We are very pleased to announce Carla Nicolay as Sell My Timeshare NOW’s new Director of Human Resources.

Carla is a New England native, who received her Bachelor of Science degree from North Adams State College in western Massachusetts, but later headed west. At San Diego State University, she completed her Certificate of Human Resources. Besides her energy and compassion, Carla brings over twenty years of experience in the field of human resources, fifteen of which has been at the management level.

While in San Diego, she was employed by Midway Home Entertainment, a video game software developer and publisher. There, she helped grow the company from 65 employees to 350. She was one of six start-up employees of High Moon Studios, a video game software development company also located in San Diego. There she was instrumental in creating a corporate culture and helping High Moon as it increased to 300 employees.

In 2005, Carla received a Workplace Excellence Award in the small business category, awarded by the San Diego chapter of the Society for Human Resources Management.

But at Sell My Timeshare NOW, we are very glad Carla is back on the east coast. Carla says, “Sell My Timeshare NOW is a great place to work, to build a career, and to be part of a company with a proactive growth plan for the future. I look forward to being part of the team that has built this proven industry leader.”

As the global leader in timeshare resales and timeshare rentals via the internet, we are a fast growing company, already growing from 3 employees to nearly 100, in a very short time. We are glad to have Carla on board and glad she will be part of the team as we look toward a bright future helping people buy, rent, or sell timeshare in an easy and effective way.

The Timeshare Owners Blog has a new name and a new look, growing and changing to keep up with your needs.

When our blog began, 4 years ago, we posted information several times each month. As readership grew and the need escalated to get more news to more people, we started posting weekly, which quickly evolved into 2 and 3 times per week. Now, we typically update the blog daily, Monday through Saturday.

Our goal is to speak to timeshare owners and people who are interested in becoming owners, yet also to people who have never imagined they might want to rent or buy timeshare, because they just do not recognize the opportunities timeshare has for them. We seek to educate and enlighten our readers with a broad scope of vacation ownership and travel industry information, and a focused eye on all things timeshare.

We are no longer a blog just for timeshare owners…we are the definitive resource for all news TIMESHARE…the good, the great, and even the troubling. We are the resource, the answer, and the authority.

And effective today, we are now known as: The Timeshare Authority.

Our look is sleeker and cleaner; information is easier to find. Our new URL (our web address) is http://www.thetimeshareauthority.com/

Now when you type in our old address, you will be redirected to The Timeshare Authority. But you will still be able to find past articles and information on our new site.

We hope you like the changes you find here as we continue to redefine our service to better meet your requests and your needs.

The March 31 Timeshare Owners Blog ran a post titled, They Wouldn’t Have this Problem if They’d Bought Timeshare Resales. We were looking at a situation that occurred when a timeshare developer presold timeshare units, in many cases without recording deeds, but failed to build the timeshare resort. In another instance, the resort is built and operational, but this same developer and his partner failed to pay bills on the property or to give owners their share of the timeshare rental money.

Robert Reposa of Hingham, MA, the property owner, now owes thousands of dollars in unpaid state and federal taxes, not to mention the restitution he owes to timeshare buyers at the two properties: the Navigator Beach Club and Beachside Village in Falmouth.

The MA Attorney General has 50 complaints from timeshare owners who paid for, but did not receive, deeds for the unfinished timeshare units at the Navigator Club. On Tuesday, the Navigator Beach Club was sold at auction to a man who says he does not intend to use it as a timeshare resort. What happens next is just a wait and see situation for timeshare buyers, some who are out as much as $50,000.

Contact Information Regarding the Troubled Timeshare Deal

The Timeshare Owners Blog will continue to provide information about this timeshare deal gone wrong as it becomes available, as well as offering good advice for avoiding this problem when you buy timeshare. Here is a list of phone numbers and contact information that may be helpful if you have questions about the property or the ongoing investigation:

Massachusetts Attorney General.
(617)-727-8400

Consumer Complaint Form

Det. Sgt. Ben Wunderlich (Working the case for the Dennisport Police and coordinating with the Attorney General’s Office and the District Attorney’s Office)
(774) 352-1433

Robert Reposa
(781) 264-5296

George Fintonis
(508) 398-9153
george@capecodoceanresorts.com

Website for victims and others trying to learn more about this situation:
http://www.navigatorbeachclub.org/

This is an interesting link to the actual property auction from the ABC affiliate in Boston, WCVB:
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/15827067/index.html

I’ve written about this before, but in light of Sell My Timeshare NOW’s press release this week supporting more consumer education for people who buy timeshare resales or sell timeshare resales, it never hurts to pass on this message again.

The “Nigerian scam,” also called the “419 scam,” never seems to go away, although its sources have spread far beyond Nigeria and touched many areas besides timeshare sales. When it comes to selling timeshare, here’s basically how the Nigerian scam works:

The timeshare owner receives a letter, email, or phone call saying that someone wants to purchase his timeshare unit. The phony timeshare buyer, or his phony representative, then sends the timeshare owner a check for more than the purchase price of the timeshare unit, a check that the elated owner deposits. If the timeshare owner makes the mistake of promptly sending to the phony buyer the executed deed to his timeshare and the difference between the check sent and the sales price, then the timeshare owner has lost both his timeshare and the money he or she sent back to the buyer.

Even though many people have heard about this timeshare scam, they get bitten by it because the check they receive from the phony timeshare buyer usually looks so authentic that even the timeshare owner’s bank may initially accept it as either a valid bank check or credit union draft. Despite the fact that your bank accepts the buyers check and at first credits it into your account, days or even weeks later, when the counterfeit check works its way back to the issuing bank, its fraudulence will be discovered.

Why People Still Fall for a Timeshare Scam

As old as this timeshare scam is, people still get caught by it. While dozens, maybe hundreds, of bogus deals may cross your desk, never doubt the ability of one lone criminal to craft an approach that sounds so sincere and so genuine, that even savvy skeptics fall for it. Letterheads that look like they come from a timeshare resales company, from eBay, or another seemingly authentic source may trick you into believing that you have a genuine offer to buy timeshare in your hands.

Another variation on this timeshare scam is for you to be contacted by someone who says he or she has a guaranteed buyer for your timeshare weeks or timeshare unit, and asks you to send a check - say for $200 - to cover the transfer costs. Mail that check, and guess what happens next?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

You might as well have taken two one-hundred dollar bills and flushed them away. The loss is not as great this way, but it is still money gone with nothing to show for it.

Reliable Ways to Sell Timeshare

The message here is not a warning against paying fees upfront to sell timeshare, despite what some voices in the timeshare industry try to preach. There are many situations in which it makes good sense to pay someone to help you advertise and market your timeshare for sale. Just make sure you first confirm that the timeshare company you are paying has a proven record of successfully advertising timeshare resales and timeshare rentals in a global marketplace.

More than 1.7 million people visit Sell My Timeshare NOW’s website each month. In 2007, Sell My Timeshare NOW presented over $274 million in offers to buy timeshare or rent timeshare advertised on its website.

Recently the Dover, NH newspaper, Fosters Daily Democrat, ran a nice human-interest article about charitable giving. It was especially interesting to all of us at Sell My Timeshare NOW because four of the “humans” in this human-interest piece are part of the timeshare team here at our company.

Jessica Nason, Kayla Peach, Karen Gearwar, and Kevin Curran were each asked what they would do if they won that day’s $230 million Powerball jackpot, and were directed to give half the money to charity.

Jessica said, “I know there’s a lot of problems overseas, but we have to take care of problems at home before we spend money on other countries.” She explained that she would donate her $115 million to starving children in America; a concept that Kayla endorsed.

Karen was thinking along the same lines, and said her money would go to homeless children in America, while Kevin said, “I’d save animals that are malnourished and have been kicked to the curb. I hate seeing that happen.”

Sell My Timeshare NOW - Solving Problems Every Day

It doesn’t surprise me that Sell My Timeshare NOW employees are eager to share; I see them giving every day with their dedication, hard work, and genuine commitment to helping people buy, rent, or sell timeshare. Because they know we provide a valuable service and that our company is built on integrity, they come to work enthusiastic about helping people enjoy vacation ownership at affordable prices or assisting timeshare owners who are ready to sell timeshare they no longer use. Either way, they make an important contribution to helping families manage their dollars and maximize their vacation experiences.

And in today’s overworked, overstressed world, that is a pretty important contribution in itself.

Call us at (877) 815-4227. Jessica, Kayla, Karen, Kevin, and about 100 other dedicated timeshare specialists are hard at work making good things happen for people every day.

Do you have Bahamas timeshare weeks you want to sell or rent?

If so, you may benefit from this information. According to an article that appeared in The Freeport News, January 11, this month is bringing record numbers of visitors to the island of Grand Bahama. Logic says, the more the Bahamas develop into a highly desired tourist destination, the easier it could be to sell your Bahamas timeshare resale or use it as a Bahamas timeshare rental. And the Bahamian Ministry of Tourism is doing everything they can to move the Bahamas up the preferred vacation destination charts.

Tourism to Grand Bahama Island recently benefited because high winds in other parts of the Caribbean rerouted some cruise ships to Freeport Harbor. Yet much of the tourism Grand Bahama is enjoying is simply the result of people who have selected the Bahamas as their target destination.

The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism is working hard to improve the island’s desirability factor. According to the Executive Director of the Ministry, Kerry Fountain, (as quoted in The Freeport News) the plan is to, “Create your product, deliver on the experience in terms of service and the attitude, get your guests here affordably, and promote it.” He adds, “It has to happen in that order, but we have to keep our nose to the grindstone in order to get it done.”

The Ministry of Tourism anticipates being able to successfully weather even a tight US economic market because many US vacationers will still be taking trips, they will just be looking to travel closer to home. Additionally, the Ministry is working hard at recruiting and training better hospitality industry workers, unrolling programs in the high schools to promote careers in tourism. Efforts like this will help the long-term tourism market in the Bahamas as well as Bahamas timeshare resales and Bahamas timeshare rentals.

Creating immediate boosts to the tourism market in Grand Bahama are recently discounted airfares to Freeport and Nassau. US Airways and American Airlines are currently both offering special pricing on island airfares or vacation packages.

And now that things seem to be turning around for the Royal Oasis timeshare resort with plans to renovate and reopen, popular Bahamas tourist destinations like the International Bazaar may actually return to their former glory. Harcourt Developments Limited, the purchaser of the Royal Oasis timeshare, is expected to invest some $400 million dollars in their Bahamian resorts over the upcoming years.

To learn more about how to sell timeshare or rent timeshare you own in the Bahamas, visit Sell My Timeshare NOW. If you are interested in becoming a Bahamas timeshare resales owner, Sell My Timeshare NOW also offers an excellent inventory of vacation ownership properties.

Sell My Timeshare NOW releases its End-of-Year 2007 Statistical Synopsis today. Because we are a privately held company, we do not publish quarterly earnings reports or an annual report to the stockholders.

However, we do want to keep the business world and the public apprised of the trends within our company, so three times a year we release a quarterly synopsis of business. At the end of the year, we also release an annual summary, which we make available on our website; by general distribution to the media; and as an attachment to a Sell My Timeshare NOW electronic press release distributed by PR Web.

You can download the four-page Sell My Timeshare NOW End of Year 2007 Statistical Synopsis here.

2007 proved to be another record-breaking year for Sell My Timeshare NOW. We set new highs for website traffic, number of unique visitors to our site, revenues and both the dollar amount and the quantity of offers to rent timeshare or to buy timeshare.

2008 will be an interesting year for the economy and the nation. America is facing one of the most unpredictable presidential elections in years. Consumers and businesses stand poised to march forward or push the panic button on their finances. Everyone waits to see what impact recent cuts by the Federal Reserve, the Wall Street rollercoaster, the slowing job market, and the dismal real estate market will have on their personal financial situation.

However, if 2008 follows the path of 2007, it will prove to be both a good year to sell timeshare and a good year to buy timeshare. Timeshares always attract people who are looking to reduce their vacation costs. Timeshare resales offer a way to create a hedge against inflation by locking in today’s vacation lodging costs. People who were considering buying new timeshare from a developer will be paying attention to the great values timeshare resellers can offer. All of which should spell relief for timeshare owners who want to sell timeshare and get out from under their annual fees and commitments as they pare down their household budgets.

Sell My Timeshare NOW is a timeshare advertising and timeshare marketing company; it is also a genuine win-win solution for people who want to buy timeshare and those who want to rent or sell timeshare.

When you want to sell timeshare and you put your vacation property on the market as a timeshare resale, it may surprise you which features make it most attractive to people looking to buy timeshare. The rule is the same for timeshare real estate, as it is for residential homes, commercial property, and vacation housing: location-location-location.

Timeshare at highly sought vacation destinations is attractive to people interested in timeshare condo resales and vacation club memberships. But timeshare resales have one huge advantage over other types of real estate when it comes to the subject of location because so many timeshare resorts offer exchange privileges at other resorts, or through timeshare exchange memberships like Interval International and RCI timeshare. In fact, frequently, when people buy timeshare, they look for properties - not at the destination they want - but at a destination where they think other people will want to make a timeshare exchange.

The second factor that strongly affects salability of timeshare resales is the dates or time of the year you own. Many people who buy timeshare must plan their travel and vacation dates around school calendars. However, despite the fact that timeshare sales are increasing rapidly among younger buyers, the largest market for the purchase of timeshare weeks is still among Baby Boomers - the demographic that is the least likely to be concerned about school holiday schedules.

Of course, the features and amenities that your timeshare resort offers, also makes a big difference with attracting people to buy your timeshare resale. Beachside access always attracts buyers, as does a location near popular ski sites. But also attractive are what is known as “drive to” destinations, which may not be on the beach or near the slopes, but do offer the advantage of being geographically located within easy driving distances for large populations of people.

At the resort, it has long been the standard that location at a golf course or with golf access makes timeshare resales more desirable. But according to recent information released by M.I.C.E, (an acronym for MEETING - INCENTIVE - CONFERENCE - EXHIBITION , a professional organization for meeting and event planners) interest in tennis between the years 2000 and 2005 increased by more than 12 percent. According to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, tennis is experiencing the highest growth rate of the 114 traditional sports tracked in the United States. So if your timeshare resale offers tennis courts on property or nearby, be sure to make that point known to potential buyers. In these tighter economic times, the cost of playing tennis as compared to the cost of playing golf, is bound to be a consideration by some vacationers.

For more information about the easiest and most effective way to sell timeshare, visit the timeshare resales experts at Sell My Timeshare NOW.

According to Forbes.com, in a real estate section article titled, “Soft Market Secrets to Selling a High –End Home,” new home sales are at their lowest level in over 12 years. Home mortgage applications have fallen t their lowest level in a year, and people with homes they must sell are learning that the real estate market tolerates few miscues by home sellers.

But the science of selling residential property in a tough market offers us some value insight about selling timeshare real estate. Consider the three important observations Forbes writer, Matt Woolsey, makes in his article:

1. Price your property right from the very beginning. A 2002 University of the Pacific study examined almost 3500 home sales and found that sellers who priced their property high, and later reduced the price, took longer to sell and ultimately sold for less than homes that were priced competitively the day they went on the market.
2. The perks you add to your deal may not be what actually creates the sale, but they are the incentives that create interest in your property, and the more buzz you create, the more likely you are to find a buyer.
3. Using the internet is huge. The National Association of Realtors estimates that three quarters of all homebuyers begin their searches online.

It is not rocket science to see how much all three of these residential sales facts carry over to the buying and selling of timeshare real estate.

Sell My Timeshare NOW urges timeshare owners who want to sell timeshare to look seriously at competitive properties on the market and then price their timeshare unit to sell. Sure, you can price high, and lower your asking price later, but what do you really gain by this approach?

Next, remember why you bought the timeshare condo or timeshare unit to begin with, and make sure you emphasize to prospective buyers the benefits and advantages of buying timeshare at your resort.

Lastly, if you think the internet is huge in helping homebuyers find residential property, double or triple that impact for helping you sell timeshare. When you want to sell timeshare, you can’t count on Sunday afternoon drive-bys to bring you your buyer. You have to deal with a timeshare advertising and marketing company that can put your property in front of a global audience of prospective timeshare buyers—and for that, there is no better choice than Sell My Timeshare NOW.

Visit our website to learn more about selling timeshare in today’s competitive market.

India is a growing market for timeshares resorts. Not only does the magic of India attract multitudes of tourists, but there are also large populations with Indian heritage who live around the world and who make regular trips to visit family and friends in India. For many people with Indian ancestry, owning an India timeshare is the perfect solution to annual or biannual visits to their homeland.

Two India timeshare resorts recently to receive recognition for their amenities and quality are Ffort Radisson Holiday Klub and Orange County. Ffort Radisson Holiday Klub (note the resort name often appears with both the traditional “Ffort” spelling and the Americanized version, “Fort”) is designed with a historic theme and is built on 160 acres along the Hoogly River. Orange County is located in Western Ghats on a coffee and spice plantation.

Both Ffort Radisson and Orange County are Resorts of International Distinction and recipients of the AIRDA (All India Resort Development Association) Gold Crown Award for consistently surpassing international standards of excellence in timeshare resort quality and hospitality. AIRDA is a member of ARDA - the American Resort Development Association - and works to further the development of timeshare resorts and timeshare vacationing in India, addressing both the interests of the timeshare industry and of the timeshare owner or timeshare renter.

But just how serious is India about the timeshare industry?

Anand Mahindra, chief of India’s $6 billion Mahindra Group was recently quoted in Newsweek as saying, “We’re the largest time-share operators in India. Club Mahindra, part of our real-estate division - with 22 resorts worldwide - will list in 2008. With the currency factor and the rising affluence and leisure time in India, it is the fastest-growing company in our group. Indian tourism is No 2 in the world after China.”

Mahindra’s point is that the weakened US dollar makes America a prime market for a company such as his with widely diversified interests and that is interested in buying into US manufacturing while the dollar is soft in the international market. Mahindra and Mahindra’s businesses go far beyond timeshare resorts and include automobile manufacturing, tractors, financial services, insurance, retail, and a number of other products and niche markets.

Look for this timeshare company and others to be making advances in the timeshare industry, seeking to build on the heightened interest in India timeshares and the weakened value of the US dollar. And if you are interested in keeping US dollars in the United States and still owning India timeshare, look at timeshare resales and timeshare rentals advertised at Sell My Timeshare NOW. When you buy timeshare resales, you are bypassing the middleman, and dealing directly with the person who currently owns the timeshare weeks. In this troubled economy, timeshare resales are the true win-win for people who want to sell timeshare and for people who want to buy timeshare.

Be sure to visit our timeshare blog again on Monday, when I will be sharing a really interesting account of timesharing in India.