Rosen: “Watch Out For Scratch Cards”

Rotarians and other persons in Anguilla have had an opportunity to hear some of the pros and cons about timeshare which is attracting some debate on the island. The occasion was a dinner presentation at Cocoloba Beach Resort on October 31 at which Jim Rosen, President of the Rotary Club of St. Maarten and Past President of the Time Share Association there, was the guest speaker.

President of the Rotary Club of Anguilla, Courtney Devonish, said the fact that the Government had agreed to some fractional ownership of a number of units in the new hotel project to replace Sonesta, had opened the way for other investors to embark on timeshare. No representative of the Anguilla Government was, however, at the presentation for comment or as an observer.
Mr. Rosen, who is originally from Boston, Massachusetts, started a timeshare business in 1991 in St.Maarten where he moved earlier. His experience in that field covers sales, marketing, administration and consultation with developers. In explaining time share he said persons owning vacations homes and not desirous of being saddled with them all year round, came up with the idea to split up that ownership thus allowing others an opportunity to own the properties. He gave some examples where timeshare was being practiced on a large scale noting that in St. Maarten there were over 1500 time share accommodation units in operation with a capacity of about 5000-6000 people on a daily basis. He reckoned that it accounted for some 80 percent of St. Maarten’s stay over visitors.
Speaking about the pros and cons of timeshare, he said the industry had proved to be “a fantastic source of foreign exchange for the island.” He stated that a study by industry personnel had revealed that timeshare owners and exchangers spend more on non accommodation related services while on holiday than hotel guests. He further stated that a separate survey commissioned by the St. Maarten Government had shown that hotel guests spend more money than timesharers. “That is just the opposite of what the study said, but there was an idea engrained in the people’s mind that for some reason time share people are not quality tourists,” he noted. He pointed out that a third study showed that time share people spend more money than hotel guests.
Mr Rosen continued: “In timeshare, we found that there is a reduced seasonality. High season in timeshare in the Caribbean is just about year round as opposed to the traditional high season that starts towards the end of December and goes towards the middle of April. Occupancy levels have reached unheard heights in St. Maarten in the month of September as time share had created a very stable work force and a group of dedicated visitors to the island. Timeshare visitors are tourists and yet they are tourists with a difference. They think of themselves as having a little piece of ‘the rock’ and they have a commitment.”

According to him following a hurricane in St.Maarten hotel guests had stopped visiting the island while timeshare visitors were quickly returning. “We had occupancy guests following the September 11 incidents and within two weeks timeshare occupancy was back up to normal but hotel occupancy had still not recovered,” he said.

Rosen stated, however, that the most common complaint was about over zealous timeshare marketers who could be over aggressive and if allowed to run free could ruin the tourism product. “They will chased away the people who are coming… so my advice to you all that is that if you are going into timeshare to put in place controls on marketing, most particularly unscrupulous marketing practices,” he told his Anguillian listeners.
He warned against the acceptance of scratch cards with respect to timeshare. “These scratch cards are despicable and they should not be allowed here in Anguilla. They are fraudulent and they represent the lowest forms of time share marketing.” He went on: “One of the things you create with timeshare is that you have a dedicated visitor, somebody who says ‘Anguilla is my home away from home’. With that long term relationship which you have established with these people, if there is a default on the part of the resort and there is a problem of any magnitude, those problems can bounce back on Anguilla’s tourism reputation if you do not put in place proper oversight legislation.”
Rosen added: “You can turn a negative into a positive. These timeshare marketers can be great tourism representatives for your island. They can promote your island fantastically. There is a need for training requirements to be put in place; guidelines and oversight but these people can be of benefit to your tourism. Watch out for the scratch cards and other scams. There should also be oversight of resort contracts. If they hire sales people, make sure that the information that is going out to the consumers is true and correct.”
THE FINANCIAL IMPACT OF TIME SHARING ON LOCAL ECONOMIES

There is little doubt about the positive impact of timesharing on the hospitality industry and local communities. Studies have shown that most timeshare owners bring more visitors to resort areas on a per-unit basis and spend considerably more than the average vacationer.

In fact, according to ARDA, timeshare resorts average a year-round occupancy of 90 percent as compared to the 65 percent occupancy rates of hotels and other traditional accommodations. But because timeshare owners are more likely to return to the area and use non-timeshare lodging, there is little, if any, competition between traditional lodging and timeshare resorts.

With timeshare, properties bring an additional influx of visitors, local economies experience a boost. Timeshare visitors use local services, patronize restaurants and shops but don’t put an excess strain on municipal services.

Another benefit to the local market is the ripple effect of jobs created by timeshare properties. Not only are jobs created at the timeshare resort — both during the development and occupied phase —but local businesses also need to hire additional staff to handle the increased visitors traffic.

WHO IS THE TYPICAL TIMESHARE OWNER?

An in-depth study of the U.S. consumers (membership of Interval International) conducted in the fall of 1999 by Simmons Market Research Bureau, Inc., highlights several current industry trends, including a rising level of affluence among timeshare owners and the inclusion of a wide range of lifestyles and life stages among the ranks of U. S. timeshare owners. While married couples in their 40s and 50s continue to represent the majority of the membership base, young professionals with children under the age of 18 and retirees constitute a growing percentage.

ARDA reports that the average timeshare buyer is in the 35 to 55 age group, with a median income of $71,000. More than one-third of Interval’s members have a household income above $100,000.00, compared with just 6.3 percent of the general U.S. population. Over 90 percent of Interval’s members own their primary residence and the average value of that residence is $212,000.

U.S. timeshare owners are well-educated: 84 percent attended college plus 24 percent hold a master’s or doctoral degree, representing a 16 percent increase from 1977; and 44 percent work in professional or managerial positions.

Approximately 40 percent of timeshare owners own more than one timeshare week. Twenty-five percent own two weeks and another 15 percent own three or more weeks. On average in the U.S., they now own 1.6 timeshare weeks, up from 1.5 weeks in 1997. Close to 90 percent of U.S. timeshare owners express satisfaction with timeshare-resort ownership.

VACATION EXCHANGE

Vacation exchange is the single most valuable enhancement to the timeshare purchase. Through membership with Interval International or Resort World International, more than one million timeshare owners have the privilege of trading weeks at their home resort for comparable accommodations at other resorts around the world, subject to availability.

Timeshare owners place their accommodation into the exchange system, making them available to other members who want to vacation somewhere other than their own timeshare resort, or at a different time of the year.

TIMESHARING THE NEXT WAVE

Timesharing has an extremely bright future. Public perception and consumer acceptance have never been higher. The quality of the product continues to improve and more brand names in the hospitality industry, as well as respected independent developers, are realizing the enormous potential of timesharing.

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