Repsol YPF

Timesharing

Timesharing involves buying the rights to use a piece of real estate for a set period of time. In other words, no one buys the property; rather, people buy the right to occupy it for a certain amount of time, usually alloted by weeks.

It is not a question of shared ownership since no one buys the property. Timesharing means acquiring the right to use a property for determined length of time. It is a new concept in housing that is becoming more and more common.

All spelled out in the contract
As with any commercial transaction, timesharing requires a contract. Lets look at the terms that should be included in this document and what factors to keep in mind:
- The contract should be written in the language of the person who signs it. 
- Read the contract all the way through. If you have even the smallest doubt about some clause, it is best not to sign until that confusion is cleared up.
- In the fine print, Spaniards should shun clauses that call for settlement in an overseas court in case of legal dispute. Among other things, this can be very expensive. 
- Keep in mind that transferring money abroad, as many timesharing firms require because their headquarters are outside Spain, has an additional cost for Spaniards because of bank fees.
- Using a notary public guarantees a clean contract. The notary will inform the customer if the contract is missing something. This can happen if any one of the following data are missing: data identifying the buyer and seller, the nature and description of the property, services offered by the property (common areas, trash pick-up, maintenance costs or lighting) hours, cost of mandatory shared expenses, information on how contract can be rescinded, date and place of the contracts signing and of course, the agreed price.
- The seller cannot require customers to make any kind of down payment during the period of reflection, and as nobody likes to give money away, make sure you know every last fee involved in the transaction so as to avoid unpleasant surprises.
- To play it extra-safe, it is a good idea to include a clause that says there are no fees other than those which appear in the contract. Consumer groups recommend requiring that the developer show the customer all necessary documents, such as the power of attorney for the person signing on behalf of the timeshare company, the property registry certificate stating that the building has been completed and actually belongs to that company, for instance.

How much does it cost?
The price of this kind of operation depends on two basic variables: how much time you buy and the season of the year. It also depends on the features of the apartment and where it is located. To sweeten the offer, timeshare operators let people trade their rights with others using similar properties in other countries.