Trustee Deed for Aruba Surf Club

I just recently won an auction for a 2br/2ba oceanside unit at aruba surf club. I was told by the trustee that upon funds clearing the bank, they will mail me a trustee deed. What will the process be for me to get the ownership in my name? Will I need to go through a timeshare closing company or is that process already taken care of once I receive the trustee deed? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I've never heard of a trustee deed for a timeshare .... I would consult someone in real estate about such.

I wouldn't send a cent until a contract is sent to you explaining the details of the transaction.

tadg3 wrote:

I was told by the trustee that upon funds clearing the bank, they will mail me a trustee deed. What will the process be for me to get the ownership in my name?

There are a few timeshare entities in the U.S. where you essentially buy into an exisiting trust (as opposed to having individual ownership of a specific unit / week). Diamond Resorts International is one such entity having this arrangement in the U.S. through "The Club". I think (although I'm not absolutely certain) that Wyndham may also have some ownerships structured in this manner as well.

However, your situation seems to involve another country (not the USA), so applicable laws and trustee arrangements there might very well differ from those in the U.S. Although it would admittedly be an expensive phone call, it might be worth contacting the resort directly to see if they could provide (or at least steer you toward) the actual details of their particular trustee terms and conditions.

Do not send ANY money until you get your questions answered either directly from the resort or a real estate professional, ideally both.

Since the laws governing timeshare and real estate are different in Aruba from the United States and since I am NOT qualified to give legal opinion, I would say that getting in touch with the resort would be a great place to start.

Please keep this forum updated as what you find out will undoubtedly help other people.

So here is the update so far. I contacted owner modifications at Marriott. They said no deed was necessary because it was a right to use ownership. Therefore, the debtors or bankruptcy trustee would have to send the original share certificate back to Marriott and request and external transfer pack. The bankruptcy trustee contacted Marriott and requested the transfer pack and contacted the original owners to get the share certificate. Marriott has decided to not excercise their right of first refusal, so the purchase price of 3000.00 stands. Once the share certificate and external transfer pack is completed, I will pay marriott for the 2010 overdue maintenance fees and for the 2011 maintenance fees. Ownership week is week 46, which I believe is around thanksgiving. Hopefully the process will go quickly enough to get use this year. If not, I still will have a decent week in the marriott system, for around 6000.00. I don't know yet how it will trade or what the term limit is on the rtu certificate. My research has led me to believe it is around 40 more years....give or take. Thanks for all the help. I will keep the thread posted. Thankfully, it does not seem like I will have to do any court recording or closing...as it is done entirely through marriott and the bankruptcy trustee........ More to come...

tadg3 wrote:

...what the term limit is on the rtu certificate. My research has led me to believe it is around 40 more years...

Unlikely, at least in my experience....

Most such RTU's time periods are 40 years IN TOTAL. If so in this instance, the question is when the original purchase was made, an act which likely commenced that 40 year RTU time period. The time which has elapsed since then would then be SUBTRACTED from the 40 year total.

Point well taken. The current owners bought the timeshare in 2003, but again, that is not necessarily the beginning of the rtu term. Hopefully, I get 20 or more years of use out of it. If I, do, the purchase price should be worth it...especially considering they are listing the same units at 26,000. Unless, if purchased from a developer, the rtu term starts over at the date of purchase.....