Diamond - owners both deceased, timeshare not willed

[Vmd2018]

hi,
I could use some help. My grandparents have been owners at diamond, silver member with club, since before I can remember. They have both now passed away but never put either of their timeshares in the will, simply verbally saying they wanted the families to use it. Now, of course no one wants it, no one has paid the fees for 2018 and it was discussed that my family could have it if we wanted it. My question is, is there a way to do this without going into probate? The names on the account are now “estate of” but it’s not in the estate, per the executor of the estate... any help or guidance is greatly appreciated! Is it a lost cause??

Valerie

 

[PrairieGirl]

Probating a will is the court's guarantee to the holder of a deceased person's asset that yes indeed, John Smith IS the proper executor. The holder of the asset has a fiduciary responsibility to ensure that they are dealing with the correct person. Said holder always has the option of taking a declaration, bond of indemnity or whatever else makes them comfortable that John Smith is the executor in the absence of probate. Would Diamond require probate to transfer the timeshare contract into your name? Who knows, but the executor should ask them. It's all about risk management. It also quite probably will depend if there is an underlying deed that needs to be recorded. If there is, that is where probate may be required

 

[dougp26364]

You could try getting them to take it as a simple deed back with the estate paying the fees. DRI has been accepting deed backs from owners wanting to get out.

 

[Passepartout]

The executor can have the estate's attorney write to Diamond (in this case) and say that the owners have passed and no heir wants the interval and that it is offered to the corporation, and that they will be receiving no more money.

 

[dward51]

Most purchase contracts and other contracts expire with the purchaser's death. The estate may owe for any fees or dues which were before their death, but in MOST STATES once they pass, the contract for future acts is void. Of course this varies by state. A deeded property such as a deeded week is another thing all together as it is real property instead of personal property or contract for service.

Also if there is no formal "estate" who can they legally bill for anything? They can't bill you just because you are a relative. No will, no executor/executrix, they will just have to foreclose with no ability to pass the debt or expenses on to anyone. Now if they had other assets such as a bank account that was not a joint or payable on death type of account, they could claim against their "estate" assets, but again with no probate, it is only what they can find they can claim against. I doubt they will even look and just foreclose.

If you get calls from a debt collector trying to bully you into paying a deceased person's debt and you are not the executor/executrix of the estate, there is nothing they can do to you or your credit. It is also illegal to make threats to collect a debt like that.

If no one in the family wants it, don't sign anything. Let DRI deal with it. Once you start signing you are representing the estate of the deceased (even if there is no court appointed executor or probate, you have opened the door). If they are offering the property to the "heirs", DRI is just trying to keep someone on the hook financially going forward. If you have any doubts, please talk to an attorney or defer to someone else in the family. But again, if no one has signed anything or been appointed to represent the "estate" you have absolutely no responsibility for their debts or properties.

 

[bogey21]

The executor can have the estate's attorney write to Diamond (in this case) and say that the owners have passed and no heir wants the interval and that it is offered to the corporation, and that they will be receiving no more money.

I'd opt to do exactly this adding that the interval was not left to anyone in the will and no heir wants it etc...

George

 

[VegasBella]

I think the OP wants the timeshare.

Whether or not the estate goes into probate is determined by more than just one timeshare ownership. Every state has different laws about that and you'd need to consult an attorney to learn about it more.

That said, if no one wants the timeshare and you do want it, then it's likely a fairly simple process to transfer it. You would want some sort of declaration from the other heirs that they don't want the timeshare and don't want any compensation for giving it to you, you'd want to make sure all the debts on it are paid up, and then just get the executor to help transfer it to you with help from DRI.

BUT

Do you really want it?
Think long and hard about it.

If no one wants the ownership, DRI has a program to take back some timeshares. Might not be necessary, but could make things neat and clean. Call them at 1-855-342-3689 or Transitions@diamondresorts.com about the "Transitions Program"

 

[davidvel]

I think the OP wants the timeshare.

Whether or not the estate goes into probate is determined by more than just one timeshare ownership. Every state has different laws about that and you'd need to consult an attorney to learn about it more.

That said, if no one wants the timeshare and you do want it, then it's likely a fairly simple process to transfer it. You would want some sort of declaration from the other heirs that they don't want the timeshare and don't want any compensation for giving it to you, you'd want to make sure all the debts on it are paid up, and then just get the executor to help transfer it to you with help from DRI.

BUT

Do you really want it?
Think long and hard about it.

If no one wants the ownership, DRI has a program to take back some timeshares. Might not be necessary, but could make things neat and clean. Call them at 1-855-342-3689 or Transitions@diamondresorts.com about the "Transitions Program"

That's what I understood as well.

 

[winger]

hi,
I could use some help. My grandparents have been owners at diamond, silver member with club, since before I can remember. They have both now passed away but never put either of their timeshares in the will, simply verbally saying they wanted the families to use it. Now, of course no one wants it, no one has paid the fees for 2018 and it was discussed that my family could have it if we wanted it. My question is, is there a way to do this without going into probate? The names on the account are now “estate of” but it’s not in the estate, per the executor of the estate... any help or guidance is greatly appreciated! Is it a lost cause??

Valerie

To be clear - you are asking how your family can take responsibility of the timeshare ?

 

[skimeup]

To be clear - you are asking how your family can take responsibility of the timeshare ?

Valerie If you are thinking about taking on this Diamond membership, think really hard about it and read a LOT about it on tripadvisor and on tug. There are a few owners who like the diamond ownership and a whole lot who do not. Do your research before deciding to try to take this on.

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

I am one of the "happy" Diamond owners.

That being said, the topic of our ownership came up with our kids while we were having our annual three-generation family vacation in Poipu, which is based on our Diamond membership. Those vacations are the culmination of a "dream" of our ownership that started in 1999 when we made our initial purchase at Poipu. My flat response is that if AirBnB and VRBO had existed in 1999, we never would have acquired any timeshares, even for free.

Timeshare made sense to us at that time as an alternative to vacation property rentals because the only realistic effective way for owners and renters of vacation property to connect was via vacation property rental companies. Owners needed those to be able to find renters because it was impractical for an owner to do ads and marketing to find renters; the rental companies ran ads in various newspapers and magazines to be able to connect with renters. And the renters needed the rental companies because that was the only realistic way to find available inventory. And the cut of income they took for their services priced their properties above the annualized cost for a resale timeshare.

Now, however, owners of rental properties don't have to use a vacation rental company in order to line up renters. The internet allows owners and renters to easily find each other via platforms such as AirBnB and VRBO, and that has driven down the pricing tremendously.

Plus, with those sites you are not locked into guaranteed annual payments, and you are not held thrall to whatever Diamond decides to do with the property.

*****

So before you take on that ownership, I suggest you do some thinking as to how you would use those points (what areas, the size of unit, the season of year, the frequency with which you might travel) and we what pricing you could get for similar accommodations by renting directly from owners.

 

[LauriBuck]

I guess you could say that I'm a semi happy owner of Diamond points. I own both in the Hawaii and US collections. I initially bought at Embassy Vacation Resorts Grand Beach. I was scammed a couple of times (shame on me) into buying more points as I'm not sure that the extra "benefits" have actually been worth the cost. I love being able to get a few days in Branson (mid-week) for very low cost (when considering my cost per point strictly on the maintenance fees - with some discounts for having their credit card). I still find it a struggle to use all of my points (but it's getting easier, now that both hubby & I are retired.) I've never lost more that a few points/year and usually none. I make sure that each October, I reserve exchanges with II to use any points that I don't have specific plans to use before the end of the year, that would otherwise expire. I usually get exchanges to II Premiere resorts. Occasionally I'll take one at a lesser quality resort because I want a specific location at a specific time. I don't like the fact that I can usually purchase a Club Select week for less dollars than the value of the points required to use the resort.