Yes, timeshares are still a thing, and by the numbers they’re a bigger thing than most people assume. The American Resort Development Association reports annual developer sales of roughly $10.5 billion across nearly 1,600 resort properties, with about 9.9 million U.S. households holding some form of vacation ownership interest.1ARDA.org. State of the Vacation Timeshare Industry (2024 Report) The product has changed since the fixed-week era of the 1980s, the sales tactics have been dressed up with recognizable hotel brands, and the long-term financial commitments are as serious as they ever were. What follows is what the industry actually looks like today, what it costs over the full life of ownership, and what the law gives you if you want in or out.
The Industry Is Larger and More Corporate Than It Used to Be
The average developer sale price now runs about $24,170 per transaction, and owners collectively pay around $3.5 billion a year in maintenance fees on top of what they paid at purchase.1ARDA.org. State of the Vacation Timeshare Industry (2024 Report) The industry that used to be dominated by small, aggressive independent developers is now led by publicly traded hospitality companies: Marriott Vacations Worldwide, Hilton Grand Vacations, Wyndham Destinations, and Disney Vacation Club. Buyers get resort properties managed to major-chain standards and the ability to convert vacation points into hotel loyalty points. They also get a professional sales operation built around a high-priced product whose purchase price includes marketing and commission costs that don’t carry over to resale.
How a Modern Timeshare Actually Works
The old model was straightforward. You bought Week 22 at a specific resort and that was your slot every year. Most new contracts have moved to a points-based system instead. You receive an annual allocation of points that function as internal currency across a network of resorts, and your points balance determines where you can book, when, and how large a unit you get. Many programs let you carry unused points forward or borrow from a future year’s allocation.2Disney Vacation Club. Vacation Points System Some systems still sell “floating weeks,” which let you book within a season rather than on a fixed date, but the trend is overwhelmingly toward points.
A second structural shift matters just as much. Many modern contracts no longer convey a real estate deed. Under a right-to-use arrangement, the developer keeps ownership of the property and you buy a long-term license to use the resort for a set number of years. That makes the product closer to a subscription than to real estate, which is a more honest description of what most buyers are getting.
Exchange Networks Add Another Fee Layer
Beyond a developer’s own resort network, third-party exchange companies let owners trade their time or points for stays at thousands of affiliated properties worldwide. RCI, the largest of these networks, charges a separate annual membership fee on top of what you pay the resort. Current RCI points memberships start at $134 per year, and exchange transaction fees range from $59 for a single night up to $349 for a two-week stay.3RCI.com. Points Member Fees U.S. These costs stack on top of maintenance fees, a detail sales presentations tend to move past quickly.
What Ownership Actually Costs Over Time
The purchase price is only the beginning. The recurring costs are where the real financial exposure lives, and they escalate.
Maintenance Fees
Every owner pays annual maintenance fees covering staffing, utilities, insurance, landscaping, and reserves for repairs. The industry-wide average reached $1,480 per interval in 2024, and the direction is consistently up. Recent ARDA data shows maintenance fees rose 17.5% in a single year, and nearly half of resorts anticipated their next billing increase would be 10% or more.4ARDA.org. State of the Vacation Timeshare Industry (2025 Report) Owners have no meaningful control over these increases. The homeowners association or management company sets the budget and bills accordingly.
Special Assessments
On top of regular fees, resorts can levy special assessments for expenses the regular budget doesn’t cover: hurricane damage, roof replacements, full renovations, or shortfalls created by other owners who stopped paying. These bills arrive with little warning, can run into the thousands, and are due whether you plan to use the property that year or not.
The Full Annual Carrying Cost
Add the maintenance fee, the exchange membership, a per-transaction exchange fee that can exceed $300 for a week-long trade, and the occasional special assessment, and the annual carrying cost of a timeshare can approach or exceed what the same traveler would spend booking comparable resort stays on the open market.3RCI.com. Points Member Fees U.S.
The Contract Can Outlive You
Many timeshare contracts contain a perpetuity clause. The agreement never expires. Ownership and all associated financial obligations continue indefinitely and pass to your heirs when you die. Your family doesn’t just inherit a vacation spot. They inherit the maintenance fees, the special assessments, and the annual increases, whether they want the property or not. Resorts include these clauses precisely because they ensure someone is always on the hook for the carrying costs. It is one of the most consequential terms in a timeshare contract and one of the least discussed during sales presentations.
Heirs are not entirely without options. Under probate law, a beneficiary can file a formal disclaimer of interest with the probate court and refuse the inheritance. The general deadline is nine months from the date of death, though state rules vary. One catch matters: if you use the timeshare even once after inheriting it, you lose the right to disclaim. The disclaimer has to be filed before you accept any benefit. Once the estate has gone through probate and the timeshare has been distributed, unwinding the obligation becomes much harder.
What Protections Buyers Have
Timeshare sales are regulated primarily at the state level, and every state imposes some combination of disclosure requirements, registration obligations, and cancellation rights. The specifics vary, but the framework is broadly similar.
The Rescission Period Is the Most Important Protection
Every state gives buyers a mandatory rescission period, a window after signing during which you can cancel for any reason and get your deposit back in full. These cooling-off windows typically run 5 to 10 calendar days. In states with the largest timeshare markets, the period is often 10 days from the later of the contract signing date or the date you receive all required disclosure documents.5Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 0721.10 – Cancellation The right cannot be waived, and any attempt by a seller to extract a waiver is unlawful. If a closing somehow happens before the rescission period expires, the buyer can void it for up to five years.
This is where many buyers lose the most ground. The high-pressure sales environment is designed to make you feel committed before you leave the room, and most people never learn that they have days to change their mind at zero cost. If you sign something at a presentation, the clock starts immediately. Find out the deadline in your state and use it if you have any doubts.
Required Disclosures
States with comprehensive timeshare statutes require developers to give every prospective buyer a public offering statement before the sale closes. The document has to detail the financial obligations, resort rules, management structure, and any restrictions on the interest being sold.6Justia Law. Florida Statutes Title XL Chapter 721 Part I – Vacation Plans and Timesharing In practice, it is a dense packet most buyers don’t read in the moment. Reading it carefully after you leave, during the rescission window, is exactly what the law intends. The Federal Trade Commission also pursues deceptive and unfair sales practices in this market under its general consumer protection authority.7Federal Trade Commission. FTC and Dozens of Law Enforcement Partners Halt Travel and Timeshare Resale Scams in Multinational Effort
Getting Out of a Timeshare
If you already own and want out, options exist but they are limited. Which path makes sense depends on how much you’re willing to spend, how patient you are, and whether you still owe money on a timeshare loan.
Developer Exit Programs
Some major developers now run formal surrender programs. Wyndham operates a “Certified Exit” program through its Wyndham Cares platform offering several options for owners who want to leave.8Club Wyndham. Wyndham Cares: Timeshare Exit Help and Owner Solutions Other major developers offer similar programs, with eligibility and availability varying by company. These programs almost always require that maintenance fees are current and any loan balance is paid off. Contacting the developer directly is almost always the right first step before paying a third party anything.
Resale, With a Steep Price Drop
A secondary market exists through specialized online marketplaces and licensed brokerages. Its defining feature is a sharp fall from the developer price. Resale values routinely run 40% to 80% below what the original buyer paid, and some timeshare interests have effectively no resale value at all. The gap exists because developer pricing includes marketing and commission costs that don’t transfer. For some owners, accepting the loss to escape the recurring fees is still worthwhile.
Most contracts include a right of first refusal that lets the developer step in and buy the interest on the same terms a third-party buyer has offered. After the seller signs a purchase agreement, it goes to the developer, which typically has 30 to 45 days to exercise the right or waive it. If no response arrives in the window, the right is generally considered waived and the sale proceeds. That waiting period adds a delay most real estate transactions don’t have.
On taxes, don’t expect relief. The IRS treats a timeshare used for personal vacations as personal-use property, and losses on the sale of personal-use property are not deductible.9Internal Revenue Service. Capital Gains and Losses Federal law allows deduction of losses only from a trade or business, a transaction entered into for profit, or certain casualty and theft events.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 165 – Losses A loss on a vacation timeshare is simply absorbed.
Watch Out for Exit Scams
Owner desperation has produced an entire industry of fraudulent “timeshare exit” companies. The FTC flags several warning signs: unsolicited calls or messages offering to get you out of your contract, “guarantees” or “promises” of cancellation, demands for large upfront fees before any work is done, and instructions to stop paying your mortgage or maintenance fees.11Federal Trade Commission. Timeshares, Vacation Clubs, and Related Scams Many of these outfits take the money and either do nothing or mail the developer a letter the owner could have written for free.
Walking Away Is Not a Clean Exit
Simply refusing to pay maintenance fees sets off a predictable escalation. Late fees and interest start accruing immediately. The resort or a third-party collector begins pursuing payment within 30 to 60 days. The unpaid debt gets reported to credit bureaus after a short grace period, and a collection account can knock 50 to 100 points off a credit score and sit on the report for up to seven years. If the debt goes far enough, the resort can start foreclosure. In many states, non-judicial foreclosure is available, so no court order is required. Even after foreclosure, the resort may pursue a deficiency judgment for any remaining balance, which can result in wage garnishment or liens on other assets. Stopping payment is a last resort, not a plan.