American Resort Development Association States: Consumers Deserve Protection and Transparency in all Leisure and Vacation Product Purchases.WASHINGTON -- Tanner & Haley Resorts Bankruptcy Highlights Need for Regulatory Oversight of Destination Clubs The American Resort Development Association The American Resort Development Association ("ARDA") is a professional association representing the USA vacation ownership and resort development industry, also referred to as the timeshare industry. (ARDA Noun 1. ARDA - an agency of the Intelligence Community that conducts advanced research and development related to information technology Advanced Research and Development Activity ) continues to call for destination clubs to either comply with existing timeshare A form of shared property ownership, commonly in vacation or recreation condominium property, in which rights vest in several owners to use property for a specified period each year. regulations or support alternative regulations which must include a third party independent financial guarantee of the membership refund promise and comprehensive disclosures. ARDA stated today that destination clubs that neither financially guarantee their refund obligations nor comply with state timeshare laws pose serious dangers to consumers and to the integrity of all prepaid vacation products, as demonstrated by Tanner and Haley's recent bankruptcy filing. "ARDA believes that destination clubs offer a form of a timeshare use plan, and we have been concerned for the past three years about the overall lack of transparency and the absence of key structural controls and comprehensive disclosures regarding these products," said Howard Nusbaum Howard C. Nusbaum (born August 18 1956 in Canton, Ohio) is currently the President and CEO of the American Resort Development Association (ARDA). ARDA is a non-profit trade association, located in Washington, D.C. , president and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of ARDA. "ARDA has repeatedly and publicly expressed these concerns. We conducted and published research supporting our position on this issue as far back as March 2004. After much debate, we articulated our opinion in a suggested regulatory model for destination clubs made available for public comment in late 2005." "As the Tanner and Haley bankruptcy may sadly prove, the absence of independent third-party financial assurances to back that refund promise render that promise ineffective, leaving 874 club members jockeying for attention as unsecured creditors Unsecured Creditor An individual or institution that lends money without obtaining specified assets as collateral. This poses a higher risk to the creditor because they have nothing to fall back on should the borrower default on the loan. A debenture holder is an unsecured creditor. in bankruptcy court bankruptcy court n. the specialized Federal court in which bankruptcy matters under the Federal Bankruptcy Act are conducted. There are several bankruptcy courts in each state, and each one's territory covers several counties. ," said Nusbaum. Unlike destination clubs, with regulated fractional products, consumers purchase real estate and get the peace of mind that the promises made at the point of sale are backed by laws which safeguard their interests even in the rare event of a developer bankruptcy. Thanks to these laws, the consumer's ownership and use rights of the timeshare product cannot be compromised by developer insolvency. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. ARDA, it was forward-thinking perseverance and commitment to consumer protections that spurred the evolution of the timeshare industry into today's multi-billion-dollar marketplace with thousands of resorts worldwide and millions of satisfied consumers, and attracted a roster of recognized global hospitality brands and innovative independents. Nusbaum concluded, "ARDA has worked for 25 years with regulators and industry participants to build a safety net for consumers and product integrity. We applaud the development of new vacation products. ARDA has a rich history of nurturing innovation. However, all vacation products deserve effective regulatory oversight, and these safeguards have made the greater timeshare and fractional real estate industry successful. We urge the destination club segment to follow that same road map to success. ARDA continues to be committed to working with all stakeholders Stakeholders All parties that have an interest, financial or otherwise, in a firm-stockholders, creditors, bondholders, employees, customers, management, the community, and the government. including destination club operators to make certain that promises made are promises kept." About The American Resort Development Association The American Resort Development Association is the Washington D.C.-based professional association representing the vacation ownership and resort development industries. Established in 1969, ARDA today has more than 1,000 members ranging from privately held firms to publicly traded companies publicly traded company A company whose shares of common stock are held by the public and are available for purchase by investors. The shares of publicly traded firms are bought and sold on the organized exchanges or in the over-the-counter market. and international corporations with expertise in shared ownership interests in leisure real estate. The membership also includes timeshare owner associations (HOAs), resort management companies, and owners through the ARDA Resort Owners Coalition (ARDA-ROC). |
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