Timeshare Closings for Less, Inc.

I'm buying a Marriott resale and was looking for a competent closing company to handle the transaction and found Timeshare Closings for Less on google. Has anyone had any experience with them? Their fee is $250 excluding title policy and recording fees which seems to be reasonable and less than most charge. Would welcome any suggestions of other closing companies that might cost less. On this transaction, I need them to handle the escrow and the Marriott ROFR, so need more than deed preparation service.

Timeshare Closings for Less..

With so many new faces in timeshare, the business names can start to blur.. I believe that company is owned and operated by Suzie Bell.

If so, I have had several clients choose to use her service for Florida properties and seemed pleased with her performance. Be aware that she is a mom & pop, so basically is a one woman show. If you are comfortable with that type of closing service, she may well be an economical choice for you.

If you prefer a well known brand, First American Title is Marriott's title company of record and knows that brand inside and out.. They do require a title policy, but for Florida the cost is quite reasonable ($425 est).

Regardless of who you choose, good luck with your closing and congrats on your new acquisition.

Thanks, Richard. The Marriott I'm buying is Timber Lodge in California and I decided to use JRA Services, whom I think is also a one woman show. Both Janet and Suzie seem to know what they're doing. One good thing about dealing with a one person company is you talk to someone who knows what they're doing every time! This isn't rocket science and would prefer to not spend the extra $'s on closing. From what I've been told, a title policy in California is $300 and not needed on a relatively small transaction. Interesting how the cost varies from state to state. I closed a purchase last year of a Colorado week at a title company for about $350 including the title policy, but title companies in California seem to be pretty proud of their service.

I have been very happy with Susie Bell and her services.

Timeshare Closings for Less: She communicates well and returns email inquiries/info quickly. I have had 3 recent closings completed/initiated utilizing Ms. Bell and have been happy with her services.

Both those companies are in Florida...

If the property you are buying is in California, you may well want to check to ensure that the closing agent you use is licensed to operate and prepare deeds in that state. The process for becoming a closing agent in California is very extensive and costly, so it's important to verify that any closing agent can legally provide the service you need.

Finally, taxes are billed separately in California. If you are not willing to spend the extra money for a records search- understand that there is a real risk that past due taxes may be outstanding. Since the resorts are not involved in the billing or payment of property taxes, unpaid taxes do not result in a lock out of usage. I have found many cases where a seller was unaware that taxes were even due as they believed the annual dues included the taxes (as was the case with their other timeshares). The closing when the seller purchased was not done properly, and the assessor records were not properly updated. The sellers were not intentionally being dishonest, but were simply ignorant.

Searches in those cases saved the buyer hundreds of dollars, and in one instance discovered that the interval was actually scheduled to be auctioned due to the tax liens.

InterCity Escrow (part of Stewart Title) offers a quick search option for closings in this state. It's cheaper than a closing with title insurance, but might give you a little more peace of mind. If you closing agent is affiliated with a California attorney- you should also be able to get some type of seach.

Again- good luck!

Very good point, Richard. Since I already own two TL weeks, I thought about the fact that taxes are not part of the maintenance fee in California. The closing company does not check for unpaid taxes so I thought I'd just call the tax assessor and verify whether the taxes have been paid. I assume they will give me that info. I looked on the tax assessor's website and it shows the assessed value and legal description but didn't see any indication of the amount of taxes or whether they've been paid.

Follow UP

I used Susie Bell at Timeshare Closings for Less (she owns the company) to close two EOY resale weeks that I bought at Marriott Timber Lodge and she did a great job at a reasonable price. Both weeks were bought from the same seller and she was able to put them on the same deed and my cost was $250 plus filing fees. This was a full service closing including escrow but did not include a title policy. There were a couple wrinkles that made the transfer more complex than usual but Susie was very knowledgable and got it done. This was my first transaction with her and I'd highly recommend her. FYI, I am not associated with her or her business and this is not meant to be an advertisement.