Owner died

[wildman42]

So, what happens if the owner dies and no one in the family wants the timeshare? What happens to the time share?
Thanks,

 

[silentg]

No one has to take over a timeshare. It should go back to the resort.

 

[LannyPC]

Whoever is the decedent's executor of the will should contact the resort's Homeowners' Association and explain the situation. Ask if the HOA can take the TS back amicably otherwise the TS will sit in limbo and it will cost the HOA lots of time and money to get this settled.

One important piece of advice is to not go contacting any of these companies or law firms that claim they can get you (or the decedent's estate) out of the TS contract. Also, if you do contact the HOA, do not fall for the lie that silentg pointed out above saying that the heirs of the deceased are forced to accept it.

 

[SteveinHNL]

I imagine you could also gift it or sell it out of the estate to an interested buyer. What timeshares are these?

 

[Carolinian]

Ownership of the timeshare will pass either by the will or through intestate succession. If the will does not specifically mention the timeshare, then it passes under the residuary clause covering all property not otherwise listed. To establish a good chain of title, a copy of the will should be recorded in the county where the timeshare is located, but that often does not happen.

In cases of joint tenancy or tenancy by the entirety, if one owner dies, the remaining owner(s) authomatically get the deceased owners share.

Intestate succession is governed by state law and sets out rights of inheritance where there is no will.

It is the heir(s) who inherit the timeshare should discuss deedback, not the executor or administrator of the estate.

Inheritance issued can often cause problems with timeshares. Sometimes one is left to someone who does not want it. When I was an HOA president, we had a longtime owner whose wife had predeceased him and he had no children, and he left his prime summer timeshare week to his church. I got a call, referred by our manager, from a church official. They did not want it. I tried to explain that the week had value and how they could sell it to get money for their church, but he was not interested and just wanted to give it back. So we took it, sold it, and put about $4,000 into our HOA account.

There was one that had happened before my time that was listed on our master owners list with two prospective owners and the notation "title problem". An owner had died in another state, leaving the timeshare to a relative in the will. The estate had paid one year's m/f from the estate account. Then a deed for the week was recorded but there seemed no obvious connection between its grantor and the person who had inherited the week in the will. The longtime HOA secretary had driven to the courthouse (it was in his home state of Virginia) and got the address from the estate file of the heir to the week, but the mail to that address was returned. He concluded there must be a missing deed in the chain of title, and the new deeded owner paid the m/f's and used the week. A couple of years later, the HOA received a copy of a deed from the heir in the will to someone else. That person would obviously have superior title but never paid an m/f or tried to use the week. The HOA secretary wrote that person and explained the situation but never got a reply. Both were sent newsletters and bills for years, but only the one with the inferior title ever responded.

 

[jorcus]

Ownership of the timeshare will pass either by the will or through intestate succession. If the will does not specifically mention the timeshare, then it passes under the residuary clause covering all property not otherwise listed. To establish a good chain of title, a copy of the will should be recorded in the county where the timeshare is located, but that often does not happen.

In cases of joint tenancy or tenancy by the entirety, if one owner dies, the remaining owner(s) authomatically get the deceased owners share.

Intestate succession is governed by state law and sets out rights of inheritance where there is no will.

It is the heir(s) who inherit the timeshare should discuss deedback, not the executor or administrator of the estate.

Maybe it varies from state to state but I don't think the heir of the timeshare would have the authority to discuss any finance matters with a timeshare group until the estate was settled. Everything would have to go through the probate attorney, executor, and approved by the probate court. If it was joint ownership or an heir was named on the contract it would be different.

My experience with probate attorney's has been they are not going to pay anybody anything out of an estate until the party files paperwork that they are owed the money. If no one is interested in the time share express that to the attorney I don't think you will have much to worry about.

 

[Carolinian]

Maybe it varies from state to state but I don't think the heir of the timeshare would have the authority to discuss any finance matters with a timeshare group until the estate was settled. Everything would have to go through the probate attorney, executor, and approved by the probate court. If it was joint ownership or an heir was named on the contract it would be different.

My experience with probate attorney's has been they are not going to pay anybody anything out of an estate until the party files paperwork that they are owed the money. If no one is interested in the time share express that to the attorney I don't think you will have much to worry about.

The executor / administrator is empowered to pay debts of the estate, like a timeshare m/f, but not convey real property (such as a deeded timeshare) unless the will grants that authority or the probate court grants that authority.

 

[Talent312]

Heirs, whether under a will or intestate, are free to refuse to accept property they would otherwise inherit (in every state I know of). Typically, they would file a Disclaimer with the court or in the public records of the county where the property is located. An attorney should be consulted for the proper format.

In my will, I specify that if none of my heirs accepts a TS, the executor may sell, give away, give back, or abandon and suffer foreclosure, considering it a wasting asset without value, at their absolute discretion.
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