Original Message:
Similar names, but VERY different operations... (by KC):
I would like to help avoid some potential confusion resulting from mixing up two very similar company names:
There is a (relatively new) organization called Licensed Timeshare Resale Brokers Association. Any and all members of this group are licensed real estate agents. These licensed agents are from different real estate agencies around the U.S. and they do NOT charge any upfront fees, but instead work on "commission upon sale".
Timeshare Broker Services (...whoever and whatever and wherever TBS might be...) is an entirely different and completely unrelated entity from the group I have identified in the paragraph above.
That said, using a respectable and properly licensed real estate agent can still have a potential downside. If, for a specific and very real example, their minimum commisssion is $1,000 or $1,500 (as is commonly the case), then that's an obvious problem for a timeshare that has very little (...maybe no) current market value. You have to do the math regarding the real market value of what is being sold--- if it's a week with no resale value, why would you want to commit to paying a $1,000 - $1,500 minimum commission upon sale? In such an instance, you'd actually be better off financially by just giving it away for free and paying all of the (about $300) closing costs yourself as the "seller".