Dustin McDaniel, the Arkansas Attorney General, released warnings for anyone selling timeshare, and it is definitely worth sharing with anyone you know considering getting out of their timeshare ownership. This is important, because in my opinion, the most exploited in the industry are those trying to sell.
Here are the tips as reported by KARK4 news in Arkansas.
“Owners of timeshare properties should heed the following tips about reselling and resellers:
* Beware of timeshare resellers who contact you unsolicited with a promise to help you resell your timeshare.
* If they say they have willing buyers, it is probably a lie.
* Never pay a substantial advance fee for resale assistance. A reputable reseller will charge a commission paid only upon sale, just like a normal real estate transaction. An advance fee may be called a "marketing fee," a "listing fee," an "Internet advertising fee," or something else. No matter what it is called, don't pay it in advance.
* Get an independent appraisal from a licensed appraiser before agreeing to any resale assistance contract.
* Deal only with licensed agents.”
I agree with most of what they suggest. One thing I’m not so sure I agree with is the recommendation to get an appraisal; there are two reasons.
First, “paying for an appraisal” is one of the justifications scammers use to get owners to fork over $700; that, or web design fee, or closing costs for the sellers.
The other reason is that for sales that are often less than $2,000, and frequently under a thousand, anything spent on an appraisal is not very productive. One unit is very much like other units in the same resort, with variations based on season owned, especially when one owns floating time, which is not pegged to a specific unit or even resort.
Check specialty sites like redweek.com, and no-advance-fee resale sites like TimeshareResalesWorldwide.com or Tri-West Real Estate.
The other omission in the AG’s release is a failure to warn about the post card companies, that prey on many, and especially the elderly.
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