SmartHomeOwners

CALGARY: The swimming pool was coated in green film, the tennis court had no net and the rooms were housed in an old brick building, not the dream timeshare property that the couple had imaged.

"When they showed up it just turned out to be a complete dump,'' said Brian Rogers, describing what his parents saw when they visited the Florida property for the first time 17 years ago.

"They didn't even stay there. Literally, they got a hotel somewhere else, it was just that bad.''

Back then, would-be buyers couldn't use the Internet to check out the deal.

Now Rogers _ continuing a project started by his father, now in his 50s and retired _ runs the Timeshare Users Group website. Its nearly 50,000 members can seek advice, post classifieds or flag scams on the site's forums.

Timeshares allow several parties to divvy up a vacation property throughout the year. That could mean owning a piece of the property outright, or belonging to a vacation club.

That type of arrangement is geared mostly toward families with young children, said Rogers, who has a timeshare of his own.

"It's generally cheaper than staying in a hotel, especially if you have a large family. It's difficult to find a hotel that has multiple bedrooms and a full kitchen,'' he said. ``It's made to be a home away from home.''

A timeshare is a long-term commitment, though. A condominium near an amusement park, for instance, might be all well and good until kids become teenagers.

It's also important to factor in maintenance fees, which usually rise year-to-year, said Rogers, who recommends vacationers rent a property for awhile before taking the plunge.

Montreal real estate agent Marie-Josee Guilbert has two vacation properties: one on the Las Vegas casino and entertainment strip and another on the beach in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

``At least when I travel I have no surprises. The standards are the same throughout the places that you go,'' Guilbert said.

For Guilbert, it's more about ensuring her family has a nice vacation rather than trying to flip the property and make a profit.

``What people should understand is that a timeshare is not an investment at all. It's more of a lifestyle,'' she said.

High-pressure sales tactics are one aspect Guilbert dislikes about the timeshare industry. Companies will often make an aggressive sales pitch to potential buyers after luring them with a free weekend getaway or some other perk.

``I think nobody should attend if they don't intend to buy at first,'' said Guilbert.

When the brain is in vacation-mode, the urge to buy can be hard to resist.

``Your mind is not really there to think business,'' said Guilbert. ``I would like to know how many people that have already bought would have preferred to cancel their purchase.''

In Alberta, timeshare contracts can be cancelled after they have been signed, said Better Business Bureau spokesman Daniel MacDonald.

Potential buyers should take advantage of a week-long ``cooling off period'' before making a decision, he said.

``If you've signed something, don't just take the contract and stick it in the file cabinet when you get home. Read through it really carefully and get some second opinions on that contract,'' he said.

MacDonald said his office gets a lot of inquiries about whether offers are legitimate. For example, many callers have been told they had ``won'' a vacation in an automated phone message.

``There's always some reason why you're being given something supposedly for free. A healthy dose of skepticism is really advisable in this sort of situation.''