Time Shares – What You Need to Know

Introduction to Time Shares

A time share is a sales concept that enables you to buy a vacation home at an affordable price. Literally, the term can be split into ‘time’ and ‘share’, meaning you occupy/own a holiday accommodation on a shared basis for a certain period of time annually.

This is how it works. You pay a certain amount of money to the provider, which in turn gives you access to a holiday home for a certain period of time every year. Time shares give you access to different kinds of accommodation, from the luxury condos in the Bahamas to Bedouin style tents in the desert.

The concept of shared ownership meant basically that individual owners paid less, which was beneficial to them. At the same time it let providers sell space to a larger clientele, and make a killing on the profits.

However, how wise is it to invest in a time share? There are quite a few things you should know about time shares before booking one for yourself.

Where did the Concept of Time Share Originate?

The concept of time share holiday homes originated in Europe. It has been popular since the 1960s itself, when real estate prices shot up so high it became difficult for people to own a holiday home full time. In those times, this was a novel concept and was an immediate hit among vacationers chafing to go and have a piece of the sun.

In the US, however, there is still a lot of confusion regarding the different aspects of a time share, such as ownership, resale, exchangeability, investments, etc.

Types of Time Share Purchases

Basically there are two types of time share ownership you can have – deed and title ownership and right to use ownership. The latter is also referred to as license to use.

Deed and title ownership is a form of ownership where you get to use a specific facility for a certain period of time each year, and for a specific number of years in all. You also get a deed to the property mentioning all the details of the transaction. The common timeframe you can use such a property is usually 40 years.

The right to use ownership means you get to use a specific kind of facility at a specific holiday home for a certain period of time each year, for a specified number of years.

There is a very vital difference between these two forms of ownership – the deed to title ownership means you have ownership of a specific home, a tangible asset. You get to use this asset regardless of whether the management of that place changes or not. The right to use ownership is a mere contractual promise, honoring it depends on the honesty and integrity of the provider.

Things to Look for While Buying a Time Share

If you are looking to buy a time share facility, make sure that you have first seen the place you intend to buy first hand. This is the first step where you can get cheated. Lots of times you get to see amazing multimedia presentations of the awesome facilities being provided. These could be fraudulent, so check them out yourself.

Be sure about the fact that you do want to spend all your holidays in that location itself. If you are the kind that likes to go to different holiday locations each year, then time share may not be the thing for you.

Do talk to other owners of the facility to ensure that you are getting a good deal. Also, make sure that the facility as well as the cost to get there each year does not end up burning a big hole in your pockets.

Be careful of providers whose sales pitch resembles more harassment than sales talk.