10 Secrets Time Share Resorts Won't Tell You

While time shares continue to gain in popularity among the general public as vacation accommodations, there are a lot of secrets that the time share industry would rather potential buyers not know.

A time share unit can make sense in some specific circumstances, such as when you have a family reunion the same week and at the same place every year, but for most people, they aren't near the great deal that they are made out to be. Here are some of the secrets that the time share industry doesn't want you to know or do before you purchase one:

1. Time Shares Are a Lousy Investment

In fact, they aren't an investment at all, since it makes little sense to put money into a depreciating asset and expect a return. While you will not find many time share sales representatives outright pushing time share sales as a quality investment these days (it was common in the past), they will still use subtle wording during the sales presentation to give the impression that purchasing a time share is a good financial move. Terms like "life-quality investment" are often used to try and tie the words "time share" and "investment" together. If you don't listen carefully, you will think that a time share is a great investment when, in fact, it's far from it.

2. You Can Get the Same Time Share for Half the Price

Time shares are notoriously difficult to sell. That means that those who have purchased a time share but no longer want it must greatly discount their unit to sell it. You can find the exact same units being sold directly from the time share resorts on time share resale sites at a discount of 50% or more.

3. You Lose 50% or More When You Sell

As mentioned above, reselling a time share is extremely difficult even for the best of them. Similar to a car driving off a dealer's lot, time shares will lose 50% or more of their value the second you sign on the dotted line. In the worst-case scenario, you will be trapped with a time share unit (and the yearly fees) that you can't even give away.