Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Timesharing, But Were Afraid to Attend a Sales Presentation to Ask

Part Five: Life’s More than a Beach with Trading Power

Now that you’ve learned how to comparison shop timeshares based on their hard factors (location/unit size/amenities) and their soft usage factors (annual or biennial/floating or fixed/high, mid, or low-season week) it’s time to capitalize on your knowledge to give you the edge on timeshare’s golden opportunity: trading power.

Trading Power–The Holy Grail of Timesharing
For many timeshare owners, the primary benefit of owning a timeshare is the flexibility to make exchanges to vacation at other resorts. In fact, surveys suggest that exchanging is the greatest single contributor to timeshare use and enjoyment.

While some folks are content to return to their home resort year after year, industry statistics show that 58% of timeshare owners will chose new and evermore exciting places to vacation.

Your Timeshare IQ: What about you? Do you want to visit the same resort every year or prefer to experience new resorts each year?

Even if you answered “travel to the same resort every year,” will that always be your preference? If, at some point in the future, you decide that trading within the exchange system is important, then this lesson is important.

Trading power, or exchange value, is simply a function of supply vs. demand. Resorts that enjoy the greatest trading power are those where demand most exceeds supply (supply referring to the number of timeshare units available in a given resort or area).

There are five key factors affecting demand:

1. Location
Here is that mantra again: location, location, location. This key factor in determining trading power is driven by two criteria: climate (the more tropical the better, such as Hawaii, Mexico, Florida, Southern California); and proximity to popular attractions (Orlando, Las Vegas, Branson) or popular activities (downhill skiing, trophy fishing, gambling).

2. Season
The higher, the better. A season is considered high when more owners prefer to visit that resort or area during that time of the year. The ratio of potential users to available units is what creates (or suppresses) demand.

3. Rating and Amenities
While RCI and II ratings are not necessarily indicative of demand, the rule of thumb is that for two resorts in the same high-demand area (such as Hawaii), the resort that is rated will likely be more popular than the unrated one. RCI’s best rating is Gold Crown, followed by its Resort of International Distinction. In addition to ratings, resorts that have more on-site amenities enjoy a more favorable trading status.

4. Name Recognition
This is the power of branding, and it works just as well with selling resorts as it does with selling designer jeans, fragrances or sunglasses. Whether it’s Disney, Marriott, Trendwest, or Hilton, these instantly recognizable icons elevate the trading power of any timeshare, especially when combined with a popular destination.

5. Unit Type
The more room, the better. And the greater the unit’s features (full kitchen, fireplace, private balcony, etc.) the higher your trading power. Just as important, keep the rule “like for like” in mind. If you own a spacious two-bedroom unit at a popular resort, it will typically (though not always) exchange for a two-bedroom unit at another popular resort.

Join us next week for Part Six, when we’ll talk about the difference between deeded and right-to-use timeshares, and gain an understanding of maintenance fees.

–Gillian Armstrong

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