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Sold HGVC Tuscany - Now Note from Cty Property Appraiser??

TravelAmore

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We recently sold our HGVC Tuscany in Sept. 2020. Today we received a letter from the Orange County Property Appraiser saying in order to "verify" the transaction, we need to complete a form. The purpose is to assist them in assessing the property at fair market value.

Has anyone else received such a request for information after selling a HGVC Orlando timeshare property - or any other Orlando timeshare?
I am very confused about this - first, the deed was recorded (assuming this is how they found our address). It would seem since the letter includes the purchase price, the "appraiser" can do comps or simply obtain info from HGVC (likely located down the street) to help with appraising the property sold.

The "survey" we've been requested to complete for "appraisal" purposes asks for information it would seem somewhat extraneous to appraising the property, for example, "What is the reason for selling the timeshare?" - and "What was the payment method?"
 

josegm888

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We recently sold our HGVC Tuscany in Sept. 2020. Today we received a letter from the Orange County Property Appraiser saying in order to "verify" the transaction, we need to complete a form. The purpose is to assist them in assessing the property at fair market value.

Has anyone else received such a request for information after selling a HGVC Orlando timeshare property - or any other Orlando timeshare?
I am very confused about this - first, the deed was recorded (assuming this is how they found our address). It would seem since the letter includes the purchase price, the "appraiser" can do comps or simply obtain info from HGVC (likely located down the street) to help with appraising the property sold.

The "survey" we've been requested to complete for "appraisal" purposes asks for information it would seem somewhat extraneous to appraising the property, for example, "What is the reason for selling the timeshare?" - and "What was the payment method?"

I would contact Hilton or county office directly. All that information is public record and readily accessible at the county office where deed was recorded. Sounds like a scam.


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bizaro86

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They might want it to try and exclude your sale from their calculation if the price was low (ie resale not developer pricing...)

I'd file it in the big round file under my kitchen sink.
 

Talent312

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They want to know if the sale price is a true market-value resulting from an arms-length transaction. or if there's some reason why it should be discounted in their calculations... like if there was some personal connection that affected the price.

Florida used require a similar form be filed with every deed presented for recording, but that was considered so onerous that it was repealed. I see no harm in providing the information. But AFAIK, there's no requirement to do so, either.

.
 

TravelAmore

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Thank you all for your responses. I think I will not provide the info. They know the purchase price and have the ability to check comps, just as I did when I put the property up for sale. I’m also not convinced HGVC would not share their database of sales and sales price, if asked by the county. Perhaps the buyer will be more motivated to complete the survey than I.

Thank you again for helping me think it through. Round file it is!


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northwoodsgal

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It's not uncommon for assessor's offices to request information about a property sale to verify whether it reflects market (arm's length) transaction.
 

Tamaradarann

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They might want it to try and exclude your sale from their calculation if the price was low (ie resale not developer pricing...)

I'd file it in the big round file under my kitchen sink.

Of course, for timeshare properties they must get some crazy different numbers for sales from the developer versus on the secondary market. I wonder how they appraise the properties worth for tax purposes?
 

dioxide45

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Of course, for timeshare properties they must get some crazy different numbers for sales from the developer versus on the secondary market. I wonder how they appraise the properties worth for tax purposes?
A number of Orlando resort HOAs filed legal action against Orange County several years ago to dispute the valuation of the resorts for tax purposes. The county wants to value based on developer sales, claiming that resale sales are distressed and not a realistic valuation of the property. The resorts would like to use the resale sales to value the property. The real value is somewhere in between or perhaps even better evaluated in comparison to condominium developments. In many of the lawsuits, the county either settled with the resort HOAs or lost and couldn't use all developer sales to value the timeshare resorts.
 

pedro47

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In other words the timeshare resort want a must lower assessment rate. LOL
 

Tamaradarann

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A number of Orlando resort HOAs filed legal action against Orange County several years ago to dispute the valuation of the resorts for tax purposes. The county wants to value based on developer sales, claiming that resale sales are distressed and not a realistic valuation of the property. The resorts would like to use the resale sales to value the property. The real value is somewhere in between or perhaps even better evaluated in comparison to condominium developments. In many of the lawsuits, the county either settled with the resort HOAs or lost and couldn't use all developer sales to value the timeshare resorts.

Well we all know that the developer pricing is inflated since they need to pay for the extensive marketing campaign that I heard can be as much as 50% of the cost of the developer priced timeshare. The resale prices during the Covid times are artificially low since people are not travelling as much as they were so they are not planning or taking vacations and buying timeshares at the same time that people that own timeshares want to sell them since they are not planning and taking vacations. I would guess that during normal times, if we ever return to that again, the secondary market is more reflective of the real value of the timeshare.

Now some might say a nice 1, 2 or 3 BR condo in the same area would be valued greater than say 52 times a timeshare week cost on the secondary market. However, the high maintenance cost, is a factor that would keep the value of the timeshares low. I have been looking at the market for condominiums in Honolulu for some time and high monthly maintenance is a factor that people look at before they buy a condonminium. If the maintenace of a 2 BR timeshare is $1000 that is $52,000/year for the entire year or about $4300/month. That is almost 4 times what I am paying for maintenance on a 2 BR condonminum in Honolulu per month. Of course the services you get in a timeshare is greater than that in a regular condominium, but is it worth 4 times the monthly maintenance, and how many people would buy whole property with that high cost of maintenance?
 

911@abigail

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[Deleted - buying/selling/renting are not permitted in the discussion forums.]
 
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911@abigail

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New to the TS selling game. I've read a lot of articles and posts on TUG and have very low expectations. [redacted] has anyone ever tried to file a class actions against HGVC or any other TS developer? Does TUG have a step by step list and forms? [redacted]
 
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DeniseM

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The only ones who benefits from a class action law suit are the lawyers.

Personally, I would not consider doing a "DIY" timeshare transfer. A mistake could cause you far more than using a timeshare title company. This is who I use - they are Tuggers, they get high marks on TUG, and they are efficient and inexpensive - usually less than $200.

L.T. Transfers
www.lttransfers.com
readylegal@gmail.com
706.219.2709

For "how to sell" info, click on the Help and Advice link in the blue bar at the top of the page.
 

northwoodsgal

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Of course, for timeshare properties they must get some crazy different numbers for sales from the developer versus on the secondary market. I wonder how they appraise the properties worth for tax purposes?

At least in Wisconsin, for most property types, the assessment should be based on Fair Market Value. Is a developer's price FMV? Most would say it isn't and therefore the assessor's office needs to consider arm's length transactions after the developer's sale. I can't imagine they're asking for a Social Security number or anything like that. Really, I would consider it a civic duty to fill out (as best as possible) and return the form.
 

TravelAmore

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I still wonder:
1. Wouldn't it be more efficent to obtain annual sales and resale info from HGVC, than sending poorly copied forms by USPS a year after the sale to sellers throughout America and parts of Europe?
2. Wouldn't the buyer be more invested in responding to filling out the form, given the property with its value is now his/hers/theirs?
3. How about including the form with transfer instructions to file deeds, which would mean all closing or title companies with sales or transfer transactions would have the information collected as part of the process?

I visited the Orange County FL website - lots of forms posted and listed for various transactions and info gathering. The form I received was not listed or posted there. While it may be an experiement to see if sellers will complete and return the form, it is poorly executed in a 2021 world where scammers, including mail fraud, seem to be a dime a dozen.
 

dioxide45

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I still wonder:
1. Wouldn't it be more efficent to obtain annual sales and resale info from HGVC, than sending poorly copied forms by USPS a year after the sale to sellers throughout America and parts of Europe?
2. Wouldn't the buyer be more invested in responding to filling out the form, given the property with its value is now his/hers/theirs?
3. How about including the form with transfer instructions to file deeds, which would mean all closing or title companies with sales or transfer transactions would have the information collected as part of the process?

I visited the Orange County FL website - lots of forms posted and listed for various transactions and info gathering. The form I received was not listed or posted there. While it may be an experiement to see if sellers will complete and return the form, it is poorly executed in a 2021 world where scammers, including mail fraud, seem to be a dime a dozen.
You are referring to government bureaucracy. They don't always do everything (pst things) efficiently.

That said, most deeds are recorded electronically, so no form is sent and many deeds just day $10 and other consideration.
 

BingoBangoBongo

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The other day I received a form in the mail that appeared to be a renewal form for my LLC in NYS. The form had all of my business information and the fee to process the renewal was $100. NYS requires the LLC to be renewed every two years. This was not from NYS, but an independent company. The actual fee through NYS is $9.00. Total scam!
 

dioxide45

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The other day I received a form in the mail that appeared to be a renewal form for my LLC in NYS. The form had all of my business information and the fee to process the renewal was $100. NYS requires the LLC to be renewed every two years. This was not from NYS, but an independent company. The actual fee through NYS is $9.00. Total scam!
Yes, these are quite common when you register an LLC in just about any state that requires ongoing fees to retain the LLC. They can see in online records when an LLC is coming up for renewal and then send out these scam letters to try to get you to pay much more for something than you really have to. Same thing happens in the Drone industry. Lots of scam operations out there that try to pay $50 to register a drone with the FAA when you can pay $5 to do it yourself. The company might send you some stickers you can stick on your drone for the additional $45. They pray on the uninformed and/or lazy.
 

1Kflyerguy

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The other day I received a form in the mail that appeared to be a renewal form for my LLC in NYS. The form had all of my business information and the fee to process the renewal was $100. NYS requires the LLC to be renewed every two years. This was not from NYS, but an independent company. The actual fee through NYS is $9.00. Total scam!

Back when i used to subscribe to magazines, i would often get renewal notices that looked official, but turned out to be a 3rd party that was simply handling the renewal on my behalf.. For a about double the actual rate...
 
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