regardless of the exposure. And then on the other hand you could have an incredible deal. You could be giving away your Timeshare but, if it’s advertised on a website that no one ever goes to, it’s not going to sell.

Jason:    Well, you know, when you’re buying on the resale market, I think, really there’s two things you need to be cautious of: The first is you need to be knowledgeable. You need to understand what it is you’re trying to buy, you know. A lot of people, when they buy a timeshare initially from the resort, they don’t even really completely understand what it is they’re purchasing. If the timeshare property has a point system, they may not even understand how it works. So, once you’ve settled in on a destination and then ultimately a property that interests you, it really makes sense to take a little bit of time and research that property, look at reviews on that property, that developer. Make sure you understand their point system. Make sure you understand the benefits that are associated. Make sure you understand the fees, maintenance fees that you’re going to have to pay for that property so that you can make an intelligent, educated, informed buying decision.

I think one of the things to be cautious of when buying on the resale market is when you’re buying by them, the good news is you’re going to save a ton of money. The bad news is not every timeshare owner really understands what they have, like I was just saying and so, it’s important that you use when you go to closing and make that purchase, make sure you use a title company that specializes in timeshare resales so that they get in a letter from the resort so, that everything that you think you’re getting, you’re really going to get.

Well, Alana. Let’s say I live in Florida and I just bought a Timeshare ski-week or I want to buy a Timeshare ski-week in say, Park City Utah, do I have to fly all the way over there to sign ownership documents and go through a closing?

Alana: Well, I mean, it would certainly be nice if you are able to do that. I would definitely encourage you to take a few days and take a break but, absolutely not. You do not have to be physically present to attend the closing for your Timeshare. In fact, 95% of the business that we do is done by fax and email and internet interaction. So, we use a title company that specializes in Timeshare closings. We will facilitate the closing. Everything will be sent to you either by fax, email or over night. So, it’s 100% safe and very easy.

Interviewer: Sounds convenient and simple. Thank you. We are Premier Timeshare Resale. You can locate us on the World Wide Web at www.premiertimeshareresale.com, or by phone: 18008618754 – extension 6100.

Jason: There’s really three reasons. One is definitely price. The truth of the matter is you’re going to pay less on the timeshare resale market. It’s very simple, you know. As I mentioned earlier, what you have to bear in mind is that the resort developers have to spend a tremendous amount of money driving prospects to their properties so that they can sell them at Timeshare. And it’s been said that on average 50% of a Timeshares price initially is spent on that marketing. So, once that timeshare property becomes available in the resale market, generally, you can look at savings of upwards of 50%. There are exceptions. There are some timeshares that are incredibly high in demand, other properties that are just really exclusive and depreciate less but, generally you’re going to save a bundle of money if you buy a timeshare on the resale market. There’s just no two ways about it.

I think the second reason to consider buying a Timeshare resale is you’re able to do it on your own terms, you know. You’re not sitting at a closing table being hammered by a salesperson, you know. We’ve all heard the stories about the Timeshare presentations. You have the opportunity to sit back, relax in your home, browse SellMyTimeshareNow.com in a relaxed setting and really make a decision: What is it you want to buy, when do you want to buy it and how do you want go about buying it? So, I think that’s a great-great thing to consider.

And I suppose the third thing is options. You know, typically when you’re in that initial presentation – that Timeshare presentation at a resort – you’re presented with particular property at that particular resort. Whereas on the resale market you can really spend some time and consider what is it you really want? The question you asked before: Are you going to hunt by destination or are you going to hunt by more the brand and the amenities offered? So, once you’ve made that decision the options are endless.

Alana, on your website it states – there’s a question that says why buy retail when you can buy resale? Can you tell us what that means?

Alana: Sure. It means exactly that. Why would you pay retail when you can buy resale?

In today’s world that applies to many different things but, it also applies to Timeshare Resale. And the number one reason that you would buy resale is to save yourself thousands and thousands of dollars. Literally thousands of dollars off developer retail prices.

The other reason that you might want to look at resale is just the many choices that you do have. I mean, there are thousands of resorts all around the world and we have listings for those resorts all over the world. When you go to a developer presentation – typically 90 minute presentation – they have one product to offer you, and that’s the resort that you’re at. That might not be the right resort for you. Maybe you live in Park City and you want to own in California, or maybe you want to own in Florida. So, we have all those choices for you. We have high-end resorts, we have resorts that aren’t so fancy, we can find something for you in every price point that you’re looking for.

It’s also quite possible maybe that buying a Timeshare is not for you. Maybe you’re more interested in fractional ownership where you own, maybe 8 or 10 or 13 weeks a year. We can offer that to you as well. Either close to home or across the world or maybe you want to buy a second home. Maybe you love a place so much you want to go back there year after year after year.

So, whatever it is, we can help you with. We’re licensed real estate agents that, you know, we specialize in Park City because we are in Park City but we have affiliates all over the world that we work with. So, the main thing is that we find something that fits for you and your family that is affordable, it is comfortable and it will fit your needs, whether it be Timeshare fractional or full ownership.

The other thing is that we’ll find you the best price available. And essentially, our service to you is free. You just need to let us know where you want to be and what you want to spend, we’ll find you the inventory. And our service to you is free because the seller pays our commission. So, there’s absolutely no downside to working with us, you know. We’re licensed real estate agents. It is 100% safe and we’ll find you what you’re looking for at the best price available.

Interviewer: So, anything to do with real estate I can contact you?

Alana: Anything to do with real estate you can definitely contact us. Our motto is that we pride ourselves on our service before, during and after the sale. So, you know, whatever level it is that we associate with you I’m sure you’ll be very pleased with our service.

Interviewer: Wonderful! Oh, we are Premier Timeshare Resale and you can locate us on the World Wide Web at www.premiertimeshareresale.com, or by phone at 18008618754 – extension 6100.

The first tip is that a timeshare is not really real estate. Although you do own a part of a property you should not consider what you have as a real estate investment. That is because generally the value of a timeshare on the resale market is almost – zero.

The video states that you should look at a timeshare as prepaying for a hotel room. With the cost being anywhere from $15,000 to $30,000 and yearly fees of between $200 to $800.

Another tip is to keep in mind whether you want to buy a new timeshare unit from the developer or do you want to buy a unit on the resale market.

Questions to ask about your new timeshare is what are the fees, do they allow pets, is it a points program and are you weeks fixed or floating.

But the biggest tip of all is to shop around. If you can go to the resort you can see if that is a place you would like to vacation at. And think about going with the major resort developers such as Disney timeshare, Windham etc. They say to remember that it is very easy to buy a timeshare and very very difficult to get rid of one.

The salesman was pushing the timeshare as an investment and not a vacation destination. There were two main points used for the investment approach.

The first was that the timeshare could be rented out which was a good way to recoup any yearly fee. The second point was that the new owners would receive a 3% yearly return on their investment. And that at the end of 25 years they would also receive 100% of their initial investment back. So what this means is that they could offset the yearly fee with rental income, they would receive a 3% return on investment and then receive all their money back at the end of 25 years.

Now what was even better was that at the end of 25 years they could rebuy their timeshare unit for the original price and continue on for another 25 years. This cycle could go on until 99 years was reached and at that time they or their heirs would have to take all the money.

When the investigators showed the video to the resort they never heard back or were able to contact anybody at the resort. The investigators have sent the video to a number of different policing agencies in both Mexico and Canada.