Timeshare deed records public ?

[decadude]

Can anyone lookup who owns a specific timeshare at the courthouse ?

Just curious I would think the information would be public record.

 

[DeniseM]

Yes - deeds are public records and many times you can look them up online.

 

[dioxide45]

Yes, the deeds and security instruments (mortgages) are public record and are recorded at the county recorder where the property is located. Anyone can obtain these records, a fee is sometimes required. A lot of counties have their records online, some offer the service for free where others charge a fee.

You can use NETROnline to look up the websites of each county recorder, if they exist.

 

[vacationtime1]

Assuming it's a deeded interest, it is at the relevant county recorder office as the prior posts suggest (if it is a trust, a club, etc., it is not a deeded interest and it will not be in the recorder's office).

If you want to know who owns a specific unit, that is much, much harder -- especially if you are trying to follow a chain of title. But if property tax bills are issued separately for each unit (such as in California), you can check the assessor's office rather than the recorder's office; each timeshare is a separate parcel and indexed accordingly.

 

[decadude]

thanks for the info

I have no current relevant reason for this knowledge but it could come in handy in the future i was basically just thinking out loud all good information and responses.

Do you know if Texas is handled similar to California in regards to how units are taxed etc. I may be interested in knowing who owns a particular unit/week in the state of texas.

thanks again

 

[theo]

Not always "County" records, but still always "Public" records...

Several of the posts above imply (or state outright) that a County is always the repository for recorded deeds; this is simply not correct.
Not everywhere are deeds necessarily recorded and / or retrieved at the County level, although that is the case far more often than not.

In some places (Vermont comes immediately to mind as just one specific example), deeds are actually recorded at the individual town level. I clearly recall this fact from the purchase (and subsequent sale) of a few ski weeks we formerly owned at a timeshare property in Vermont. A real estate transfer tax is also imposed in VT (it is collected at the town level, but it's a state tax). No, btw, I am not somehow confusing this state-imposed real estate transfer tax with a resort-imposed "transfer fee"; the two are distinctly different from (and unrelated to) one another and both transfer related costs may very well be imposed in a Vermont timeshare transaction.
My recollection is that property taxes (different again from any of the above) in VT timeshare ownerships were included in maintenance fee bills, not billed separately.

Numerous other states and / or counties impose real estate transfer taxes on any and every real estate transaction (including all deeded timeshare transactions).
Real estate property taxes are of course not the same thing as real estate transfer taxes (the latter being imposed only during transactions of ownership change).
Resort "transfer fees" are entirely unrelated and are determined solely by individual resorts and / or their management company, with no governmental involvement.

No matter how or where recorded, deeds are always public records, at least here in the U.S.A. They are not always easy to retrieve, but they are still always public.

 

[Jason245]

Several of the posts above imply (or state outright) that a County is always the repository for recorded deeds; this is simply not correct.
Not everywhere are deeds necessarily recorded and / or retrieved at the County level, although that is the case far more often than not.

In some places (Vermont comes immediately to mind as just one specific example), deeds are actually recorded at the individual town level. I clearly recall this fact from the purchase (and subsequent sale) of a few ski weeks we formerly owned at a timeshare property in Vermont. A real estate transfer tax is also imposed in VT (it is collected at the town level, but it's a state tax). No, btw, I am not somehow confusing this state-imposed real estate transfer tax with a resort-imposed "transfer fee"; the two are distinctly different from (and unrelated to) one another and both transfer related costs may very well be imposed in a Vermont timeshare transaction.

Numerous other states and / or counties impose real estate transfer taxes on any and every real estate transaction (including all deeded timeshare transactions).
Resort transfer fees are entirely unrelated and are determined solely by individual resorts and / or their management company, with no governmental involvement.

No matter how or where recorded, deeds are always public records, at least here in the U.S.A. They are not always easy to retrieve, but they are still always public.

To add more clarity or confusion to this, Florida has "Sunshine" laws which basically require almost all public records to be made available online and generally for free.


If you are looking to avoid being directly listed on these records there are a few creative ways.....

 

[ttt]

In Texas, unlike California, Taxes are not assessed on an individual unit, but rather on the entire complex in which the individual taxes are included in the maint. fees. No individual tax bills in Texas.

I have no current relevant reason for this knowledge but it could come in handy in the future i was basically just thinking out loud all good information and responses.

Do you know if Texas is handled similar to California in regards to how units are taxed etc. I may be interested in knowing who owns a particular unit/week in the state of texas.

thanks again

 

[GreenTea]

Hilton Head ones are online, free, searchable by name.

 

[DeniseM]

One more note - An estoppel letter is another way to verify info. about a specific deed, and may be easier to access: http://tug2.net/timeshare_advice/timeshare_estoppel_letters.html

 

[decadude]

In Texas, unlike California, Taxes are not assessed on an individual unit, but rather on the entire complex in which the individual taxes are included in the maint. fees. No individual tax bills in Texas.

So with that said the deed is still public record but the county tax records probably aren't listed online for timeshare units. I am assuming.

 

[pricecb1]

Adding Adult Children To A Deed

Pretty new to ownership, and of course, have received conflicting information to my questions. My in-laws want to give my husband and myself their "Gold" Wyndham ownership. We are currently using it but did become owners to learn the ropes. In reading if they "transfer" ownership, we will lose Gold status. (Family Transfers: If you are Grandfathered at a VIP level and wish to transfer one of your ownership interests to an “Immediate Relative”, the eligible ownership interests that were purchased prior to November 1, 2012 will be considered eligible towards the applicable VIP Point Levels prior to November 1, 2012. The Immediate Relative that you are transferring your ownership interest to will need a minimum of 300,000 grandfathered eligible points to receive Grandfathered VIP status.) If we simply add our names to their deed, does anyone know if it changes Gold Status? Would LT Transfers work for this or is it something they can do with their attorney locally with no lingering effects? Thank you for your help.

 

[theo]

Pretty new to ownership, and of course, have received conflicting information to my questions. My in-laws want to give my husband and myself their "Gold" Wyndham ownership. We are currently using it but did become owners to learn the ropes. In reading if they "transfer" ownership, we will lose Gold status. (Family Transfers: If you are Grandfathered at a VIP level and wish to transfer one of your ownership interests to an “Immediate Relative”, the eligible ownership interests that were purchased prior to November 1, 2012 will be considered eligible towards the applicable VIP Point Levels prior to November 1, 2012. The Immediate Relative that you are transferring your ownership interest to will need a minimum of 300,000 grandfathered eligible points to receive Grandfathered VIP status.) If we simply add our names to their deed, does anyone know if it changes Gold Status? Would LT Transfers work for this or is it something they can do with their attorney locally with no lingering effects? Thank you for your help.

This inquiry is outside the topic of this ongoing thread ("deeds as public records") but, that fact aside, with all due respect this would also certainly seem to be a very pointed and very system-specific question which can really only be answered with absolute certainty by Wyndham itself, no?

TUGgers, closers, attorney opinions or actions would ultimately mean nothing if later determined by Wyndham to be at odds with Wyndham's own position on this.

A new deed is likely going to / through Wyndham at some point after recording. Wyndham may (...or not) waive their larcenous $299 "transfer fee" for a intra-familly modification to a current deed, but your very different, very specific question of preserving "Gold Status" in any such deed modification is another matter entirely.
Personally, I'd be seeking (and I would only have any real confidence in) any interpretation only if it actually originated directly from Wyndham itself. YMMV.

Maybe a moderator will see your Wyndham-specific post and move it over to the more appropriate Wyndham-specific forum, where some Wyndham owner may have previously encountered a comparable situation and might therefore be able share their own direct, first hand experiences on this particular system-specific matter.