Original Message:
Re: Can the timeshare company rent on the hotel market to non-owners? (by KC):
tm302 wrote:I can't seem to find this particular question anywhere, but wanted to see if anyone has encountered this...I have learned that the timeshare company we are involved with is making timeshare units available on hotel sites and representing the complex as a standard hotel-resort type property with nightly rental available. So, even though timeshare owners have purchased and own the weeks, it is possible for any person off the street to go online, rent a couple of nights, ruin availability for a whole week and thus prevent an owner from using their time.
The company, like most points based timeshares, allows exchanges and trades from other timeshare companies, so I find it hard to believe that between the owners from the originating timeshare company and tens of thousands of owners eligible for the trade / exchange program, there would ever be sufficient unused volume to make nightly room rental even possible (the property is in Hawaii, high demand)
This seems like an unethical double-dipping (sell a timeshare week and then ultimately prevent owners from using it easily by renting out nights here and there for cash to non timeshare owners) or maybe even an illegal act.
Has anyone encountered this situation with their timeshare company? Do you know if this is an OK action?
I claim no first hand knowledge about Hawaii timeshares, but keep in mind that if the account of an owner is currently "in arrears", a resort can lawfully) deny occupancy (and / or reservations) to an owner until those unpaid debts are satisfied. Further, until and unless that debt is satisfied, a resort would be on lawful grounds renting out individual days / nights within weeks that may be already owned, but which are owned by someone whose account is currently in arrears. I have no idea if that is what is actually happening at the (unidentified and unspecified) timeshare to which you refer.
Also, there may still be developer (or HOA) owned weeks at a timeshare property. If so, the developer (or HOA) can do whatever they please with such weeks (or with individual days within those weeks) -- until the weeks actually get sold.