You may have no choice...
Another Newbie question. I'm looking at Ebay for timeshares. Just looking so far. If I want to bid on Ebay I can see the time the seller has been there and so on but what do you do when you are the winning bid. Do they contact a closing company? do I go thru my lawyer for safety. What happens then. Help!
Many commercial eBay sellers of timeshares dictate mandatory use of a particular closing company (one which is very often just another branch of the very same business, if the truth be known). If you have the option or choice, it is (in my personal opinion, anyhow) always best to
select and pay your own independent closing company, one which has no affiliation whatsoever with the seller. Their services will cost somewhere in the neighboorhood of $300, plus any "transfer fee" imposed by the resort itself (could be zero, but on average around $75-$100). The closing company will handle all deed and escrow issues and details. You don't likley need or want your own lawyer involved at all --- he/she may actually have no knowledge whatsoever about the deed process or requirements in the state in which the timeshare is physically located. A good closing company will, as necessary or required, utilize the services of an attorney located in (or at least well experienced about) the particular state of the timeshare location.
Your first step is to read the eBay listing details closely, as the listing may already very clearly indicate a requirement for mandatory use of THEIR closing company. If so, it's then up to you to decide (...
before bidding or winning) whether or not you want to gamble on "a fox overseeing the details of a transaction being conducted within the henhouse". I'd never do so, personally --- but I'm no gambler...
