Timeshare

A timeshare is a form of ownership or right to the use of a property, or the term used to describe such properties. These properties are typically resort condominium units, in which multiple parties hold rights to use the property, and each sharer is allotted a period of time typically one week, and almost always the same time every year in which they may use the property. Units may be on a part-ownership or lease "right to use" basis, in which the sharer holds no claim to ownership of the property.

The notion of the term "time-share" was originally created in Europe in the 1960s. 1 A ski resort developer Hapimag in the French Alps marketed his resort by encouraging guests to "stop renting a room" and instead "buy the hotel". Subsequent success followed, and the concept was quickly embraced by developers worldwide, boosting sales of surplus condominium units at a time when the resort industry was depressed.

Due to the promise of exchange, these units, called "vacation ownership" by the industry, often sell regardless of their deeded resort most are deeded into a certain resort site, though other forms of use do exist . What is not often disclosed is that all differ in trading power. If one is in Hawaii or Southern California it will exchange extremely well however, those areas are some of the most expensive in the world, subject to demand typical of a highly trafficked vacation area. The vast majority of inventory flows briskly through two international exchange companies Resort Condominiums International RCI and Interval International II .

This concept has attracted many resort developers and prominent hoteliers, such as Starwood, Wyndham, Accor, Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott, and Disney. Vacation ownership has proven to be lucrative for stakeholders in these major resort families, due to its popularity with vacation-goers. This form of lodging has spawned a variety of products sold on similar occupancy schemes cars, planes, boats, condo-hotel units and luxury fractional properties at which affluent guests may stay for as long as a quarter of a year, and which often command a six-figure price tag

The scope of today's timeshare industry in the USA is well-documented. 3 4 The ARDA International Foundation AIF , 5 which is the research arm of the American Resort Development Association ARDA , 6 reports there are 1,604 timeshare resorts, with 154,439 units, in the USA as of January 1, 2006 AIF 2006 . Though reportedly fewer than six percent of U.S. households own one, the prevalence of vacation ownership continues to expand. 7 Approximately 4.4 million households own one or more U.S. weekly intervals or points-equivalent as of January 1, 2007, an increase of sixteen percent from the prior year.

About half of the resorts in the USA are currently selling, generating sales of 8.6 billion in 2005 AIF 2006 .