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I’m stuck and being leached for money

hibarocruz

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I fell for it and purchased a timeshare back in 2014. Long story short, fell on hard times and as a result, lost my RCI account (they want over $400 to reinstate) and am unable to travel or afford any vacations. Reached out to the resort for help and was basically told too bad.

“Pursuant to Florida law, you had the right to cancel this transaction by notifying the Developer (SLR) in writing within ten (10) days of the execution of the purchase documents in 2014. At this time the contract is not eligible to be cancelled.

It is unfortunate that your RCI account was cancelled for non-payment, but as you mentioned it can be reinstated.

It remains your responsibility to maintain the monthly installments in the amount of $139.10 that are due on the 9th of each month. Should a suit become necessary to collect this Note the Note Holder (SLR) shall be entitled to collect all reasonable fees and costs of suit, including but not limited to reasonable attorney's fees.”

I still owe over $6k and basically pay a mortgage for nothing in return. Am I stuck and carrying a debt that truly hurts?
 

turkel

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Marriott Grand Chateau
You can just stop paying, but your credit might be affected.

Others much more versed than I will be along to help. You may want to look up anti deficiency laws and see if it applies to your timeshare location.

Best of luck.
 

LannyPC

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Reached out to the resort for help and was basically told too bad.
I still owe over $6k and basically pay a mortgage for nothing in return. Am I stuck and carrying a debt that truly hurts?

Whom did you contact at the resort? Was it the Homeowners' Association or some front desk clerk? You might want to contact the HOA as they hold more knowledge of the situation.

When did you stop making mortgage payments and maintenance fee payments? Is the $6,000 debt for the mortgage or for delinquent maintenance fees?
 

hibarocruz

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Whom did you contact at the resort? Was it the Homeowners' Association or some front desk clerk? You might want to contact the HOA as they hold more knowledge of the situation.

When did you stop making mortgage payments and maintenance fee payments? Is the $6,000 debt for the mortgage or for delinquent maintenance fees?

I contacted the director of finance, or at least whom they have listed as the director. I had also emailed the mortgage department. I have not been delinquent on any payments. It’s just a debt that I need to eliminate as I am basically throwing money at it for nothing. The $6k is the remaining balance on the mortgage.
 

Iggyearl

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Below is a section from Florida law regarding timeshares:

"If you fail to cure the default as set forth in this notice or take other appropriate action with regard to this foreclosure matter, you risk losing ownership of your timeshare interest through the trustee foreclosure procedure established in section 721.856, Florida Statutes. You may choose to sign and send to the trustee the enclosed objection form, exercising your right to object to the use of the trustee foreclosure procedure. Upon the trustee’s receipt of your signed objection form, the foreclosure of the lien with respect to the default specified in this notice shall be subject to the judicial foreclosure procedure only. You have the right to cure your default in the manner set forth in this notice at any time before the trustee’s sale of your timeshare interest. If you do not object to the use of the trustee foreclosure procedure, you will not be subject to a deficiency judgment even if the proceeds from the sale of your timeshare interest are insufficient to offset the amounts secured by the lien."

The last sentence basically says that the timeshare company can only take back the timeshare for non-payment if you do not contest the foreclosure. If you stop paying on the timeshare, you loose the right to use it. This is from Florida law and can be found under "Links to official timeshare laws."

Whether or not the company reports you to the credit agencies is up to them. I would hope that Tug's resident expert, Grammerhero could give more detailed advice.
 

montygz

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I contacted the director of finance, or at least whom they have listed as the director. I had also emailed the mortgage department. I have not been delinquent on any payments. It’s just a debt that I need to eliminate as I am basically throwing money at it for nothing. The $6k is the remaining balance on the mortgage.
A bummer for sure, but you agreed to pay the money and it seems you can afford it, since you are current on your payments. In the end, is $6K worth wrecking your credit over? If you owed $50K I might have a different answer. I would suggest biting the bullet and paying it off. Why not learn to use your timeshare? You bought it for a reason.

After paying it off you will then have the option of giving it away or potentially deeding it back to the resort.

If you truly can't pay because you will be evicted from your home or your kids will starve, don't pay.
 

CalGalTraveler

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You are lucky this is deeded in Florida because it is a non-judicial, anti-deficiency state. Call the HOA tell them that you are on hard times and offer deed in lieu of foreclosure. Tell them if they don't agree, Florida law is in your favor and you will walk and they will have to pay legal fees to foreclose. In the end all they can do is take back the timeshare.

If they don't agree to take back the unit then do not respond to anything and don't sign any forms or objections to the foreclosure because objecting to foreclosure enables them to turn a non-deficiency judgement to a deficiency judgement so they can chase your other assets beyond taking back the timeshare. Their response above sounds like they want to trick you in to filing an objection. Be very careful! We are not lawyers so you may want to buy an hour of a knowledgeable real estate lawyer's time to review the information in the link below for Florida, review your game plan and any legal documents or forms they send you. Tread carefullly.

 
Last edited:

pchung6

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If you don’t care about your credit score, just stop the payment. They will contact you to negotiate. You can just ask them to take back the deed, say that’s all you can do. However I would not hurt my credit just for $6k. I might just pay it off and give away the deed here in tug.
 

HudsHut

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The resort is question, is not one that will be easy to give away. It is not a name brand, and there are too many others in the area. It is unclear if it trades via RCI points or weeks. Since it is not one that is highly touted on TUG, the likelihood is, there is no demand for this resort, and you would have to pay to get someone to take it, and it would not be a quick process to find a taker. All the while, you have to pay maintenance fees, even if the loan has been repaid. I would save the money and let them take it back. You'll be done with it sooner, and your 7 year credit hit will start running.
 

silentg

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If you don’t care about your credit score, just stop the payment. They will contact you to negotiate. You can just ask them to take back the deed, say that’s all you can do. However I would not hurt my credit just for $6k. I might just pay it off and give away the deed here in tug.
He is having financial problems, cannot pay it off. Could try to sell it for$6,000 and be rid of it.What Resort is it? What week? Is it worth $6,000 dollars? Let us know.
 

rickandcindy23

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If you don’t care about your credit score, just stop the payment. They will contact you to negotiate. You can just ask them to take back the deed, say that’s all you can do. However I would not hurt my credit just for $6k. I might just pay it off and give away the deed here in tug.
I believe the best option is to walk away and not pay the balance of $6K. What he owns may not even be something he can give away, and so the ongoing saga of MF's continues.

I believe that these timeshare companies are always hoping that people will pay their mortgages off by any means necessary (second mortgage, credit card, etc.), and that is why they have such a high interest rate. If you pay it off, then it's harder to walk away, knowing it's in your mortgage. So having it under the timeshare company's mortgage company is better because you can walk away and then write a letter to the credit bureau stating why you couldn't pay this and the interest rate of the loan, etc. Credit reporting agencies are very open to a letter like that.
 

LannyPC

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He is having financial problems, cannot pay it off. Could try to sell it for$6,000 and be rid of it.What Resort is it? What week? Is it worth $6,000 dollars? Let us know.

I don't think the OP said he was having financial problems to the point where he could not pay off the mortgage. From what I understood, he just can't afford to travel right now and, hence, does not want to pay an additional $6,000 into something that he can't use.

Now to the OP, to whom do you owe $6,000? IOW, who is the mortgage lender? Sometimes it's a third party so your mortgage might not have anything to do with the actual resort or Homeowners' Association. If you default on the mortgage, you would have to deal with the mortgage lender and not necessarily the resort. If the resort is telling you that it will not take your TS back because you still have a mortgage owing on it, then you might have a problem. If not, just follow the advice others have given. Ask the resort's HOA to take your TS back amicably otherwise, the HOA can go through the expenses and rigours of foreclosure.
 

Grammarhero

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We hope you are well and healthy. If you made the hard decision to default, please kindly let us know if your credit got affected. It would help tuggers in similar situations moving forward.
 

HudsHut

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OP did say he was having financial problems: "fell on hard times and as a result, lost my RCI account".
He does not have the luxury of throwing $6K more at a timeshare he will not be able to give away.
 

cbyrne1174

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100% resale!!
I fell for it and purchased a timeshare back in 2014. Long story short, fell on hard times and as a result, lost my RCI account (they want over $400 to reinstate) and am unable to travel or afford any vacations. Reached out to the resort for help and was basically told too bad.

“Pursuant to Florida law, you had the right to cancel this transaction by notifying the Developer (SLR) in writing within ten (10) days of the execution of the purchase documents in 2014. At this time the contract is not eligible to be cancelled.

It is unfortunate that your RCI account was cancelled for non-payment, but as you mentioned it can be reinstated.

It remains your responsibility to maintain the monthly installments in the amount of $139.10 that are due on the 9th of each month. Should a suit become necessary to collect this Note the Note Holder (SLR) shall be entitled to collect all reasonable fees and costs of suit, including but not limited to reasonable attorney's fees.”

I still owe over $6k and basically pay a mortgage for nothing in return. Am I stuck and carrying a debt that truly hurts?

Silver Lakes is a lower end TS, you probably would struggle even giving it away for free. Just default and let it be a lesson learned.
 

Fried_shrimp

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You're not stuck and you aren't being leeched for money. You are expected to pay for an obligation you voluntarily signed for. As several had said here, if you don't have the money to pay it off and then give it away, you can walk away and let the chips fall where they may. Having bad choices to make doesn't mean you don't have any choices.
 

Grammarhero

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I contacted the director of finance, or at least whom they have listed as the director. I had also emailed the mortgage department. I have not been delinquent on any payments. It’s just a debt that I need to eliminate as I am basically throwing money at it for nothing. The $6k is the remaining balance on the mortgage.
@hibarocruz We hope you are well and healthy. If you made the difficult decision to default, please kindly let us know if your credit got affected. It would help tuggers in similar situations moving forward.
 

Robin4

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Getting to 'speak' to HOA can be difficult. All correspondence that I have been having with a Vacation Village resort has to go through the Management Company who claim that they will decide whether or not to put my request for deedback to HOA. They state that they require proof of hardship / medical conditions and, "once received, we can present it to the Board and contact you once they have reviewed it. There will be fees involved, including any maintenance balance along with a settlement fee of $1500.00. The acceptance into the program is on a case-by-case basis and the Board of Directors determines the total fees required, if accepted.....!"
Should say that this is on a deeded property with no outstanding mortgage.
 

TheTimeTraveler

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Getting to 'speak' to HOA can be difficult. All correspondence that I have been having with a Vacation Village resort has to go through the Management Company who claim that they will decide whether or not to put my request for deedback to HOA. They state that they require proof of hardship / medical conditions and, "once received, we can present it to the Board and contact you once they have reviewed it. There will be fees involved, including any maintenance balance along with a settlement fee of $1500.00. The acceptance into the program is on a case-by-case basis and the Board of Directors determines the total fees required, if accepted.....!"
Should say that this is on a deeded property with no outstanding mortgage.


Your HOA is sending you thru the hoops in the hope that you'll give up (and keep you paying all those maintenance fees each year).

My suggestion would be to place this in the "Free Timeshare Giveaway" section here on TUG. Sweeten the offer by offering to pay maintenance fees for 2021 & 2022, as well as closing costs.

If you do find a taker then use LT Transfers and they'll get it out of your name and you'll be done with it once and for all. Their website below:

.

www.LTTransfers.com

.

.
 

Robin4

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Your HOA is sending you thru the hoops in the hope that you'll give up (and keep you paying all those maintenance fees each year).

My suggestion would be to place this in the "Free Timeshare Giveaway" section here on TUG. Sweeten the offer by offering to pay maintenance fees for 2021 & 2022, as well as closing costs.

If you do find a taker then use LT Transfers and they'll get it out of your name and you'll be done with it once and for all. Their website below:

.

www.LTTransfers.com

.

.
Thank you for taking the time to reply. I have done as you suggested and posted on TUG but never thought to offer to pay next year's fees too. So frustrating dealing with the Management Company who have actually lied to us....said that even if the HOA did accept a deedback, we would require to travel to USA to complete relevant paperwork (I live in Scotland). When pressed about this, I received an email back saying that they did not know who in the company had said that but it wasn't true.
I am seriously considering not paying the management fees and just hoping that they will eventually foreclose (hope that's the right phrase as things are so different in the British system). Anyway, thanks again and stay safe and well.
 

Grammarhero

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Thank you for taking the time to reply. I have done as you suggested and posted on TUG but never thought to offer to pay next year's fees too. So frustrating dealing with the Management Company who have actually lied to us....said that even if the HOA did accept a deedback, we would require to travel to USA to complete relevant paperwork (I live in Scotland). When pressed about this, I received an email back saying that they did not know who in the company had said that but it wasn't true.
I am seriously considering not paying the management fees and just hoping that they will eventually foreclose (hope that's the right phrase as things are so different in the British system). Anyway, thanks again and stay safe and well.
@Robin4 We only have one data point on a UK citizen defaulting on a US TS, with no credit drop. https://tugbbs.com/forums/threads/timeshare-default-credit-report-collection-tracking.304138/

If you make the hard decision to default, please kindly let us know if your credit got affected. It would help tuggers in similar situations moving forward.
 

Robin4

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@Robin4 We only have one data point on a UK citizen defaulting on a US TS, with no credit drop. https://tugbbs.com/forums/threads/timeshare-default-credit-report-collection-tracking.304138/

If you make the hard decision to default, please kindly let us know if your credit got affected. It would help tuggers in similar situations moving forward.
Having read many posts here about defaulting on MF and credit ratings, I very much doubt that my credit rating would be affected if I did default. As has been highlighted on TUG, it is unlikely that HOA would pursue me for payment via legal process here in the UK as it would be expensive for them to do so. Nevertheless, I don't like being 'in debt'. Nor do I feel comfortable about breaching a contract or a promise that I have made but like so many others, when I bought the TS, I was told that it would be easy to sell it or use it for exchanging via RCI etc. I did not think far enough ahead in terms of getting older and not being as fit to travel as I once was. My mistake...and I know that. I don't have family that could use it and over the years I have given friends guest certificates to use rather than wasting points but, like me, they too are getting on in years and not as able to travel.
Anyway, that's a long-winded way of saying thank you and I certainly will report back if anything happens re credit rating.
 

Fried_shrimp

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Your HOA is sending you thru the hoops in the hope that you'll give up (and keep you paying all those maintenance fees each year).

My suggestion would be to place this in the "Free Timeshare Giveaway" section here on TUG. Sweeten the offer by offering to pay maintenance fees for 2021 & 2022, as well as closing costs.

If you do find a taker then use LT Transfers and they'll get it out of your name and you'll be done with it once and for all. Their website below:

.

www.LTTransfers.com

.

.

No one in their right mind would accept a free timeshare with $6,000 still left to pay on it. Not so free at that point.
 

Grammarhero

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Former: Wyndham 276k, HGVC South Bend 1/1
Having read many posts here about defaulting on MF and credit ratings, I very much doubt that my credit rating would be affected if I did default. As has been highlighted on TUG, it is unlikely that HOA would pursue me for payment via legal process here in the UK as it would be expensive for them to do so. Nevertheless, I don't like being 'in debt'. Nor do I feel comfortable about breaching a contract or a promise that I have made but like so many others, when I bought the TS, I was told that it would be easy to sell it or use it for exchanging via RCI etc. I did not think far enough ahead in terms of getting older and not being as fit to travel as I once was. My mistake...and I know that. I don't have family that could use it and over the years I have given friends guest certificates to use rather than wasting points but, like me, they too are getting on in years and not as able to travel.
Anyway, that's a long-winded way of saying thank you and I certainly will report back if anything happens re credit rating.
@Robin4 If you made the hard decision to default, please kindly let us know if your credit got affected. It would help tuggers in similar situations moving forward.
 
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