Westgate, one of the biggest timeshare companies in the nation, is feeling the pinch that other business sectors are feeling due to the economic recession. They recently released a statement announcing they would be laying off hundreds of workers and scaling back much of its sales force.
The Westgate Resort Company President, David Siegel gave a statement to the Orlando Sentinel regarding the effects and reason for the cutbacks. He said that cuts at Westgate would affect all areas such as administration, marketing, sales, construction and more. He added that Westgate would be able to pay their bills, but would not be able to allocate any funds for new ventures until the economy improved.
Mr. Siegal felt that contributing factors to the difficulties were due to the fact that securities were no longer being purchased. What has kept them viable in the past is the financial practice of keeping money flowing through lines of credit that are later paid in full when these companies package and sell their mortgages as securities. The economy is keeping people from buying those securities. Siegel went on to add that everything looked all right a week ago.
It turns out that the credit market is so bad that consumers would be suffering even without the corporate financing misfortune being considered. Without much disposable income, people are going to find it more difficult to finance timeshares. The timeshare industry may have considered itself immune to the effects of the recession for too long.
Wyndham Worldwide Corp. has also seen a reduction in trading recently. Coupled with the Marriot’s results that listed timeshare businesses as underperforming, Wyndham continues to fuel concerns about their greater timeshare segment.
Given these latest developments, it’s difficult to forecast what the recession may mean for timeshare owners in the near and distant futures. Timeshare owners have always been told not to view their timeshares as an investment, yet many of them look at their timeshares as investments for future vacations.
In the short term we can see what the recession is already doing to the timeshare companies. The companies have already cut back on many amenities and quality services to save money. People especially frown on poor service, so this combined with the current bad economy, continues to drive down the value of resales.
We don’t know what the future holds for this business, but you may want to consider the pros and cons of holding on to your timeshare. Maybe it’s time to consider letting someone take it off your hands. Contact Timeshare Relief at 1-866-797-0535 or go to http://www.timesharerelief360.com and fill in your contact information in the box on the right-hand side. One of our friendly phone advocates will be happy to assist you.
