Definitions

As used in this article, the term: (1) ‘‘Agent’’ means a person authorized by the developer to act for such developer in offering to the public or managing time-share intervals including but not limited to employees or independent contractors of the developer, managing agents, sales agents, and escrow agents. (2) ‘‘Conspicuous statement’’ means a statement in boldface and conspicuous type of at least ten points, such statements always being larger than all other statements, except for other conspicuous statements, in the body of the document in which they are required. (3) ‘‘Developer’’ means, in the case of any given property, any person or entity which is in the business of creating or which is in the business of 275 44-3-162 selling its own time-share intervals in any time-share program. This definition shall not mean a person acting solely as a sales agent. (4) ‘‘Developer control period’’ means the period of time during which the developer or managing agent selected by the developer may manage the time-share program and the units in the time-share program. (5) ‘‘Development,’’ ‘‘project,’’ or ‘‘property’’ means all of the real property subject to a project instrument and which contains more than one unit. (6) ‘‘Escrow agent’’ means a licensed real estate broker, an attorney who is a member of the State Bar of Georgia, a title company, or a banking institution or savings and loan company having trust powers and located in this state who is entrusted with the deposit of trust funds with instructions to carry out the provisions of an agreement or contract. (7) ‘‘Exchange company’’ means any person owning or operating an exchange program. (8) ‘‘Exchange program’’ means any arrangement whereby owners may exchange occupancy rights with persons owning other time-share intervals or units or other rights of possession; provided, however, that an exchange program shall not exist if all of the occupancy rights which may be exchanged are in the same time-share property. (9) ‘‘Managing agent’’ means a person who undertakes the duties, responsibilities, and obligations of the management of a time-share program. (10) ‘‘Multilocation developer’’ means a developer creating or selling its own time-share intervals in a multilocation plan. (11) ‘‘Multilocation plan’’ means a time-share plan respecting more than one time-share property pursuant to which owners may or may not obtain use rights in a specific time-share property and may, by reservation or other similar procedure, become entitled to occupy time-share units in more than one time-share property. (12) ‘‘Offering’’ means any offer to sell, solicitation, inducement, or advertisement whether by radio, television, newspaper, magazine, or mail whereby a person is given an opportunity to acquire a time-share interval. (12.1) ‘‘Owners’ association’’ means an association made up of all owners of time-share intervals in a time-share program. (13) ‘‘Person’’ means one or more natural persons, corporations, partnerships, associations, trusts, other entities, or any combination thereof. (14) ‘‘Project’’ means development. 276 44-3-162 (15) ‘‘Project instrument’’ means one or more recordable documents applicable to the whole project by whatever name denominated, containing restrictions or covenants regulating the use, occupancy, or disposition of an entire project including any amendments to the document excluding any law, ordinance, or governmental regulation. (16) ‘‘Property’’ means development. (17) ‘‘Public offering statement’’ means a written statement given to prospective purchasers by the developer or the developer’s agent disclosing such information about the time-share project as required by this article. (18) ‘‘Purchaser’’ means any person other than a developer or lender who acquires an interest in a time-share interval. (19) ‘‘Sales agent’’ means a person who for another, for a fee, commission, or any other valuable consideration or with the intent or expectation of receiving the same from another, negotiates or attempts to negotiate the sale or lease of a time-share interval in a time-share program. (20) ‘‘Sales agreement’’ means that contract, agreement, lease, or other written instrument by which a purchaser contracts to acquire or acquires, in the event there is no contract to acquire, an interest in a time-share interval. (21) ‘‘Time-share estate’’ means an ownership or leasehold interest in real property divided into measurable chronological periods, including real property interests held in irrevocable trust wherein all owners of the time-share program or the owners’ association of the time-share program are express beneficiaries of such trust and the trustee is independent of the developer; provided, however, that if such real property interests are held in trust, conveyance of the property to the trust shall be free of all financial liens and encumbrances or shall include a recorded nondisturbance agreement. (22) ‘‘Time-share instrument’’ means any document, by whatever name denominated, creating or regulating time-share programs excluding any law, ordinance, or governmental regulation. (23) ‘‘Time-share interval’’ means a time-share estate or a time-share use. (24) ‘‘Time-share program’’ means any arrangement for time-share intervals in a time-share project whereby the use, occupancy, or possession of real property has been made subject to either a time-share estate or time-share use whereby such use, occupancy, or possession circulates among purchasers of the time-share intervals according to a fixed or floating time schedule on a periodic basis occurring annually over any period of time in excess of one year in duration. 277 44-3-162.1 (25) ‘‘Time-share project’’ means any real property that is subject to a time-share program. (26) ‘‘Time-share use’’ means any contractual right of exclusive occupancy which does not fall within the definition of a time-share estate including, without limitation, a vacation license, prepaid hotel reservation, club membership, limited partnership, or vacation bond. (27) ‘‘Unit’’ means the real property or real property improvement in a project which is divided into time-share intervals. (Code 1981, § 44-3-162, enacted by Ga. L. 1983, p. 1255, § 1; Ga. L. 1986, p. 10, § 44; Ga. L. 1989, p. 321, § 1; Ga. L. 1990, p. 227, § 17; Ga. L. 1995, p. 1260, § 1; Ga. L. 2009, p. 332, § 1/HB 608.) The 2009 amendment, effective July 1, 2009, added paragraph (12.1) and, in paragraph (21), added ‘‘, including real property interests held in irrevocable trust wherein all owners of the time-share program or the owners’ association of the time-share program are express beneficiaries of such trust and the trustee is independent of the developer; provided, however, that if such real property interests are held in trust, conveyance of the property to the trust shall be free of all financial liens and encumbrances or shall include a recorded nondisturbance agreement’’. 44-3-162.1. Time-share projects and programs; application of restrictive covenants; exceptions. (a) As used in this Code section, the term: (1) ‘‘Private residence club’’ means an improvement located on real property, including, but not limited to, a single-family residence, the title to which is held by a maximum of eight individuals as tenants in common in fee simple or by a limited liability company containing not greater than eight members, and the use of such improvement or residence includes, without limitation, exclusive occupancy for certain time periods which are determined among the titleholders or limited liability company members by project instrument, including, but not limited to, a declaration of restrictive covenants, a contract, or otherwise. A private residence club may or may not be located in a private residence club development. (2) ‘‘Private residence club development’’ means a development of at least two private residence clubs in which the titleholders or members of the limited liability company, as respects to each private residence club, contractually agree by project instrument, contract, or otherwise to permit occupancy for certain time periods to the titleholders or members of the limited liability company as exist with respect to any or all of the private residence clubs in the private residence club development. (b) Neither a private residence club nor a private residence club development shall be considered a time-share estate, time-share program, time-share project, or time-share use under this article, and this article shall not be applicable to private residence clubs or private residence club 278 44-3-162.1 SPECIALIZED LAND TRANSACTIONS 44-3-163 developments; provided, however, that, notwithstanding the foregoing, if there exists a restrictive covenant on real estate that restricts or prohibits time-share estates, time-share programs, time-share projects, or time-share uses, such restrictive covenants shall equally restrict or prohibit a private residence club and a private residence club development unless such restrictive covenant expressly states that it does not apply to private residence clubs and private residence club developments. No zoning, subdivision, or building code or other real estate use ordinance or regulation shall prohibit a private residence club form of ownership or impose any requirement upon a private residence club which it does not impose upon a physically identical improvement or development under a different form of ownership. No subdivision law, ordinance, or regulation shall apply to any division of an improvement, including a single-family residence, into a private residence club or private residence club development. (Code 1981, § 44-3-162.1, enacted by Ga. L. 2009, p. 689, § 1/HB 492.) Effective date. — This Code section became effective May 5, 2009. 44-3-163. Time-share estate title; recording transfer or encumbrance; taxation.