Really Eager To Unload Dogs & Cats
I can't say for sure, but I have formed the opinion that some timeshares may have negative value.
That is, when you "own" a timeshare, your name is recorded on the deedbook down at the courthouse & all that, but what do you really possess?
What's actually yours is the obligation forever more to pay the annual maintenance fees, taxes, & reserve charges for your unit.
What you get in exchange is the right to use (or trade or rent out) the unit you own during the week you've paid for.
If everything works out right, you get to enjoy luxury accommodations in choice vacation spots for Motel 6 & Super 8 rates.
But if the timeshare has negative value, getting it free or even for a dollar or 2 is no bargain.
First off, it won't truly be free or $1 or $2. There will be closing costs, transfer fees, & possibly exchange organization fees. On top of those, there will be annual maintenance fees, taxes, & reserve payments owed to the resort.
If all those add up to more than what it's worth to go to the resort on vacation, or if the costs total more than what you would have to pay for equivalent or better accommodations on the open market, then the timeshare has negative value.
The
Wisdom Of TUG that I have absorbed, more or less, over the past few years is...
- Buy resale.
- Buy at a resort you actually like going to every year.
- If you buy to trade, buy a 2BR red-season unit for optimum exchange power.
- Watch those annual fees -- over the years they can add up to lots more than your initial cost.
-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.