Florida Statutes 721.55 – Multisite timeshare plan public offering statement
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Each filed public offering statement for a multisite timeshare plan shall contain the information required by this section and shall comply with the provisions of s. 721.07, except as otherwise provided therein. The division is authorized to provide by rule the method by which a developer must provide such information to the division. Each multisite timeshare plan filed public offering statement shall contain the following information and disclosures:
(1) A cover page containing:
(a) The name of the multisite timeshare plan.
Terms Used In Florida Statutes 721.55
- Accommodation: means any apartment, condominium or cooperative unit, cabin, lodge, hotel or motel room, campground, cruise ship cabin, houseboat or other vessel, recreational or other motor vehicle, or any private or commercial structure which is real or personal property and designed for overnight occupancy by one or more individuals. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
- Applicable law: means the law of the jurisdiction where the accommodations and facilities referred to are located. See Florida Statutes 721.52
- Assessment: means the share of funds required for the payment of common expenses which is assessed from time to time against each purchaser by the managing entity. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Common expenses: means :(a) Those expenses, fees, or taxes properly incurred for the maintenance, operation, and repair of the accommodations or facilities, or both, constituting the timeshare plan. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Component site: means a specific geographic site where a portion of the accommodations and facilities of the multisite timeshare plan are located. See Florida Statutes 721.52
- Conspicuous type: means :
(a) Type in upper and lower case letters two point sizes larger than the largest nonconspicuous type, exclusive of headings, on the page on which it appears but in at least 10-point type; or(b) Where the use of 10-point type would be impractical or impossible with respect to a particular piece of written advertising material, a different style of type or print may be used, so long as the print remains conspicuous under the circumstances. See Florida Statutes 721.05- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Contract: means any agreement conferring the rights and obligations of a timeshare plan on the purchaser. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Developer: includes :
(a)1. See Florida Statutes 721.05- Division: means the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
- Exchange company: means any person owning or operating, or owning and operating, an exchange program. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Exchange program: means any method, arrangement, or procedure for the voluntary exchange of the right to use and occupy accommodations and facilities among purchasers. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Facility: means any permanent amenity, including any structure, furnishing, fixture, equipment, service, improvement, or real or personal property, improved or unimproved, other than an accommodation of the timeshare plan, which is made available to the purchasers of a timeshare plan. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Filed public offering statement: means a public offering statement that has been filed with the division pursuant to…. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Lawsuit: A legal action started by a plaintiff against a defendant based on a complaint that the defendant failed to perform a legal duty, resulting in harm to the plaintiff.
- Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
- Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
- Managing entity: means the person who operates or maintains the timeshare plan pursuant to…. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Multisite timeshare plan: means any method, arrangement, or procedure with respect to which a purchaser obtains, by any means, a recurring right to use and occupy accommodations or facilities of more than one component site, only through use of a reservation system, whether or not the purchaser is able to elect to cease participating in the plan. See Florida Statutes 721.52
- Nonspecific multisite timeshare plan: means a multisite timeshare plan with respect to which a purchaser receives a right to use all of the accommodations and facilities, if any, of the multisite timeshare plan through the reservation system, but no specific right to use any particular accommodations and facilities for the remaining term of the multisite timeshare plan in the event that the reservation system is terminated for any reason prior to the expiration of the term of the multisite timeshare plan. See Florida Statutes 721.52
- offer: means the solicitation, advertisement, or inducement, or any other method or attempt, to encourage any person to acquire the opportunity to participate in a timeshare plan. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- One-to-one use right to use night requirement ratio: means that the sum of the nights that owners are entitled to use in a given 12-month period shall not exceed the number of nights available for use by those owners during the same 12-month period. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Public offering statement: means the written materials describing a single-site timeshare plan or a multisite timeshare plan, including a text and any exhibits attached thereto as required by ss. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Purchaser: means any person, other than a developer, who by means of a voluntary transfer acquires a legal or equitable interest in a timeshare plan other than as security for an obligation. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- Reservation system: means the method, arrangement, or procedure by which a purchaser, in order to reserve the use and occupancy of any accommodation or facility of the multisite timeshare plan for one or more use periods, is required to compete with other purchasers in the same multisite timeshare plan regardless of whether such reservation system is operated and maintained by the multisite timeshare plan managing entity, an exchange company, or any other person. See Florida Statutes 721.52
- Specific multisite timeshare plan: means a multisite timeshare plan with respect to which a purchaser receives a specific right to use accommodations and facilities, if any, at one component site of a multisite timeshare plan, together with use rights in the other accommodations and facilities of the multisite timeshare plan created by or acquired through the reservation system. See Florida Statutes 721.52
- Timeshare instrument: means one or more documents, by whatever name denominated, creating or governing the operation of a timeshare plan. See Florida Statutes 721.05
- timeshare plan: includes :
(a) A "personal property timeshare plan" which means a timeshare plan in which the accommodations are comprised of personal property that is not permanently affixed to real property; and(b) A "real property timeshare plan" which means a timeshare plan in which the accommodations of the timeshare plan are comprised of or permanently affixed to real property. See Florida Statutes 721.05- User fees: Fees charged to users of goods or services provided by the government. In levying or authorizing these fees, the legislature determines whether the revenue should go into the treasury or should be available to the agency providing the goods or services.
(b) The following statement in conspicuous type:This public offering statement contains important matters to be considered in acquiring an interest in a multisite timeshare plan (or multisite vacation ownership plan or multisite vacation plan or vacation club). The statements contained herein are only summary in nature. A prospective purchaser should refer to all references, accompanying exhibits, contract documents, and sales materials. The prospective purchaser should not rely upon oral representations as being correct and should refer to this document and accompanying exhibits for correct representations.
(2) A summary containing all statements required to be in conspicuous type in the public offering statement and in all exhibits thereto.(3) A separate index for the contents and exhibits of the public offering statement.(4) A text, which shall include, where applicable, the information and disclosures set forth in paragraphs (a)-(l).(a) A description of the multisite timeshare plan, including its term, legal structure, form of ownership, and the term of each component site within the multisite timeshare plan. The term of each component site that is shorter than the term of the multisite timeshare plan must be disclosed in conspicuous type.(b) A description of the structure and ownership of the reservation system together with a disclosure of the entity responsible for the operation of the reservation system. The description shall include the financial terms of any lease of the reservation system, if applicable. The developer shall not be required to disclose the financial terms of any such lease if such lease is prepaid in full for the term of the multisite timeshare plan or to any extent that neither purchasers nor the managing entity will be required to make payments for the continued use of the system following default by the developer or termination of the managing entity.(c)1. A description of the manner in which the reservation system operates. The description shall include a disclosure in compliance with the demand balancing standard set forth in s. 721.56(6) and shall describe the developer’s efforts to comply with same in creating the reservation system. The description shall also include a summary of the rules and regulations governing access to and use of the reservation system.2. In lieu of describing the rules and regulations of the reservation system in the public offering statement text, the developer may attach the rules and regulations as a separate public offering statement exhibit, together with a cross-reference in the public offering statement text to such exhibit.(d) The existence of and an explanation regarding any priority reservation features that affect a purchaser’s ability to make reservations for the use of a given accommodation or facility on a first come, first served basis, including, if applicable, the following statement in conspicuous type:Component sites contained in the multisite timeshare plan (or multisite vacation ownership plan or multisite vacation plan or vacation club) are subject to priority reservation features which may affect your ability to obtain a reservation.
(e) A summary of the material rules and regulations, if any, other than the reservation system rules and regulations, affecting the purchaser’s use of each accommodation and facility at each component site.(f) If the provisions of s. 721.552 and the timeshare instrument permit additions, substitutions, or deletions of accommodations or facilities, the public offering statement must include substantially the following information:1. Additions.–a. A description of the basis upon which new accommodations and facilities may be added to the multisite timeshare plan; by whom additions may be made; and the anticipated effect of the addition of new accommodations and facilities upon the reservation system, its priorities, its rules and regulations, and the availability of existing accommodations and facilities.b. The developer must disclose the existence of any cap on annual increases in common expenses of the multisite timeshare plan that would apply in the event that additional accommodations and facilities are made a part of the plan.c. The developer shall also disclose any extent to which the purchasers of the multisite timeshare plan will have the right to consent to any proposed additions; if the purchasers do not have the right to consent, the developer must include the following disclosure in conspicuous type:Accommodations and facilities may be added to this multisite timeshare plan (or multisite vacation ownership plan or multisite vacation plan or vacation club) without the consent of the purchasers. The addition of accommodations and facilities to the plan may result in the addition of new purchasers who will compete with existing purchasers in making reservations for the use of available accommodations and facilities within the plan, and may also result in an increase in the annual assessment against purchasers for common expenses.
2. Substitutions.–a. A description of the basis upon which new accommodations and facilities may be substituted for existing accommodations and facilities of the multisite timeshare plan; by whom substitutions may be made; the basis upon which the determination may be made to cause such substitutions to occur; and any limitations upon the ability to cause substitutions to occur.b. The developer shall also disclose any extent to which purchasers will have the right to consent to any proposed substitutions; if the purchasers do not have the right to consent, the developer must include the following disclosure in conspicuous type:New accommodations and facilities may be substituted for existing accommodations and facilities of this multisite timeshare plan (or multisite vacation ownership plan or multisite vacation plan or vacation club) without the consent of the purchasers. The replacement accommodations and facilities may be located at a different place or may be of a different type or quality than the replaced accommodations and facilities. The substitution of accommodations and facilities may also result in an increase in the annual assessment against purchasers for common expenses.
3. Deletions.–A description of any provision of the timeshare instrument governing deletion of accommodations or facilities from the multisite timeshare plan. If the timeshare instrument does not provide for business interruption insurance in the event of a casualty, or if it is unavailable, or if the instrument permits the developer, the managing entity, or the purchasers to elect not to reconstruct after casualty under certain circumstances or to secure replacement accommodations or facilities in lieu of reconstruction, the public offering statement must contain a disclosure that during the reconstruction, replacement, or acquisition period, or as a result of a decision not to reconstruct, purchasers of the plan may temporarily compete for available accommodations on a greater than one-to-one use right to use night requirement ratio.(g) A description of the developer and the managing entity of the multisite timeshare plan, including:1. The identity of the developer; the developer’s business address; the number of years of experience the developer has in the timeshare, hotel, motel, travel, resort, or leisure industries; and a description of any pending lawsuit or judgment against the developer which is material to the plan. If there are no such pending lawsuits or judgments, there shall be a statement to that effect.2. The identity of the managing entity of the multisite timeshare plan; the managing entity’s business address; the number of years of experience the managing entity has in the timeshare, hotel, motel, travel, resort, or leisure industries; and a description of any lawsuit or judgment against the managing entity which is material to the plan. If there are no pending lawsuits or judgments, there shall be a statement to that effect. The description of the managing entity shall also include a description of the relationship among the managing entity of the multisite timeshare plan and the various component site managing entities.(h) A description of the purchaser’s liability for common expenses of the multisite timeshare plan, including the following:1. A description of the common expenses of the plan, including the method of allocation and assessment of such common expenses, whether component site common expenses and real estate taxes are included within the total common expense assessment of the multisite timeshare plan, and, if not, the manner in which timely payment of component site common expenses and real estate taxes shall be accomplished.2. A description of any cap imposed upon the level of common expenses payable by the purchaser.a. In no event shall the total common expense assessment for the multisite timeshare plan in a given calendar year exceed 125 percent of the total common expense assessment for the plan in the previous calendar year.b. Component site common expenses and ad valorem taxes shall not be included in calculating the total common expense assessment under sub-subparagraph a.3. A description of the entity responsible for the determination of the common expenses of the multisite timeshare plan, as well as any entity which may increase the level of common expenses assessed against the purchaser at the multisite timeshare plan level.4. A description of the method used to collect common expenses, including the entity responsible for such collections, and the lien rights of any entity for nonpayment of common expenses. If the common expenses of any component site are collected by the managing entity of the multisite timeshare plan, a statement to that effect together with the identity and address of the escrow agent required by s. 721.56(3).5. If the purchaser will receive an interest in a nonspecific multisite timeshare plan, a statement that a multisite timeshare plan budget is attached to the public offering statement as an exhibit pursuant to paragraph (7)(c). The multisite timeshare plan budget shall comply with the provisions of s. 721.07(5)(t).6. If the developer intends to guarantee the level of assessments for the multisite timeshare plan, such guarantee must be based upon a good faith estimate of the revenues and expenses of the multisite timeshare plan. The guarantee must include a description of the following:a. The specific time period, measured in one or more calendar or fiscal years, during which the guarantee will be in effect.b. A statement that the developer will pay all common expenses incurred in excess of the total revenues of the multisite timeshare plan, if the developer is to be excused from the payment of assessments during the guarantee period.c. The level, expressed in total dollars, at which the developer guarantees the assessments. If the developer has reserved the right to extend or increase the guarantee level, a disclosure must be included to that effect.7. If required under applicable law, the developer shall also disclose the following matters for each component site:a. Any limitation upon annual increases in common expenses;b. The existence of any bad debt or working capital reserve; andc. The existence of any replacement or deferred maintenance reserve.(i) If there are any restrictions upon the sale, transfer, conveyance, or leasing of an interest in a multisite timeshare plan, a description of the restrictions together with a statement in conspicuous type in substantially the following form:The sale, lease, or transfer of interests in this multisite timeshare plan is restricted or controlled.
(j) The following statement in conspicuous type in substantially the following form:The purchase of an interest in a multisite timeshare plan (or multisite vacation ownership plan or multisite vacation plan or vacation club) should be based upon its value as a vacation experience or for spending leisure time, and not considered for purposes of acquiring an appreciating investment or with an expectation that the interest may be resold.
(k) If the multisite timeshare plan provides purchasers with the opportunity to participate in an exchange program, a description of the name and address of the exchange company and the method by which a purchaser accesses the exchange program. In lieu of this requirement, the public offering statement text may contain a cross-reference to other provisions in the public offering statement or in an exhibit containing this information.(l) A description of each component site, which description may be disclosed in a written, graphic, tabular, or other form approved by the division or provided to the purchaser electronically, including, but not limited to, through a website or other Internet-based access. The description of each component site must include all of the following information:1. The name and address of each component site.2. The number of accommodations, timeshare interests, and timeshare periods, expressed in periods of 7-day use availability, committed to the multisite timeshare plan and available for use by purchasers.3. Each type of accommodation in terms of the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, sleeping capacity, and whether or not the accommodation contains a full kitchen. As used in this subparagraph, the term “full kitchen” means a kitchen with at least a dishwasher, range, sink, oven, and refrigerator.4. A description of facilities available for use by the purchaser at each component site, including the following:a. The intended use of the facility, if not apparent from the description.b. Any user fees associated with a purchaser’s use of the facility.5. A cross-reference to the location in the public offering statement of the description of any priority reservation features which may affect a purchaser’s ability to obtain a reservation in the component site.(5)(a) Such other information as the division determines is necessary to fairly, meaningfully, and effectively disclose all aspects of the multisite timeshare plan, including, but not limited to, any disclosures made necessary by the operation of s. 721.03(8).(b) If a developer has, in good faith, attempted to comply with this chapter, and if, in fact, the developer has substantially complied with this chapter, nonmaterial errors or omissions are not actionable, are not violations of this chapter, and do not give rise to any purchaser cancellation right.(6) Any other information that the developer, with the approval of the division, desires to include in the public offering statement text.(7) The following documents shall be included as exhibits to the filed public offering statement, if applicable:(a) The timeshare instrument.(b) The reservation system rules and regulations.(c) The multisite timeshare plan budget pursuant to subparagraph (4)(h)5.(d) Any document containing the material rules and regulations described in paragraph (4)(e).(e) Any contract, agreement, or other document through which component sites are affiliated with the multisite timeshare plan.(g) The form agreement for sale or lease of an interest in the multisite timeshare plan.(h) The form receipt for multisite timeshare plan documents required to be given to the purchaser pursuant to s. 721.551(2)(b).(i) The description of documents list required to be given to the purchaser by s. 721.551(2)(b).(j) The component site managing entity affidavit or statement required by s. 721.56(1).(k) Any subordination instrument required by s. 721.53.(l)1. If the multisite timeshare plan contains any component sites located in the state, the information required by s. 721.07(5) pertaining to each such component site, unless exempt under s. 721.03.2. If the purchaser will receive an interest in a specific multisite timeshare plan component site located outside of the state but which is offered in the state, the information required by s. 721.07(5) pertaining to that component site. However, for purposes of this paragraph, s. 721.07(5)(t) only requires disclosure of information related to the estimated budget for the timeshare plan and purchaser’s expenses as required by the jurisdiction in which the component site is located.A developer is not required to file a separate public offering statement for any component site located within or outside the state in order to include the component site in the multisite timeshare plan.
(8)(a) A timeshare plan containing only one component site must be filed with the division as a multisite timeshare plan if the timeshare instrument reserves the right for the developer to add future component sites. However, if the developer fails to add at least one additional component site to a timeshare plan described in this paragraph within 3 years after the date the plan is initially filed with the division, the multisite filing for such plan shall thereupon terminate, and the developer may not thereafter offer any further interests in such plan unless and until he or she refiles such plan with the division pursuant to this chapter.(b) The public offering statement for any timeshare plan described in paragraph (a) must include the following disclosure in conspicuous type:This timeshare plan has been filed as a multisite timeshare plan (or multisite vacation ownership plan or multisite vacation plan or vacation club); however, this plan currently contains only one component site. The developer is not required to add any additional component sites to the plan. Do not purchase an interest in this plan in reliance upon the addition of any other component sites.