The Association of International Property Professionals (AIPP) has introduced the ‘Alliance’ service in a bid to provide free legal advice for strategizing or for owners with a matter to resolve.
Initially launched at ‘A Place in the Sun Live’ on 11-13 May at London Olympia to over 8,500 visitors and the trade, the Alliance focuses on four key areas for buyers and owners: knowledge and support, savings and offers, representation to governments and community hub.
The service is managed and delivered by the AIPP and via the Legal Working Group, which is currently free through the Timeshare Taskforce Helpline.
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Peter Robinson, chief executive office of AIPP, said it was time the industry delivered support for what it helps to create: British owners of a foreign property or timeshare.
“While expats often have a locally supportive community, British-resident owners have no collective voice or definitive place to go for information and support should they need it.”
He added: “The Alliance is a membership organisation built by the property industry to serve its customers well beyond the initial buying phase.”
With a focus on the need to ‘buy right, own well’, the AIPP is encouraging its members to subscribe to a professional code of conduct with potential remedies for their clients through the Property Ombudsman.
Buyers and owners can get a free membership for the Alliance in its launch phase, which will be later offered to founder members at a discounted rate. Members will also receive special offers from partners – such as Clear Currency and Blevins Franks – to support them when they’re at home and away, lowering their cost of ownership.
The Alliance estimates British residents spend at least £5 billion a year to access their foreign property and £15 billion once there, highlighting foreign communities’ dependency on the money that British owners spend in their country.
The service is co-supported by the Resort Development Organisation (RDO), the trade association for holiday ownership across Europe, covering timeshare, fractional interests, private residence clubs and other usage types.
Founding members of the ‘home’ offer can also look forward to a complimentary 12-month membership to the Luxury Restaurant Club in the UK, while Timeshare owners benefit from a discounted travel insurance scheme from Leisure Guard Insurance, which offers refunds on timeshare annual management charges and a deduction on their purchase.