The U.S. Shared Vacation Ownership Consolidated Owners Report from 2016 found that approximately 7% of American households own one or more kinds of shared vacation product. About 3% of all households actually own a timeshare, and the timeshare industry is currently worth about $70 billion. For many people, their timeshare becomes less valuable over time, for whatever reason, they want to sell. Sometimes the maintenance fees become too high. Sometimes life situations simply change and it becomes impractical to visit a timeshare property. Getting out of a timeshare contract can be tricky, and a lot of people are interested in canceling a timeshare. If you’ve found yourself wondering, “How can I sell my timeshare?” read on for some tips about how to get rid of a timeshare you don’t want.
- How can I sell my timeshare: get all the paperwork together. The first step to getting rid of your timeshare legally is having all your papers in order and fully understanding your timeshare contract. It’s probably a smart idea to get the help of a timeshare attorney to make sure you understand all the implications and options on your contract. You also want to make it clear to any buyer exactly what you own, where it is, what amenities are available, and all details about fees.
- How can I sell my timeshare: get up-to-date. It’s going to be exponentially more difficult to get out of a timeshare contract if you’re not current on all the maintenance fees and payments. While it’s understandable that you may want to just be rid of the thing, you’ll have more success in passing it off if there are no debts going in.
- How can I sell my timeshare: try listing the property. Some timeshare management companies will allow you to advertise on their website or newsletter, and you can also use Craigslist or other similar sites if you don’t want to pay a fee. Real estate websites and travel websites will let you post your property for a fee, but in the end it might be worth going through a real estate agent of some kind in order to get assistance with closing; though you will pay a commission. You can ask the timeshare property to broker your resale, and some will. This might be the simplest option, but you will pay a significant commission for this.
- How can I sell my timeshare: be prepared to go low. If you are really serious about getting rid of your timeshare as quickly as possible, you should be prepared to lower the asking price. The market is currently saturated with timeshare properties, and it is becoming more more difficult to offload them. Additionally, many timeshare resorts rent out their empty properties so cheaply that people interested in spending vacation time there find it more economical to simply book when they want to go rather than actually purchase.
- How can I sell my timeshare: get legal help. If you find that you are not able to sell your timeshare, or if you feel that in any way the property was misrepresented to you or the contract was unclear, timeshare cancellation may be possible. You may be able to sell the property back to the management company. This is where timeshare attorneys come in. Timeshare lawyers can let you know if there’s any possibility you have a case against the management company for misrepresenting the situation when you purchased your timeshare.
If your timeshare is becoming a burden rather than a blessing; if you don’t have time or never seem to be able to schedule a convenient vacation there; if management fees have gone so high that you can’t afford them anymore, you do have options. It may be possible to cancel a timeshare, it may be possible to sell a timeshare, and it may even be possible to get the seller to buy it back if the situation is not what you were led to believe it would be. Contact a timeshare lawyer near you today to find out more about all of your options.
