Timeshare Tragedy

[CMEMDOC]

Yes, I'm the guy who got roped into a timeshare. Its amazing how these people can lie and have no shame. Nevertheless, I had the fortune of purchasing this in cash so did not end up with 25%+ interest rate. Well, several years later, I've not had the opportunity to use it, have paid maintenance fees and just want to off load. I've read that these things are virtually impossible to sell. I've considered gifting it but have been told I'd have to pay a transfer fee and office fees which are around $3000. I'm willing to do this if I can just be done with it.

Has anyone had success selling a timeshare...if so through whom? Second, if I cannot sell, has anyone had success with gifting it and through what organization?

Thanks for any advice. I'm looking to build wealth and this just feels like an anchor I need to cut and be free from.

[Craigy]

All I can think of is those "turn your timeshare into cash" commercials that used to run years ago.   

Good luck!

[Ryan]

Everybody makes stupid financial decisions, they're just expensive lessons. So don't beat yourself up, assuming you learn from it. I wonder if you can call a few law firms and see what they can do-- maybe for a flat rate? I googled timeshare lawyer and this came up-- https://aaronsonlawgroup.com/. Seems to have decent reviews. No idea what they charge.

[VagabondMD]

I must be the one guy that has had a decent experience buying, owning, using and later selling timeshares. In an odd twist of fate, by keeping me from buying a vacation home when I was inclined to do so (and would have later regretted), it probably saved me money.

I used the Timeshare Store to resell my DVC timeshares and sold my Marriott timeshare back to Marriott.

[Donnie]

Tragedy seems like an overstatement. You may be able to at least rent your timeshare to cover the maintenance costs. As Ryan said, think of this as a learning experience. Next time you sign a long term financial contract, you will probably be more careful.

[Bmac]

Vagabond MD wrote:

I must be the one guy that has had a decent experience buying, owning, using and later selling timeshares. In an odd twist of fate, by keeping me from buying a vacation home when I was inclined to do so (and would have later regretted), it probably saved me money.

I used the Timeshare Store to resell my DVC timeshares and sold my Marriott timeshare back to Marriott.

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I have to agree. We have had a Marriott timeshare that has generally worked very well for our needs for the last decade. I don't love paying the annual fees, but it has brought our family much enjoyment over the years. Definitely not a great "investment" but I don't think it will have much of a negative impact on us financially even if/when we sell back to Marriott at some point in the future.

[Craigy]

Some timeshares are legitimate arrangements and others are simply scams.

[PhysicianOnFIRE]

I've been to 2 timeshare talks for the freebies, but haven't bought. I later look them up on eBay to see what they actually go far. The markup was 20x or more. Blue Green is one of the companies whose talks I survived. I know at least two people in real life who have them and use them, but it's clearly not a good deal if you buy at retail price at a presentation. Here's what they're going for on eBay.

[seattlee]

Based on those ebay prices ($1,000-$3,000 for a week vacation every year) it appears the acquisition cost is unimportant (basically zero) and you are essentially just assuming the responsibility for the maintenance fees ($500-$2000 per year).  Is that other people's analysis also?

[PhysicianOnFIRE]

seattlee wrote:

Based on those ebay prices ($1,000-$3,000 for a week vacation every year) it appears the acquisition cost is unimportant (basically zero) and you are essentially just assuming the responsibility for the maintenance fees ($500-$2000 per year).  Is that other people’s analysis also?

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Pretty much. I recall doing the math and realizing I'd be paying as much in taxes and fees per year as I would spend to rent any hotel or apartment I wanted for the same length of time.

If the fees are $1,400 a year to get a week's vacation at any Blue Green resort (making that number up, but probably not far off), I can just as easily stay anywhere in the world that has options at $200 a night and break even. That ignores the acquisition cost and any parting costs associated with the timeshare.

[StatBariumEnema]

Forums that discuss timeshares and are very helpful...

https://tugbbs.com/forums/index.php?forums/buying-selling-renting.13/

https://www.redweek.com/forums/threads?forum_id=2

I briefly looked into timeshares on the secondary market, but never was too serious about getting one. Can be a reasonable deal under the right circumstances, but buying from the company is almost always somewhere between bad and terrible, depending on the company. The mark-up/ commissions makes Edward Jones blush.

I enjoyed the freebies at one presentation (Diamond Resorts), but was disheartened by the multiple retired couples buying into them by the end of the 2 hour hard sales pitch.  My wife has vowed to never go to another one.

[StarTrekDoc]

We got into timeshare with dad long time ago -- IF you use the same timeshare yearly, it's a bargain.  If you use the trading system; you're destined for disappointment.

If you like specific properties like DVC (Disney Vacation Club), that's a very specific sub-segment and believe that it's a good value since you have a very specific delivery of product standards.   So for Disney families that like vacationing destinations or consistently to HI or Orlando -- it'll make sense.

Personally, we just go condos, but the experience is certainly NOT DVC.  Even Dolphin/Swan isn't on par with DVC

[VagabondMD]

StarTrekDoc wrote:

We got into timeshare with dad long time ago — IF you use the same timeshare yearly, it’s a bargain.  If you use the trading system; you’re destined for disappointment.

If you like specific properties like DVC (Disney Vacation Club), that’s a very specific sub-segment and believe that it’s a good value since you have a very specific delivery of product standards.   So for Disney families that like vacationing destinations or consistently to HI or Orlando — it’ll make sense.

Personally, we just go condos, but the experience is certainly NOT DVC.  Even Dolphin/Swan isn’t on par with DVC

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I agree re: DVC. I viewed our ownership not as an investment (which it is not intended to be) but as a means to have enjoyable vacations with family and friends. We bought two groups of points, one situated at Hilton Head (few know about the Disney resort there) and the other at The Beach Club (by Epcot).

When the kids were younger, we had wonderful vacations in Hilton Head and Disney World and used the condo style accommodations to invite family and friends with us. I even allowed my radiology partners to use my points a couple times for their vacations to DW, when it looked like we were not going to use them all.

There was some kind of reciprocity with some luxury properties, including a boutique hotel in Chicago, and we used the points for a couple of city visits there, too.

I am sure that the "nerds with calculators" will tell me that I could have saved money by traveling another way (we could have eight people piled into an efficiency or slept in the car or stayed home and looked at our financial statements blah, blah, blah...), but we had some memorable family vacations, and I have zero regrets for owning the DVC timeshare.

We grew out of the Disney style vacations, and when I sold the points in 2015, we actually profited on the sale of The Beach Club points, which are in great demand. We lost money on the HHI piece, and net-net, lost money overall, but not a significant amount.

[FIREshrink]

CMEMDOC wrote:

Yes, I’m the guy who got roped into a timeshare. Its amazing how these people can lie and have no shame. Nevertheless, I had the fortune of purchasing this in cash so did not end up with 25%+ interest rate. Well, several years later, I’ve not had the opportunity to use it, have paid maintenance fees and just want to off load. I’ve read that these things are virtually impossible to sell. I’ve considered gifting it but have been told I’d have to pay a transfer fee and office fees which are around $3000. I’m willing to do this if I can just be done with it.

Has anyone had success selling a timeshare…if so through whom? Second, if I cannot sell, has anyone had success with gifting it and through what organization?

Thanks for any advice. I’m looking to build wealth and this just feels like an anchor I need to cut and be free from.

Click to expand...

It all comes down to which timeshare you have. DVC, Marriott, Hilton, Starwood - you can resell these on the market for 25-40% of original price paid. So you can get out alive. In contrast most low quality properties must be given away, with you paying the transfer fees - if you can get rid of them at all.

Buying a quality branded timeshare resale is a perfectly reasonable thing to do. But never buy from the developer, and stay away from those low end properties, as they are usually a terrible deal.

[mobilehomegurl]

Sorry to hear. I looked into this awhile back to help family members sell theirs. Unfortunately, they still have it and don't want to sell.

Many usually sell back to the company they purchased it from. There are timeshare companies who help sell timeshares for a fee. One I found you basically donate it and pay them a fee to offload. Though, this may be the last case scenario if you're trying to get some money back.

I've also heard of some who try to sell on eBay for a fraction of what they bought it for. As others have chimed in, it's probably a loss. Wouldn't wait too long if you're looking to get rid of it completely. Good luck!