If you bought your timeshare at a timeshare presentation and it looked like a great opportunity, the thought of trading your weeks to vacation at 5-star resorts was probably irresistible. But if reality checks in and you can't afford the fees, your loan needs to be paid off, or you just don't use it, you need to sell it--and sell it now. This will not be an easy task and you may need to explore various tactics in order to make your timeshare shine brighter than all the opportunities out there.
Spread the word to family and friends. Not only can you tell your family and friends when you see them, but you can also post your sale on your MySpace or Facebook page. Unfortunately, you probably won't be selling your timeshare at the price you paid, so let them know what you originally paid and that this is a great deal for someone in the market for a timeshare.
Advertise in the local newspaper. Your best bet will be to advertise where your timeshare is located. For example, if you own at Massanutten Resort, then place an ad in the "Daily News Report," the local paper in Harrisonburg, Virginia. However, if your resort is located in a popular vacation town like Orlando, you may want to place ads throughout the country. If a news company like The Tribune Company owns various papers, you may be able to advertise in several locations for a smaller fee.
List your timeshare on eBay, which reaches a mass audience and will cost you a minimum of a $70 timeshare listing fee. If you want to sell your timeshare quickly, set a low reserve or none at all and let buyers have a bidding war. If you expect more for your timeshare, though, set a higher reserve or just a "Buy it Now" price. Be sure to check out other similar listings, but most importantly, under "Advanced search," click the icon "Completed Listings" to see exactly how much previous listings have actually sold for and under what conditions they were listed (see Resources below).
List your timeshare on the craigslist website. This is a free service and you can list your timeshare worldwide (see Resources below). You may want to start in your timeshare's general location or state.
Advertise on timeshare websites. There are online sources that were developed just for timeshares and some specifically for the resale of timeshares, including Timeshare Users Group (TUG) and RedWeek (see Resources below). Some are free and some may charge a small listing fee.
Advertise in timeshare magazines, which are marketed for timeshare owners. Examples include Timesharing Today, Endless Vacations and Owners Perspective Magazine.
Create and post a flier. Many businesses have community bulletin boards. Make a flier and include pull-off tabs on the bottom. Post everywhere you can find a board. When you go out of town, look around at businesses there too. Likely places with community bulletin boards are grocery stores, bookstores and some popular chains like Starbucks and Panera Bread.
Post your sale creatively online. Visit blogs written about timeshares and post a comment or two, and then post just one more that nonchalantly includes your interest in selling your personal timeshare and your email address. Join online timeshare groups like the ones found at Yahoo! Groups.
List with a real estate agency. There may be an up-front fee, but many will only charge you a commission once your timeshare sells. There are many scams out there, so be sure the timeshare realty company you choose is affiliated with the American Resort Development Association (ARDA), in which members follow certain ethical guidelines for selling timeshares (see Resources below).
Join your resort's timeshare resale program. The developer of your resort may have a resale program. There are fees associated with this, so be sure to inquire how exactly they plan to market your timeshare so you can decide if it is worth it.
