Why Buy a PRC: An Elan Q&A With Stan Tonkin

The mainstream media is finally catching on to the fractional real estate industry’s renaissance this year. Inman News, Smart Money, and MSN recently ran articles on the subject, yet misconceptions still remain about the advantages of shared ownership. We asked Stan Tonkin, Vice President of International Marketing and Sales for The Élan Collection, to clarify a few points. Here is a snapshot of our interview with him:

The Élan Report: What are the benefits of joining a private residence club like The Élan Collection?

Stan Tonkin: Private residence clubs, or PRCs, are a loosely configured co-op of fractional owned properties. Many PRCs offer trade use rights and other benefits, but differ widely in type of ownership, ownership costs, and periods of use. Research shows that typical owners of vacation residences only use their properties four to five weeks out of the year on average. Keeping that statistic in mind, a PRC owner-member can experience the same realistic use of a vacation residence at a fraction of the price.

ER: How do PRCs differ from timeshares and destination clubs?

ST: Private residence clubs are often confused with timeshares and destination club membership, where an owner-member typically buys a non-equity membership with a company that provides access and use to a wide range of vacation properties. In general, a private residence club provides its owner-members with actual ownership rights in a specific property—not a company. This owner-member status offers reciprocal use rights in either other properties owned by the PRC or through share agreements with other similar properties. By definition, The Élan Collection is a PRC that offers shared-interest ownership in an exclusive collection of luxury vacation residences. However, affiliation with The Élan Collection offers its owner-members amenities managed by Élan and the reciprocal use of spectacular properties within The Élan Collection worldwide, through our exchange network.

ER: Ok, bottom line: what’s the number one reason why people buy into a PRC?

Actual ownership of the shared interest in a property, as well as the fact it is sellable or transferable are key advantages. Sharing the cost of operating a property is also beneficial, notwithstanding the benefits of real estate ownership.