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Help!! Trying to decide Need OUT?

baybieflower

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I now realize that my husband and I were beyond stupid. This can’t be changed, but what I am hoping for is that one of you great TUG members will be able to give us your best educated suggestions as to our next move.
My husband owned with Wyndham all the way back to when it was Fairfield. We were dating when we went to a meeting and they convinced him that his contract was better used if he upgraded. He did that and while it was a stupid move it was not this bad. We realized that this whole timeshare was not what we wanted and so we went to an owner’s update and asked how to sale this thing since it appeared we could not sale it on the private market.
Long story short they “swindled us” again and we fell for it hook line and sinker. Using what we now realize as their normal tactics we are now on the hook for more than $170,000 in a loan to Wyndham. Around $600.00 a month in MF, and no money to travel to take these vacations.
Should we see about bankruptcy? Should we default and let it hit our credit? Would they come after us for the difference after foreclosure? Can we even try rental and make at least the MF back?
Suggestions that do not involve telling us how stupid we are (which we now know) would be greatly appreciated. We are now well past the rescission period.
 
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baybieflower

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Please forgive the horrible nature of the writing in the above post, I am feeling so frustrated that we were stupid. I just had to get out my questions.
 

DeniseM

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You can click "edit" at the bottom of the post to make changes.
 

Passepartout

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Obviously we don't know your personal circumstances, but SOMETHING must have appealed to you to make you upgrade. You saw value here. So why not hang around TUG for a while and learn to use what you own. LOTS of TUGgers- probably over half have bought from the developers, and once you are over the learning curve, Wyndham seems to be well liked. You live within a day's drive from many Wyndham resorts, so take a vacation. For cryin' out loud stay away from updates! You seem to have trouble saying "NO!"

There are TUGgers who have nice little cottage side business renting Wyndham units for people for fun and maybe some profit- though it's hard to get above the break-even point if you've paid developer prices for what you own.

While this was probably not the wisest financial move you ever made, but it isn't worth jumping off a bridge over. Stick around TUG and learn. If you find yourselves exchanging into other resorts or wanting to see reviews, consider joining TUG for access to those reviews. Otherwise just find a comfortable chair and do some reading.

Welcome to TUG!

Jim
 

baybieflower

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Thanks Denise and Jim.

I do like the whole timeshare concept, and I have started doing some research but it seems I would have to buy resale to start bringing the total cost of timeshare down overall. But unfortunately it will be quite some time before we could consider this. I am afraid that we are so far in over our heads that we may eventually loose them if we don't decide what to do soon.
 
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Passepartout

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Holy Cow, $170,000! WOW! If you have other consumer debt that could be consolidated and/or reduced/forgiven, perhaps a visit with a bankruptcy attorney in your area is called for. The TS can be eliminated for sure, but whatever else can be done has to be figured out.

I can't recommend simply defaulting, but get some professional guidance. Please.
 

Rent_Share

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You need to consult with Bankruptcy Counsel, there are differences in exemptions of assets by state that only local counsel can advise.
 

baybieflower

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If we find we do not qualify for bankruptcy (which is what I was just told over the phone), what would our next option be in the very experienced opinion of other TUGers?
 

DeniseM

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If we find we do not qualify for bankruptcy (which is what I was just told over the phone), what would our next option be in the very experienced opinion of other TUGers?

Find a reputable bankruptcy attorney.
 

Passepartout

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It is not possible (or ethical) to evaluate your financial situation by telephone. It may be that you are not in dire enough straits to warrant BK, but without at least filling out the schedules of what assets you have vs. what liabilities you owe, no one can tell you over the phone.

Jim
 

sue1947

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Start by calling Wyndham to see if they will take back any of this. Tell them the only other option is bankruptcy/default and that may motivate them to help. They may not help, but they have started taking back defaulted accounts. It can't hurt to ask.

Then I'd meet with a lawyer about the ramifications of defaulting vs bankruptcy. With that large of a loan obligation, you need good factual information to make a decision and that means a bankruptcy or similar lawyer with all the facts at hand.

We've all done stupid things so count this as a lesson learned and stop beating yourself up. $170,000 in loans on a timeshare is insane but it just shows how good they are at selling/lying. Stay away from timeshare updates/sales pitches from now on. Report back on what you do; there are others in your same situation and you can help.

Sue
 

baybieflower

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Sue,
Thank you for suggestion. We are going to see a couple different attorneys, unfortunately it will be another week before we can get in. I will let everyone know what they say and what happens because it would be nice to know someone else learns from our mistakes.
 

baybieflower

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I think it might be worth mentioning that this could turn out to be a very lengthy process as we have NEVER even been late on any payments.
 

Rent_Share

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It's all a matter of your other assets (non exempt) and debts, be patient and listen to someone qualified to offer advice.
 

Bigrob

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All is not lost. I would assume with a purchase of that size that you have a Platinum VIP account? Perhaps Presidential Reserve?

There are points managers who will pay up to $6/K point... not enough to pay the loan payments, but generally enough to cover the maintenance fees with perhaps a little left over. This could be a float strategy while you figure out what you want to do, and would be a faster solution than trying to figure out and run a rental business on your own.

The first thing you need to do is stop beating yourself up over this. The fact is every timeshare that is owned out there was purchased retail/from a developer at one point (Yes, some of those sales were at deeply discounted prices, but those are exceptions rather than the rule). Some sales people are VERY good at what they do and ultimately, they are motivated to Sell you, not to do what is best for you.

Regardless of what course of action ends up being best for you in order to get out from under the $170K loan, the most important thing from my perspective is to cut yourself a break... forgive yourself and move on and learn from it.
 
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