You've already done a great deal to protect yourself in advance simply by buying and reading this book. Knowledge is the biggest asset you can have when it comes to making any major purchase, and if you have read this far, you already know 99 percent more about timeshares than about 99 percent of the other people out there.

There are, of course, also specific things you can do to ensure that you will be financially protected.

Don't Go

For starters, you might just stay home. It seems like basic advice, but the easiest way to prevent yourself from getting roped into a deal you cannot afford is simply to keep yourself out of the salesman's pitch room in the first place. As much as 90 percent of the people who accept free or reduced-price timeshare vacations in exchange for agreeing to listen to a sales pitch have absolutely, positively no intention of purchasing a timeshare unit. If you are among that whopping majority, it would behoove you to seriously reconsider whether to accept the vacation in the first place.

There are many last-minute travel deals out there — to resorts, aboard cruise ships, and beyond — and you can find many of them with nothing more than a quick search of the World Wide Web. Why waste your time — and the salesman's time — sitting in a room listening to a sales pitch when you can be relaxing on the beach somewhere else that's just as beautiful, and just as cost-efficient for your vacation budget?

Follow the Rules

If you do decide to take advantage of the vacation offer, be sure that you stick to every condition that the resort or timeshare developer places upon you. Be sure you meet the age requirement, for example. If you are married and required to bring your spouse along, make sure that you do so. Have proof that you meet the minimum income requirement that most likely is spelled out in tiny little type on one of the many pieces of paper the company will have sent you before your trip begins. Also be sure you have booked your trip for the days of the week that the offer spells out. Your failure to meet any of these predetermined conditions can result in your being forced to foot the bill for the entire trip, regardless of what was promised to you in the initial offer.

Compile Your Questions

One of the easiest things you can do to help you stay on track during the sales presentation is to have your questions spelled out, in writing, before you even get to the resort. With a list that you can follow, you will be less apt to get distracted by a sales pitch that tugs at your emotional heartstrings. Instead, you can fill in the salesperson's responses to your important questions, checking them off one by one as you get the answers you need. Some examples of important questions you should ask include:

• Is this timeshare a deeded or right-to-use property?

• Am I buying into a weeks-based or points-based system?

• Is this a fixed or floating week?

• If this is a fixed week, what season is it within?

• If this is a floating week, is it within a specific season?

• What are the current maintenance, exchange, special assessment, and mortgage interest fees?

• What is the history of those fees during the past few years?

Of course, your list can be as short or as long as you like. If you want to know everything down to whether the resort will charge you an extra fee to have a “starter set” of sundries in the timeshare upon your arrival each year, you should add that question to your list. If you want to delve into the matters of who votes on maintenance issues — the resort alone, or a homeowners' association — you should make it a point to ask. If you are on a restricted diet and want to see menus from the restaurants at the timeshare resort, make a notation on your list. If you need a blender in the timeshare unit to make your low-carb milkshakes, or if you need an electric can opener because you have arthritis, or if you prefer a DVD player to a VCR, you should add the item to your list of questions about what, exactly, your timeshare unit will include.

The devil, as the saying goes, is so often in the details. Thinking them through with a clear head, before you arrive at the sales presentation, is the surest way for you to keep all of them straight while you consider making such a major purchase. And remember: Whenever possible, get the salesman's answers in writing. His signature will be far more important than yours should a problem arise down the line.

Know Your Rights

Perhaps the most important thing you can do before attending a timeshare presentation is make a point of learning your rights — as they exist in the state or nation where the timeshare is located. Sometimes, the resort itself will provide you with a copy of the U.S. state or foreign nation's timeshare laws (if you ask in advance). Other times, you will have to go directly to the state or nation's Real Estate Commission and get the written law on your own.

Among the things you want to learn when looking through the state or nation's timeshare laws is whether you are entitled to a rescission period (also known as a “cooling-off” period). In the United States, you — the buyer — are almost always entitled to cancel a contract of this nature without penalty for several days after signing it (as you learned in Chapter 7). Remember: That is not always the case in some foreign countries, where if you buy it, you own it, case closed.

One of your goals in finding the timeshare laws for the resort where you may buy a unit is to find out just how long that state's rescission period is, and what steps you must take to cancel a contract should doing so become necessary. If there are forms that need to be filed, for instance, see if you can download them from the state's Web site before you even leave for your trip.

Knowing in advance how to undo anything that you might do will give you great peace of mind, especially if you decide to take advantage of a discount and buy a timeshare unit the day of the sales presentation. After all, knowing that you have two days or even a week to cancel the deal when you get back home — and knowing exactly what you must do to make that happen — can take away much of the stress of the buying process itself.