What is timeshare? What are its benefits? And are there disadvantages? We’re here to give you the low-down.
Timeshares can be great for family holidays.
What is timeshare?
Simply put, timeshare is joint ownership of a holiday property. Traditional timeshare buys you exclusive use of a specific property for a specific week – often even the exact unit is specified. This is perfect if you prefer to take holidays at the same time every year. Your holiday accommodation is yours and you don’t have to worry about it being unavailable.
With a points-based system you’d join a club (such as The Holiday Club), pay an annual membership fee and buy points to swap for nights at resorts. This model gives you more flexibility over when and where to go, but if you don’t book in advance your first choice may not be available. Points clubs also offer good deals on last-minute bookings to specified resorts and cheaper midweek stays will make your points stretch further, which is great if you don’t mind travelling any time of year.
What does timeshare get you?
Traditional week owners pay an initial purchase price (usually for life use) that varies hugely from resort to resort, depending on week of the year, unit size and so on. In-season weeks at popular resorts can cost more than R70000 while a low-season week resold, rather than first ownership, could be as low as R8000. Most also require an annual levy, the average being R3600. Save money by skipping the weeks around school and public holidays. Buying weeks outside of seasonal trends will also keep costs lower; instead of the beach for Christmas, go north to the Lowveld where there’s less demand at that time of year.
Overseas timeshare
You can bank your local timeshare (not use the week and allow the resort to rent out the unit) and swap the banked value for time in overseas resorts, either through the club or resort you belong to or via an exchange group such as iExchange. You’ll benefit by making a booking in rands and by having existing value (you’ve already paid) to exchange, which can mean significant savings.
So consider the reach of the exchange club you’re joining. Does it have resorts in destinations you want to visit? Usually you can book up to two years ahead on overseas exchanges; and the earlier you do, the better choices you have. Before you bank your week, establish what credit the exchange group will give you for it and what resorts in your preferred destination have units and weeks that are in the same credit-value range. Strategically, owning a good week in a top-ranked local resort is your best bet to get value on international exchanges. Most groups also charge an international exchange fee, so don’t forget to factor that into your sums.
Don’t be caught unaware with your timeshare
Check financial responsibilities and exit clauses carefully before signing. Better yet, have an adviser or lawyer look over the contract. Timeshare companies accredited with the Vacation Ownership Association of Southern Africa (VOASA) are obliged to allow for a five-day cooling off period, as per the National Credit Act.
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