Resale: Broker/Agent vs. Private

[jasonb]

Hi Again All:

We are getting ready to purchase resale (most likely WKORV or WKORV-N 2BR OV EY). (Here's to the high Canadian $!!!!) :whoopie:

I would be interested to hear the groups thoughts on the advantages/disadvantages of purchasing through a broker or real estate agent (on the island or otherwise) versus a private sale through an individual.

Everything else being equal (or close) which way is best?

What are the pitfalls?

What has your experience been?

Thanks again for all your help...

Jason

 

[myip]

Doesn't matter who you buy it from as long as you get the best price. Just make sure you get a good closing company to do the paper work.

 

[Bill4728]

The key thing is a good closing company with escrow.

 

[DavidnRobin]

Yes to those above...
and buy WKORV OF...
(i hear good things about a Marriott true OF also, but have no personal experience...)

 

[Denise L]

My experience working with reputable resale people, such as those who frequent these boards and come highly recommended, has been very good. Not a lot to worry about, confidence in knowing that you are getting what they promised you, someone to handle all the communication with the owner and escrow company, etc. To me, that has been a very valuable service.

Now, fast forward to now, when I am trying to buy a resale through a private owner. It takes a lot of trust, and it's a lot more work and worry than my previous purchases. I'm looking at it as a learning experience . You negotiate your own price, deal with the owner's shock and dismay over the market value (probably the hardest part for me), do your own checking on the owner(s) and deed, make up your own contract, find your escrow company, make sure everything is agreed upon, etc.

I would have preferred to buy from a broker/agent in this case, if what I wanted was available. Less headache for me, maybe a slightly higher price, but not much. The brokers already have the sellers ready to sell. Plus you never have to deal with the owners and their emotions and distrust.

If I were buying resale through a TUGer who I know of, that would be really easy, I think .

 

[SDKath]

For the least expensive route without too much hassle, buy direct from an owner (negotiate price without middle men) as you can save a lot of comission. Then have a professional escrow company do your closing including a title search. This $500 investment will protect you from a bad deed and being ripped off. Especially for a big investment like a Hawaii property, I would definitely do an escrow! You can even do on-line escrows (through Redweek, although mine took FOREVER that way). Or through a separate escrow service like this one, which comes highly recommended by fellow TUGgers:

http://timeshareresaleclosings.com/index.html

Katherine

 

[DeniseM]

If you use a reputable TS closing/escrow company, you don't need to buy through an agent. Even if you use an agent (and pay commission, which is usually hidden in the cost) then you will still have to pay a closing company. The closing company will do all paperwork, and a title search if you request one. If they do the title search and guarantee a clear title, then they are liable for any title problems. I have purchased 4 timeshares on ebay from complete strangers and had no problems at all.

 

[DeniseM]

do your own checking on the owner(s) and deed, make up your own contract, find your escrow company, make sure everything is agreed upon, etc.

Denise - I'm curious - why aren't you having a closing/escrow company do all this?

 

[Troopers]

My guess is that you could save up to ~$3k with a private sale. Is it worth it? Will you lose sleep worrying about the transaction? There appears to be frequent postings related to resale transactions. There's postings about the lengthly process, unclear title, etc. I'm uncertain if these issues can be attributed to a private sale or not. I would expect fewer hiccups with an agent.

Btw, are you a Canadian citizen? If so, I'm not sure if that raises any issues on the transaction (for example, how you can hold title).

 

[SDKath]

I honestly don't think buying from an individual is ANY different than buying from a broker. The only "work" you should do is in the negotiating of the price, which can be difficult as most people think their timeshare has appreciated.

Then you just go to an escrow co and tell them you have agreed on the price and THAT's IT! I never had to make up my own contract. As a matter of fact, with the Redweek escrow through First American, I just entered my name and address into a website and then sent payment once I got the escrow papers. They did everything. It was very easy (although lengthy, as I mentioned).

This is in contrast to my eBay purchases, where the seller was always a broker (I never bid on individual's auctions). They already had the deed in their hand and when it went into escrow, it was done in about 5 days! The actual owner is long out of the picture in these transactions and the eBay reseller has the deed in his/her posession by the time the escrow closes. So it's fast and easy.

As for trusting someone on TUG, I love this community but my ONLY escrow fiasco was the very first WMH I went into escrow with in January. That one was from a TUG seller (saw the ad here) and she never responded after the initial money was sent. It was a major headache and I had to send a really nasty letter to escrow to get my $500 deposit back!

Katherine

 

[lprstn]

I use broker / or proven reseller, it makes my life easier. I state what I am willing to pay, and what I want, and its always gone smoothly for me. I am just not comfortable purchasing off ebay as I have gotten burned on other ebay purchases so giving up a couple of thousands via ebay to a seller is scary to me. However, there are a lot of tuggers that are happy with their purchases.

 

[DavidnRobin]

I use broker / or proven reseller, it makes my life easier. I state what I am willing to pay, and what I want, and its always gone smoothly for me. I am just not comfortable purchasing off ebay as I have gotten burned on other ebay purchases so giving up a couple of thousands via ebay to a seller is scary to me. However, there are a lot of tuggers that are happy with their purchases.

Never send money directly to an eBay seller - even if they require it. Only send money to a separate Title Services company to hold in Escrow. If the eBay won't accept that - move on.

 

[Denise L]

Denise - I'm curious - why aren't you having a closing/escrow company do all this?

Hey, I must have missed this question!

With this private purchase, I have had to negotiate the price, verify everything, and get a contract before handing it over to the escrow company. The escrow company doesn't start its work until an agreement is reached, and then requires a deposit. So now that I have the escrow company, it is handling it from here on out.

I was doing my due diligence. Do escrow companies also do this for folks, for a cost, obviously? I am still learning. Will escrow companies write up contracts?

I'd still prefer a broker/agent any day, just so I could avoid all of this.

 

[LisaRex]

I think some of the best deals can be negotiated through brokers as the people that use them are already willing to pay a few thousand bucks to unload their TSs. I didn't use a broker when I bought last year, but wouldn't have hesitated to name my price to a broker to see what magic they could work, knowing that his/her commission was being paid by the seller. Agents tend to be much better connected than Mr. John Q. Public and you have to pay for that experience.

I, personally, wouldn't use a broker to sell my TS unless I needed to get rid of it quickly as I'm unwilling to pay thousands of dollars in commission. (That's why I would never buy from the developer either. ) However, it's my goal to never be in a position where I'd HAVE to sell my TS. I have neither the disposition nor the time to buy up properties I didn't intend to use every year.

 

[Fredm]

I think some of the best deals can be negotiated through brokers as the people that use them are already willing to pay a few thousand bucks to unload their TSs. I didn't use a broker when I bought last year, but wouldn't have hesitated to name my price to a broker to see what magic they could work, knowing that his/her commission was being paid by the seller. Agents tend to be much better connected than Mr. John Q. Public and you have to pay for that experience.

I, personally, wouldn't use a broker to sell my TS unless I needed to get rid of it quickly as I'm unwilling to pay thousands of dollars in commission. (That's why I would never buy from the developer either. ) However, it's my goal to never be in a position where I'd HAVE to sell my TS. I have neither the disposition nor the time to buy up properties I didn't intend to use every year.

Lisa,

Your perspective makes perfect sense.
You do what you perceive to be in your best interest, both as a buyer and as a seller.
It is also consistent with 100% of the timeshare transactions I have been involved in. No one intentionally leaves money on the table.

"I, personally, wouldn't use a broker to sell my TS unless I needed to get rid of it quickly as I'm unwilling to pay thousands of dollars in commission"


That is a motive I can understand. Sellers who market without a broker involved, do not choose to avoid a broker commission to pass the savings on to the buyer. They want to keep it for themselves. Makes too much sense!
Indeed, most for sale by owner listings are priced too high.
And, sellers who use a broker are paying the commission, not the buyer.

Sooo, why are some here actually advising the newby OP to buy directly from a seller, instead of using a broker?
Seems to me that there is enough potential downside to avoid it if at all possible.

A seasoned buyer may discover an uncommon value that they prefer to transact without assistance. But, encouraging a novice to do so does serve them well, IMO.

 

[LisaRex]

Sooo, why are some here actually advising the newby OP to buy directly from a seller, instead of using a broker?

You're talking to people who bought their timeshares from a developer. You can't blame them for being a bit jaded.

Seriously, I think great deals can be had either way, but if you do it on your own you'll need persistence, patience and great negotiation skills. If you have none of those, you should really leave it to the professionals, especially if the other party is paying the commission.