# Timeshare for profit?



## simmonr (Jun 20, 2013)

I have never owned a timeshare before but was thinking about buying one where I could turn around and rent it out for a profit.  I realize that in order to do this I would need to have multiple weeks available to me like a condo shared by 4 parties and have seen that most timeshares only provide 1 - 2 weeks annually.  Does anyone know of a fractional resort that is in demand by vacationers and is affordable to the buyer.  I am going to look at Deer Park in Woodstock New Hampshire tomorrow.  I would be very interested in receiving your input about Deer Park or another timeshare which fits my needs.   Thank you!


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## simpsontruckdriver (Jun 20, 2013)

The only one would be Disney Vacation Club. Buy it for around $10k resale, and you can rent it out for more than Maintenance Fees/point costs.

TS


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## ttt (Jun 20, 2013)

May I suggest that you look elsewhere if you are interested in making a profit. It's possible, but not worth the effort required in my opinion.


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## lizap (Jun 21, 2013)

Agreed.  TS's are not a money making venture.  In fact, in most cases, you will not be able to sell your TS for what you paid for it.




ttt said:


> May I suggest that you look elsewhere if you are interested in making a profit. It's possible, but not worth the effort required in my opinion.


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## vacationhopeful (Jun 21, 2013)

There are several members here who run timeshare rental businesses. While it might appear to be the perfect home business and "fun" to deal with vacationers ===> it is still a business.

Almost every person who is running a decent amount of rentals, does so in connection with YEARS of life experiences in similiar fields. Licensed real estate brokers for 20-30+ years. Certified re-seller of a particular timeshare chain. Property managers of houses and apartments. Vacation club employees. Travel agents who specialize in certain area or event (Biker events, senior travel, etc).

It is one thing to rent a vacation week to your friend ONCE or TWICE; it is another to try to convince a person from an internet site YOU are not a scammer or for you to have spidery sense to KNOW they most likely are a fraud. Business is ALL about actually COLLECTING THE MONEY.

Good luck. And don't quit your day job just yet - the recession might not be totally over.


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## RX8 (Jun 21, 2013)

All good advice above.

Just wanted to add that there are timeshares out there that are easy to rent and will for amounts that exceed the maintenance fees making a nice profit for you.  The problem is these particular timeshares will be expensive to buy, even on resale.  

If you are thinking you are going to do this with a free or almost free timeshare it ain't going to happen.

Did a quick search for Deer Park on Google.  Saw a 3 bdm 3 bath condo for rent on VRBO.  Price was $1050 for non ski week and $1200 for ski week.  That is what you will be competing against.  No idea what the MF is but can't be much profit there.


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## ronparise (Jun 21, 2013)

As you are finding out the typical advice you get here regarding a vacation rental business, using timeshares as your vehicle, is:  Dont do it..Its too risky... its to much work.... there's no money in it..people will try to cheat you....timeshares are for personal use...etc...etc

But as Linda said, there are several here that make a business of renting timeshares, No one knows how successfully, as we tend to be a fairly secretive bunch. And as near as I can tell, Linda is right to suggest it takes a special kind of person (crazy?) to make it work

I dont understand why you are leaning to 13 week (quarter ownership) fractionals. In my experience this form of ownership will give you 4 months a year; usually one month each season. If you are lucky your location may have a long rental season and you can get top dollar for two of your months, but the other two will probably not command top dollar. As an example, I live and work (real estate agent) in SW Florida (Ft Myers Beach, Sanibel, Naples, Marco) and our "season" is Jan Feb and March. There are folks that make a big business renting condos to snow-birds for the season, but the same condos sit vacant the rest of the year. 

I wouldnt be so quick to write off regular timeshares. Sure, the traditional timeshare is just a week, but you can buy lots of them for next to nothing, and if you buy the weeks like, for example, bike week in Daytona, or July 4th at the Beach, or Mardi Gras in New Orleans, or winters in South Florida, etc etc.  you can do well.  In my opinion the secret of success is specialization. You need to get known as the "go to guy" for something, and build a repeat business client base and referral network. 

I own several fixed weeks like I described above, but also Wyndham points The points allow me to do just holiday or event weekends, which have rented well for me. 

Good Luck


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## vacationhopeful (Jun 21, 2013)

And one other thing, you might think you have a good handle on your costs and WHAT you can make as profit ... wait til another "landlord" gets an exchange they are willing to rent or Grandma's unit where they just want $500 CASH or that owner NEEDS ANY $450 CASH but your expenses are $795 plus your HOPEFUL profit is also gone.

Or you get a charge back on the credit card or their check bounces or "the money order is in the mail" (NOT!) or that Christmas week doesn't rent but you have 20 emails asking if you can change it to New Year's Week, etc.

Or you get those 2AM phone calls as to why there is NO ONE answering the door at the timeshare resort or the resort doesn't have a room for them or they showed up a week late or Grandma died and I need the money back, etc....

It is a business and you will be dealing with the public ... be prepared.

PS Friends are some of the hardest people to get money out of. I figured out years ago, best to just GIVE vacations to my tribe of siblings --- and NEVER ACCEPT MONEY. Then they owe ME and that can be a very large and priceless commodity. :rofl: Plus, it is hard for anyone to complain about FREE places to stay.


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## ronparise (Jun 21, 2013)

vacationhopeful said:


> Plus, it is hard for anyone to complain about FREE places to stay.



Oh, but they do


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## vacationhopeful (Jun 21, 2013)

Ron, in my world (and you are from the Northeastern part of the US), complaining about a GIFT only insures you get NO MORE FREEBIES. 


ADDED: Yes, family is so much fun! So, when I take the siblings/nieces/nephew to Hawaii or South Florida or Las Vegas or DVC (or send them w/o me) --- no one complains directly to me. We all learned as small children to say "thank you" .... even if we go the coconut cream Easter egg verses the Butter cream one. Next Easter was only 12 months away and HOPE was always next year might be the butter cream egg.


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## ronparise (Jun 21, 2013)

I guess I was talking about my family


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## suzannesimon (Jun 21, 2013)

I have a better return on my timeshares than I have on 2 fully owned beach properties that I own in Florida and Delaware.  It has been the easiest thing I have ever rented.  I think the trick is you have to bite the bullet and get weeks that are in high-demand resorts and high demand seasons or weeks, if fixed.  Resale is obviously better than buying from the developer.  I did buy from the developer and I'm still doing okay.  I am getting about 3 times maintenance fees on all of them.  So far they have always been rented by brokers who turn around and re-rent them to travelers.  They make about $2,000 in profit, which is just fine with me, after I've made $2,500-$3,500 profit.  I get my money fast and they take on the risk finding renters.  I usually rent to them about 10-12 months in advance and they usually get it rented about 6 months out.   You could probably hold out and get the higher number if you were patient, which I am not.


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## lizap (Jun 23, 2013)

You have good properties and good weeks.




suzannesimon said:


> I have a better return on my timeshares than I have on 2 fully owned beach properties that I own in Florida and Delaware.  It has been the easiest thing I have ever rented.  I think the trick is you have to bite the bullet and get weeks that are in high-demand resorts and high demand seasons or weeks, if fixed.  Resale is obviously better than buying from the developer.  I did buy from the developer and I'm still doing okay.  I am getting about 3 times maintenance fees on all of them.  So far they have always been rented by brokers who turn around and re-rent them to travelers.  They make about $2,000 in profit, which is just fine with me, after I've made $2,500-$3,500 profit.  I get my money fast and they take on the risk finding renters.  I usually rent to them about 10-12 months in advance and they usually get it rented about 6 months out.   You could probably hold out and get the higher number if you were patient, which I am not.


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## benyu2010 (Jun 26, 2013)

suzannesimon said:


> I have a better return on my timeshares than I have on 2 fully owned beach properties that I own in Florida and Delaware.  It has been the easiest thing I have ever rented.  I think the trick is you have to bite the bullet and get weeks that are in high-demand resorts and high demand seasons or weeks, if fixed.  Resale is obviously better than buying from the developer.  I did buy from the developer and I'm still doing okay.  I am getting about 3 times maintenance fees on all of them.  So far they have always been rented by brokers who turn around and re-rent them to travelers.  They make about $2,000 in profit, which is just fine with me, after I've made $2,500-$3,500 profit.  I get my money fast and they take on the risk finding renters.  I usually rent to them about 10-12 months in advance and they usually get it rented about 6 months out.   You could probably hold out and get the higher number if you were patient, which I am not.




$2K, $3K is merely a habit...what's the rate?


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## suzannesimon (Jun 26, 2013)

I charge $2,500 for the Key West property, $4,000 for the 2BR St. Thomas and $5,000 for the 3 BR St. Thomas.  I've recouped about 1/3 of my cost of ownership over 4 years in St. Thomas.


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