Original Message:
Deedbacks (by KC):
The above (entirely credible) account describes a timeshare "deedback" to Marriott.
Fortunately for the poster, Marriott has intrinsic value and "cachet"; there is really no such thing as a "worthless" Marriott timeshare. Accordingly, it's no surprise at all that Marriott (which is a very "deep pockets" corporation) would accept a "deedback" for something of high, known value as described above, even with unpaid back fees and debt to forgive. Marriott can easily afford to make that decision; smaller independent operations cannot.
Unfortunately, "deedback acceptance" is the exception rather than the rule for most timeshares. Deedback acceptance with unpaid fees still owed is virtually unheard of in most (let's call it 99.99%) instances. On the contrary, most timeshare HOA's that will accept "deedbacks" at all will also require that account to first be fully paid up to date. Some will even require pre-payment of maintenance fees for the NEXT year (sometimes even two years) before considering agreeing to accept a "deedback".
I'm happy for the success of the poster above, but the (high value) Marriott scenario described is definitely an unusual statistical anomaly in the bigger "deedback" picture. Marriott agreed to take back (for free) something of considerable market value that they will easily re-sell to someone else and just "eat" the debt. A smart business decision, but NOT the case (and NOT an available option) in MOST timeshare situations and operations.