As amazing as the salespeople might have made the vacation ownership experience sound at the timeshare presentation, sooner or later, most people find out that it’s anything but a day at the beach. The stress of even trying to use a timeshare is bad enough. Add that insult to the injury of paying annual maintenance fees and a litany of other costs, and it’s not difficult to see why timeshare owners start wondering if their DIY timeshare cancellation is possible.
In this article, we’ll take a look at the processes you can use for do-it-yourself cancellation and how to do it so that you have the best chance of success. We’ll also help you understand when you might need to look for other options.
As the world’s premier timeshare exit company, Centerstone Group has been helping unhappy timeshare owners get out of their units for years. While that includes the more complicated cases, we sometimes find that the best solution for some owners is to help themselves out of their contracts, without the need to retain us or any other professionals. Read on for valuable information about how to best assess your own case.
Can I Exit My Timeshare Myself, and How?
Yes, you can cancel a timeshare yourself, but you likely have a very narrow window for doing so, and if you make a mistake, your timeshare company will almost certainly take advantage of it to keep you trapped in your timeshare agreement.
There are a few ways to accomplish a DIY timeshare cancellation, but first, you will need to consider how you can best accomplish this without hampering your ability to take other paths should you not be successful. Below are a couple of the more common paths you can take.
The Best DIY Option: Rescinding Your Timeshare Within the Legal Cooling-Off Period
If you have recently bought your timeshare, you have the best and most complete option available to you: timeshare recession. Legally, a rescission means that you “unwind” your timeshare contract as if it never happened. All amounts you paid to your timeshare company will be refunded, and you’ll be made whole.
Timeshare companies don’t offer rescissions out of the goodness of their hearts; they are required to do so by state law in most parts of the United States. (Every state has different timeshare laws and rescission periods.) Because developers don’t like doing this, they will make rescission an exacting, specific legal process that you must complete perfectly. Here are the four steps:
Find the rescission clause in your contract: It will tell you exactly how long you have to cancel the contract, and where you need to send your cancellation letter.
Write your letter canceling the timeshare: The letter should be very specific about you and the contract you are canceling, as well as exactly how much money you expect to receive refunded. Again, do not leave anything to chance. Be specific and make it very clear what you expect to happen.
Make sure that you send your cancellation letter to the correct address: The clause in your contract should tell you the right place to send it. Do not send the letter to any other address, as this may invalidate your cancellation.
Send via certified mail: When you send the letter, make sure that you can prove not only when it was sent but when it was delivered to your timeshare company. (You should not depend on an employee’s honesty to admit that the letter was received.) Therefore, using certified mail with return receipt requested or a tracked shipping service like FedEx will give you the proof and peace of mind you need.
What Happens If I Miss the Cancellation Deadline?
If you miss the rescission period, you won’t be able to get a clean cancellation and a full refund because the time for asserting those legal rights has passed. But it doesn’t mean you can’t get out of your timeshare. Keep reading for more information.
What Are My Options for DIY Timeshare Cancellation If the Cooling-Off Period Has Expired?
While a legal rescission is the best option, unfortunately, many don’t find out the truth about their timeshares until it is far too late for that specific legal remedy. There are, however, still options that you can use.
1. Give Your Timeshare Back If There’s a Deed-Back Contract Clause
Your next option is to contact the timeshare company yourself and see if they will let you out of your obligation. Check to see if the timeshare company you bought from has an exit program by looking in your original contract for a “deed-back” clause, sometimes also known as a “buy-back” clause.
If your contract has a deed-back clause, you have the option to give up all ownership rights to the timeshare, but only if you meet their conditions. Most timeshare companies will require any timeshare mortgage to be paid in full. You must also be current on all maintenance and other annual fees to be eligible for such a program.
Further, you should keep in mind that these programs require you to pay a hefty fee for the right to give back your timeshare. Often these fees equal three to five years of maintenance fees, which can average between $4,000 to $7,000!
2. Use a “Voluntary” Deed-Back or Buy-Back Program
Even if there isn’t a deed-back clause in your contract, the developer might have a voluntary deed-back or buy-back program. A deed-back program is designed for you to give your deed back to the timeshare company for a fee, in addition to the other requirements discussed above.
A word of caution: Though some developers, like Wyndham, advertise that they have buy-back programs, whether or not you can use them is entirely up to the timeshare company. And in that situation, you need to ask yourself: Do you trust the timeshare company?
These developers are massive, powerful companies that sell billions in timeshares annually. They are experts at convincing people to purchase their timeshares. Once the sale is made, their goal becomes not letting timeshare owners out of their contracts.
Many times, people who try to enter these take-back programs end up being sold MORE timeshares or timeshare points! More often than not, these programs are just another sales opportunity.
Sure, the sale might be disguised as a solution, like when they hound you to “upgrade” your membership as a solution for being unable to actually reserve a timeshare week. Or maybe they will try to get you involved in a timeshare exchange program like Interval International.
Though these options might seem appealing, they will just be getting you deeper into the problem you’re trying to get out of in the first place! This can make it dangerous to contact them for assistance in exiting your timeshare. Timeshare companies have no financial incentive to let you out of your contract, and they do nothing that does not serve their financial goals.
The hard truth is, your timeshare company has a financial interest in keeping you as a fee-paying owner. They employ a highly trained staff of salespeople to sell you more and are very skilled at manipulating your emotions.
You may think you’re talking to a customer service agent or someone who is there to help, but they are just salespeople with a different title. Often, they earn commissions by keeping you locked in your contract or even upgrading you to a pricier timeshare to “solve” your problems.
What Should You Do When DIY Isn’t Working?
If you’re not within the cooling-off period for your timeshare and your contract won’t let you give the timeshare back, you might feel stuck, but you shouldn’t! It just means you need someone with experience in the industry. And that’s where Centerstone Group comes in.
Our team has decades of experience with timeshares and timeshare cancellation. We know all of the tricks that developers use, and we know their weaknesses. Best of all, we are happy to talk to you for free to see how we can help. We’ll provide complimentary guidance about a DIY timeshare cancellation during your rescission period.
If it’s too late for a rescission, we can explore other timeshare exit strategies, like our proprietary pressure campaign. That campaign uses our expertise to force timeshare companies to the bargaining table in a way that they often aren’t willing to do with their customers. We also have timeshare transfer options that work for some owners.
Do I Need a Lawyer to Get Out of My Timeshare?
Most of the time, no, you don’t need a lawyer to get out of your timeshare. Legal fights can be expensive and ugly. But, in some extreme cases, legal help might be needed. This can be true where you were defrauded or timeshare staff made a misrepresentation in their sales presentation to get you to sign a contract. Even then, we can help you work with a trusted timeshare attorney or law firm, as well as get you a discount on your legal bills.
If you are feeling stuck or it seems like there might not be a way out, give us a call.
Don’t Go It Alone — Get Professional Help With Your Exit
A sad truth about timeshare ownership is that developers make it complicated so you feel trapped and helpless. Of course, with some time and effort, it’s possible to understand what’s going on and fashion a DIY timeshare cancellation. The truth is, though, it’s an exacting, draining process.
Centerstone Group has helped thousands of people through their cancellations, whether they wanted to DIY or have Centerstone Group take a more active step-by-step role. We have even helped with international cancellations. But don’t take our word for it. We are an A+-rated, accredited company with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Our satisfied clients have also given us a BBB rating of 4.79-out-of-5 stars.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your timeshare, there is no need to suffer in silence. Contact us today for a free consultation about the timeshare cancellation process, and start your journey toward freedom from your timeshare contract.
As amazing as the salespeople might have made the vacation ownership experience sound at the timeshare presentation, sooner or later, most people find out that it’s anything but a day at the beach. The stress of even trying to use a timeshare is bad enough. Add that insult to the injury of paying annual maintenance fees and a litany of other costs, and it’s not difficult to see why timeshare owners start wondering if their DIY timeshare cancellation is possible.
In this article, we’ll take a look at the processes you can use for do-it-yourself cancellation and how to do it so that you have the best chance of success. We’ll also help you understand when you might need to look for other options.
As the world’s premier timeshare exit company, Centerstone Group has been helping unhappy timeshare owners get out of their units for years. While that includes the more complicated cases, we sometimes find that the best solution for some owners is to help themselves out of their contracts, without the need to retain us or any other professionals. Read on for valuable information about how to best assess your own case.
Can I Exit My Timeshare Myself, and How?
Yes, you can cancel a timeshare yourself, but you likely have a very narrow window for doing so, and if you make a mistake, your timeshare company will almost certainly take advantage of it to keep you trapped in your timeshare agreement.
There are a few ways to accomplish a DIY timeshare cancellation, but first, you will need to consider how you can best accomplish this without hampering your ability to take other paths should you not be successful. Below are a couple of the more common paths you can take.
The Best DIY Option: Rescinding Your Timeshare Within the Legal Cooling-Off Period
If you have recently bought your timeshare, you have the best and most complete option available to you: timeshare recession. Legally, a rescission means that you “unwind” your timeshare contract as if it never happened. All amounts you paid to your timeshare company will be refunded, and you’ll be made whole.
Timeshare companies don’t offer rescissions out of the goodness of their hearts; they are required to do so by state law in most parts of the United States. (Every state has different timeshare laws and rescission periods.) Because developers don’t like doing this, they will make rescission an exacting, specific legal process that you must complete perfectly. Here are the four steps:
What Happens If I Miss the Cancellation Deadline?
If you miss the rescission period, you won’t be able to get a clean cancellation and a full refund because the time for asserting those legal rights has passed. But it doesn’t mean you can’t get out of your timeshare. Keep reading for more information.
What Are My Options for DIY Timeshare Cancellation If the Cooling-Off Period Has Expired?
While a legal rescission is the best option, unfortunately, many don’t find out the truth about their timeshares until it is far too late for that specific legal remedy. There are, however, still options that you can use.
1. Give Your Timeshare Back If There’s a Deed-Back Contract Clause
Your next option is to contact the timeshare company yourself and see if they will let you out of your obligation. Check to see if the timeshare company you bought from has an exit program by looking in your original contract for a “deed-back” clause, sometimes also known as a “buy-back” clause.
If your contract has a deed-back clause, you have the option to give up all ownership rights to the timeshare, but only if you meet their conditions. Most timeshare companies will require any timeshare mortgage to be paid in full. You must also be current on all maintenance and other annual fees to be eligible for such a program.
Further, you should keep in mind that these programs require you to pay a hefty fee for the right to give back your timeshare. Often these fees equal three to five years of maintenance fees, which can average between $4,000 to $7,000!
2. Use a “Voluntary” Deed-Back or Buy-Back Program
Even if there isn’t a deed-back clause in your contract, the developer might have a voluntary deed-back or buy-back program. A deed-back program is designed for you to give your deed back to the timeshare company for a fee, in addition to the other requirements discussed above.
A word of caution: Though some developers, like Wyndham, advertise that they have buy-back programs, whether or not you can use them is entirely up to the timeshare company. And in that situation, you need to ask yourself: Do you trust the timeshare company?
These developers are massive, powerful companies that sell billions in timeshares annually. They are experts at convincing people to purchase their timeshares. Once the sale is made, their goal becomes not letting timeshare owners out of their contracts.
Many times, people who try to enter these take-back programs end up being sold MORE timeshares or timeshare points! More often than not, these programs are just another sales opportunity.
Sure, the sale might be disguised as a solution, like when they hound you to “upgrade” your membership as a solution for being unable to actually reserve a timeshare week. Or maybe they will try to get you involved in a timeshare exchange program like Interval International.
Though these options might seem appealing, they will just be getting you deeper into the problem you’re trying to get out of in the first place! This can make it dangerous to contact them for assistance in exiting your timeshare. Timeshare companies have no financial incentive to let you out of your contract, and they do nothing that does not serve their financial goals.
The hard truth is, your timeshare company has a financial interest in keeping you as a fee-paying owner. They employ a highly trained staff of salespeople to sell you more and are very skilled at manipulating your emotions.
You may think you’re talking to a customer service agent or someone who is there to help, but they are just salespeople with a different title. Often, they earn commissions by keeping you locked in your contract or even upgrading you to a pricier timeshare to “solve” your problems.
What Should You Do When DIY Isn’t Working?
If you’re not within the cooling-off period for your timeshare and your contract won’t let you give the timeshare back, you might feel stuck, but you shouldn’t! It just means you need someone with experience in the industry. And that’s where Centerstone Group comes in.
Our team has decades of experience with timeshares and timeshare cancellation. We know all of the tricks that developers use, and we know their weaknesses. Best of all, we are happy to talk to you for free to see how we can help. We’ll provide complimentary guidance about a DIY timeshare cancellation during your rescission period.
If it’s too late for a rescission, we can explore other timeshare exit strategies, like our proprietary pressure campaign. That campaign uses our expertise to force timeshare companies to the bargaining table in a way that they often aren’t willing to do with their customers. We also have timeshare transfer options that work for some owners.
Do I Need a Lawyer to Get Out of My Timeshare?
Most of the time, no, you don’t need a lawyer to get out of your timeshare. Legal fights can be expensive and ugly. But, in some extreme cases, legal help might be needed. This can be true where you were defrauded or timeshare staff made a misrepresentation in their sales presentation to get you to sign a contract. Even then, we can help you work with a trusted timeshare attorney or law firm, as well as get you a discount on your legal bills.
If you are feeling stuck or it seems like there might not be a way out, give us a call.
Don’t Go It Alone — Get Professional Help With Your Exit
A sad truth about timeshare ownership is that developers make it complicated so you feel trapped and helpless. Of course, with some time and effort, it’s possible to understand what’s going on and fashion a DIY timeshare cancellation. The truth is, though, it’s an exacting, draining process.
Centerstone Group has helped thousands of people through their cancellations, whether they wanted to DIY or have Centerstone Group take a more active step-by-step role. We have even helped with international cancellations. But don’t take our word for it. We are an A+-rated, accredited company with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Our satisfied clients have also given us a BBB rating of 4.79-out-of-5 stars.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your timeshare, there is no need to suffer in silence. Contact us today for a free consultation about the timeshare cancellation process, and start your journey toward freedom from your timeshare contract.