Glimmers of Hope in the Timeshare Industry
Tuesday, July 14th, 2009Timeshare sales have continued to drop in 2009 much like they did in 2008, which experienced the biggest drop in the roughly 35 year history of timeshares. According to an executive for Group RCI, there are glimmers of hope in the industry.
Many of the potential buyers of vacation homes, after having been hammered by the economy, are now beginning to turn to timeshares. Unfortunately, this new pool of buyer is generally being required to make down payments of between 25% to 30% of the purchase price. Even in these difficult economic times, customers continue to pay their mortgages and maintenance.
Customers believe that they must protect their investment in their property, which can exceed $24,000. The resorts are also watching their expenses closely, and they do not want cost cutting to impact the customer’s experience. On the chopping block are the 40% of costs generally spent on marketing.
Resort executives believe that they have seen the bottom, and that in the future there will be more resorts built. Many of those resorts will be more austere, and will have less in the way of amenities and luxury features like granite kitchens and stainless steel espresso machines.
