Buyer’s Q&A
What is a 1/8 fractional share?
A real one-eighth share of one specific luxury home. Entitles you to around six weeks of personal use a year.
The short answer: A 1/8 fractional share is a real share — one-eighth — of one specific luxury home, not a right to use it. It entitles the owner to around six weeks of personal use a year, a proportional share of any appreciation, a say in decisions about the home, and the right to sell, gift or pass on the share. 1/8 is the standard share size because it maps cleanly to roughly six weeks of use — enough for most buyers without overlapping with other owners.
Why 1/8 is the standard share size
The 1/8 share has emerged as the standard share size in modern fractional ownership for three reasons.
First, around six weeks a year fits the way buyers actually use second homes. Most households who buy a luxury second home use it 4–10 weeks per year. A 1/8 share — roughly six weeks of allocated use plus a small amount of last-minute availability — sits squarely in that range.
Second, eight owners is the largest group a company can practically schedule without booking friction. Larger groups (1/12 shares, 1/16 shares) compress everyone's allocated time below five weeks and produce frequent week-allocation conflicts in peak season.
Third, 1/8 keeps the share price within reach for the buyer profile that fractional targets. A €2M villa as 1/8 shares prices each share at around €260,000 fully loaded — a buyer pool of households who could plausibly afford the whole property but choose not to.
What a 1/8 share actually gives you
A 1/8 share is a real eighth of the home. It gives the owner several things:
- Real ownership: you own a share of the home itself, which moves with the value of the house; the legal set-up is arranged by our partner and walked through with you before you buy
- around six weeks of personal use a year at the home, allocated through a fair-rotation booking system
- Exclusive use during your allocated weeks — other owners are never present at the same time
- One-eighth of any appreciation in the underlying property
- One-eighth voting share on decisions about the home (replacement of management, special assessments, sale of the home)
- The right to sell, gift or pass on the share, including through our partner's resale process
- The right to invite guests during your allocated weeks, including allowing them to use the home in your absence
How sharing the home works
- The home is professionally designed and furnished, and kept that way for every owner
- Your stays are your booked weeks, plus last-minute availability
- It's a second home, not a permanent residence
- Decisions about the home are shared (you have one of eight votes)
- Rentals, where the home allows them, run through the managed rental programme
How the weeks are allocated
Most companies use a rotation system that ensures fair access to peak weeks (Christmas, Easter, August, school holidays) across all owners over a multi-year cycle. Within each year, owners book specific dates through the company's booking platform, subject to the rotation rules. Owners can typically reserve last-minute weeks where availability permits and swap weeks with other owners through the platform.
Can you buy more than one 1/8 share?
Yes. Most companies allow buyers to purchase up to four 1/8 shares of the same property (50% ownership), which scales the personal-use allocation to ~180 days per year. Owning more than 50% is usually prohibited so no single owner can dominate decisions about the home. Buyers can also stack shares across multiple properties for use across multiple destinations.
Why some companies offer 1/4 or 1/12 shares instead
A handful of companies offer larger 1/4 shares (90 days/year) for buyers wanting more use, or smaller 1/12 shares (30 days/year) for buyers wanting lower entry pricing. Both are minority models; 1/8 dominates the market because the maths works for the most common buyer profile.
Where to compare 1/8 share listings
Co-Ownership Property's selection lists 1/8 share inventory across Europe, the US and Mexico, with the share size, price and annual fee disclosed per property.
Further reading
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