Timeshare Presentations

Have you ever attended a timeshare presentation? I wish you would never attend one. It is traumatic experience sitting through a timeshare presentation. Compare it to buying a used car from a dealer; this is even more frustrating experience as more money is at stake here. What is a timeshare presentation? It is nothing but a sales pitch by the timeshare companies to force people into buying their timeshares. It begins with an invitation offering you an expensive free gift in return of attending the presentation. Now you go to the presentation thinking that there is no harm in attending and you get a free gift also in return, but you realize that you have made the biggest mistake of life only when you sit through the painful presentation.

The expensive gift turns out to be a gimmick and you are subjected to sheer pressure tactics of selling. The presentation usually last for ninety minutes and may go on and on in some cases. After the presentation, the salesperson will encircle you and will ask you if you have any questions. They go to the extent of literally pressurizing you. They want you to either make a commitment or sign a paper before leaving the presentation. When you say constant no to him, the manager will approach and offer you a good deal. Sometimes it becomes very hard to resist the temptation after being offered such great deals. But you have to go mentally prepared to say no to them at any cost. Tell them clearly that you have already spent your precious time and cant spare your time further. Say that you have an appointment with somebody and you have to leave immediately. And do not forget to take your gift before leaving the presentation after all that was the reason why you attended the presentation.
The salesperson and the managers would do their best to convince you to sign some papers by offering many offers, but you should stick to your resolution to not to fall into the trap by constantly saying into your mind that no, I cant afford to buy a timeshare and will I be able to make payments every month. Politely say no to any offers however attractive it may look. Also say them that you need time to decide, take their contact number or fax number and tell that you will notify them about your decision. Also tell them that you would not tolerate any courtesy calls or emails.
You can also tell them that you already have a friends or family members in that timeshare location and you dont need to buy a timeshare. Also another reason you can give them to escape is that you just came to the presentation for the free gift or you can also say that you just wanted to educate yourself about timeshares and it is too early to make a decision about buying a timeshare. You can also say that you are not one of the frequent vacationers and would be able to vacation year after year and even if you go for a vacation you dont like to go to the same location every year. Also say that you are not in the financial position to invest in anything now or in near future. Thus we have seen it all depends on our mental setup to sit through a presentation and still survive it.

Timeshare Selling Alternatives

Many people simply buy timeshares thinking that they would be able to take out some time from their busy schedule and go for vacation. But many end up not using their timeshares at all. So they start considering selling their timeshares. But if you think selling a timeshare is as easy as any other real estate property then you are completely wrong. Selling a timeshare is real pain in the neck taking several months to sell. Even when it finally sells, it sells at 40%-50% less than the original price. You might think is it really worth selling your timeshare or is there a better alternative to selling it. The answer is yes, there are alternatives to selling your timeshare. We discuss those in detail in the paragraphs to follow.

One of the best alternatives to selling a timeshare is to rent your timeshare instead. You can either work this out with your timeshare developer if he can do it. The developers usually have special classifieds for timeshare, it would be a good idea to put an advertisement in those classifieds as they target people interested in timeshares. You can also search for a real estate agency specializing in renting timeshares or vacation homes. Most popular travel destinations have agencies that specialize in this. But remember there can be a fee if you choose to rent your timeshare through a real estate agency. You can also sell your timeshares by yourself by either advertising directly in classifieds or telling your friends, neighbors, family members and colleagues to see if anyone is interested in buying a timeshare. If not, internet is the best place to find out where you can put your timeshare for rent. There are many popular auction sites like eBay which has timeshare rental section on their auction website.

Another alternative to selling your timeshare is timeshare exchange. Timeshare exchange is getting popular with many people facing problems with fixed schedule. And also many people get bored of going to the same place over and over again and they want a change. Timeshare exchange enables them to exchange their timeshare unit with similar unit at other timeshare location and at different time. Most timeshare companies have this facility and offer free exchange in the first year and charge a free from there on. But you can also go directly to a good exchange company and place your unit for exchange. But you have to remember that you can trade in only similar units only. You cant trade in a one bedroom for a two bedroom. Also you cannot rent the exchanged timeshare to somebody else. You may also be charged a fee for this service and you will get a timeshare in exchange depending on availability.

Last but not the least, instead of selling your timeshares why not donate your timeshares to a charity if you dont want to for through the hassle of selling, paying huge upfront fee and much more. The donation is just like how you donate your cars, boats or stocks. Donating your timeshares to charity is tax deductible. But be sure to donate it to a right charity organization who can utilize its full potential. You can compare this with any losses you may incur if you sell your timeshare, donating a timeshare could bring you a handsome tax deduction.