My timeshare is paid in full, but I just don't want it anymore

Our timeshare was badly burned this year in one of the worst years for wildfires in British Columbia. I have only seen one picture from afar, but what I gather, the whole resort is in bad shape after the fire. What are my options for getting out of the deeded contract?

rayh204 wrote:

What are my options for getting out of the deeded contract?

Is the insurance repairing the place or will the insurance buy out the place?

Regardless, here are the usual "options for getting out of the deeded contract".

First and foremost, do not hire any company, law firm, or charity that supposedly gets you out of your contract. They might have comforting words in their names such as exit, relief, and/or cancel. But these are scams.

You can try listing your unit for sale or giveaway on a reputable timeshare-related website such as here on RedWeek, E-Bay, My Resort Network, or Timeshare Users Group (aka "TUG"; tugbbs.com).

You can contact the resort's Homeowners' Association and ask if it will take the unit back. In some cases the HOA will accept units back if they're paid off but might also charge a transfer fee.

If all else fails, just stop paying maintenance fees and let it go into foreclosure. You might face a bunch of annoying collection calls and letters. You might also face a hit to your credit score or rating.

Hello. I’m just looking for a little clarity. I was given an annual deeded Welk one bedroom timeshare in Escondido, CA in 2007. I knew nothing about timeshares or even that there were maintenance fees each year. A couple of years later an elderly couple came to our house and talked us into buying 120,000 Platinum points for $3,000 saying we would never be able to sell it without them. My husband and I used a week in 2007 and my son used a couple of days of it in 2010. It hasn’t been used since, but maintenance fees have been paid every year. Last year Hyatt took over and instead of paying both the maintenance fees and points fees online, we were mailed the maintenance fee and paid it, but never received an invoice for the points fees, and I never thought about it. I also pay county taxes each year. I looked at my account earlier this year and found that my points had been removed. I called and was told they were removed due to non-payment. After a lot of pretty intense conversations they finally reinstated my points. I have asked numerous times for them to take the timeshare back but they always say they don’t have a buyback program at the time. They told me that they show that I have been asking since 2019 and they will let me know if they have a buyback program. I also asked why I pay county taxes if I have points. They said I have a deeded contract that is forfeited when I use my points so I am still obligated to pay taxes. Someone told me I either have a deed or points, not both. I am looking at all of my options to get away from this timeshare. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

amandaf151 wrote:

Hello. I’m just looking for a little clarity. I was given an annual deeded Welk one bedroom timeshare in Escondido, CA in 2007. I knew nothing about timeshares or even that there were maintenance fees each year. A couple of years later an elderly couple came to our house and talked us into buying 120,000 Platinum points for $3,000 saying we would never be able to sell it without them. My husband and I used a week in 2007 and my son used a couple of days of it in 2010. It hasn’t been used since, but maintenance fees have been paid every year. Last year Hyatt took over and instead of paying both the maintenance fees and points fees online, we were mailed the maintenance fee and paid it, but never received an invoice for the points fees, and I never thought about it. I also pay county taxes each year. I looked at my account earlier this year and found that my points had been removed. I called and was told they were removed due to non-payment. After a lot of pretty intense conversations they finally reinstated my points. I have asked numerous times for them to take the timeshare back but they always say they don’t have a buyback program at the time. They told me that they show that I have been asking since 2019 and they will let me know if they have a buyback program. I also asked why I pay county taxes if I have points. They said I have a deeded contract that is forfeited when I use my points so I am still obligated to pay taxes. Someone told me I either have a deed or points, not both. I am looking at all of my options to get away from this timeshare. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Very few timeshare companies have a buy back program. If they take a unit back from you, it's either at no cost or they will charge you a transfer fee plus possibly the next maintenance fee. They will not pay you for your unit. You can check with the resort's Homeowners' Association to see what deed back program they have.

Also, if all your maintenance fees are up to date, you can advertise that you want to give your unit away. You can advertise here on RedWeek's Bargain section. You can also advertise on Timeshare Users Group (aka "TUG"; tugbbs.com) in its Free Timeshares section.

If neither of these options works, then you last resort would be to stop all maintenance fee payments and let your unit go into default and foreclosure. You will probably face a bunch of annoying collection calls and letters. You might also face a hit on your credit history and score, but those can usually be overcome quickly.

Just do not go looking to many of these scam companies or law firms that claim they can get you out of your timeshare or its contract scot-free.

I called Marriott and asked about their resell policy which is much better than it used to be. I couldn't list it for sell next year 2024, but I listed it for 2025. They said it t will probably sell for 15,000, and then we would get $8000. Yes, another scam that Marriott does. Truthfully, I think they just give us $8000 for purchase, but at least I don't have to pay them for listing it. Now, get this , they will not take Aruba it is out of the country and they were not interested in Points.

Consider, maintenance fees just keep going up every year. You will be responsible for your contract in years to come, even when you are no longer able to travel or have moved onto other places/things. If you are financing, do the math on the costs plus interest and how long it will take to pay off, then the yearly maint fee beyond that. Depending on your age, do you foresee you still traveling to the same place? or even if you exchange, will you realistically spend that much on travel in the coming years? I think this is what we all think we will when we buy into our TS. However , in hindsight we see that we cannot predict our situation later or allow for unforseen circumstances or life changes preventing us to travel. And those promises of passing it on to your family or children to enjoy, Well, I know my kids do not want the burden of the maintenance fees for life! they are just trying to pay rent LOL

So If I can do it again, and I got good use out of my ebay resale, by just banking and trading, I would just rent from owners when I traveled and not purchase a lifelong money trap. Just my personal thoughts. I love the TS travel lifestyle and the resorts. But you can get that from just renting an owners week. In the long run it costs less and you have more control of getting to stay where you want when you want. Until they change some laws and institute some regulations on TS sales, tactics and exit, I won't even go to an Owners update or entertain adding anymore weeks/points.

Everyone's situation is different and only you can decide if it's right for you. But I would just make sure you do your due diligence, read and ask questions, read what you can on ownerships and reviews. positive and negative. Do the math and look at it with the foreseeable future in mind. Make sure you read the contract before signing too.

Steve As a multiple Marriott timeshare owner, I wouldn’t do it. What happens if someone get ills one year, or actually any other life event and you want to skip a vacay there? Also, maintenance fees are not fixed and they can go up anytime, and if they do improvements, you can also get special assessments in the amount of hundreds of dollars (this happened to us at Palm Desert, and the assessment has not gone away). I have used and traded Marriotts for years, but with their acquisition of Sheraton, Wyndham and others, I cannot get the trades I want (putting in requests over a year in advance). They also own Interval International and the cost of fees there has also gone way up. I have enjoyed them for years but now it just difficult and expensive. I am probably going to have to gift them to get rid of them. I am retired and looking to still travel but I want more flexibility. Just my opinion.

Don't buy a timeshare!

lindag665 wrote:

Don't buy a timeshare!

Why not? There are lots of happy timeshare owners. Just because you (or someone you know) might have had a bad experience owning or buying one, it doesn't mean that everyone should avoid buying or acquiring one.

The best advice to anyone considering buying or acquiring a timeshare is to take your time, do your research, and really consider what your travel needs, budget, and circumstances are. For most people, that would mean not buying or acquiring a timeshare. For others, owning a timeshare makes sense.

Timeshare at Welks Resort, Branson Missouri. Paid for in full!!! Maintenance fees going up every year!! Aging out of the work force, will be "no" more income taxes to pay Maintenance fees every yr... They refused EXIT letter, they said get a broker... But thought about filing bankruptcy instead!! WE WANT MAINTENANCE FEES GONE!!

jenniferc2056 wrote:

Timeshare at Welks Resort, Branson Missouri. Paid for in full!!! Maintenance fees going up every year!! Aging out of the work force, will be "no" more income taxes to pay Maintenance fees every yr... They refused EXIT letter, they said get a broker... But thought about filing bankruptcy instead!! WE WANT MAINTENANCE FEES GONE!!

You should first consult an attorney before filing for bankruptcy. If those unwelcome maintenance fees are your only financial problem or concern, you may very well be advised by a legal professional that bankruptcy is not a particularly wise solution to your timeshare problem. After all, with no outstanding loan, the worst that could or would ultimately happen if you just stopped paying those fees will be a future foreclosure --- so what?

I have no idea about the resale value (...if any) of your particular timeshare, but if it's of little or no resale value you could (and you should) first make an effort to just give it away for free --- and maybe even offer to pay the closing costs for a new, willing "grantee". That would be quicker and cleaner (and less stressful) than just waiting for foreclosure, which could take 1-3 years, with annoying collection calls and letters in the meantime until foreclosure gets initiated.

My time share with Bluegreen Vacation is paid in full and I have owned it for some time. The Maintenace fees were not too bad at first but now they have skyrocketed to 20% a year recently. Do Not Buy a time share it is the worst mistake I ever made.

pams565 wrote:

Do Not Buy a time share .

I'd be careful about making the blanket statement "Do Not Buy a time share." Just because "it [was] the worst mistake [you] ever made", it doesn't mean it's a mistake all timeshare buyers make. If you read some of these threads and boards, you will see that there are many happy timeshare buyers and owners.

Of course, the conventional wisdom would be to do research before buying (or even accepting for free) a timeshare.