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| 1) Who do I contact for more information about Aviawest Resort Club? |
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| Please call 1-866-769-6377 in Canada or the US, or by e-mail at owner@aviawest.com. Requests via e-mail are usually handled within 24-48 hours. |
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| 2) What is Aviawest Resort Club? |
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| Aviawest Resort Club is an equity based vacation club based in which owners purchase a points ownership package. These points are backed by fee simple real estate, controlled by a third-party trustee, and are renewed each year, in perpetuity. Points can be used to redeem hotel, one, two and three bedroom accommodations, car rentals, cruises, and attractions through the RCI Points system. |
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| 3) Who is the developer? |
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| The developer of Aviawest Resort Club is the Pearson family of Parksville, British Columbia. Family members include Andrew, his wife Susan, and their two sons James and Lawrence. They have been working together in the resort business since 1991 |
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| 4) Can foreign and USA citizens be members? |
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| Absolutely. Currently some of our most enthusiastic and happiest new members are those from the US. There no restrictions whatsoever. High quality ownership is the same for foreigners as it is for Canadians. The strength of the US dollar makes Aviawest very attractive for US purchasers. |
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| 5) Do I have to use an entire week when reserving vacation time? |
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No. Aviawest owners may use their points for one, two, three or as many night's accommodation as their points package affords |
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| 6) What are the details and security related to buying in British Columbia? |
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| Timesharing is governed under a special section in the British Columbia real estate act. A timeshare developer must build and furnish the timeshare accommodations before being able to offer them for sale. He must also clear the timeshare suites of encumbrances, liens or mortgages before being able to offer them for purchase. All Aviawest resorts-properties are fee simple, deed and title real estate which are held free and clear of any encumbrances or mortgages. A third-party trustee holds the title of each condominium in trust on behalf of all owners as a group. This trustee also ensures that the amount of points which are sold are at all times less than the amount of real-estate in trust. This guarantees owners rock solid, long term security. |
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| 7) What are the laws like in British Columbia regarding timeshare purchases? |
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| Aviawest Resort Club is a mutual benefit society incorporated under the laws of California. A prospectus has been filed and accepted under the laws of British Columbia. These jurisdictions are two of most tightly regulated areas in the world regarding timesharing. Each new owner receives a copy of the complete prospectus, which outlines the full bylaws and articles of association for Aviawest Resort Club. All of the necessary information -rules, regulations, exactly how Aviawest is structured - is located here. |
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| 8) What is RCI and what services do they offer? |
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(also see Resources section)
RCI FAST FACT
- RCI is a subsidiary of Cendant Corp. (NYSE:CD), a global provider of consumer and business services.
- In 2000, RCI reported $433 million in revenues.
- RCI invented vacation exchange, introducing the concept in 1974.
- RCI has more than 3,700 affiliated resorts in more than 100 countries.
- RCI has more than 3 million members living in more than 200 countries.
- Seven of every ten resorts worldwide affiliate with RCI.
- Eight of every ten exchanges worldwide are made by RCI.
- Seven of the top ten timeshare developers (in sales) in the world have chosen RCI as their exchange partner.
- Since incorporating in 1974, RCI has arranged exchange vacations for more than 54 million people worldwide.
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| 9) Is timesharing a popular travel alternative? |
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(from RCI web site, courtesy American Resort Development Association)
The timeshare industry is booming. With annual global sales topping $6 billion and growth between 16 percent and 18 percent a year for the past seven years, timesharing is the fastest-growing segment of the global travel and tourism industry. According to the January 1999 issue of Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc.'s "Leisure Almanac," "The growth of the timeshare industry has been nothing short of remarkable over the past 15 to 20 years." Bear, Stearns predicts that "the confluence of a rapidly growing population of income-qualified households and increased utilization should result in collective revenues of $200 billion between 1995 and 2009."
Timeshare Fast Facts
- In 1998, the United States accounted for $3.06 billion -- approximately half -- of the world's timeshare sales revenue, according to a recent survey sponsored by the American Resort Development Association.
- In 2000, U.S. sales were about $4.1 billion, according to Ragatz Associates. The U.S. also leads in the number of resorts (more than 1,600) and owners (nearly 3 million).
- According to Ragatz Associates, in 1998 there were 4.25 million timeshare owners living in more than 200 countries and over 5,000 timeshare resorts in more than 90 countries.
- There are about 6 million timeshare owners worldwide and approximately 5,000 timeshare resorts in more than 90 countries.
- About 6 million timeshare sales presentations were conducted throughout the world in 1998. Of those purchasing timesharing for the first time, more than 54 percent had already attended three or more sales presentations, indicating that consumers are beginning to shop for timesharing.
- In 2000, the median income of a U.S. timeshare owner was about $74,000, with a median age of 54, according to Ragatz Associates.
- California has more timeshare owners (about 292,000) than any other state in the country and ranks third among states with the most timeshare resorts in active sales.
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| 10) Timeshare Travel/Leisure Information Resources: |
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| The American Resort Development Association (the industry's not-for-profit trade association) 1201 15th Street, N.W. Suite 400 Washington, D.C. 20005 www.arda.org |
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| 11) What are the advantages of timeshare ownership? |
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Timeshare owners experience luxurious resort accommodations that are rarely found in conventional hotel/motel rooms, but for a fraction of the cost of whole condominium ownership. For example, of RCI's 3,700 affiliated resorts:
- Nearly 90% offer one-bedroom units
- Nearly 75% offer two-bedroom units
- Nearly 90% offer a partial or full kitchen in each unit
- 27% have a washer/dryer in each unit
- More than 23% have a fireplace in some or all of their units
- More than 88% have a swimming pool on siteNearly 47% have a whirlpool or hot tub on site
- More than 41% have a sauna on site. . . and the list goes on!
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Unlike owning a vacation home, timeshare owners don't worry about taking care of the maintenance on their units and, if they're members of an exchange company, they aren't locked into returning to their same vacation home year after year.
Timeshare ownership can also be a hedge against inflation. By locking in the purchase price, consumers are assured future vacations at their home resort at today's prices. And owners who become members of a timeshare exchange company have the added flexibility of being able to trade their yearly timeshare allotment for a comparable timeshare at another resort.
Timesharing can be a terrific investment in vacations and seasoned owners understand and embrace this lifestyle purchase. As a matter of fact, the percentage of time sharers who own at two or more resorts actually increases the longer a person has owned. Forty percent of consumers who have owned a timeshare for eight years or longer own at multiple locations, compared to 25 percent of owners who have purchased within the last three years. |
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