Remember the excitement when you first bought a timeshare many years ago?
Vacation ownership in the mountains or a beachfront holiday home must have seemed like a dream come true, with the pleasure of spending a week or two every year in places that you couldn’t have afforded on your own.
Shared Luxury: A dream holiday option
However, what if you want to quit? What problems could crop up?
The first step is to talk to reputed, well-established timeshare cancellation experts
Table Of Contents
Why Give It All Up?
It may be that you purchased your timeshare on an impulse, lured by a high-pressure marketing presentation. “Buyer’s Remorse” can be a cruel wake-up!
Or perhaps you did enjoy the facilities for many years. Now the children have grown up and gone away, you’ve lost a spouse, or you’re fast approaching the Golden Years, and the age factor looms large. Illness, death, divorce, and/or disability can play spoilsport. Timeshares may not sync with your current lifestyle.
Fees increase by 5% annually.
The Covid-19 pandemic has brought its own share of issues. With unemployment rates in double figures worldwide, timeshare owners find that paying monthly maintenance fees is next to impossible. Travel restrictions could mess up your holiday plans. Most holiday destinations are reeling under labor shortages and a lack of resources.
Is Quitting An Option?
A study conducted by the University of Central Florida showed that 85% of owners regret their purchase.
Timeshare owners are discovering to their dismay that the contracts they signed so blithely have certain clauses that stand in the way of cancellation.
- Timeshare contracts have perpetuity clauses
- Timeshare companies often impose ad hoc fees on top of the maintenance fees
- Most contracts have a specific period (rescission) in which cancellation is possible but not later
- Cancellation could affect your credit rating
- Timeshares are difficult to sell or donate
What’s The Solution?
There are several options available to unhappy timeshare owners.
You can legally terminate the contract and sell/give back your timeshare through reputable professionals such as well-established timeshare developers, professionally licensed real estate agents, or a reliable timeshare seller. However, you may not get anywhere near the current rates or the original price you paid.
You can also negotiate with the owners, who may demand an exit fee.
The last option is probably the best: hire a well-known, experienced, knowledgeable attorney or timeshare cancellation company with legal expertise and a successful track record to help you get out safely. While timeshare cancellation experts are not usually lawyers themselves, they have strong legal connections.
Terminate your contract legally with help from experts
- Do your own homework on the cancellation process and read your original contract carefully once again.
- Choose the right cancellation company through reviews, recommendations, and referrals from trustworthy sources.
- Select one in the state or country where your timeshare is located
- Select one with a nationwide footprint and dedicated personal support and are upfront about fees
- Understand their process and assess whether it works for you (if they plan to sell your timeshare, know that it can be a lengthy/almost impossible process)
- Provide all the relevant information to the timeshare cancellation company’s trained professionals who will create a file and profile for your project
- They may give you certain guarantees regarding the duration, money-back, etc.
- Ensure that they protect your credit and don’t advise you to stop making payments that can affect your credit rating
- Remember, it can take between 6 months and two years to complete the process.
- You must receive a documented confirmation of your cancellation.
