5 Things You’ll Regret Not Checking On Before Buying Your First Timeshare

In the 20 or so years that I’ve talked with timeshare owners almost every one of them expressed regret that they hadn’t done more research, asked more questions or simply waited a day or so before jumping in. 

This doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have purchased, or that you shouldn’t. It does mean that there’s far more important factors than the beautiful view from the model unit the salesperson is trying to get you to focus on as he’s dangling the pen in front of you. 

Here’s the 5 Things You’ll Regret Not Checking on Before Buying Your First Timeshare:

The price...the real price 

There’s no MSRP for timeshares. They’ll try to get you to pay the highest price possible. Also consider that similar, if not the exact same timeshare is probably listed on the secondary market for a tiny fraction of what the developer is selling it for. 

The maintenance fee...yesterday’s today’s and tomorrow’s 

While the salesperson might have disclosed the current fees, you may be in for a rude awakening if you don’t know what these fees used to be and how much they can go up every single year. 

How much of the resort is sold out

If the resort has been open for more than 10 years, yet is only 10% sold out, this should raise a red flag. Why is no one buying there?

How many of the owners are delinquent...and how delinquent 

Any more than 20% is cause for concern. If owners aren’t paying either their loans or their maintenance fees, developers usually resort to raising fees or imposing a hefty special assessment which usually ends up in an even higher delinquency rate. It’s a death spiral that very few resorts can endure. If the resort fails, you lose. 

Pros and cons of fixed weeks, floating weeks, points and club membership 

I’ve written about this extensively in previous blog posts. If you don’t understand the significant differences between the various types of ownership, you can easily make a $20,000+ mistake. What the salesperson is selling may or may not be the best for your needs. You need to make that determination, not them. 

People who don’t check into  these issues will almost always regret buying their timeshare and more often than not, fall prey to a scam. 

I’ve identified 19 questions you need to ask before purchasing a timeshare and 9 additional questions if you’re purchasing on the secondary market. Email me for information ...its a lot less than $20,000