Get out of Westgate Resorts

If you are dealing directly with Westgate then it's a no brainer . That's a very small fee to be rid of your contract and not have to worry what may happen down the road if they want to sue for the entire contract .

aland192 wrote:

I owe 16 thousand on my timeshare and I haven't paid in 4 years. I recently just started getting letter in the mail to do a lieu of deed or give it back among other options. I'm not sure if I used the right terms, but it would cost me 2400 to release it back to Westgate. So far, it has not hit my credit and phone calls are a minimum. Should I pay the fee or just ignore and hope for the best. I don't want my credit to get dinged if possible.

First of all, make sure that you are dealing directly with Westgate on this one and not some third party that claims it can "cancel" your timeshare.

As for your dilemma, you have to do some soul-searching and ask yourself, "Is it worth it for me to pay $2400 in order to possibly protect my credit score and rating?" That's a question only you can answer.

Thank you, I will pay it off. I wasn't sure if Westgate would forget about me and just write it off.

Agree. The worst part is the deed back is now $2500 but it was explained to me that since they have plenty of three-bedroom inventory at Westgate Lakes they have no need for mine. They would rather I keep paying their @!* maintenance fee.

They sold this to me as a vacation business and it couldn’t be further from the truth I wish I never went to their sales pitch.

We would need to protest the way BLM got a grassroots effort together to make an industry change.

This should not be a DEED (we don’t even own it….just a floor-plan). It should be a membership like a golf course or gym.

So glad that I kept refusing to buy into it! Every mono said they kept pushing and finally brought over someone else to give me her sob story and how wonderful it was for her and she was able to go to Hawaii and all these places she never thought she would be able too! They did manage to get me to buy this other option that was a few hundred dollars and pay a monthly mortgage payment only and almost paid off! Then I will be able to use what I paid the last year to go on one vacation to whatever was on the list of options and that’s it! At which time they will hound me some more to purchase the real deal in which I will refuse and refuse! These comments have been very helpful! I hate all of these dang timeshare companies! So pushy and annoying and make it sound so great! NOT! I am not an owner and have no deed just to be clear!

I appreciate all the info stated here. I unfortunately fell into the pressure, and bought a WestGate Timeshare, earlier this year. I’m irritated with myself for doing so. The phone calls, the letters, the emails…. Everything is about money!!! My plan is to purchase a home next year. So I’ll continue to pay on it until then. Sigh 😔

I’m going to call tomorrow about the Legacy program. Hopefully there will be some options available for me. I don’t care about the $$ I put down. I just want to be done with them

Westgate cherry-picks inventory to take back. I referred a couple both diagnosed with cancer to Legacy. They were no longer able to travel. They were transferred to a supervisor who said, "We don't take them back and that's not our website." I had referred them to ARDA's Responsible Exit website. Westgate was mentioned as being a founder of ARDA's Responsible Exit website just the week before in a Resort Trades article! Join the Westgate Timeshare Hostages Facebook Group that does not allow solicitations from predators who make false promises about being released.

Westgate is requiring affidavits if they do release you that you must sign. Four owners signed under threat of perjury that they had not hired a lawyer or exit company when they had. Westgate has sued them asking to have their loan reinstated, accelerated and make them pay Westgate's attorneys' fees. It's hard to imagine a company more predatory. https://m.facebook.com/groups/westgatehostages/

irenep59 wrote:

Westgate is requiring affidavits if they do release you that you must sign. Four owners signed under threat of perjury that they had not hired a lawyer or exit company when they had.

That's another reason why many here sternly recommend not hiring any lawyers or third party "cancel" companies when trying to get rid of a timeshare.

irenep59 wrote:

Westgate is requiring affidavits if they do release you that you must sign. Four owners signed under threat of perjury that they had not hired a lawyer or exit company when they had.

I have unlimited contempt and disdain for Westgate, but signing a false affidavit is legally actionable in any scenario anywhere. Doing so essentially constitutes knowingly and willfully lying under oath, which carries potential legal consequences. Just sayin'.

As a resale owner (private market ) I can agree they go out of their way to screw with us who did not buy from the resort lizards in sales. That said, you can try to rent it when not using it. I just did so again here, we have rented ours repeatedly. But then again ours it a ski week at Park City, and its very much an in-demand property. We bought through a firm that sells, because of the help we had negotiating the lies from sales and straightforward honest advice I would recommend them. Premier Timeshare Resale in Park City UT. They apparently cover all 50 states.

Your property TS might be worth very little. You can also find them on ebay for reference as well. Redweek does sales too. Good luck!

Do you know how many points your credit score declines?

joek398 wrote:

My mother didn't have any assets.... I notified them upon her death.

Wondering what the next step could be to get out the timeshare.

Hi Joe. I'm wondering whether you were able to successfully exit your time share and what steps it took?

I'm in a similar situation with a paid off timeshare my mother bought at Westgate Lakes over 20yrs ago where she listed me as a tenant in common when I was in college. She passed away last year in another state and the court appointed me as executor of her estate.

I called the Legacy Program and they told me I had to probate her will in Orlando, FL to get the property transferred to me solely in my name since tenants in common has no right of survivorship. Only then I could be *eligible* for deed back once I contacted Westgate to show proof of the successful probate in Orlando so they could change the name on the account to me only. If my property is accepted by the Legacy Program it would cost up to $2500 to exit the timeshare.

This seems absolutely crazy to me that I would spend more money to hire an attorney in Orlando to probate a will just for a stupid timeshare only for Westgate to have the *option* to allow me to deed back the property. We haven't used the unit in over 7 years but my mom was paying the maintenance fees. However, I received the new maintenance fee bill last month and I refuse to give them $1400 for something I don't ever plan to use again. I understand from this forum that the fees have to be paid up to be considered by the Legacy Program.

For me to spend over $4000 to get of this timeshare seems like highway robbery. My credit is 790 to 800 depending on the bureau so I'm not sure of much a hit it would be should Westgate foreclose for maintenance fees only.

Any thoughts on what I should do here?

I also welcome any input from other forum members.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Carlito W wrote:

I called the Legacy Program and they told me I had to probate her will in Orlando, FL to get the property transferred to me solely in my name since tenants in common has no right of survivorship. Only then I could be *eligible* for deed back once I contacted Westgate to show proof of the successful probate in Orlando so they could change the name on the account to me only. If my property is accepted by the Legacy Program it would cost up to $2500 to exit the timeshare.

This seems absolutely crazy to me that I would spend more money to hire an attorney in Orlando to probate a will just for a stupid timeshare only for Westgate to have the *option* to allow me to deed back the property. We haven't used the unit in over 7 years but my mom was paying the maintenance fees. However, I received the new maintenance fee bill last month and I refuse to give them $1400 for something I don't ever plan to use again. I understand from this forum that the fees have to be paid up to be considered by the Legacy Program.

For me to spend over $4000 to get of this timeshare seems like highway robbery. My credit is 790 to 800 depending on the bureau so I'm not sure of much a hit it would be should Westgate foreclose for maintenance fees only.

Any thoughts on what I should do here?

I also welcome any input from other forum members.

Thanks in advance for your help!

I cannot and will not advise you what to do; that is a personal decision that you ultimately have to make for yourself. Wastegate weasels seldom tell the truth, but I believe their input to you may be correct regarding the "tenants in common" status of the current deed. You apparently have no legal standing to initiate a deedback at this time (and there is no guarantee that Wastegate would accept a deed back even if you did establish clear title, with or without their larcenous "Legacy" fee). Wastegate is known to "cherry pick" what they will actually accept back under their "Legacy" program anyhow. Do you really want to roll those dice?

That said, if I was in your shoes with a credit score in the high 700's and there is no unpaid loan balance to deal with regarding this particular timeshare, I would not be inclined to send Wastegate (or any FL attorney for Probate) one penny --- ever. I would just let Wastegate go right ahead and foreclose when they get around to it (likely not for 2 years, maybe 3). If there is no unpaid loan, then there is (according to first hand reports of affected people on the TUG (Timeshare Users Group) web site, at least a 50-70% chance that the inevitable future foreclosure will have zero impact on your credit score anyhow (although that is not a certainty).

Hi KC. Understood on the disclaimer. And I greatly appreciate your insight. This was my exact thinking. I'll keep you posted later on down the line. Cheers!

KC gives EXCELLENT advice. We were in a similar situation when mom died about 4 years ago - fees paid on property held for 20+ years - but Mom and Dad had placed the property in a Trust so we had complete control over the ownership. We tried to get WG to let us out but they kept refusing. I finally decided that we would just walk but gave it one last try under their "legacy" program. They said "YES" for $900. We happily paid it and now it's gone. Hallelujah!

What amazes me is that with all the negative publicity out there, there are STILL people who buy these things! They either live in a cave or they impulse buy everything in life. When I see them riding around with the sales person, they don't look like the kind that have money to burn. Fives years down the road, they'll be on this forum crying tears of regret. Sad!

There is a protest scheduled outside of the Westgate Annual Meeting January 5, 2023 from 9 to noon and 3 to 6, I believe. Check the Westgate Timeshare Hostages Facebook Group for additional information. Many have complained about agents assuring it's easy to rent to cover costs. It's not, so the buyer instead may be forced to default if they counted on renting. The contract states you can rent, so reading the contract and the rescission period doesn't help as no one would attempt to rent a newly purchased timeshare while on vacation. One of the organizers did a GoFundMe to submit a FL FOIA request. There were 551 complaints of which nearly half had this complaint. https://www.facebook.com/groups/westgatehostages (1,500 members)

A magnifying glass is needed to read the convoluted contract (where there is no mention of the plethora of non-disclosed fees).

This is why contract lawyers are generally hired, though in this case it is an expense that none of us didn’t though was needed.

Shame on Westgate.

Join the in-person protest and help send a message to Consumer Protection Agency and government officials.

This is LONG overdue, it’s time to make history: https://facebook.com/events/s/hostage-protest/423166903227512/

Enough is enough. It’s time for deceived Westgate timeshare hostages to stand up for themselves. It’s now or never, Orlando’s TV Action News 9 will film the protest if enough angry owners attend this on-site rally: https://facebook.com/events/s/hostage-protest/423166903227512/

robertc1852 wrote:

When I see them riding around with the sales person, they don't look like the kind that have money to burn. Fives years down the road, they'll be on this forum crying tears of regret.

It's not like they have "money to burn". It's just that the sales people somehow convince potential buyers that the purchase and travel savings will more than pay for itself ten years down the road.

jackiem414 wrote:

Enough is enough. It’s time for deceived Westgate timeshare hostages to stand up for themselves. It’s now or never, Orlando’s TV Action News 9 will film the protest if enough angry owners attend this on-site rally: https://facebook.com/events/s/hostage-protest/423166903227512/

Personally, I have nothing but unlimited contempt and disdain for David Siegel and Wastegate and I wish you luck in gaining some increased exposure for the (numerous) assorted, greedy Wastegate practices.

That said, I'm not sure what it is that you seek to accomplish. Historically, Wastegate seems to care very little about negative PR. Also, although Wastegate "cherry picks" weeks that they will take back under their "Legacy" deedback program, the fact is many timeshare operations (and certainly most independent, "non-chain" timeshares) will not accept any deedbacks at all! So, in that sense, it could be said that all timeshare owners are "hostages" if their timeshare has no resale market value (and frankly, most have little or no resale value) and they see no way out other than foreclosure. In my personal opinion, the only real "value" to be found in timeshares is in using them (after purchasing only in the resale market, not from a developer). And yes, for the record I do own and use a few timeshare weeks myself (...but certainly not with Wastegate).

I wish you luck in creating negative PR exposure for Wastegate; they deserve any and all negative exposure they get, in my own personal opinion. Maybe such protest efforts will influence Wastegate to change its' historically slimy behaviour and practices; I guess you won't know until and unless you try. Good luck.