The Mathematics of Timeshares

While on vacation, I attended a timeshare presentation. To say the least, it was a masterful study in marketing and advertising. For some reason, the part that I always get stuck on is the numbers. If I understand it correctly, I can own a piece of property -- a 1-BR condo in this case -- for one week each year for ~$20K? Wouldn't that imply a total property cost of >$1M (52 weeks x $20K)? Jeez, is it too late for me to get into the timeshare business?

The other part that gets me is the "home resort" concept. I was sold on the whole "points" program and the option to go almost anywhere I want. But the up-front costs and annual maintenance fees are based on the home resort (a place which I may never return to). Seems to me that you'd want to have a cheap property (cheap as in "lower maintenance costs") as your home resort, but ample enough points to go where you want...when you want. In which case, you're not really buying a share of a single piece of real estate, but instead becoming a shareholder in a global vacation property program. I'd also suggest that the up-front costs be based on how many points you're buying (I suppose that the home resort could trigger a minimum point threshold to qualify).

On second thought, I'd guess that my ideas screw with the inherent benefits of property ownership (i.e., tax write-offs, name on a deed, etc.). I'll keep working the numbers to figure out to make this thing work. Am I missing anything?

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Location:Atlanta Airport