Original Message:
Re: IBD-MARKETING . HAS ANYONE HEARD OF OR DEALT WITH THEM ? (by Sun or Snow T.):
To all of those who have purchased timeshares from developers and want to resell:
You will never get the price you paid, nor will you get anywhere close to half, by reselling your timeshare.
There are many reasons why timeshares are generally worth much less than 50% of the value:
1) There are some benefits to buying timeshares from developers that will not pass to the new buyers, which drastically reduces the value of what you are selling. For example, we purchased a 3 bedroom from an owner at PAHIO @ Bali Hai Villas. This is a Hawaii resort, very nice, Gold Crown. But the people that sold it to us bought RCI points in the sale. Something like 132,000 points, which is a large number. Those points would not transfer in the sale because PAHIO does not allow it. This hurts the owner when he wants to sell.
Fairfield points, now Wyndham, does not allow VIP benefits to be transferred in the sale.
Sunterra doesn't allow all of the benefits the original owners purchased, either.
2) Developer prices are marked up considerable for marketing costs. Who pays for the Disney tickets, dinner certificates, and all of the other prizes? The buyer of every week pays for those costs. So you paid at least 50% toward the marketing incentives.
3) Timeshare is a dirty word to most people. How many times have you said "timeshare" and had your friends look at you like you just arrived from Mars?
How to sell a timeshare?
1) Plan on it taking awhile. 2) List it on several websites like Redweek, but don't pay more than $50 to list a timeshare. Craig's List is free, as is kijiji.com 3) Be realistic about the price 4) Consider all offers-- a low offer is not meant to offend you. Sometimes the prospective buyer knows what the week is worth more than you do. 5) Ask your HOA or resort's management company about marketing your week to other owners. 6) Sell it on eBay.
If you just want to get rid of it and don't care about making cash:
1) Donate the week to a charity. Many charities are taking donations. I heard a rumor through someone on TUG that a hospice is hoping for donations. I think that is a great charity that most people can get behind.
2) Advertise the week for a very low price here on Redweek and insist that the new buyer pay all closing costs.
3) Advertise on Craig's List and www.kijiji.com for free and give it away.
4) Advertise it for free on TUG2.net or Timeshareforums.com
NEVER pay an up front fee and NEVER answer a postcard solititation you get in the mail. Those guys want you to pay $3,495 to them and they take the timeshare. It is criminal to tell someone who owns a Hawaii week that they cannot sell it, even on eBay, for $1.00!