timeshare terms

	Amenities: Features that add to the value of the property such as swimming pools, tennis courts, golf courses, boating, full kitchens, laundry facilities, etc. The more amenities a resort offers, the greater the increase in value and desirability of the property.
	Check-In Date: The assigned date and day of week the interval week begins; usually Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. The check-in day begins the seven-day interval week. [Example: If the interval week begins on Friday, the week ends on the following Friday]. The interval owner (or renter) may not need to check in on the specific check-in day; however, late check-in does not extend the interval week beyond the scheduled check-out day.
	Check-In Time: The assigned hour an interval week begins; usually 3:00 PM, 4:00 PM, or occasionally 5:00 PM prevailing time. The interval owner need not check in at the precise time; however, late check in does not extend the interval week beyond the assigned check out time. Check-out time is normally 10:00 AM or 11:00 AM prevailing time on the seventh day following check-in. [Example: check-in on Saturday at 4:00 PM and check-out on the following Saturday at 10:00 AM].
	Closing Costs: Those costs associated with the closing process; usually including: deed preparation or transfer of equity for right-to-use properties, recording costs, escrow fee, and administrative fees.
	Deeded Property: True property ownership with deed recorded in the county where the property exists. This type of property has the same rights of ownership accorded to it as other deeded real estate. The owner may sell, rent, bequeath, or giveaway the property. Ownership into perpetuity (fee simple) like your home, sometimes turns into fee simple absolute. You own it till you die or sell it (or until a majority of the owners vote to terminate ownership and either sell the land the building sits on (because the buildings are getting old and expensive to maintain) and divide the funds according to the interest owned by each owner or to re-develop the land to continue with ownership at the owners expense.).
	Escrow: A special secured account used to hold funds from the buyer and the seller related to closing of purchase and/or sale of a property.
	Exchange: The process of trading an interval week at one resort for an interval week at another resort or trading a specific week at the home resort for another week at the same resort. The exchange system allows an interval owner to trade their week with other interval owners thereby allowing each owner to travel and vacation throughout the world.
	Exchange Company: A company or organization that accepts interval weeks on deposit from it's interval members to establish a pool of weeks from which other members may select the resort and vacation times of their choice. When a member deposits their week with an exchange company, the company compares the week the depositor is asking for with weeks deposited by other members and provides a suitable match based on availability and value. Factors affecting the "trading value" are: the resorts' rating, the time division; i.e., prime time versus low time, the size of the unit desired, etc.
	Fee Simple: The preferred type of real estate ownership. This type of interval ownership is the opposite of Right-to-Use or lease ownership and continues forever. The owner holds a deed in his/her name and the ownership of the property can be bequeathed to heirs.
	Fixed Unit: Unlike a floating unit, a interval owner who owns a fixed unit at a resort will always vacation in the same physical unit each year he/she vacations at that resort. This type of ownership is particularly important if you have purchased, for example, an ocean-front property with the ocean at your door step and are not willing to vacation in an ocean-view unit. A fixed unit property assures the owner that he/she will always have the exact location and the exact unit they have purchased.
	Fixed Week: Referring to the interval calendar, the purchase of a fixed week property assures the owners that they will always have the same week each year; i.e., week 26. Alternatively, an owner of a floating week may choose another week within their time division or may elect to upgrade or downgrade to another time division to meet their annual vacation schedule. Upgrading to a higher time division usually incurs an additional cost.
	Floating Unit: Unlike a fixed unit, interval owners of a floating unit at a resort may not vacation in the same physical unit each year they vacation at their home resort. Interval owners may request a specific unit and, if available for that particular week, the resort normally will honor the request.
	Floating Week: The purchaser of a floating week has the flexibility of scheduling their vacation interval with yearly variations in accordance with the resort's guidelines. Typically, resorts will accept requests for specific weeks by the interval owner as soon as the annual maintenance fees are paid. Therefore, the earlier the maintenance fees are paid, the better the chance that the owner can pick a specific interval week.
	Interval: An assigned period of time. Based on the interval calendar wherein the fifty-two weeks of the year are numbered sequentially: Week 01 through Week 52 or Week 53. A specific interval week is a seven day period encompassing one of those fifty-two weeks.
	Interval Calendar: An annual calendar depicting the fifty-two or fifty-three weeks of each calendar year showing starting days of Friday to Friday, Saturday to Saturday, and Sunday to Sunday, check in dates.
	Lease: Some states and some foreign countries do not allow deeded ownership of timeshares. Alternatively, a lease ownership or Right-To-Use ownership grants the leaser the right to use the property for a specified period of time; usually from 20 to 99 years. Ownership of the physical property is held by the resort developer or management company.
	Lockout Unit: Typically, a unit which has the capability of being divided to create two separate but complete sections. If an owner buys a lockout unit, he can divide the unit and either stay in one half of the unit and rent the other half or rent both halves to different parties. Maint.: Annual maintenance fee required by the resort. The fee listed includes annual property taxes. Yes it does go up as the cost of business increases.
	Maintenance Fee: A fee paid annually to cover the costs of maintaining the grounds, units, and facilities of the resort and the management thereof. These fees vary from resort to resort and with the type and size of the unit purchased.
	Maximum Occupancy: The maximum number of persons an interval unit will accommodate; usually from 2 to 10 persons. Maximum occupancy is typically expressed in conjunction with "private occupancy" referring to the number of persons the unit will sleep privately and the number of bedrooms within the unit. For example: a 2 bedroom unit with a sleeping capacity of 4 persons and a maximum occupancy of 6 persons would typically have a double bed in each of the two bedrooms and a pull-out sofa in the living area; thereby allowing four persons private sleeping arrangements and two persons less than private sleeping arrangements. Configurations of units vary from resort to resort. Membership: Owner will have use till expiration of membership, if there is expiration. Some memberships run for the lifetime of the owner or their heirs.
	Odd or Even Year Usage: Use of the property is restricted to either odd years (2001) or even years (2002). Obviously, the ownership of this type of interval is valued at one-half the value of a full ownership property since the use is restricted to one-half of the annual usage.
	Points: Programs offered to interval owners by resorts which allow the owners choice and control over when and where they vacation or for how long or short they stay. Points are a symbolic unit of measure having no intrinsic value separate and apart from interval ownership. Points Based Programs: Many multi resort ownership programs run with a points system. This allows the owner flexibility in how long they vacation, in what size unit they use each trip and where they go each trip. When points are implemented the owner would own a certain amount of points and get that same amount deposited into their acct each year. So every year they have that amount of points to spend on vacation accommodations. Point values are assigned to each size unit for a particular season & size of accommodation & resort location.

	Resort Ratings: A system of comparison of resort quality, amenities, and location. The three foremost rating systems are Resort Condominiums International (RCI), Interval International (II) and Timeshare Users Group (TUG). RCI and II rate their affiliated resorts based upon a predetermined criteria of exacting standards of quality and services provided by the resort as well as the availability of amenities at or near the resort. RCI uses the Gold Crown designation for their highest quality resorts and Resorts of International Distinction for second-level resorts. II designates their top resorts as 5-Star resorts. TUG or Timeshare Users Group rates resorts on a scale of one to ten based upon the evaluations of TUG members who have stayed at a specific resort. Oasis Timeshares encourages any new timeshare owner to join this outstanding organization which offers unbiased reporting on resorts as well as online resort information, helpful bulletin boards, and lively chat rooms for discussions of the timesharing concept. Membership fees are a nominal $15.00 for the first year and $10.00 per year thereafter. Non-members may visit the public access areas of TUG at: http://www.tug2.net/ to evaluate this worthwhile organization.
	Right To Use (RTU): Some states and some foreign countries do not allow deeded ownership of timeshares. Alternatively, a lease ownership or Right-To-Use ownership grants the leaser the right to use the property for a specified period of time; usually from 20 to 99 years. Ownership of the physical property is held by the resort developer or management company. However, during the right-to-use period, the owner may rent, transfer, or bequeath the remaining years of their right-to-use property.