Q: Over many years, I have tried to get rid of, or rent out, or somehow get some value out of the Tennessee timeshare that we never should have bought in the 1990s. We have paid the timeshare “mortgage” off, but of course there are yearly assessments, which we want to shed before we retire and downsize. I have tried companies that supposedly sell your timeshare or connect you with rental clients, but nothing has ever worked out. How do we get this timeshare albatross off our necks?
A: People who buy timeshares are typically making a lifetime obligation, agreeing to pay maintenance fees and property taxes every year until they die or sell the timeshare. But as those fees increase, the asset gradually becomes a liability.
“The short answer is because they’re worthless — that’s why you can’t get rid of them,” said Joe Solseng, a lawyer at Schroeter Goldmark & Bender in Seattle, who has represented timeshare owners in cases against resorts.
Start by filing complaints with the Better Business Bureau, the Tennessee attorney general and the Federal Trade Commission.
It’s not surprising that you didn’t have luck with companies that will supposedly sell your timeshare or connect you with possible renters: Many of these “timeshare exit” companies are scams. “You pay them upfront, and they do nothing, and you’re out of money,” Mr. Solseng said.
Try contacting the timeshare company to see if it has an exit program, but be sure to read the fine print before agreeing to anything. Sometimes these companies say they will help, only to try to upsell you on another product.
You could consider a lawsuit, but lawyers will be selective with what cases they accept because in many states, especially popular vacation destinations, the laws protect resort owners. For example, in some cases, prospective buyers are told that there’s a market to rent the timeshare or to sell it, but the details in the contract will say there is not really a market for these activities, which protects the company.
The resorts “have you on the hook” because they convinced you to sign their contract, Mr. Solseng said.
You might have more success with assembling a group of plaintiffs. Key questions are: Were timeshare buyers knowingly misled? Is the resort or vacation club breaking state consumer protection laws?
If you do pursue legal action, weigh the cost of the lawyers’ fees against the money you are seeking, and make sure that the state you’re in awards lawyer fees to the prevailing party.
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