Timeshare Cali between friends?

[2into1]

I'm just wondering if a timeshare type system might work for Cali ownership? Where a group of friends / neighbours partner in a pretty formal way to share Cali between say 6 of them. (pick your number... 2 to 10).

I get the impression that hiring out private Cali's hasn't quite taken off as expected (although it's early days for the site). I'm often asked (or hints dropped) about hiring out mine to friends and neighbours, but I always refuse, as it's my pride and joy.

I'm wonder if something in between would work..... Where you feel like you own part of a Cali and your kids can get attached to it, but you share all the costs between a group of you.

Management of the enterprise would be in the spirit of 'share (investment) clubs', where you meet a few times a year to discuss how it's all going and agree how much next years' budget will be. A closed Facebook groups can keep everyone upto date, cope with last minute changes of availability, and exchange photos and details of successful trips.

I'm sure there are lots of ways (paying per point?) where the management of who gets the key summer holidays can be addressed equitably.

Whoever can store in on their drive when not in use gets a discount etc.

What do you think?

(obviously this doesn't apply to Beaches, as they are used every day).

 

[Hotel California]

It's mine and only mine .....
After nearly five years Mrs H.C. has not even been behind the wheel so don't think i gonna let any stranger use it for trips....

 

[Meoncoast]

Iam in th camp where, I do not need to hire it out, and don't want to hire it out and this would include sharing it in a time share way. I dont know the amount of vans being hired out but I do not think I would pay to hire a California at the prices they are marked up at. I know a lot of people try before they buy but we did not feel the need having camped before so a good test drive and an overview of the van.

I also think a lot of full Cali's are used daily.

 

[2into1]

I'm only speculating. I've no immediate plans to make it happen [I haven't got enough friends]

@hotel california It wouldn't feel so personal as it's only 1/6 yours (or 1/3 etc). It might be interesting to split out the pleasure of using one, from the pleasure of owning one?

 

[Meoncoast]

l could see a situation where a number of families buy between them but I could see it getting very complicated, re insurance, damage, use dates etc.

 

[Hotel California]

It was my dream to own a Cali since my early 20s , took me almost 20y more to actually own one....
Only one i share it with is my wife....and our dog

 

[cundf]

Never lend one of my recent cars to anyone else yet. My Cali is my Cali. Would never let someone else drive it. Except my wife of course!

 

[larrylamb]

As an owner but only part time user I can see the logic in this, I have invested a lot of money in my Cali but we don't get chance to go away as much as we would like. It's a shame I haven't got many friends lusting after the Cali way of life as shared ownership could be a good idea. Four people for example could cough up £12k each for a new Cali with a view to keeping it for 3-5 years i.e.. in warranty. Peak holiday weeks would have to be shared and you get the Cali one week in every four. Add in shared costs on all the extras etc. could be an inexpensive way to run a Cali, you should also get a decent return when you sell at 3-5 years. This example would probably give me the same amount of hols that I get now owning one lock stock but without shelling out nearly 50k. May work for some people but probably quite hard to get like minded people in the same area.

 

[Hotel California]

If i shared with four others five years ago , there would be 38.000euro more on my bankaccount . And a few intrests....but a current rate it would be not much.
I owend 1/5 of a Cali ....

I took the 50.000euro and now i fully own my own Cali , even if it sits in my garage i'm enjoying owning it

It is a hell of a risk sharing such a verhicle with others even if they are family or good friends!
If you can't affort it , keep,your hands off it ....my 50 cents....

What would 38.000euro on the bank bring me? Noting even close to the things the Cali gave us the last five years....

 

[soulstyledevon]

Great post.
We are thinking about trying to get a syndicate together to buy a bigger motorhome. We will keep the Cali as our daily driver and weekends away and then have the bigger vehicle for Euro and longer trips.

Some friends of ours have a canal boat and use a similar system. 3 couples clubbed together and purchased the boat £60k, 20k per couple.
Every year they get together and couple 1 pick their 4 weeks, then couple 2 and couple 3. The following year couple 1 go to the back of the list and the others bump up to pick weeks of use first. They have done this for the last 5 years and works really well.
Great way to reduce the cost of buying such a massive purchase, especially if you only use it for 4-5weeks of the year.

We think this could work for us, especially having the Cali as a back up for shorter trips etc.

 

[DM]

Its a fair thought. Syndicated ownership is well established for other high value leisure items such as boats or aircraft. There is plenty of information available about template agreements etc. However in most cases I have come across it actually works better if the syndicate members are not friends but simply have a business relationship. This works better because:
i) a group of friends are likely to want to go on trips together
ii) its very hard to enforce the agreement terms with friends and there is a risk of falling out.

I see no reason why the concept shouldn't work. But I like the spontaneity of being able to make plans at short notice.

 

[soulstyledevon]

B

Its a fair thought. Syndicated ownership is well established for other high value leisure items such as boats or aircraft. There is plenty of information available about template agreements etc. However in most cases I have come across it actually works better if the syndicate members are not friends but simply have a business relationship. This works better because:
i) a group of friends are likely to want to go on trips together
ii) its very hard to enforce the agreement terms with friends and there is a risk of falling out.

I see no reason why the concept shouldn't work. But I like the spontaneity of being able to make plans at short notice.

Very good point DM. Our friends did exactly the same for some of the reasons mentioned.
They formed a syndicate through a website, where the 3 couples all live within 30 mins of where the boat is stored.
They have an AGM each year to sort who has the boat when and discuss maintenance etc. Apparently all very friendly and a great way to share the cost of a high ticket item.

 

[2into1]

Thanks for naming the practice (syndicated ownership rather than timeshare) and for the ideas where to look for template documents / how to rotate 'first dibs' etc. Good stuff.

 

[sidepod]

Is this like "keys in the bowl"?

 

[DM]

Is this like "keys in the bowl"?

That would make for an interesting 'game'. One set of keys between how many couples ?

 

[Velma's Dad]

Settle down, settle down! Some pampas grass growing on those driveways in Caliland by the sound of it.

Seriously though, I think this is a quite interesting idea and the notion of ceasing to own expensive assets but instead paying for use each time is the way a lot of things are going. How far they will go in any particular domain will depend on various factors but the development of a tech-enabled (probably app-enabled) business model will be crucial (just because we can't imagine what that will look like for 'Cali-share' is no matter - few people saw Airbnb or Uber coming either).

We on this forum membership are obviously predominantly people who already have a Cali, and who therefore by definition can afford one, and I'd predict that as a group we'd tend to be resistant to the idea of sharing our pride and joy (I have to admit I would). So T4WFA you're probably asking the opinions of the wrong bunch! Run your idea past a bunch of twenty-somethings who couldn't at this stage of their economic lives afford to own a £50k van outright... and if they're urban hipsters they have nowhere to park one either.

Although they might be more excited by a Bay-share than a T6-share scheme.

 

[MattBW]

My Dad recently said something to me which has stuck in my head.

"Whether you lease or buy, you never truly own anything, you are just paying to use it whilst you are alive".

I think that is completely true, even when you buy you are still only leasing it whilst you are on this world. So why not share that cost so your money can go further? Its an interesting idea, it could work but I can see how it could also cause challenges with logistics, insurance and costs, which would need to be carefully managed.

However the costs savings could be good but the flexibility would be lost which is part of the charm of camper. I am sure for some it would work well and is worth looking into.

 

[vmaxkiddy]

What would happen should one member need their "share" back due to a change in personal circumstances ? I think it would turn into a nightmare working out what that "share" was worth, and how it would be paid.

 

[snowy55]

What would happen should one member need their "share" back due to a change in personal circumstances ? I think it would turn into a nightmare working out what that "share" was worth, and how it would be paid.

If you had any sense all that sort of scenario would be would be be worked out beforehand and incorporated into a legally binding agreement.

 

[2into1]

What would happen should one member need their "share" back due to a change in personal circumstances ? I think it would turn into a nightmare working out what that "share" was worth, and how it would be paid.

I think that's a rather dramatic response. The process would need to be agreed up front, but bigger problems have been sorted by adults before. As an earlier poster said, these agreements already exist for shares in boats and aircraft.
The default position would be that your share would be worth what you could sell it for. The new owner obviously would be bound by exactly the same conditions.

 

[GrannyJen]

What would happen should one member need their "share" back due to a change in personal circumstances ? I think it would turn into a nightmare working out what that "share" was worth, and how it would be paid.

As in any private company the share is worth what someone is prepared to pay.

Millions of organisations work on that premise every day.

 

[DM]

My Dad recently said something to me which has stuck in my head.

"Whether you lease or buy, you never truly own anything, you are just paying to use it whilst you are alive".

I think that is completely true, even when you buy you are still only leasing it whilst you are on this world. So why not share that cost so your money can go further? Its an interesting idea, it could work but I can see how it could also cause challenges with logistics, insurance and costs, which would need to be carefully managed.

However the costs savings could be good but the flexibility would be lost which is part of the charm of camper. I am sure for some it would work well and is worth looking into.

Your Dad is spot on Matt. In Britain we are very focused upon possessions. In many cases we'd get much better value from renting / leasing. I regularly rent yachts and holiday homes because I couldn't afford to buy and I want the flexibility to go different places. Whether this works for a Cali depends on what you want from it. We want the freedom of going wherever / whenever so plumped for ownership. It remains to be seen whether it proves to be an emotional or financial decision.

 

[soulstyledevon]

What would happen should one member need their "share" back due to a change in personal circumstances ? I think it would turn into a nightmare working out what that "share" was worth, and how it would be paid.

I would say the majority of people who would take on a Syndicate Share are people who have decent financial backgrounds and very money savvy.
As said this would be agreed pre-formation of the syndicate. I would imagine the persons wishing to leave would need to find another agreed buyer to buy in at market value. Unless all partners were willing to fold and the vehicle was sold off at market value and divided evenly.

When i next see my friends i will ask a few more questions. Its a very interesting concept.

 

[Ambler]

I know someone who did this with a canal boat.
All sorts of problems.
He managed to sell his share eventually.
He says never again.

 

[soulstyledevon]

I know someone who did this with a canal boat.
All sorts of problems.
He managed to sell his share eventually.
He says never again.

Yep
Always someone who knows someone who knew a friends, uncles, brothers pal who had a negative experience.