The major thinking of most British timeshare owners is how to sell their timeshare after the rising costs of maintenance fees. According to newspaper articles some of the big European players such as Diamond Vacation Club appear to be in constant battle with their members over rising maintenance fees.
Also, with the weakening of the pound against the Euro some timeshare owners have literally seen their maintenance fees double! Timeshare is obviously not protected against outside influences such as inflation, but is this really the major problem?

The maintenance fee is used to keep the property up to a certain standard. Taking this logic one step further, if the price of building materials, labor wages, and consumer goods rise; the maintenance fee will have to increase to cover those inflated costs. This aspect can be considered as reasonable. How much of these costs are truly related to inflation though? Most timeshare owners are astounded at the rise in their maintenance fees or the number of “special assessments” that are levied on them to maintain their property.

Another aspect that causes financial issues concerns timeshares that are part of a hotel resort. People who are not in the hotel business are generally unfamiliar with the costs of maintaining a hotel. These expenses differ drastically from the expenses of maintaining a home because hotels must be fully refurbished every 3-5 years to stay modern and to keep their star rating. Obviously there is a lot more to cover than in a single home and therefore it is a pricey incidental.
Considering the lack of control over these high and variable expenses, one could ask where the benefits of such an ownership are.

At this point let’s compare the yearly holiday costs vs. maintenance fees.
Most of the families that own timeshares would have been better off saving for holidays every year. Even some of the people who use their timeshare every year could have saved more money by paying for their holidays yearly because of the significant rise in the costs. Hotels do not have the ability to pass all of their costs on to the consumer which is the point at issue that timeshare owners are dealing with. Hotel prices are based on the number of travelers to their destination, because they would rather be full (or close to it) than charge higher prices and have large holiday rates. Particularly during times when most consumers cannot afford holidays, hotels tend to be cheaper. Timeshares do not have that same link; in fact it’s quite the opposite, as members are paying to keep the resort running in a financially viable manner.

Unless people take holidays for two months out of the year – every year – for many people the yearly maintenance fee is greater than what they pay for their holidays. Putting that same money in savings will give people more flexibility and more money in the short and long run.

This table shows the tricky structure of rising fees

A significant increase in fees came with the takeover of former Sunterra by DRI (Diamond Resorts) and for 2 years there was plenty of mud slinging. DRI needed to rebrand the resort and the previous company allegedly did not account correctly and was not recovering enough fees from its members. The question is why? In fact in 2008 the base fee increased 14% and yet in 2009 DRI wanted another 20% from its members on top of their 2008 fees. All in all the members are paying now an extra 30% to DRI for running the club although the restructuring is now complete.

Are DRI and other resorts recovering enough fees from its members to cover the overheads of running the resorts? If not, why is that possible?
High pressure sales tactics obviously didn’t sell the product as a maintenance burden. Many disillusioned timeshare owners decided not to keep up with their maintenance payments and try to get rid of their ownership.
Perhaps the developers didn’t calculate such losses within their budgets? Is it that those owners who do keep paying their annual fees have to pay more to recompense these losses? Are there any means to break out of it? Somehow everybody has been let down in this circle, however, many problems result from the fact that some products haven’t been sold as what they really are, the results have potentially created financial burdens all round.

It may be worth asking yourself the question, are you the one owning the ‘goodies’ or do the ‘goodies’ own you?

Allegedly statistics suggest that customers continue to pay maintenance fees because they like having the benefits of a timeshare. If this is the case, then it is left to question why so many timeshare owners desperately try get rid of their timeshare which they consider more as a financial burden than an asset. Buying a timeshare is an expensive purchase in the first place and due to increasing maintenance fees it steadily costs the client more and more as time goes on.

Many timeshare owners keep paying their maintenance fees, because they don’t want to lose the money they initially spent on it. “Will the consumer pay the $800 or give up the $24,000 they have already spent?” asked the chairman and CEO of Diamond Resorts International. This is only one consequence if owners stop paying maintenance fees. They could also end up in court being forced to pay their fees.

Increasing maintenance fees can quickly drain financial resources and timeshare owners try to dispose of the financial burden, but selling a timeshare is another tricky aspect. It will usually be for a substantial loss, if they can sell it at all. Developers are not willing to buy it back and many timeshare owners find themselves tied up in a deal for decades due to a perpetuity clause in the contract.

Mr and Mrs Horwell who are trying to dispose of their timeshare state that “The maintenance fees continue to rise to a point where we don’t think it is worth keeping it. We called the resort and asked about giving the week up by not paying the yearly fee. They said we cannot do that. It was suggested that we try to sell it”. They then figured out that they would have to pay a transfer fee of about $700 along with the maintenance fee of $800, thus resulting in them having to pay $1,500 just to get out of it.

The case of Mr and Mrs Harrison is quite similar; “We have a timeshare week in Fuerteventura and spent 2 successful holidays there, but have found the maintenance fees going up year by year and now we feel that it would be cheaper for us to book a holiday via the internet. We are not sure what to do though. If we just don’t pay the maintenance fees we risk eventually being taken to court. The only people we have managed to find who will sell it for us are asking for about £180 advertising fees up front and this sounds like a bit of a scam to us” – and they are right to be suspicious of companies requesting up front fees. Once the fee has been paid, these companies have little or no incentive to put any effort into finding a buyer.

Many holiday makers considered timeshare as a better value option to enjoy high end holidays. It is left to question whether this is really the case. It is rather cheaper to book a holiday via internet today. Holiday makers can book high quality apartments much cheaper and without the burden of paying annual maintenance fees, especially in this very competitive marketplace. There are millions of cheap holidays to search and book online. Due to the economic downturn hotels also offer special deals. Customers can book online in a matter of minutes or over the phone with the help of travel experts.

With the ongoing crisis that the global economy is experiencing today, no sane individual would continue to pay for something that provides insufficient returns or nothing at all. Then, why do timeshare owners keep paying for hefty maintenance fees, special assessments, exchange fees, property taxes and other associated fees every year even though they might not make use of their timeshares? Because the contract that they signed at that euphoric moment when they were buying into a “lifetime of luxury holidays” commits them to do exactly that! We all know that hindsight has 20-20 vision, but the reality is that simply booking a holiday online, as and when you want to, can be a lot less stressful and in the long term, an option which offers much better value.

While a few developers offer buy-back programs, the majority does not, leaving timeshare owners to come up with their own ways to dispose of their timeshare, that they no longer wish to own. Selling a timeshare is very difficult. The main reason is supply and demand. The supply of timeshare resale greatly exceeds the demandDue to the clinch with high maintenance fees and tough economical times – plenty of timeshare owners want to dispose of their timeshare creating an excess of supply. You must price your unit competitively if you really want to dispose of it.

There should be no need for an appraisal to sell your timeshare, as we have the internet to gather the necessary information to make a comparison. Bear in mind that you are competing against all those other sales listings. Think about it from the buyer’s point of view, they are looking for the best deal and if you want to sell your timeshare it has to be a bargain. Price them more realistically and increase your avenues of more low cost exposure.

Auctions shouldn’t therefore be considered as a lack of respect to the owners, but rather as possibilities to dispose of their timeshare – particularly when it comes to increasing annual maintenance fees which sometimes reach up to over £2000! Due to the high pressure sales tactics timeshare owners misleadingly paid over inflated prices, but it isn’t realistic to expect to get anywhere near the buying price. If you don’t price your unit right the chances are really small that you will attract any buyers. It all goes back to choices and a fair amount of information.

There are companies that do provide real opportunities to generate high quality holidays and dispose of unwanted timeshare property. It is indeed a bit of a “mine-field”, so to ‘play safe’ make sure you avoid up-front fees of any kind. Why would you pay for something that didn’t yet happen? In the real estate industry you only pay a provision after a deal has been closed. As in any industry, including those that involve the sale of real estate and those that involve the sale of timeshare, there are good services and bad ones; there are services that work well for one person and maybe not for another. Choose companies that you think best serve your individual needs. Things sell for what the market will bear.

People may go into their timeshare deal fully intending to use it each and every year.
However, if they are unable to, all of that year’s fees go swirling down the drain! Many unpredictable things can occur in a year which may make it impossible or impractical for owners to visit their timeshare. Canceling a hotel won’t cost a lot of money but a timeshare simply remains a forever-lasting financial responsibility.

The main issue at this point is how difficult getting rid of the financial burden of timeshare can be. Many timeshare owners try to cancel their contracts and hand it back to the developer, but generally the developer has no interest in buying it back. This is the case with some members of Diamond Resorts.

The company has increased annual maintenance fees by an incredible 57% over the last three years. They claim the increases are necessary to keep their resorts financially independent. From the company’s point of view it is a very important responsibility of the management company and the resort committees to ensure financial independence and continued resort sustainability.

So, in other words members are paying to keep the resort running in a financially viable manner, but are the facilities actually being maintained to a satisfying standard? Also, is it acceptable to hold members financially responsible for the lack of available funds needed to maintain resort facilities?

Obviously, increasing maintenance fees reduce desirability and that in turn quickly drains financial resources. Meanwhile the value of the timeshare and the resort decreases.

Members also complain about a lack of exchange opportunities. In recent years, timeshare developers have introduced point-based programs designed to offer the timeshare buyer another level of flexibility, but in reality it is wasted money and doesn’t change anything. Diamond Resorts’ members who spent additional money now have a big problem trying to get rid of their points as they are restricted to selling them to other Diamond Resorts members or family and friends. Obviously, leaving their loved ones with rising bills and no way out is not really an option.

It’s unclear whether the management fees are likely to see further increases or will be retained at current levels. It is extremely unlikely that management fees will ever be reduced back to the level of commitment that was agreed with members upon joining, so clients are left feeling constrained and extremely uncertain.

The Diamond Resorts’ members voiced that they would much rather be told what was going on and hear some kind of response to their concerns. At the moment they have no opportunity to challenge what was said by the company chairman.

Timeshares are not only an expensive investment for leisure, but also a lasting financial responsibility. After a few years of owning a timeshare, there comes a time when some people can’t keep up with this responsibility and the annually raising maintenance costs.

This is the time when timeshare owners share the experience of an additional unpleasant surprise – the perpetuity clause. The ‘point at issue’ is how to dispose of the timeshare and get out of the contract?

Selling it will usually be for a substantial loss, if owners can sell it at all. The main issue is that many people find themselves tied up in a bad deal for decades being contractually bound to occupy their units. Furthermore, they are forced to keep paying the annual maintenance fees, which are increased yearly.

The case of Mr and Mrs Sullivan isn’t one with a happy ending. They tried to cancel, but the deal they signed locked both parties in for 30 years. What’s worse – they are responsible for £1200 maintenance fees every year for the life of the deal and several restrictions in the contract make it too expensive to get out of it.

“We have to pay whether we use the week or not, but we can’t ever find suitable exchange opportunities”.

This is a very common complaint from timeshare owners. Even though the timeshare concept pledges flexible holiday opportunities, owners often can’t find an acceptable exchange interval. When they complain about a lack of exchange opportunities, promoters often urge them to upgrade to better located and more expensive intervals. These are supposed to expand exchange opportunities, but in reality it is wasted money and it doesn’t really change anything.

When members fall on hard times and are unable to pay maintenance fees they are forced to pay under the threat of CCJ’s (County Court Judgement for non payment).

This is the case Mr. Middlehurst is facing. He has lost his job and is dealing with serious health problems and hence can’t afford to travel any longer. “I tried to cancel, but the developer I bought from wouldn’t take it back”. The fact is that developers don’t tend to buy back timeshares from its members.

Moreover many contracts specify that the ownership of the timeshare is conveyed not just to the owner, but also to their heirs, successors and assigns. That means that the children of the owners could actually be held accountable for this membership and its yearly dues.

It’s no wonder that so many people eventually become desperate to get rid of their timeshares after a few years. The few fun holidays that they may get out of their timeshare rarely outweigh the on-going burden of this kind of ownership.

Forever is a long time and forever is often what people agree to when they sign a timeshare contract that includes a perpetuity clause.

The real nightmare begins when timeshare owners want to dispose of their unwanted timeshare property as the maintenance fees increase on an annual basis sometimes up to over £2,000!

Most of the owners who want to sell cannot do so as they are locked into their ownership and forced to carry on paying annual fees.

In the past timeshares used to be repossessed whereas nowadays the client is being taken to court to enforce these payments.

If the developer discovers that the client is being assisted by a commercial entity to sell their timeshare, in many cases the transfer fee is increased immediately, or other obstacles are put in the way.

Timeshare forces clients to pay maintenance fees and membership fees regardless if they use it or not.

Clients can forget about the possibility of going somewhere other than their own resort as they end up having to accept whatever they are offered at their resort. Even though they can make 3 choices they usually don’t get what they want and on top of that they first have to bank their week and pay the fee. If clients decide not to exchange they have to pay to get their own week back!

Timeshare also limits the choice of accommodation. Basically only self catering accommodation is available and the majority of units are only studios or one bedroom apartments so nowhere near what the client has been promised.

Summing up the features of a timeshare package there is no denying that timeshare offers high quality accommodation and excellent facilities in luxury resorts all over the world. However, it also includes constantly increasing usage costs, ever-increasing maintenance fees, annual exchange company membership fees and resort exchange fees. So, it can be a very expensive and nerve-wracking holiday system, where your first, second or even third choice of holiday destination often turns out to be unavailable!

As the European timeshare industry uses every trick it can find to get around the law (under the cover of their new “whiter than white” image. British tourists have been left to search for other solutions to dispose of their timeshare and to find alternative, simpler ways to continue to enjoy the high-quality holidays they have become accustomed to.

The good news is that there are other possibilities on the market to dispose of unwanted timeshares and also to continue to take the kind of luxury holidays that the timeshare industry promised without the complications or hassles.

Holiday makers do want to enjoy quality holidays, but mostly don’t want to be burdened by the costs of their timeshare any longer and would prefer to simply dispose of their holiday property and find an alternative.

It can seem very difficult to dispose of timeshare today due to the amount of diverse (and often misleading) information out there.

There are timeshare resorts and holiday clubs that provide customers with a good service, but the fact remains that it is quite a challenge for timeshare owners to dispose of their unwanted weeks or points and just enjoy the kind of luxury holidays that they deserve. The supply of resale timeshare properties far exceeds the demand and the economic downturn has affected the timeshare market just as severely as it has hit everything else.

The truth is that it is extremely rare – and pretty unlikely – that timeshare owners will receive 100% of the money they originally spent on their timeshare. However, they can at least get out of paying the annual maintenance fees, constantly increasing usage costs and resort exchange fees by selling-on their property.

Numerous timeshare owners were assured by “enthusiastic salesmen” that the value of their holiday apartment – as with real estate – would rise in the future, and therefore could be considered as a great investment. The contrary is the reality though – just like a new car – timeshares do tend to drop in value rather than appreciate and are basically just pre-paid vacations.

Another problem is that there are unscrupulous companies who charge high up-front fees under false pretences, often convincing you that they have already got a buyer for your timeshare “standing by”. These businesses only exist to obtain registration fees and once you have paid your money over, it is often the case that you never hear from the company again. All in all, it can be a bit of a “mine-field” so probably the best option is to ‘play safe’ and completely avoid up-front fees of any kind.

There are redemption promotions on the market though, which can help you – over a period of time – to reclaim some of the money that you have paid for your timeshare.

There are also some timeshare marketers selling weeks directly to the public and doing a very good job, but you should exercise caution and thoroughly check out the company you are dealing with and especially what their track-record is like. It is a buyers market and therefore you need to carefully consider if the offer works for you financially.

There are many different types of resale companies out there and most timeshare owners might not be familiar with the re-sale process and the possibilities that there are.

The sixty-four million dollar question is then why the world wide web mostly contains negative statements and conclusions about timeshare? Is it just the fact that people tend to express negative thoughts more than spread a positive word?

Let’s face some good and bad market facts at this point:

Average occupancy rates throughout the year are 72% in Europe’s 1,312 resorts – that’s 67 million bed nights. Timeshare owners are spending an average of 1,588 Euros per trip on goods and services in the local area like restaurants, car rental, groceries, souvenirs and clothes.
It is a form of holiday property ownership for those with an average household owner’s income and an attractive alternative to a hotel room.
The total number of jobs created directly linked to the resort areas is 63,000 for Europe.
According to the concept it is a gateway to luxury at affordable prices to enjoy high end amenities. The numbers above clearly show that this concept appealed to many tourists. With the economic conditions as they are it is a great option to enjoy quality accommodation, affordability and flexibility.

Despite these figures the following facts don’t paint a very positive picture. Fraud headlines continue to dominate consumer and media views of timeshare as unscrupulous traders have managed to sidestep and overtake the legislation of the timeshare industry.
Purchasing a timeshare from a developer, owners pay a high upfront cost, but few are able to use their timeshares enough to warrant the initial cost. Too often, timeshare owners must book their timeshare well in advance, sometimes up to 2 years before their planned visit. The owners are contractually obligated to pay their annually increasing maintenance fees – sometimes up to over £2000 – even if they don’t use their timeshare week/s. Many of the timeshare contracts require a binding long term commitment from the timeshare owner and make it very difficult to dispose of it.

The new Directive that has been adopted in October 2008 might give consumers better protection and more confidence before they sign a contract. Traders are obliged to provide prospective purchasers with comprehensive pre-contractual information ensuring that consumers are fully informed before signing the contract. It enables them to withdraw if they have any concerns.
Consumers have a standard period of 14 days to withdraw free of charge from the contract. There is a total ban on advance payments to ensure equal consumer protection Europe-wide.

The enforcement of legislation in protecting timeshare owners in the past has been quite unsuccessful in this regard the new law could be good for consumers and for the legitimate timeshare businesses in Europe. It might polish the tarnished reputation of the timeshare industry and as a result we may see a much more balanced happy-unhappy view emerging.

Companies exist that do provide good opportunities to generate highest quality vacations and dispose of unwanted timeshare property: Here is some important information on how this can be accomplished;

Firstly, you should make sure that your choice is properly licensed and registered and also holds an ABTA and ATOL certificate so you know you can book your vacations with full financial protection … abta.com, atol.org.uk.

The method I have discovered is straight forward and attractive to timeshare owners.

Through an online booking system customers pay an annual membership fee which is usually £75.00 and in any event it contractually can not be raised by more than 5% in any three year period. With a membership the client is enabled to book net cost vacations at numerous resorts for themselves and their family and all vacations can be booked live on-line from the comfort of home.

The method these companies offer can stop the burden of annual maintenance fees straight away and provide customers with the vacation system that they always wanted.

Some of these also have redemption schemes where between 10 and 95% of the money paid for your timeshare can be re-claimed after 5 year period. Again you should always check the track record of they before you get started. One such company, Reclaim Ltd. has been in business for over 10 years and has paid out over £12 million in claims.

With these schemes, unlike timeshare, the “pay as you go system” ensures that the client pays for only what they use and they are not charged any other additional fees.

The leading company of this type has a gigantic amount of accommodation available – over 1 million weeks! – and offers every type of vacation accommodation of one two and three bedroom apartments, hotel rooms and all sizes from 3 to 5 star, villas with up to seven bedrooms, canal boats, yacht charters and cruises.

The packages these companies offer is extremely cost effective as they use their buying power to buy unused inventory and then pass it to the customer without profit being added. Therefore members are guaranteed of the lowest price. There is even a “double the difference” price guarantee, so if a member finds a lower price for the same offer elsewhere, they will pay the client double the difference in price.

The original idea of timeshare was to offer holiday makers quality, flexibility, and affordability.

After a succession of horror stories over the course of a few decades, people won’t entertain the actual benefits. Ironically, the majority of the negative statements are generated by people that haven’t actually owned a timeshare. However, many of holiday makers do benefit and believe in the system. Do some people alter the facts to fit expensive own view? And is there any truth behind the narrative?

There are institutions that have attempted to guarantee consumer protection in the holiday sector – unfortunately however – some of these regulatory authorities seem totally unable to regulate. Might it be because these regulatory bodies are made up of the heads of the highly timeshare companies it is supposed to regulate?

On the 11th of January 2002 it was announced that RDO (The Resort Development Organization) previously named OTE (Organization for Timeshare in Europe) lost a court case after taking legal action against seven companies in Spain. RDO circulated a press release (’Timeshare Trade Body Sues Seven Companies in Spain’) on this subject matter stating that it had filed this case against the seven companies. The court action was intended to guarantee consumer protection in the holiday sector. RDO filed the case in order to prove that these companies operated on the basis of ‘unfair competition’. Unfortunately thrown out of court with all costs assessed against the plaintiff. OTE/RDO then invited the initially ’sued’ companies to collaborate with expensive association.

Was this a misleading press release intended to continue negative publicity about these companies in order to bolster expensive position in the market place – and how effective was the legislation? The Timeshare business has been established for Nearly half a century; surely long enough time to implement a law that successfully regulates development and sales within the industry as it does in the USA. Draw your own conclusions as to the intentions behind this, but it is hard to believe that they really did have the consumer’s best interests at heart.

Some people had been hoping to use timeshare as a yearly holiday retreat for expensive family. Others simply saw it as a bargain and a better alternative to a hotel room. Whatever the reason, many later found that they had been mis-sold, besides which, a small change in lifestyle could facilitate the need to terminate a contract – a contract that turned out to be a lifelong commitment with no easy exit. This gaping hole in the legislation has and allows room for the timeshare companies to force expensive clients to continue paying expensive maintenance fees long after they have no use for the luxury product. This is highly unfair and one has to question why, if there really is a regulatory body with the consumers protection at heart this highly serious issue has not been tackled.

Let’s not forget, the great concept about timeshare is that it gives people the chance to own a fractional part of a luxury product that they might not normally be able to afford. It can be a house, condo, boat, or plane and it can be used during a specific period of time. Surely if the basic loopholes had been taken care of, we could get back to the real significance of Timeshare, and people could start enjoying the concept once again.