Last week we ran across a financial blog that gave ten reasons why timeshares are not a good deal. As you might expect, here at The Timeshare Authority, we have a different opinion.

Taking the article’s criticism of timeshare, one by one, here is Part I of a two-part series offering you 10 reasons to disagree, based on the fact that timeshares, for many vacationers, are not only a great deal, but are the very best deal:

1. Time Shares Are a Lousy Investment. Okay this is like saying an automobile or a new shirt is a terrible investment. Never buy timeshare for investment reasons; instead buy timeshare because you want to enjoy a vacation and timeshare ownership can make that easier—period! Timeshares are not intended as an investment (neither are new shirts) so don’t buy them with that in mind.
2. You Can Get the Same Time Share for Half the Price. No argument here. You can pay more for timeshare purchased directly from the developer or typically buy it at a discounted rate from the timeshare owner who currently owns the timeshare. This fact does not make timeshares a bad deal; it simply reinforces the point that the timeshare, the automobile, or the shirt you buy as a resale doesn’t have the same market value as that product purchased from the original vendor.
3. You Lose 50 Percent or More When You Sell. Okay, this is getting to be like a broken record, with the original critic repeating the same point over and over. So what if you get approximately 50 percent back on your timeshare resale—how much did you get back after your last hotel stay? How much you make or lose on a timeshare sell depends on many factors including how much you paid to buy it, the timeshare season you own, and the demand for timeshare at that destination.
4. It’s Cheaper to Rent a Time Share. Timeshare rental offers excellent deals. Sometimes it may be cheaper to rent than to own; sometimes it won’t be. But there are many different reasons to buy timeshare including ease of vacation planning, with timeshares offering the number one way to ensure that you always have at least one vacation period scheduled each year for you and your family to enjoy.
5. Time Shares Come With Multiple Hidden Risks. It’s hard to address this because it is a non-specific criticism. Yes, there can be risks in buying timeshare. But statistics show that over 80 percent of all timeshare owners are satisfied with their purchase. Living your life comes with multiple hidden risks, as does buying a home, getting married, going on vacation at a hotel, and any number of other things that people weigh their options on and then make the decision that is best for them.

Okay, these are just the first five reasons that timeshare is not a bad deal. Be sure to check The Timeshare Authority tomorrow to read the next five.

One size never fits all (a point we made here on The Timeshare Authority just last week in a discussion of timeshare points programs Getting to the Point of Timeshare Points). Your need to find the best individual solution for you is equally as important when it comes to the right way to for you to buy timeshare or sell timeshare as it is in selecting a points system that fits your vacation style.

Sell-by-owner timeshare resale is an excellent option for many timeshare owners who want to manage details of the timeshare transaction themselves. However, working with a timeshare broker, such as the experts at Timeshare Brokers Services, may be the best choice for your situation. Here are five reasons you might want a timeshare broker to help you buy or sell timeshare.

Reason Number One to Choose a Timeshare Broker:

1. Your time matters. If you are too busy to use your timeshare for vacationing, it is very possible you are too busy to take on the project of selling your timeshare yourself. Using a timeshare broker can be a turnkey approach when it comes to selling timeshare. Likewise, a timeshare broker is a great help to consumers looking to buy timeshare who don’t have either the time or interest for micromanaging the process themselves.

Reason Number Two to Choose a Timeshare Broker:

2. An experienced timeshare real estate professional is a great safety net for both the timeshare seller and the timeshare buyer. You can sell timeshare or buy timeshare with total peace of mind that a professional is handling the details. Most of us have enough on our minds already that it makes sense from a life-management perspective not to add one more item to the list of things that already occupy our thoughts.

Reason Number Three to Choose a Timeshare Broker:

3. A timeshare broker is a trained negotiator. Not only is a timeshare broker a skilled negotiator with your best interest at heart, but he or she serves as a liaison between the buyer and the timeshare seller, providing a “cushion” between the two to smooth the waters over any points of disagreement that may occur during the timeshare resale transaction.

Reason Number Four to Choose a Timeshare Broker:
4. The timeshare real estate market, just like the residential real estate market, is always changing. If you don’t feel confident that your personal knowledge of real estate matters, timeshare laws, or timeshare sales closing and transfer requisites is accurate and current, you could find yourself in over your head trying to handle the timeshare resales process on your own.

Reason Number Five to Choose a Timeshare Broker:
5. Buying or selling timeshare by owner may not save you a penny, first because an experienced timeshare broker—representing either the buyer or the seller— potentially can negotiate his or her client the best deal. Secondly, if you have any problems along the way in buying or selling timeshare without broker assistance, you could wind up not only losing money, but spending money you hadn’t planned to spend in the process.

Is a timeshare broker the best choice for you when it comes to buying timeshare or selling timeshare? Maybe, but you will never know for sure unless you contact one, ask questions, and evaluate what is best for you and your busy schedule.

Bonus time for timeshare includes timeshare weeks that have not been sold or rented by the developer, homeowners association (HOA), or timeshare exchange company. In addition to unsold weeks, a resort’s inventory may also include property that because of owner default or other reasons has returned to the hands of the HOA. When a timeshare owners association cannot rent timeshare to the general public, the HOA may choose to make the timeshare weeks available to other property owners at the resort, offering it at a greatly reduced rate.

Timeshare exchange companies may also offer their members the use of unsold weeks at a substantially discounted price. Either way, this excess inventory is typically called “bonus time” and represents one of the underutilized benefits of timeshare ownership that many people either do not know exists or do not understand how to use.

Bonus Time at WorldMark Timeshare Resorts

Each timeshare company or timeshare exchange company handles bonus time in its own way. For example, bonus time for owners of WorldMark timeshare allows timeshare owners to take advantage of any available units or last-minute cancellations within 14 days of the renter’s scheduled arrival. If the timeshare owner is booking bonus time for a guest, then the property can only be reserved five days in advance. Bookings of bonus time at WorldMark timeshare may be made in increments of one to four days

As a WorldMark timeshare owner, bonus time means you can enjoy a last minute timeshare holiday for timeshare on which you are not paying annual fees. WorldMark’s cancellation policy for bonus time does have restrictions, but is considered by many timeshare owners to be one of the most flexible available. WorldMark timeshare bonus time is not “paid” for with credits or points but is a cash rental.

WorldMark timeshare owners can search for bonus time opportunities on the WorldMark member’s web pages. Also, always remember when you are searching for last minute timeshare travel deals, that in addition to owner’s bonus time, both timeshare owners and non-owners can find excellent prices on last minute (and not so last minute) WorldMark timeshare rentals at Sell My Timeshare NOW.

For the eighth year, Holiday Inn Club Vacations at Orange Lake will be the Central Florida host for what is considered to be the largest single-day, charity golf tournament in the world. Annually, the RCI Christel House Open is played at 19 golf tournament sites across five continents with more than 1800 golfers participating. One hundred percent of the charity tournament proceeds go to services that benefit the children of Christel House mission, a non-profit charity founded by Christel DeHaan, the co-founder of Resort Condominiums International (RCI).

You can be part of this golfing event at Orange Lake Resort, (scheduled for Monday, Jmailto:[email protected]
une 7), playing the resort’s 18-hole, Arnold Palmer-designed course, a favorite with area golfers, vacationers, and a host of mini-tour events that compete there throughout the year. Sponsorship opportunities are still available. To learn more, contact Cathy Duncan, Manager of Corporate Events for Orange Lake Resorts timeshare, at [email protected] or call 407-905-1979. You can also select this outstanding course and timeshare resort as the site for your next golf outing or company tournament by contacting, Kimberly Chase, Assistant Director, Golf Sales & Marketing, at [email protected] or by calling 407-905-1378.

Golf and Timeshares

In so many different ways, golf and timeshares always go together. In general, the quality of daily fee golf courses improves all the time as advances in agronomy and turf management make it easier to maintain high playability standards, even at public courses. This means you can stay in your timeshare, timeshare resale or timeshare rental and take advantage of playing many courses located near your vacation destination.

Other timeshares offer resort courses of exceptional quality. Often getting a tee time on these courses is challenging, requiring you to book months in advance—unless you are staying on property at that resort. Timeshare owners sometimes find they can get on the courses that other golfers only dream about playing.