TS Today - Creating a Vision for the Future of Vacation Ownership Issue #96 Nov/Dec, 2007 | Page 4

TimeSharing Today Page 4 Nov/Dec, 2007 Letters to the Editor Discriminatory taxes My wife and I just returned from vacationing at our timeshare unit on Maui. While we were there we received our 2007 - 2008 Maui County Property Tax Bill. The property taxes for our unit have more than tripled since 2005! When I contacted the Maui County Clerk, Legislative Division and asked the reason for such a drastic increase I was informed that on August 15, 2006 the Maui County elected members established a special Timeshare Real Property Tax classification that is almost twice as much as Hotels and Resorts on the island are taxed. This is also the highest real property tax rate in the entire State of Hawaii. Apparently tax discrimination is allowed on the Valley Island, and the Maui County leaders feel they can tax the nonvoting timeshare owners without any recourse. Why are timeshare owners not taxed the same as hotel and resort owners? Presently several major brand timeshare operators are building large, high priced time share/fractional developments, so the Maui County leaders may think they have a cash cow. Maui timeshare owners who wish to protest this discriminating property tax classification can contact the Mayor of Maui County, Mrs, Charmaine Tavares, 200 S. High Street, Wailuki, Maui, HI 96795 or phone [phone] or email the Real Property Tax Collector at www.maui propertytax.com . As an ARDA member, I have sent a copy of this letter to Mr. Howard Nusbaum, RRP, President of ARDA (American Resort Development Association) who is a great promoter of ARDA-ROC (The ARDA-Resort Owners Coalition) the collective voice that many United States timeshare owners contribute three to five dollars a year to in order to help fight negative and discriminating legislation. ARDA’s mailing address is 1201 15th Street, NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20005. If any TimeSharing Today readers serve on their Timeshare Association Boards in Maui, please email me at [email protected]; we as a group could investigate what legal action we might take against the County of Maui for this discriminating property tax legislation. James M. Moon, LaJolla, CA, President, Paki Maui Beach Villa’s Timeshare Association Maintenance fees I would like to supplement Linda J. Frese’s letter published in the Sept/Oct 2007 issue of TimeSharing Today. I am an owner at Resort World of Orlando. Shortly after it became known as “Celebrity Orlando,” I received a special assessment of $434. The August 3, 2005 letter from the Celebrity Orlando General Manager says, “The assessment, combined with future stabilization of reserves, works to make your vacation investment ‘new’ again.” Since that time, I have experienced steep increases in maintenance fees. Recently I received another letter from the Celebrity Resorts Regional General Manager. This one asks for a Limited Power of