SuperLiving Magazine Looks at Sell My Timeshare NOW
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Here’s what Australia’s SuperLiving Magazine had to say about timesharing in general, and specifically our company, Sell My Timeshare NOW, in their Monday, June 9 online issue. Overall, it is a very good article and we are sincerely appreciative of their coverage.
When You Buy Timeshare from the Developer
The article correctly points out that buying timeshare resort property and then not using it is as impractical as buying a car and leaving it in the garage. The author, Lynelle Johnson, also notes that the Australia timeshare industry is booming, particularly on the Sunshine and Gold Coasts, as well as booming worldwide.
Lynnelle explains the process of buying new timeshare (timeshare sold by the developer) like this: “Sales of timeshare are often done at ‘free’ resort weekends (beware, as extras are often priced to recoup the costs) where high pressure salesmen ply their trade. The result of these expensive sales techniques is high prices for buying into new timeshares.”
The article then goes on to warn that the cost of your new timeshare is not just the average $15,000 -$16,000 you may pay, but there are fees that typically run around $600 per timeshare unit, per year.
But here is where we get to the good part because at this point, the article starts talking about timeshare resales and about Sell My Timeshare NOW.
The Virtues of Buying Timeshare Resales
The SuperLiving Magazine article then asks the question we ask all the time on this timeshare blog, and at Sell My Timeshare NOW, “Why by new when you can buy used?”
Here’s how they describe our services and the timeshare resale marketplace:
There is a cheaper way to get into the significant holiday savings offered by the industry, and that’s in the booming second hand market for timeshare deeds.
Steve Luba is the director of communications at Sell My Timeshare Now. They’re based in New Hampshire in the United States but sell timeshares all over the world.
Last year their customers sold $274 million worth of timeshares and so far this year $150 million worth have moved. (Note of explanation: Sell My Timeshare NOW presents offers to buy timeshare or rent timeshare in these amounts. We do not “sell” timeshares, because the timeshare resales and rentals we advertise and market are not ours to sell. Ours is a buy-owner service.)
Steve says the timeshare industry has changed dramatically over the last few years with companies like Hilton, Marriott, and Disney moving into the market, offering global networks of destination accommodation with water parks, spas and golf courses.
The internet has also transformed the market, with organisations like Steve’s acting like clearinghouses both for the sale of timeshare and allowing owners to rent out unused entitlements.
“With rental you can expect to cover your maintenance fee plus a couple of hundred bucks,” says Steve.
Timeshares selling new for around $6-7,000 go for $2,500 on the second hand market he says.
For the truly brave some timeshares can be snapped up on eBay for as little as a dollar.
Sell My Timeshare Now’s director of sales, Rosanne Luba (Steve’s wife as it happens), told SuperLiving that she had one client who had snapped up 78 timeshare properties on eBay for around $1 each, which he is now selling through them.
While this may sound like an unbelievable bargain, you need to remember that the liability for the timeshare fees kicks in from the time you buy them – and it might take some time to find a buyer for this ‘bargain.’
Going through an established re-seller gives more peace of mind that you’re getting what you pay for and not just a bill for maintenance fees.
“It can take around a year, or even 18 months to sell some of these timeshares,” Rosanne says, “but during that time you can be renting out your share.”
Timeshare isn’t for everyone, but if you take your annual vacation seriously they can offer a luxury experience at budget costs. With the emergence of a secondary market there are some serious bargains to be had.
So thank you to our friends down under at SuperLiving Magazine. No wonder they are interested in timeshare; Australia timeshare truly is a fast growing market, with many new places yet to build timeshare resorts and lots of vacationers to enjoy them.
