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Here are some of the items Ms. Corcoran addressed that I agreed with and thought were important to address. In the beginning of the interview she states that timeshares are more difficult to sell right now than other pieces of real estate. With the current state of our economy many people are finding it hard to sell their home let alone selling a timeshare, which is considered by many to be a luxury item. Many people have begun to cut back on items that are not a necessity for daily life; hence timeshares are not going to sell as fast as they have in the past since they are not considered a necessity for many families. She also states that you must price your timeshare competitively/cheap to have a chance at attracting a buyer. People who read this blog on a regular basis or have spoken with me know that I have been preaching to people about pricing their timeshare competitively according to the prices of similar units currently on the market. Another idea of Ms. Corcoran’s that I found interesting was to post a week on the resort’s bulletin board, I am not sure that every resort has a bulletin board for owner’s to use but it might at least be worth taking a look at. Some resorts also have newsletters that might be useful to post a week that for sale; after all if someone is receiving a newsletter about a given resort they must have some level of interest for the resort. The best advice that I feel she gave was to never believe someone that tells you they can sell the timeshare for an amount that is above the asking price from the resort or even above the current market value of timeshares in the secondary market. Also never pay a high up front fee, most people that have been burnt by this scam found once the up front fee was paid they never heard from the company in question again.

While there were many great comments and pieces of advice given there were a few items that I took issue with. Ms. Corcoran states that it is difficult to find out the actual selling value for a timeshare in the secondary market; actually here at Vacation Timeshare Rentals we offer a service to provide owners with an accurate resale value of their timeshare. Our timeshare market evaluation provides owners with the values of units similar units sold within the past year, giving the owner a good idea concerning the amount they can expect to receive from a sale. She goes on to say timeshares are currently selling for 30%-50% of the original sale price from the resort. Currently, the range that we have been seeing is more around 10%-30% of the original asking price from the resort, I have always told people timeshares are not a monetary investment the value comes from its use. In the latter part of the interview she states that the seller is responsible for paying the closing costs, I would never recommend that the seller pay the closing cost for the sale of a timeshare. I always tell owners to have the buyer pay the closing cost this way if the buyer backs out they would be taking the loss for the closing costs as oppose to the seller taking the loss. Some owners will discount the price of their timeshare for an amount that is equal to the amount paid by the buyer for closing to entice buyers.

All in all I thought this was a good interview that provided owners with solid information on what to expect when selling a timeshare. This is an important topic for many people and hopefully we will start to see more and more information and interviews like this one concerning this topic. Obviously I would have much rather heard an endorsement for www.VacationTimeshareRentals.com at the end of this interview.

With the economy currently in a down turn many people are beginning to try and sell some of their assets to free up extra cash. There are many people who are desperate to sell a timeshare as well as other items they own due to the loss of a job or fear of losing their current job. This increases the competition each owner has in selling their timeshare, due to the high amount of competition the asking price of many units have been driven down. Potential buyers can use this to their advantage by comparison shopping on multiple sites on the internet, be sure to mention the lowest prices found when contacting an owner and beginning the negotiation process. The next reason many timeshare owners are looking to sell is they have an outstanding balance on their timeshare mortgage, combine this along with paying yearly maintenance fees and special assessment costs and some people have found it overwhelming to continue to own a timeshare. When purchasing a timeshare directly from the resort, the new owners will in many cases acquire financing through the resort, normally with a high interest rate. In order to relieve themselves of this burden many owners will try to sell a timeshare for the amount they still owe on the note or in some cases even below the balance so they can pay the debt quicker. Another reason that many people are trying to sell their timeshare is they have found they are no longer able to use it. This can happen for a number of reasons, one that I commonly hear is that the timeshare was purchased in a location that catered to young children however children eventually grow up hence the location is no longer viable for the parents/family to use on a regular basis.

Regular readers of this blog already know the savings advantages you receive when purchasing a timeshare resale as oppose to purchasing directly from the resort. There are many factors that contribute to the discounted price for these resales; the above reasons are just a few. Vacation Timeshare Rentals as many ways for potential buyers to search timeshares for sale. As always I recommend doing all necessary research before purchasing a timeshare, for example find comparable sales and research the yearly maintenance fees for the resort you are considering so there are no surprises when the transactions is made final. If you have recently purchased a timeshare in the secondary market we would love to have your input on some of the methods you used for researching the property and how you were able to find the right property.

The first and probably most important tip that I give owners trying to sell is to make sure you have competitively priced your timeshare. The fact is that timeshares normally sell for 10%-20% of the original purchase price from the resort. We recommend to view other listings on Vacation Timeshare Rentals that are similar to the unit you are offering to ensure your price is not too high. Better yet you can elect to have a timeshare market evaluation performed on your unit, when you purchase this evaluation our team will return a document to you containing the selling prices of three units similar to yours within the past year. Please visit this page for a Timeshare Market Evaluation.

It is also important to fully describe the timeshare unit and the surrounding area. Descriptions like, “This resort is nice.” Or “We had a great time at this resort” are very generic and lack any personal touch. These descriptions could turn some potential buyers away from your listing, remember the reasons you bought the timeshare in the first place and make sure to point out any features that are unique to your unit or the resort. Your description could be the deciding factor for someone considering purchasing your timeshare; the time you put into writing a description will most likely pay off in the end.

Some people that contact you regarding the unit may be new to the concept of timesharing, when you do receive an inquiry make sure to thoroughly answer any question the person has. Some owners feel that because they are knowledgeable about how timeshares work everyone should be, never reply with a short or rude answer even if you feel the question is common knowledge. Make sure to also point out to the new interested party they can join timeshare exchange companies such as RCI and Interval International, someone new to timesharing may not know they can visit many different locations throughout the world using these exchange companies.

The final tip is to be honest and disclose any information you have regarding the timeshare. For example if your maintenance fee is $700 per year make sure the total amount is disclosed before the transaction is sent to the closing companies. I have seen many sales get cancelled because the owner did not fully disclose fees or accurately describe the timeshare unit being purchased by the other party.

These are just a few tips to help you better advertise your timeshare and have the best chance of selling. If you are an owner and have any selling tips please feel free to comment on this blog below.

The first step involved in reselling your timeshare is to get your timeshare listed on Vacation Timeshare Rentals. We have three different listing options to accommodate as many timeshare owners as possible. Our first listing option is called the standard listing; we offer this option at no cost for the first year to help owners get acquainted with our site. If you choose to renew after a year it can be done very easily by logging into the “My Timeshare” area. We also have two featured listing options; these listings receive more exposure on our site when compared to the standard listings giving you a better chance of selling your timeshare. The first featured listing is a prepaid option; you can select to sign up for a month, year, or lifetime ad. Since you have already paid for your timeshare listing with this option there will be no fees from our company after the timeshare sells. The second featured listing option is commission based, there are no upfront fees associated with this option, however when the timeshare does sell there is a commission fee equal to 19% of the final selling price. Please visit the following page for more information regarding these options: List your timeshare here.

The next step is to wait for a potential buyer to contact you regarding your timeshare. There are multiple ways users of VacationTimeshareRentals.com can find your listing, searching by location, by resort name, using our advanced search feature, and many more. On our site the first contact coming from a potential buyer will be delivered via email, for this reason it is vital to check your email on a daily basis when trying to sell your timeshare. If you are unable to check your emails regularly we recommend signing up for text message alerts. When you sign up for this feature a text message will be sent to your cell phone letting you know that someone has sent you an inquiry and asking you to check your email. This feature is offered for free from Vacation Timeshare Rentals, however regular text message charges may be applied from your cell phone carrier. Owners can sign up for text message alerts by logging into the “My Timeshare” area.

Once you and the buyer have agreed upon a selling price you will need to send the transaction to a timeshare closing service. The company that we recommend to use for the transfer is Timeshare Title. Closing companies will take care of all the paper work for both parties to complete the transfer of the deed from owner to buyer. They also hold the funds for the sale in an escrow account so both parties are protected.

Fitch Managing Directory John Bella had this to say about the timeshare industry and the effect of the economy on it, “Delinquencies and defaults will likely continue to trend upward as the winter performance deterioration typical of timeshare ABS takes hold and the unemployment level increases. Negative rating actions, however, are expected to be limited due to the significant growth in credit enhancement that has occurred in most transactions.”

One option for timeshare owners finding themselves in over their heads is to refinance their timeshare loan. Many times owners will find they can apply for a new loan at a lower rate than they received from the resort developer. Another option that many people are not aware of is giving the timeshare back to the resort. This will not cancel out your timeshare loan, this option is best if you do not owe anything to the developer or other loan company. Not every resort will allow owners to give back their timeshare, for more information owners should contact their resort.

The truth is timeshares actually depreciate in value as oppose to appreciating in value like other pieces of real estate. Buying a timeshare is like buying a car, as soon as the car is driven off the lot the value of the vehicle will drop dramatically. If you were to buy a house or some other piece of real estate the value of this property would increase over time. Owners selling their timeshare can normally expect to receive 25% to 50% of the original purchase price, sometimes even less. The reason for the decrease in price can be explained as follows, just like in the used car market no buyer will pay a price comparable to that of a dealership when they are buying from an individual, if they were willing to pay full price they could go directly to the dealership. The same concept can be applied to timeshare resorts, no one interested in purchasing a timeshare will buy the unit for the developer price from an individual owner.

Timeshares should not be viewed as a traditional real estate investment. The value of the timeshare unit comes when owners actually use the unit. Timeshares can provide owners years of affordable enjoyment and relaxation. If you are a person looking to buy a timeshare, please remember you can normally find the same unit that a resort will offer at around 25% of the price in the timeshare resale market.

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