Straight talk for sellers who are
serious
By Larry Hayden, Broker
The best way to get the maximum return from a timeshare is
to use and enjoy it.
The first thing I tell sellers is that if they are using
their timeshare, they should not sell it!
Except for exceptions
that are rare indeed, a seller will take a great loss when selling.
It is painful. I speak from experience from having sold my
own timeshares.
However, if you are not using your timeshare, it is foolish
to hang on to it just to avoid facing and accepting the reality that it will
sell at a great loss. I have repeatedly seen sellers make this mistake.
Often they will call the resort and will be told the price
at which the resort sells them.
The seller doesn’t realize or accept that the resale market
is a totally different market than the higher new-sales prices a developer can
obtain by offering various incentives and while the buyer is “under the ether”
of the pleasant surroundings of the resort, and the reassurances of the sales
staff.
Here is the way I suggest you should think about it, if you
want to be successful in selling:
- Just
accept the fact that timeshares sell for 30 to 50 per cent of what was
originally paid. And the loss will be even greater than that by the time
commissions and closing costs are deducted from the proceeds of the
sale. But realize that if you hang
on to it for another 10 years, your loss will increase by an average of
about $5,000 by the time you pay for maintenance and taxes, which usually
add up to $500 per year.
- Think
like a buyer, because it is the buyer who has your money in their pocket.
Buyers think of pretty much only one thing – the price. Find out what
price at which other sellers are selling units like yours. Then price
yours at the bottom of that price range. Buyers pick off the bottom prices
of the list, not even a little bit above that. Choose to be the one they
pick.
- Think
about how great the savings will be to you for the rest of your life, if you
sell it, by NOT having to pay any more maintenance fees or other costs. These
fees go on forever! This is a LOT OF MONEY! Think about that
money, not the money you will get from the proceeds of the sale!
Pricing it just a little bit too high to sell, will prevent you from keeping
all that money!
- Do not
even listen to what anyone has to say about a recommended sales price, if
they are connected with a company that has a mandatory up-front listing
fee or mandatory upfront appraisal requirement.
Many of such companies grossly exaggerate
the sales price, in order to entice an upfront fee.
Beware of
any company promising a refund of the upfront fee. Most states have strict
trust record guidelines for advance fee refunds. These guidelines and the way
timeshare sales really work in real life, make any refund unrealistic.
- Use a
professional licensed company to close your sale. Don’t try to do it
yourself. It is amazing how involved it can be to close a timeshare sale
and get all the entities involved to responsibly do their part, and to get
the resort to get the new owner on their computer. See Escrow FAQ’s
See related article How To
Price A Timeshare Resale
