How to best dispose of my unit

[nytraveler]

I recently went to a seminar to find out how to sell my timeshare. That actually wanted a fee of double what I originally paid. Is there any reasonable way to dispose of my timeshare? I know I can offer it here for free. What if I just stop paying the maintenance? Any credit impact? I have owned this for about 30 years and usually bank the week to trade.

 

[RX8]

Those seminars are traveling exit companies who use high pressure and lies to extract huge upfront fees. They are a scam and will empty your pockets.

I see from another post that your timeshare has a special assessment coming due. Your options are limited. You could:

Option 1. Check with the HOA to see if they will accept a deed back or deed in lieu of foreclosure. If they will, they will likely charge a fee but it will likely be less costly than option 2.

Option 2. Offer it for free on TUG or elsewhere. You should be upfront about the special assessment. You will likely have to sweeten the deal by paying the special assessment as part of the deal. You may also need to pay for closing.

Option 3. Stop paying and let it foreclose. There may be repercussions, or may not. See the link below.

Whatever you do, don’t pay an exit company. They will charge many thousands of dollars and the odds are they won’t do a damn thing except steal your money. You would be better off putting that money towards the giveaway and have a closing company, like LT Transfers, handle everything for you.

[ 2022 ] Timeshare Default Credit Report/Collection Tracking

Some of you know I have been tracking this. Out of four (4) more TS defaults reported on TUG Facebook, one (1) got his credit affected. I have tabbed the following stats(updated 5/2022): TS defaults w credit drops: 47 out of 107 TS defaults w collections: 12 out of 107 TS defaults w...

tugbbs.com

How to Sell Your Timeshare and avoid getting scammed

How to Sell Your Timeshare (Updated 12/19 by TUGBrian) We at TUG get many questions relating to the various steps in an effort to sell a timeshare week. Here is one formula for selling your week. It is a compilation of recommendations of those here at TUG who have been through the process many...

tugbbs.com

 

[jp10558]

If you look at TUG and also the youtube posts Brian makes - yes, you can just default. It probably won't hurt your credit. That said, if you're otherwise current on MFs, I'd encourage you to post in the free timeshare section here (follow the Sticky on that forum) and see if you can give it away. I'd then also contact the resort after trying to give it away for a bit to see if they'll take a deedback.

 

[nytraveler]

Should I still request my week for this year? I am paid up-to-date with maintenance. The assessment was just sent recently and apparently there will be 2 more years of them.

 

[SmithOp]

It won't be easy to dispose of a timeshare facing 3 assessments, good luck. You might want to consider not paying and default. Take your week this year you already paid for as a farewell trip.

 

[RX8]

If you are going to try and give it away then you should reserve a week. You could make that week part of the deal to further sweeten the offer. That said, I think it will be very hard to give away a timeshare that has special assessments this year and the next two years unless you are paying all the assessments. Giving away the timeshare with $4500 cash (or whatever the total assessments are) at closing may very well appeal to someone. Personally, I think you could be successful. If a deed back to the HOA isn’t an option then only you can decide if paying to give it away or letting it foreclose is the right choice for you.

 

[Patri]

Best wishes on this. I'm glad you have enjoyed 30 years of ownership.

 

[nytraveler]

Update: I am allowed to exit BUT they are requiring a fee of $1568, which is basically this year's assessment. I will probably also lose the $850 I paid in maintenance this year, because I didn't request a week. Even if I did, it would be forfeited. I think it's much better than the presentation I went to, who wanted about $10k.

Atrium/Festiva/La Tour or whoever they are, are NOT being transparent. I found a FB group for them and apparently they don't even sell the units as timeshares anymore. No wonder why I haven't had correspondence from them in years - UNTIL NOW. I hope there is a class action suit - so poorly managed. SHAME ON THEM.

 

[LannyPC]

...they are requiring a fee of $1568, which is basically this year's assessment. I will probably also lose the $850 I paid in maintenance this year, because I didn't request a week. Even if I did, it would be forfeited. I think it's much better than the workshop I went to, who wanted about $10k.

This is one of many reasons why we here on TUG generally do not recommend using these exit companies or even law firms, even if they are legitimate and accomplish what you paid them to do. They're going to charge you thousands of dollars to do something you can do yourself for a lot less money.

 

[RX8]

Update: I am allowed to exit BUT they are requiring a fee of $1568, which is basically this year's assessment. I will probably also lose the $850 I paid in maintenance this year, because I didn't request a week. Even if I did, it would be forfeited. I think it's much better than the workshop I went to, who wanted about $10k.

Atrium/Festiva/La Tour or whoever they are, are NOT being transparent. I found a FB group for them and apparently they don't even sell the units as timeshares anymore. No wonder why I haven't had correspondence from them in years - UNTIL NOW. I hope there is a class action suit - so poorly managed. SHAME ON THEM.

If it were me I would jump at Festiva’s offer of $1568.

Also, to clarify, it wasn’t a workshop you attended. It was a presentation filled with lies put on by an exit scammer who was trying to get you to pay them thousands of dollars. They weren’t going to do anything special, in fact they may have done nothing at all. At best, they likely would have done the deed back, paid the $1500 and happily kept the other $8500 as profit. They certainly wouldn’t have told you that all you had to do is call and ask the HOA yourself.

It really wouldn’t have been any different than this analogy. Let’s say you had a used sofa that you no longer wanted. You attend a presentation by “Sofa Exit, LLC. They tell you that all sofas are bad as they are being replaced by sectionals. The sofa will drain your finances as it will cost you $80,000 over the next 15 years in annual cleaning fees, repairs, and replacement pillows. They also all harbor bed bugs, lice and rat feces. No decent God loving parent would even think about exposing their children to that kind of filth. But that isn’t the worst of it. When you pass from this world, this sofa will have to be accepted by your children even if they don’t want it. You need to get rid of it now! The good news is that Sofa Exit, LLC will use their decades of experience to free you from the sofa burden. For only $10,000, they will get you out from the sofa. You wait and wait. Sofa Exit, LLC does nothing more than call the goodwill, arrange for them to pick it up at no charge, and asks you to leave them a glowing review for freeing you from this terrible sofa.

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

You wait and wait. Sofa Exit, LLC does nothing more than call the goodwill, arrange for them to pick it up at no charge, and asks you to leave them a glowing review for freeing you from this terrible sofa.

Or: You wait and wait, Sofa Exit, LLC does tells you there are some additional fees you need to pay. You still wait and wait and nothing happens. Then you get a call from Notascam! LLC that tells you that Sofa Exit LLC was a scam, but good news, they can get you all your money back from Sofa Exit, LLC! You just need to pay them an upfront retainer of $5,000 and you will get your $10,000 back plus punitive damages! You pay Notascam! LLC and then they tell you there is a tax on the class action settlement they won for you (you’re getting $25,000!). That tax is 20 percent, and you need to pay it upfront, but then they will reimburse it after they pay out your winnings. You pay the $5,000 tax, and then wait and wait and hear nothing. Bad news, you’re now contacted by the Mexican Law Firm of Dewey, Cheatem and Howe, and they tell you that both of the first two companies were scams, but THEY can get your money back! Their retainer is also $10,000….

 

[nytraveler]

For those who responded - I am NOT using the company whose presentation I attended - they wanted about $10,000. I am using FESTIVA - the company who handles my resort. The fee quoted to me was about $1600. It will take them several months to prepare paperwork.

 

[Lester0374]

For those who responded - I am NOT using the company whose presentation I attended - they wanted about $10,000. I am using FESTIVA - the company who handles my resort. The fee quoted to me was about $1600. It will take them several months to prepare paperwork.

Thank You for Sharing.. this is how we all learn.. and help each other..

 

[SuziSG]

Did they explain where the $1,600 came from?

 

[rickandcindy23]

Did they explain where the $1,600 came from?

Sounds like they were charging the special assessment for one year and would keep the maintenance fees for one year, also.

Ironically, Festiva used to manage Blue Ridge Village, Bluegreen took it over several years ago, and we had several special assessments. I am in the process of deeding back. I had to pay over $3,000 in special assessments but was recently informed I didn't have to pay the maintenance fees for 2025 and that I would be getting paperwork.