Many Americans have chosen to purchase timeshares for their vacations rather than staying in hotels. New timeshares cost an average of $20,040. Given this, it’s not surprising that the this industry is currently worth approximately $70 billion. While there are 1,547 timeshare resorts located throughout the United States, 25% of these are in Florida.
The 2016 U.S. Shared Vacation Ownership Consolidated Owners Report indicated that 9.2 million households have at least one shared vacation ownership product. While adults of all ages may own one or more of these timeshare products, the average age is 46.8 years.
Even though many individuals or households may own and use their timeshares, there are a variety of issues with these products. While high maintenance fees is just one of these issues, the fact that these maintenance fees may continue to rise over the course of ownership is another. A 2016 survey found that many timeshare owners stated that their maintenance fees were “too high.” As a result, 66% of these timeshare owners stated that this was one of the reasons they wanted to be released from their timeshare contracts. The “most important” reason for wanting to leave their timeshares for 46% was due to these “too high” maintenance fees.
Even though some timeshare owners may want to learn how to get rid of a timeshare due to not wanting to pay ever-increasing maintenance costs, others find they are unable to afford them. When someone is experiencing financial hardship, it’s not unusual for them to want to learn how to get rid of a timeshare. Ernst and Young conducted an industry study on this issue. The results showed that 56% of the reclaimed timeshares were due to issues related to foreclosure. After foreclosure, these timeshares reverted back to the developers.
Getting out of a timeshare contract can be particularly challenging for individuals that aren’t experienced with this area of the law. As a result, the best course of action is to consult with a timeshare attorney when you want to get out of a timeshare. Since you want to learn how to get rid of a timeshare legally, an attorney with experience in this area of the law can assist you with this process. Furthermore, since you want to avoid foreclosure, which can potentially create further financial and credit issues for you in the future, a timeshare cancellation lawyer should be able to assist you with obtaining a timeshare contract release without needing to go to court.
