Inheritance of parents' timeshare

[mike29943098]

My parents, who are still alive and well, plan on giving their two timeshares to my brother and I, in their will. We'd both get one each. My mom has brought this up many times, and also brought it up with the MVC people the last time they were at a resort. The MVC folks suggested that they sign me on as a co-signer now, to make that future owner transition easier.

However, I'm a little on the fence for the timeshare thing. I don't have any timeshares of my own, and read the stories of people desperate to get out of their timeshare. While doing the week at the resort would be fine, I feel that the yearly costs is in line with what it would cost to book hotel room, or similar villa in the same area.

Having done some research, I see that a way "out" of the future inherited timeshare would be to file a Disclaimer Of Interest. However if we took MVC's advice, and put me on as a co-owner of it now, I believe there would be no way "out" during an inheritance event.

My questions are:

1. Am I right in keeping my name off the co-ownership, and just let the will/probate events to take their course?
2. When funds/property are distributed from the will, am I able to accept some items, but refuse (disclaimer of interest) on just the timeshare?
   
3. I've read that if they were to pass away, and I booked/used the timeshare like it was mine, I probably could not do a disclaimer of interest after having used the property/benefit. In the past they've traded the week for a week elsewhere, which I had stayed at, and I've also made a payment to their dues at one point many years ago. Does that disqualify me from a disclaimer of interest?
4. Lastly, I've read that MVC sales are a little better than than some others, but not as good as Disney. Should I just accept the timeshare, use it a couple times, and then sell it if I don't feel comfortable with it? Will it be easy enough to sell? Would I make a little bit of money in the process?

Thanks,
I'm new here, so if this is better in the non-Marriott general timeshare channel, I can repost it there.

 

[DaveNV]

I'm not a lawyer, but I do have an opinion:

If you have doubts about ownership in perpetuity, do not put your name on it now. Being on the title makes you a shared owner, and jointly liable for maintenance fees and such. There is no way to claim disinterest after the fact if your name is on the deed. Let your parents name it in their Will as property bequeathed to you. You then have the right to refuse it, and it would revert back to the resort, unless another person you know might want to receive it as a gift. Your parents will be gone by then, so they won't know what you do with it.

You don't indicate your parents' ages, but if they continue to own the timeshare(s) for another ten or twenty years, who knows how high the maintenance fees might be by then. Unless you're prepared to owe that debt every time it comes due, keep your name off the deed.

You are right to be cautious - it's quite easy to get into a timeshare, but can be very difficult to get out of one.

Dave

 

[Passepartout]

You have the basics pretty well down. If your parents put you on the deed, you will be on the hook after they depart. The TS would transfer to you if you want it upon the departure of the last survivor. Then you can decide whether to file the Disclaimer of Interest. You can choose to accept some bequests and reject others.

MVC hold value better than most other TSs and owners are very brand loyal. However they have expensive annual fees, and once you take it on, you are committed. There is a good market for resales so it's always going to be worth something- unlike TSs that people have to pay to get rid of.

Not knowing your financial or family situation makes recommendations difficult. I guess, if you enjoy using it, and can afford it, keep it, but don't sign on as co-owner. Then you can decide when the need arises whether to take it on or bail.

Some help I am, huh?

Jim

 

[DAman]

What resort? What season? It might be an asset with value.

 

[mike29943098]

Thanks for confirming my understanding of the situation.

Financially my partner and I can handle it (no children), I just worry about the exit options. And it may be another 20 years before the turn of events may takes place, and we may be in another place. We are on the east coast now, and the timeshare is in Hawaii, so it’s a bit of a ways to get there, and coming back is pretty much a whole day or more due to time zone changes and connecting flights. Who knows where we will be in 20 years.

I do wonder if the payment I made years ago will be an issue if I go the disclaimer of interest route. Or if I should be weary of doing accepting their gifted week, or me helping with payments. I guess if it is, lawyers will need to get involved.

 

[mike29943098]

What resort? What season? It might be an asset with value.

not sure if the week/season. Kauai Beach Club. Beachfront tower unit i believe.

 

[Passepartout]

One of the nice things about timeshares is that even if you own in one location, you don't necessarily have to use in THAT location. Marriott doesn't have a bazillion resorts, but the have some darn nice ones elsewhere. California, Las Vegas, Spain, Florida. Others.

Jim

 

[vacationtime1]

not sure if the week/season. Kauai Beach Club. Beachfront tower unit i believe.

A 1bd annual oceanfront unit at the Kauai Beach Club should sell for $5-6K; a 2bd oceanfront for about twice that.

But verify that the unit is oceanfront; other view categories are worth much less.

If it were me, I would let my parents keep it in their names. However, if your parents own it at the time of their deaths, you will have need to do an ancillary probate (because it is real property in a state other than your parents' domicile), an additional expense. To avoid this, it may be possible to have your parents sign a deed now which you will decide to record or shred at the appropriate time. Talk to your parents' estate planning attorneys for details. (Note: if your parents hold title in a trust, this is not an issue; you can make the accept/disclaim decision after their deaths without worrying about probate.)

 

[Fasttr]

I do wonder if the payment I made years ago will be an issue if I go the disclaimer of interest route. Or if I should be weary of doing accepting their gifted week, or me helping with payments. I guess if it is, lawyers will need to get involved.

I believe your usage would have to be after your parents passed before it could hurt your ability to disclaim. I also don’t believe your helping pay MF’s while your parents were still living would harm your ability to disclaim either.

I agree with the others. Don’t add your name now, and when the time comes, you can make a decision based on your situation at that point in time.

 

[pedro47]

My suggestion only if you do not want it; do not take it. Please do your research now. Is this a Marriott’s resort, where is it locate, how many bedrooms, the season of the TS, the number of points, and the mf costs now???? Maintenance fees do not goes down over time. If you still do not want your parents timeshare; please do not add your name to any legal timeshare documents at this time.... IMHO.

Please do not co-sign any loan document, if there is a loan on this timeshare.

You have already answered some of my concerns, now do your research; time sound like is on your side.

 

[mdurette]

First...good for you, it appears you have thought about this and did the research ahead of time. So, you can make an educated decision now. I agree with others, don't put the deed in your name now, this will at least leave you with options when the time comes.

Another thought......would you other sibling like both of them? If so, maybe that is an option that would make all hoappy.

Also, you mentioned that the MVC rep suggestion they add you as a co-signer now. A co-signer is typically another person on a loan vs what a co-owner would be. If your parents do have a loan for this timeshare, then absolutely I would suggest not doing it now.

The rest of your questions are more probate/estate related and should be directly to an attorney that specializes in this field.

 

[mike29943098]

Thanks everyone for the input. This is what I needed, as the topic may come up during the upcoming holidays.

 

[mike29943098]

Oh, one other question, slightly unrelated, but related in determining the cost/value of the timeshare:
For a EOY (every other year) timeshare, are the MF's due every other year too?

 

[Pamplemousse]

Thanks everyone for the input. This is what I needed, as the topic may come up during the upcoming holidays.

Next time the topic comes up ask for details-maybe they will show you the deed?
Find out the size, view and season. You could then have look to see what the sale price might be now (no guarantee what it will be at an unknown future date). You could also check out the going rental rate here or on a site like red week.

Ask if they are enrolled in the destination club (Marriott points) system and if they have a memebershop to interval international to exchange to other resorts (marriotts and non).

If you have a good relationship with your brother you might consider having the 2 timeshares in one account (under one name) to save on dues to either the destination club or interval.

Marriott does have some good locations on the east coast if you don’t want to fly to HI- Hilton Head, Florida- including Marco Island. Interval membership opens many other options.

Timeshares are wonderful for family travel with the extra room and ability to cook meals and do laundry. I can see if you are just traveling as a couple there might not be as much value. It might be a good idea to try staying at a TS or 2 as you vacation to see if like the set up.

 

[stmartinfan]

I don't know if this is the case here, but my understanding in the past was that Hawaiian timeshares, while having good trading power, also had higher annual fees than those in other locations. So they weren't the best deal if you were planning to trade them often instead of going to the owned resort.

 

[jpc763]

Oh, one other question, slightly unrelated, but related in determining the cost/value of the timeshare:
For a EOY (every other year) timeshare, are the MF's due every other year too?

Marriott bills EOY timeshare fees each calendar year. You just pay half of what a EY would be. I have 2 EOY Marriotts, one in Hawaii (Ko Olina).

 

[bogey21]

First...good for you, it appears you have thought about this and did the research ahead of time. So, you can make an educated decision now. I agree with others, don't put the deed in your name now, this will at least leave you with options when the time comes.

I agree. Maintain flexibility. Do not allow your name(s) to be put on the Deeds. You can decide what to do when the will is probated....

George

 

[mdurette]

Timeshares are wonderful for family travel with the extra room and ability to cook meals and do laundry. I can see if you are just traveling as a couple there might not be as much value. It might be a good idea to try staying at a TS or 2 as you vacation to see if like the set up.

Such a true statement. I can't envision what a week vacation would be like if we were all gathered in one hotel room. Even though we don't spend much time in the room during the day...I am still up at 5am working and husband stays up until midnight watching TV. Could never happen the way it is if everyone wasn't tucked in their own bedrooms not being disturbed by others. If it was just DH and I.....we could probably work it out.

 

[Dean]

My parents, who are still alive and well, plan on giving their two timeshares to my brother and I, in their will. We'd both get one each. My mom has brought this up many times, and also brought it up with the MVC people the last time they were at a resort. The MVC folks suggested that they sign me on as a co-signer now, to make that future owner transition easier.

However, I'm a little on the fence for the timeshare thing. I don't have any timeshares of my own, and read the stories of people desperate to get out of their timeshare. While doing the week at the resort would be fine, I feel that the yearly costs is in line with what it would cost to book hotel room, or similar villa in the same area.

Having done some research, I see that a way "out" of the future inherited timeshare would be to file a Disclaimer Of Interest. However if we took MVC's advice, and put me on as a co-owner of it now, I believe there would be no way "out" during an inheritance event.

My questions are:

1. Am I right in keeping my name off the co-ownership, and just let the will/probate events to take their course?
2. When funds/property are distributed from the will, am I able to accept some items, but refuse (disclaimer of interest) on just the timeshare?
   
3. I've read that if they were to pass away, and I booked/used the timeshare like it was mine, I probably could not do a disclaimer of interest after having used the property/benefit. In the past they've traded the week for a week elsewhere, which I had stayed at, and I've also made a payment to their dues at one point many years ago. Does that disqualify me from a disclaimer of interest?
4. Lastly, I've read that MVC sales are a little better than than some others, but not as good as Disney. Should I just accept the timeshare, use it a couple times, and then sell it if I don't feel comfortable with it? Will it be easy enough to sell? Would I make a little bit of money in the process?

Thanks,
I'm new here, so if this is better in the non-Marriott general timeshare channel, I can repost it there.

If you are unsure, I'd wait. While you can disclaim it later, it still stays in their estate which can't be settled until the timeshare is taken care of. I'd only take it now if you're sure you want it and even then likely only if you'd take advantage yourself sooner in such a way that being an owner is helpful. It might be better if one of you took both weeks rather than one each, there are some advantages to owning 2 weeks over one, the other could still use it. Or you could put both names on both weeks as well though in general I'm not a fan of such family partnerships. I would not use a trust for this situation unless it makes sense otherwise.

 

[Swice]

Hey Mike,
I have a few thoughts for you.
You've asked good questions. I may be reading too much between the lines, but I get the sense there is a lot of apprehension. You've obviously had conversations about the timeshares and are aware of them, but do really know how they work? Have you used them? Have your parents ever given you a week to use or have you been with them on a timeshare week? Do your parents always go to "their" resort or have they hopscotched around the globe with their timeshare? In my experience, timeshare people who learn the system and USE them to their fullest potential, love them. People who don't learn the system hate them and want out. If the unit itself is in Hawaii, that's great-- it's a wonderful place to visit. The BONUS is that since it's Hawaii, it's in demand-- which means you'll be able to trade it for almost anything (within reason). So you can visit Fort Lauderdale, Macro Island, Hilton Head, Paris, etc! You should know many people only go to their "home" resort on occasion because they're trading for other locations. If you and your partner have a sense of adventure, you would probably like trying many of the different locations. I assume your parents have had their units for many years, but Marriott has transitioned to a points system. You could decide on any given year to select "points" instead of occupying your unit. The points are a great value outside of the prime summer seasons... so since you don't have kids and are not tied to the school calendar, you could stretch those points and so to places in September or October when it takes fewer points for each night. So you could very easily use points for a four day visit and points for a second five or six day visit and end up with two vacations instead of one "week."

 

[JT]

Anyone else thought about leaving 40k in a trust (or some other) to help pay for maintenance fees? We only have 1 timeshare so both kids could each use it EOY. Once the mula runs out (30-40 years at this point..not sure about future). Then they can decide what to do with it.

 

[Dean]

Anyone else thought about leaving 40k in a trust (or some other) to help pay for maintenance fees? We only have 1 timeshare so both kids could each use it EOY. Once the mula runs out (30-40 years at this point..not sure about future). Then they can decide what to do with it.

Not a trust but leaving funds to pay for the fees. I've asked my kids (2) if they want the timeshares and they do. My goal is to leave sufficient funds that the required distributions will cover the fees. That's a lofty goal, we'll see if we can work long enough to get there. As a minimum I should be able to leave sufficient funds to cover the fees long term.

 

[mike29943098]

Hi Swice and others,

There is some apprehension, but I do know that the Hawaii property has good trading value. To answer your questions, I have a general idea of how they work. I found the Marriott videos online and watched the Weeks one, as that is what my parents have. But the trading into Interval is the part that I haven't seen much of, and the Marriott videos didn't get into that too much. I've seen the printed Interval book of properties, so I know they have something everywhere.

Yes, my parents have had the weeks for many years, and they have converted them to points when they aren't planning on going to Hawaii.

I have used the timeshares. The first time was in my younger years, I stayed with them in the one bedroom oceanfront unit. They had the bedroom, I had the fold out sleeper sofa in the kitching/living room. While it's nice that one could lock it off to stay for two weeks, my back wouldn't agree with a week on the sleeper sofa again.

I have also used a week traded elsewhere. I stayed at Shadow Ridge two bedroom with some friends for a golf trip, and it worked well. It was a lot of space, and having a unit like that, two full bedrooms with a central living/kitchen, would be ideal and could be a great lock-off option for 2 weeks.

The most recent week I used was at Marriott Waiohai in Poipu. The resort was a great location, and also had the full 2 bedrooms with central living/kitchen area, that worked well for 2 couples and a baby. But the rooms were a bit dated at that time, and I believe they have been remodeled since I was there. At the time, they did not support the lock-off option.

I guess some of the apprehension is around being stuck with something and not wanting to use it, or being able to use it. The trading piece is still a little cloudy to me. I saw in the Marriott video that you can trade in a week, and then use the trade this or next year, which can really build up a savings of weeks in Interval. Does trading Marriott to Marriott properties go through Interval, or can it all be done within the Marriott system? When converting a week to points, are those the Bonoy points that can be redeemed for anything from a single night to several days at a traditional hotel? What if I was doing a road trip, and needed to stay at a different hotel each night, can that be done through points? Can it be done through Interval?

Thanks all for the knowledge sharing.

 

[TXTortoise]

The pro's on here will elaborate, but here's the short (general guidance) story on usage. Each of these has its own set of nuances on how to best use.

1. Call or go online(preferred) and reserve a preferred week at your owned Hawaii resort, at exactly 12 months out. (See Week FAQ)
2. Convert your enrolled week for Destination Points and then use the Points to book anywhere in the MVCI system. Can be any number of days at any resort. Dates are important and the Point FAQ at the top of the Marriott forum speaks to that.
3. Deposit your week with Interval and place an ongoing search for the resort week you want, and/or do daily search yourself. Have two years to use that deposited week.
4. Reserve a good week, like mid-summer or February, and rent it out via Redweek, VacationCandy.com or person-to-person via TUG or other listing. Use money to go to a non-timeshare property or even rent a week from the same entity.
5. Trade your reserved week to another owner who has reserved a week you want, e.g., Maui 1BR for 1-2BR Kauai or other property, i.e., owner-to-owner trade.

I think that's the essence and each has multiple threads about how to best do it. ;-)

 

[Fasttr]

You can also convert your week for Bonvoy points. Not likely a great value, but it is another option in any given year.