Timeshare Ownership - Find Relief In Financially Troubled Times
Posted by: Bobby Kip Hernandez in Travel, tags: abandon timeshare, time share relief, timeshare, timeshare relief, timeshare resale, timeshare resales, timeshares, timesharing, Travel, vacation, vacationsWhile timeshare owners are looking for financial relief during these tough economic times, they need to prepare for special assessment fees courtesy of timeshare developers. The current economic climate has created a troubling trickle-down effect. With timeshare corporations no longer able to easily access credit, they are eyeing another source of revenue — all their timeshare owners.
In many cases, owners sign contracts that allow their home resorts to charge them special assessment fees when warranted. The size of the fees are determined by the resorts and can be rather arbitrary. Some owners are unaware of these policies.
Recently, timeshare owners have opened up their mailboxes to find bills ranging from $500 upwards of $3,000. It’s a crushing blow to those who may have lost jobs, experienced cuts in pay and/or work hours, and seen their stock portfolios plummet in value. Owners are truly understanding where they fit in the financial pecking order of the timeshare industry.
You would think that the millions in upfront cost and annual maintenance fees would be able to keep afloat all timeshare resorts. Unfortunately, many corporations leverage what they have to build more timeshare units in different locales. This strategy works well in good economic times but tragically multiplies the draining effect when credit is scarce and when revenue decreases.
But owners should not think about NOT paying those timeshare bills. Through decades of legal precedence, timeshare companies can and do impose stiff penalties for non-compliance. These include high interest rates on principal owed, collecting debt through employers, and placing liens on assets like homes, bank accounts, etc.
Even in decent economic times, solutions are few. Desperate resorts have rented units far below annual maintenance fees, and timeshare resales have always been notoriously difficult. Now, resales are next to impossible. Who has the money to buy? And, who wants to pay a large special assessment bill? No one.
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