While it is true that a timeshare contract is a binding legal document, it is often mistakenly thought that such a contract cannot only be cancelled. In fact, most timeshare companies maintain that their contracts are non - cancellable. This misconception is perpetuated by timeshare companies and user groups that are funded, maintained and controlled by the timeshare industry.
Under general contract law, the truth of the matter is contracts are cancellable for a variety of reasons. Common grounds for cancellation include mistake and fraud. But there are others. Burdened by the obligations of a contract, a person moreover, may "terminate" it for reasons other than breach and as a result may no longer be bound by the contract.
"Termination" occurs when a party, pursuant to a power created by agreement or by law, puts an end to the contract for reasons other than breach. Uniform Commercial Code sec. 2106 (3)
"Cancellation" occurs when a party puts an end to the contract occasioned by the breach of the other. Its effect is the same as that of 'termination' except that the canceling party also retains any remedy for damages for non - performance of any unperformed balance." Uniform Commercial Code 2106(4); see 13 Corbin (Rev. ed.), 73.2; 13 Am.Jur.2d (2000 ed.)
Since it is the law of the land, that a breach of contract by a party to the contract may result in the other party being released from their obligations under the contract, the notion that one is forever bound by a timeshare contract is erroneous as a matter of law.
A ray of hope therefore does exist for those timeshare owners, who wish to no longer be their timeshare and it's lifetime of financial obligations.
When you first purchase a timeshare, most states have a statutory right of rescission, or "cooling off," period during which timeshare buyers may cancel their contracts.
Once the " cooling off" period has expired, most timeshare companies will have you believe that upon this periods expiration, their contract is non - cancellable and you are bound in perpetuity to pay the maintenance fees that go along with timeshare ownership.
Moreover, the proponents of timeshare ownership would have you believe that once the initial "right of rescission" expires the only legal way to end timeshare contracts involve a transfer of ownership whether by selling, donating or giving it away.
A common misconception is that under no circumstances will a timeshare company voluntarily take back their timeshare, in fact, most timeshare user groups and virtually all timeshare companies want you to believe this.
What is true is that most timeshare companies will not willingly take back their timeshare. As will be seen below, when faced with litigation or the potential of litigation, many timeshare companies will in fact either take back their timeshare or simply agree to release the timeshare owner from any future liability in connection with the timeshare contract.
There are some new developments that a timeshare owner can use to terminate and cancel their timeshare. Before I discuss the latest techniques in cancelling a timeshare, I'd like to devote a little time to the more traditional means of getting rid of an unwanted timeshare.
The traditional means of ridding oneself of an unwanted timeshare is through a donation, transfer, or sale as mentioned above.
One of the problems in selling a timeshare, is that many unwary timeshare owners fall prey to listing companies that propose to list their timeshare for sale at prices simply not justified by the open market. These listing companies have been under investigation for fraudulent and deceptive practices. It is therefore recommended that a proposed timeshare seller wishing to sell his or her timeshare obligation, should first consider selling their timeshare by listing it on sites like eBay or Craigslist.
Other options are to list it through the developer, if the developer handles re-sales, or through a timeshare resale broker. One thing the proposed timeshare seller should not do is pay an advance fee for the sale of their timeshare. It is these advance fee practices that have fallen under the scrutiny of state Attorney Generals.
Another frequently discussed solution to the problem of how to be released from your timeshare's financial burdens, is to donate the timeshare. Where there once were a number of organizations that accept deeded-timeshare donations, with the ever increasing burden of maintenance fees which seem to go up every year, such organizations are a vanishing breed.
Simply transferring ownership to a third party who will merely take over the yearly maintenance obligations is another "exit strategy." Such persons won't pay you for the timeshare and in many cases the timeshare company itself will simply refuse to recognize the transfer. In addition, with the transfer to a third party the timeshare resort, more often than not, will charge or impose their own fee, known as a "resort transfer fee." These fees, themselves, may make a transfer to a third party prohibitive for those faced with financial difficulties.
New techniques pioneered by real estate attorneys who specialize in timeshare litigation have emerged in recent years. These techniques reached the summit through a series of lawsuits filed in California by a private attorney who worked on behalf of a group of timeshare owners that had wanted nothing more than the complete release, termination and cancellation of their timeshare interests.
Other similar actions have followed, all seeking damages for the type of fraudulent and deceptive conduct that is frequently utilized by timeshare sales people to induce unwitting potential owners to sign on the dotted line.
The following representations are typical of the false promises typically made at the time the timeshare was sold:
a. That the timeshare interest purchased would appreciate and increase resale price and value over time.
b. That the timeshare interest purchased could be freely
exchanged, transferred and sold.
c. That the timeshare interest purchased was a financial
investment.
d. That the timeshare interest purchased would result in the
purchaser receiving booking priority over non - purchasing
vacationers wishing to stay at one or more of the
properties owned and/or maintained by the defendant.
As a result of the filing of the aforementioned legal actions, timeshare companies have become more willing to release timeshare owners from their timeshare obligations, even without resort to litigation.
In order to obtain such a result, a timeshare owner should first retain an attorney who is familiar with timeshare laws and the various techniques that are invaluable for terminating a timeshare contract.
In conclusion, do not believe the unscrupulous companies who tell you that it is impossible to get out of a timeshare contract. Should you be victim of timeshare fraud, you too may be able to terminate your timeshare contract.
Under general contract law, the truth of the matter is contracts are cancellable for a variety of reasons. Common grounds for cancellation include mistake and fraud. But there are others. Burdened by the obligations of a contract, a person moreover, may "terminate" it for reasons other than breach and as a result may no longer be bound by the contract.
"Termination" occurs when a party, pursuant to a power created by agreement or by law, puts an end to the contract for reasons other than breach. Uniform Commercial Code sec. 2106 (3)
"Cancellation" occurs when a party puts an end to the contract occasioned by the breach of the other. Its effect is the same as that of 'termination' except that the canceling party also retains any remedy for damages for non - performance of any unperformed balance." Uniform Commercial Code 2106(4); see 13 Corbin (Rev. ed.), 73.2; 13 Am.Jur.2d (2000 ed.)
Since it is the law of the land, that a breach of contract by a party to the contract may result in the other party being released from their obligations under the contract, the notion that one is forever bound by a timeshare contract is erroneous as a matter of law.
A ray of hope therefore does exist for those timeshare owners, who wish to no longer be their timeshare and it's lifetime of financial obligations.
When you first purchase a timeshare, most states have a statutory right of rescission, or "cooling off," period during which timeshare buyers may cancel their contracts.
Once the " cooling off" period has expired, most timeshare companies will have you believe that upon this periods expiration, their contract is non - cancellable and you are bound in perpetuity to pay the maintenance fees that go along with timeshare ownership.
Moreover, the proponents of timeshare ownership would have you believe that once the initial "right of rescission" expires the only legal way to end timeshare contracts involve a transfer of ownership whether by selling, donating or giving it away.
A common misconception is that under no circumstances will a timeshare company voluntarily take back their timeshare, in fact, most timeshare user groups and virtually all timeshare companies want you to believe this.
What is true is that most timeshare companies will not willingly take back their timeshare. As will be seen below, when faced with litigation or the potential of litigation, many timeshare companies will in fact either take back their timeshare or simply agree to release the timeshare owner from any future liability in connection with the timeshare contract.
There are some new developments that a timeshare owner can use to terminate and cancel their timeshare. Before I discuss the latest techniques in cancelling a timeshare, I'd like to devote a little time to the more traditional means of getting rid of an unwanted timeshare.
The traditional means of ridding oneself of an unwanted timeshare is through a donation, transfer, or sale as mentioned above.
One of the problems in selling a timeshare, is that many unwary timeshare owners fall prey to listing companies that propose to list their timeshare for sale at prices simply not justified by the open market. These listing companies have been under investigation for fraudulent and deceptive practices. It is therefore recommended that a proposed timeshare seller wishing to sell his or her timeshare obligation, should first consider selling their timeshare by listing it on sites like eBay or Craigslist.
Other options are to list it through the developer, if the developer handles re-sales, or through a timeshare resale broker. One thing the proposed timeshare seller should not do is pay an advance fee for the sale of their timeshare. It is these advance fee practices that have fallen under the scrutiny of state Attorney Generals.
Another frequently discussed solution to the problem of how to be released from your timeshare's financial burdens, is to donate the timeshare. Where there once were a number of organizations that accept deeded-timeshare donations, with the ever increasing burden of maintenance fees which seem to go up every year, such organizations are a vanishing breed.
Simply transferring ownership to a third party who will merely take over the yearly maintenance obligations is another "exit strategy." Such persons won't pay you for the timeshare and in many cases the timeshare company itself will simply refuse to recognize the transfer. In addition, with the transfer to a third party the timeshare resort, more often than not, will charge or impose their own fee, known as a "resort transfer fee." These fees, themselves, may make a transfer to a third party prohibitive for those faced with financial difficulties.
New techniques pioneered by real estate attorneys who specialize in timeshare litigation have emerged in recent years. These techniques reached the summit through a series of lawsuits filed in California by a private attorney who worked on behalf of a group of timeshare owners that had wanted nothing more than the complete release, termination and cancellation of their timeshare interests.
Other similar actions have followed, all seeking damages for the type of fraudulent and deceptive conduct that is frequently utilized by timeshare sales people to induce unwitting potential owners to sign on the dotted line.
The following representations are typical of the false promises typically made at the time the timeshare was sold:
a. That the timeshare interest purchased would appreciate and increase resale price and value over time.
b. That the timeshare interest purchased could be freely
exchanged, transferred and sold.
c. That the timeshare interest purchased was a financial
investment.
d. That the timeshare interest purchased would result in the
purchaser receiving booking priority over non - purchasing
vacationers wishing to stay at one or more of the
properties owned and/or maintained by the defendant.
As a result of the filing of the aforementioned legal actions, timeshare companies have become more willing to release timeshare owners from their timeshare obligations, even without resort to litigation.
In order to obtain such a result, a timeshare owner should first retain an attorney who is familiar with timeshare laws and the various techniques that are invaluable for terminating a timeshare contract.
In conclusion, do not believe the unscrupulous companies who tell you that it is impossible to get out of a timeshare contract. Should you be victim of timeshare fraud, you too may be able to terminate your timeshare contract.
About the Author:
Learn more about timeshare debt relief. Stop by attorney Mitchell Sussman's website where you can find out all about how to rid yourself of an unwanted timeshare.
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