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ask-redweek-will-marriott-buy-my-timeshare-back

Just came across this forum and thought I would throw my 2 cents in.At one point I owned a red week with Marriott at Royal Palms in Orlando and probably about 10 yrs later purchased a blue week at Marriott Grande Ocean Resort in Hilton Head. Marriott was one time color blind and you could trade a blue week for a red week usually with very little problem by just paying the Interval Int fee. Then they wised up and blue was not much benefit unless you enjoyed traveling in the off season. I purchased my Grande Ocean week at a Marriott Resale Center located in a villa on the grounds of the Grand Ocean resort in 2000. The Marriott Sales Center was charging $9k for a blue week and the Marriott Resale Center charged $5.5 K.... so I saved quite a bit and got all the benefits since it was sold by Marriott themselves. Several years after purchasing at Grand Ocean I decided to sell the unit at Royal Palms. Back then Marriott had a program to sell your unit. There was a ridiculous commission of 30% or 40% as I recalled but it included all fees. It took awhile but they actually sold it and I even made a few dollars off the sale. Fast forward to now about 17 yrs later and I want to unload the Grande Ocean week. Its still a great place, and they keep it like new, for a price. My maintenance fee has gone from about $750 when purchased around 2000, to something like $1461 now in 2020. It is no longer worth it as I no longer have the same family situation and no longer bring 6 or 7 people with me. The other thing that rubs me the wrong way is that I like to go down in early December..... no crowds, no heat, no bugs. Thing is I find a lot of people there at this time bought cheap timeshares (only paid a few hundred $) with much cheaper maintenance fees then trade them through places like RCI and II and end up staying there a lot cheaper than what I paid in maint. fees each year. Furthermore they have no obligation to continue paying the unreasonable fees Marriott passes along to its owners years after years. Marriott does now offer a buyback program but only for limited resorts and limited seasons. They will pay you pennies on the dollar and turn around and sell it again at an exaggerated price. If they opt not to repurchase the week they may offer you a way to unload it with their deed back program. You walk away with absolutely nothing but they do pick up the closing costs, transfer fees etc. If your objective is only to avoid paying the maint fee in the future the program works just fine. Whatever you invested in it initially (use the term invested loosely) is lost. It's tough to even give one of these away these days let alone recoup some of your capital. With a deeded week the obligation exists in perpetuity and is passed on to your heirs. Over the past few years I have checked with a number or realtors and the legit ones which take no upfront money have no interest in attempting to resell them on your behalf. You can always find plenty of companies that tell you what you want to hear but also take a good bit of money upfront. Typically that will be the last you hear from them unless you want to extend the contract with them...... for another fee of course.