A Maintenance Fee is a regular charge levied by the management company of a particular resort or the home owners association responsible for the upkeep of the property.

Resort Condominiums International, or RCI is the oldest and largest exchange company in the world. RCI allows timeshare owners to trade their timeshare week with other timeshare owners around the world. RCI has been in business for almost 30 years and currently works with over 3,000 resorts in 85 countries.

A week of timeshare deposited in one of the exchange company to be saved or banked for use at a later time.

Owning a fixed week means the timeshare is available on specific week each year or every other year depending on annual or biennial ownership.

It is one week that does not have a fixed date of use and it can be used at any other time of the year.

Interval International or II, is the second largest and second oldest exchange company behind RCI with over 1750 resorts in 40 countries around the world. II operating much like RCI offering exchange services for its clients worldwide.

A color system used for rating the desirability of a timeshare week. Red is considered the most desirable followed by white and yellow. Blue and green are considered off-season.

A property that can be used every other year.

Leased property grants the purchaser the right to use the timeshare for a period specified in the contract. The usual terms are 30 to 99 years. The resort management or entity holds actual ownership of the property.

Points are offered annually and can be redeemed for daily, weekend getaways, full week stays or other products. Additional points can be purchased but usage varies from resort.

A property that can be used every year.

The most common properties are condominium or hotel styles. Timeshare are created by resort developers who divide the units into equal time intervals. The divide units are marketed and sold to buyers who purchase a specific time of year to occupy the resort. The buyers own an equal share of the condominium unit and common ground which includes the resort accommodations. ARDA (American Resort Development Association) Based in Washington, D.C., this is the foremost trade association representing the timeshare ownership and property development industries. ARDA advocates on behalf of resort owners and developers and also lobbies for the industry. ARDA was first known as the American Land Development Association, originally founded in 1969. Today, ARDA is comprised of nearly one thousand small companies and large conglomerates from all over the world.

Leased property grants the purchaser the right to use the timeshare for a period specified in the contract. The usual terms are 30 to 99 years. The resort management or entity holds actual ownership of the property.

Is a timeshare that is divided into two separate living spaces with two separate entrances. A lock off unit will usually exchange one week for two weeks in smaller unit.