How To Get Out Of Your Parents’ Timeshare Agreement

For many seniors, the decision to retire to Florida does not take place overnight.  Perhaps your parents used to vacation in Florida every year for several years before they moved here permanently, and come to think of it, maybe it was always the same dates each year, and always in the same apartment and the same resort.  They told you it was a timeshare, but you didn’t think much about what that meant.  Maybe you even stayed in your parents’ timeshare with your children when you visited your parents in Florida after they moved here, such as when other, quieter relatives were staying in their spare bedroom.  You have happy memories of the charming apartment with a beautiful view, but now that your parents’ estate is in probate, the dreaded timeshare has become your responsibility.  A Tampa probate lawyer can help you get free of your parents’ timeshare agreement.

The Gift That Keeps on Taking

In the most common form of timeshare agreement, the purchaser buys a two percent interest in a condominium in a desirable vacation spot, in exchange for having the right to spend one week per year there; the timeshare building is usually closed for two weeks out of the year for repairs and maintenance.  During your week, you have the right to inhabit the property or to rent it out.  The contract usually lasts 25 years or more, because that is how long it takes to pay off the amount of the contract.  Sounds like a rip off, right?  It clearly is, when you do the math.  Most people enter timeshare agreements as the result of sales presentations where real estate agents will not take “no” for an answer.  In fact, many buyers regret their decision to enter the timeshare agreement almost immediately, but getting out of a timeshare agreement is so difficult and costly that many seniors give up and simply keep paying for the timeshare.

The worst part is, when the buyer’s estate goes to probate, the responsibility for the timeshare contract often passes to one of their family members.  In some cases, this is because the deceased person specified in their will that one of their relatives should inherit the timeshare, but just as often, it is because the person died without a will, and the probate court simply followed the rules of intestate succession and passed the estate, timeshare obligations and all, to the decedent’s closest living family members.  If you have inherited a timeshare contract from a relative, it is possible to get out of the obligation to pay, but you will probably need the help of a probate lawyer.

Contact an Attorney for Help

A probate lawyer can help you if your parents’ lack of estate planning has caused you to inherit a timeshare contract or other cumbersome financial burden.  Contact David Toback for help today.

Source:

kiplinger.com/retirement/inheritance/603437/5-of-the-worst-assets-to-inherit