| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
Jon
Site Admin
Joined: 26 Nov 2007
Posts: 85
Location: California
|
 Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 7:13 pm Post subject: New Article: Title Transfer Q & A |
 |
|
I'm leaving this topic open to non-registered members, like a blog. I'll monitor for spam. I'd like to foster some discussion on this issue.
Here's the article, and a brief quote:
http://timeshareconsumergroup.org/advocacy_title_transfer.html
| Quote: | Far and away the most common questions we get at Timeshare Consumer Group are related to getting rid of one’s timeshare. Most individuals describe stories of purchasing their vacation property on impulse and as a result of high pressure sales tactics. The buyers learn later that the timeshare wasn’t what they expected...especially in regards to rising maintenance fees and surprising “special assessment” fees. The buyers attempt to resell their timeshare through various means but all of them prove fruitless.
We’ve found that when faced with a timeshare that becomes a liability, most consumers turn to one of two types of companies – the first are listing services, which place your timeshare on the resale market for a fee and do little else. The second type of company offers what is called a “title transfer” – you pay a fee, and the company takes the timeshare off your hands. Since we have gotten several inquiries about specific title transfer companies over the last few months, we thought we’d take a look into the seldom-plumbed depths of this industry.
What title transfer companies claim to do is arrange to transfer ownership of your vacation property to a business entity that can manage it better than an individual. Unfortunately nine times out of ten this premise is too good to be true. In many cases these companies are no better equipped to handle a worthless timeshare than the average consumer.
In our research, however, we have discovered that a handful of these companies actually do help timeshare owners disentangle themselves from ensnaring contracts. Other companies are essentially scams, no better than the timeshare resort representatives who sell the properties in the first place. But distinguishing between the two can be risky business.
For those of you who might be researching one of these companies, we offer this test. The following are 5 questions that you can ask a representative of a company offering to take your timeshare for a fee – the better the answers you get, the more likely that the company is worthy of your business.
READ THE ARTICLE FOR MORE... |
|
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
rita_l
Joined: 08 Jan 2008
Posts: 41
Location: US
|
| Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 3:17 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Hm, really interesting stuff here, especially this item:
What are you going to do with my timeshare? If you can sell it, why can’t I?
I have seen so many arguments about this online. I don't know if I totally agree with the case you make in the paragraphs below it, but it's nice to see some kind of perspective from the other side for once. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
evicpin
Joined: 28 Dec 2007
Posts: 70
Location: Midwesty
|
| Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 8:44 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| This article looks long. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Jon
Site Admin
Joined: 26 Nov 2007
Posts: 85
Location: California
|
| Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 10:30 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| evicpin wrote: | | This article looks long. |
O K
... |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
dial-a-shue
Joined: 04 Feb 2008
Posts: 36
Location: The Big Snapple
|
| Posted: Fri Aug 29, 2008 3:38 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| rita_l wrote: | Hm, really interesting stuff here, especially this item:
What are you going to do with my timeshare? If you can sell it, why can’t I?
I have seen so many arguments about this online. I don't know if I totally agree with the case you make in the paragraphs below it, but it's nice to see some kind of perspective from the other side for once. |
I've seen a lot of arguments about it too. My counter-argument would still be along the lines of: yes, you're paying to get rid of the timeshare so you don't have to worry about it, but would it really cost you $3,000+ to sell the timeshare in question? I think that's what consumers have to ask themselves. In certain situations a title transfer could very well be a good deal, in others maybe not. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
evicpin
Joined: 28 Dec 2007
Posts: 70
Location: Midwesty
|
| Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 11:35 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| dial-a-shue wrote: | | rita_l wrote: | Hm, really interesting stuff here, especially this item:
What are you going to do with my timeshare? If you can sell it, why can’t I?
I have seen so many arguments about this online. I don't know if I totally agree with the case you make in the paragraphs below it, but it's nice to see some kind of perspective from the other side for once. |
I've seen a lot of arguments about it too. My counter-argument would still be along the lines of: yes, you're paying to get rid of the timeshare so you don't have to worry about it, but would it really cost you $3,000+ to sell the timeshare in question? I think that's what consumers have to ask themselves. In certain situations a title transfer could very well be a good deal, in others maybe not. |
It could actually wind up costing a lot more, depending on how much advertising you have to pay for, or if you try to go through a resale agent, or if you just let the property sit on ebay for a few years while you continue to pay maintenance fees (not a true cost related to the sale, but still).
I could say more, but the article says it much better. You're paying a company to deal with the resale market so you don't have to. How much of a premium you put on that is indeed a matter of personal opinion and must be individually determined. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
uggyed
Joined: 31 Jul 2008
Posts: 4
Location: del norte
|
| Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 9:54 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Well done!
Would you say that title transfer is a good way of getting out of a timeshare? I know you have to look at the company first. But if you take the process and the industry as a whole, how does it compare to other methods? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
evicpin
Joined: 28 Dec 2007
Posts: 70
Location: Midwesty
|
| Posted: Wed Sep 10, 2008 7:09 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| uggyed wrote: | Well done!
Would you say that title transfer is a good way of getting out of a timeshare? I know you have to look at the company first. But if you take the process and the industry as a whole, how does it compare to other methods? |
I think it REALLY depends on the situation you're in, because title transfers come at some such a cost.
I think that generally speaking the title transfer is for the person who has tried everything and would rather not risk getting scammed in the resale market. The only problem is that by venturing into title transfer territory you ALSO risk scam. Which is essentially why the article was written, I think. It really is a toss-up, and you can't use the point that these companies are doing great business as any kind of justification. A lot of it is ill-gotten money. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
rita_l
Joined: 08 Jan 2008
Posts: 41
Location: US
|
| Posted: Thu Sep 11, 2008 9:16 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| evicpin wrote: | | uggyed wrote: | Well done!
Would you say that title transfer is a good way of getting out of a timeshare? I know you have to look at the company first. But if you take the process and the industry as a whole, how does it compare to other methods? |
I think it REALLY depends on the situation you're in, because title transfers come at some such a cost.
I think that generally speaking the title transfer is for the person who has tried everything and would rather not risk getting scammed in the resale market. The only problem is that by venturing into title transfer territory you ALSO risk scam. Which is essentially why the article was written, I think. It really is a toss-up, and you can't use the point that these companies are doing great business as any kind of justification. A lot of it is ill-gotten money. |
One thing you don't really address though, is his q about how it compares to other methods. I would say that a title transfer, if done correctly, is a bit better than trying to go through a resale agent, but maybe not as good as selling it yourself, where you absorb fees but also make a profit of sorts.
In other words, with tt's there's no profit. With resale agents there's a chance of profit but the chance of scam is too high. With self-resale there's a chance of profit and the chance of scam is lower, but the chances of a long wait are high.
I need a chart to do this... |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
warrenpeas
Joined: 08 Jan 2008
Posts: 34
Location: Cali
|
| Posted: Wed Sep 17, 2008 11:32 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| actually, with title transfers you likely incur a loss of some kind, so doesn't that automatically make them a last resort type of solution? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
dial-a-shue
Joined: 04 Feb 2008
Posts: 36
Location: The Big Snapple
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 08, 2008 4:56 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Just wanted to thank you again for this article. A co-worker of mind is going through a timeshare-related fiasco and I sent over the article for her to read. She feels as though she's armed with much better information now. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
Register
