Getting rid of your timeshare

johnb2353 wrote:

A lawyer working with a new client will require a retainer up front. That is a standard business practice. If you are concerned about the integrity of the lawyer, check with the American Bar Association to see whether any complaints have been filed against attorney. The Better Business Bureau also keeps files of complaints. The attorney I have recommended here has helped many people deed back their timeshares successfully. jockwood@hotmail.com

One more time, your timeshare was at the Manhattan Club in NYC (very popular location), it was a floating week and you could never reserve time there even a year out so you had a good excuse for getting out of the contract.

You cannot say across the board that anyone that owns a timeshare at any given resort that your attorney can get them out of their contract. This just isn't so .... please stop posting this untruth.

JayJay -- I was responding to the comment about avoiding anyone who asks for a portion of fees upfront. That is common practice in the legal field, especially with a new client.

Secondly, there are many more people who need help getting out of The Manhattan Club, and I am happy to steer them to an attorney who can and has helped.

Whether my attorney can help with other timeshares would have to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

But you are right, The Manhattan Club is probably the worst of them.

Oh no, I've got one that is probably worse! We own in Premiere Vacation Collection which is now with Diamond Resorts. We initially bought at Los Abrigados in Sedona, AZ in 1998. Since then we were naively "upgraded" (NOT!) to Premiere and then a couple of years ago the whole ILX, Inc. went bankrupt and was bought out by Diamond Resorts who operates on a point system thereby changing the whole nature of our ownership which now looks like allocated points rather than a "week" within the Diamond system. To complicate matters further, they are now demanding that we pay something in the range of $5000 to buy more points from them to give our timeshare trading power because within Interval International, we still exist as a "week" which is becoming obsolete. In other words, our timeshare has been reduced to having value ONLY in Diamond's collection and cannot be otherwise traded using Interval or RCI. Talk about a scam! Diamond has stated more than once to us that they have no deed back program, and attempts to give it away on Craigslist have failed.

There's really no need to say one resort is worse than the others, or to place blame on resale companies that are only taking advantage of a shortcoming of the TS industry, the lack of an exit strategy.

One thing that all timeshare owners have in common is that one day, for a variety of reasons, they will no longer want, need or use them. Except for a very few resorts or systems, the industry does not appear to care about those owners, people who have funded the system for many years.

Most, of course, take the attitude that it is not their problem. Many compound the problem by charging excessive exit fees. Some resorts even go as far as suing their non-using, non-paying owners, and placing liens on their residences.

Unlike 10, 15, 20, 25 years ago, the single most important question today is not how best to get into timesharing, but what help owners will get from the "legitimate" industry when it's time to get out.

With the Internet, the rental market to the general public, and the larceny of the timeshare industry, the best advice to anyone considering purchasing a timeshare through any source is DON'T.

I couldn't agree more! Now, how to get rid of it? Do we really have no recourse? What is the true likelihood that if we stop paying the fees they would come after us?

We purchased this timeshare while living on the West coast and since moved to the East coast. The Diamond Collection is of no use to our family and our actual ownership in Premiere Vacation Collection (on the deed) is listed as ownership in Varsity Clubs of America - South Bend Chapter. We have no intention of purchasing more points to give it trading power - which frankly, I don't think there is such a thing! Back in the days when it did have "trading power" we could hardly trade it. This thing can't be given away.

Oh, that I could stand on a rooftop and shout to the world to stop timeshare purchasing and put this industry out of business for good!

deleted by jayjay

lisac1090 wrote:

Oh no, I've got one that is probably worse! We own in Premiere Vacation Collection which is now with Diamond Resorts. We initially bought at Los Abrigados in Sedona, AZ in 1998. Since then we were naively "upgraded" (NOT!) to Premiere and then a couple of years ago the whole ILX, Inc. went bankrupt and was bought out by Diamond Resorts who operates on a point system thereby changing the whole nature of our ownership which now looks like allocated points rather than a "week" within the Diamond system. To complicate matters further, they are now demanding that we pay something in the range of $5000 to buy more points from them to give our timeshare trading power because within Interval International, we still exist as a "week" which is becoming obsolete. In other words, our timeshare has been reduced to having value ONLY in Diamond's collection and cannot be otherwise traded using Interval or RCI. Talk about a scam! Diamond has stated more than once to us that they have no deed back program, and attempts to give it away on Craigslist have failed.

If you're still in the week's system with II then do nothing .... just keep your week and use or trade it like before. Contrary to what Diamond told you there are still millions upon millions of weeks owners.

If only experience supported your advice. When I have attempted to exchange in II, I seem to only be able to trade for the least desirable properties. I have placed a request a year in advance for 10 or more properties in an area and not been able to get any of them. I did not purchase a timeshare so that I could stay at substandard properties! Diamond's answer to that is that we need to buy more points. We own a one bedroom, every other year timeshare and pay approx. $700 a year in maintenance fees. It's become a sad waste of money.

We have exactly the same 'timeshare' and cannot even get into the week we bought as it is not available to the original owners at Los Abragados, now called something else. We have never gotten in in ten years! However, when we do go to Sedona, we are placed at Bell Rock Inn instead, which I actually like. So we still enjoy Sedona, despite all. The people at Los Abragados and at timeshares in general are huge liars and you cannot believe ANYTHING they say as they are trying to sell you something and saying anything is OK in their book. They are probably gone or fired the next week.DO NOT BUY A TIMESHARE!!! You can go on Red week ad rent one for a week without the headache and probably cheaper. And remember, you can negotiate rental prices. Nothing is carved in stone.

I looked around a bit the other day, and couldn't find a "freebie" place here on Redweek, a place to post weeks we just want to give away.

Can someone point me in the right direction?

As far as a way to get out of TS you simply cannot give away, there is a consumer protection attorney on another Timeshare Forum that does that, on contingency. We're considering that.

TIA

jlb wrote:

I looked around a bit the other day, and couldn't find a "freebie" place here on Redweek, a place to post weeks we just want to give away.

Can someone point me in the right direction?

As far as a way to get out of TS you simply cannot give away, there is a consumer protection attorney on another Timeshare Forum that does that, on contingency. We're considering that.

TIA

Check out RedWeek's Bargain Basement section. Also, Timeshare Users Group (aka "TUG"; tugbbs.com) has a Bargain deals section where you can list for free that you want to give your unit away. Just follow the directions at the top of that forum. E-Bay is also a place where you can list your unit for bids starting at $1.

The other possibility that a lot of owners seem to overlook is to simply as the resort if it will take the unit back. Some say Yes and some No. They might also do so if you agree to pay closing costs and the next maintenance fee.

As for some of these attorneys and law firms, usually all they do is negotiate with the resort for it to take your unit back. That's something you can do yourself without expensive attorney fees.

jlb wrote:

I looked around a bit the other day, and couldn't find a "freebie" place here on Redweek, a place to post weeks we just want to give away.

http://www.redweek.com/featured/bargain-timeshare-resales

Quote:

As far as a way to get out of TS you simply cannot give away, there is a consumer protection attorney on another Timeshare Forum that does that, on contingency. We're considering that. TIA

If you signed a legally binding contract to buy your timeshare then there's no attorney or entity on earth that can get you out of that contract unless they can 'prove' fraud was involved within that written contract .... don't waste your money on this scam.

not even worth the energy of addressing

hi

Hi to you, too.

drk14

Are you still in business? If so, how do I contact you?

Thanks

Hi, my name is Annie. I just started working with an exit strategy company, Exit Pros. We've recently undergone a huge change in ownership and management - I know that the company had a bad rep in some areas. Basically, to get out of your ownership involves a deed transfer, and the original timeshare contracts usually stipulated transfer fees that are sometimes hefty, and closing costs. If you process the transfer by paying those fees, it can be out of your name the same day. There are some timeshare companies that we don't work with, you must be current with maintenance and assessment fees, and all parties on the contract must agree, but getting out of the timeshare can be accomplished. If I can help you, please email me back, and I can put you in contact with a contract specialist. I like to help people, so if I can answer any questions, please let me know.

anniel56 wrote:

Hi, my name is Annie. I just started working with an exit strategy company, Exit Pros. We've recently undergone a huge change in ownership and management - I know that the company had a bad rep in some areas. Basically, to get out of your ownership involves a deed transfer, and the original timeshare contracts usually stipulated transfer fees that are sometimes hefty, and closing costs. If you process the transfer by paying those fees, it can be out of your name the same day. There are some timeshare companies that we don't work with, you must be current with maintenance and assessment fees, and all parties on the contract must agree, but getting out of the timeshare can be accomplished. If I can help you, please email me back, and I can put you in contact with a contract specialist. I like to help people, so if I can answer any questions, please let me know.

Hello Annie,

Exit Pros LLC [Status: inactive] has always been, and continues to be registered to William Heavener and Natalie Thompson.

Also, Bahin & Company Holdings Corp DBA Exit Pros [Status: active] has always been, and continues to be registered to William Heavener and Natalie Thompson. So there has not been a huge change in ownership/management.

The only recent change to the company was when somebody updated the website on October 21st of this year.

While everyone on the website does look very nice, it's still a call center in Florida cold calling people in regards to their timeshares. A Florida company that has multiple complaints regarding people being harassed by high-pressure sales and not receiving the services they were guaranteed.

I'm trying to be as polite as possible when I ask you this...

Given the aforementioned facts, can you really expect anyone here to believe that Exit Pros is a trustworthy company?

I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt, and assume you're telling the truth about just starting to work there, and maybe you mean well, but I'm afraid your promises of timeshare relief ring hollow.

caveat emptor

NEVER pay anyone money upfront to rent or sell your timeshare. Only use a licensed real estate broker that takes their commission out of the proceeds. Once again... NEVER pay anyone money upfront for any services involving a timeshare. If they demand money upfront run away as fast as you can. Annie get a real job !