Walking away from a Mexico Right to Use?

Hi there, we bought a timeshare at Villa Del Palmar for 1$ from a family member's estate that passed away. The timeshare was transfered to us and we payed 100$ to transfer it. Since then, it has been hard to rent out the timeshare and it seems nobody wants to buy it from me. I was hoping to flip this property for a profit. Now, I am just thinking of getting out of it.

The timeshare is paid off. The maitence fees are about $600 a year.

As part of the transfer process, I don't recall ever giving them my social security number. It is also a Mexican time share with only 19 years left on the original 30 Right to Use years.

Does walking away from this impact my credit? Can they put negative information on my credit report or send me to collections?

Thanks.

dannyp37 wrote:

Hi there, we bought a timeshare at Villa Del Palmar for 1$ from a family member's estate that passed away. The timeshare was transfered to us and we payed 100$ to transfer it. Since then, it has been hard to rent out the timeshare and it seems nobody wants to buy it from me. I was hoping to flip this property for a profit. Now, I am just thinking of getting out of it.

The timeshare is paid off. The maitence fees are about $600 a year.

As part of the transfer process, I don't recall ever giving them my social security number. It is also a Mexican time share with only 19 years left on the original 30 Right to Use years.

Does walking away from this impact my credit? Can they put negative information on my credit report or send me to collections?

Thanks.

It depends on the Mexican resort and how they handle foreclosures. You could try to contact the resort with the info that the original owner (a relative) had died, you then took ownership of their timeshare and now you want out and see what they say, however if they choose to come after you for maintenance fees then they can since you are now listed as the owner.

This is why people should NEVER buy timeshares to flip to possibility make a profit. Timeshares are not a financial investment .... the only investment is in vacations for you and your family.

The sad truth is that a company does not need to have a person's SSN to report the debt to collections. They are able to search by name and address to find the appropriate credit file to attach the debt to. Most mexican properties have a management company in the US (which is why most of our maintenance fees are mailed to that address).

Yes, you can simply walk away because Mexico does not sell timeshare, but vacation clubs. Therefore, they cannot and do not have relationships with American credit reporting agencies. They would have to adhere to several U.S. government regulations, Truth and Lending Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act, etc. Walking away will not impact your credit. In fact, many of the timeshare companies in Mexico do not even have business licenses. They are certainly not financial institutions. The hotels/resorts are separate companies than the timeshare which simply rents out some of the rooms. All the clues you need to know are in your contract. Unfortunately, most people fail to read through them. how do I know, because I worked in Mexico for five years selling timeshares in Cancun, Mazatlan, and Cabo San Lucas. Were you even aware that none of these resorts even sign the contracts? They simply write a scribble without a printed name. Do you homework folks.

So I have a $468 a month payment and only pay when I use the resort in Cancun. You are saying I can just walk away and never pay on it again being an American?

roberto550 wrote:

So I have a $468 a month payment and only pay when I use the resort in Cancun. You are saying I can just walk away and never pay on it again being an American?

If you are paying that kind of money on a monthly basis, then it would certainly appear that you took out a loan of some kind. If you default on that loan and IF (and ONLY if) that Mexican entity also has a business office or business presence of some sort here in the U.S., then they certainly can report the loan default to the credit agencies, resulting in a ding to your credit score (which will generally remain in place for 7 years). Whether the Mexican entity would actually do so is an unknown, but not even an option for them at all if the entirety of their business presence is within Mexico. If they have no business presence in the U.S., you can certainly just walk away and never look back, without fear of any consequences (other than losing all the money that you have already paid to those bandits so far, with no chance of recovering a single penny of that money). Hope this info helps. Good luck!

Therefore as long as it is a Mexican resort they won’t report? Would a cancelation letter still be required or just cancelation of credit card?

wr63 wrote:

Yes, you can simply walk away because Mexico does not sell timeshare, but vacation clubs. Therefore, they cannot and do not have relationships with American credit reporting agencies. They would have to adhere to several U.S. government regulations, Truth and Lending Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act, etc. Walking away will not impact your credit. In fact, many of the timeshare companies in Mexico do not even have business licenses. They are certainly not financial institutions. The hotels/resorts are separate companies than the timeshare which simply rents out some of the rooms. All the clues you need to know are in your contract. Unfortunately, most people fail to read through them. how do I know, because I worked in Mexico for five years selling timeshares in Cancun, Mazatlan, and Cabo San Lucas. Were you even aware that none of these resorts even sign the contracts? They simply write a scribble without a printed name. Do you homework folks.

roset88 wrote:

Therefore as long as it is a Mexican resort they won’t report? Would a cancelation letter still be required or just cancelation of credit card?

Chances are slim that they will report your payment delinquency, but still possible. A cancelation letter isn't necessary unless you are rescinding your purchase within the 5-day window you have after you purchased. Otherwise, just stopping payments will likely work.

As for canceling your credit card, do you something set up so that there are automatic payments on your card? If so, are the payments for annual fees or for the original loan?

hi I just went to Cancun and they sway us to get the timeshare. When we were there in presentation the amount of timeshare in the first presentation was US$ 39,000.00 and gave a deposit of $5350 they told us its 35% down with 10 months to complete the 35% on the first day and I was not able to sleep and get back to them and I know I have 5 days to cancel but instead they offered me from 39 thousand to 21 thousand and still I can get all the upgrade of unit to a 1 bedroom condo and all the tours for free. so again I was entice but there lot of things in the agreement that wasn't disclosed like we need to pay 145 dollars a day per person which I find it too high! my first payment for the 10 month is coming tomorrow but I already report my card lost so they cannot charge me anymore. now I want to walk away with the contract by simply not paying anymore. My question is do I still have to write a cancellation letter or ju=st simple not to pay them? anyway I lived in Canada can they have a legal right to report to credit rating? Thanks so much in advance

estelitaa2 wrote:

...I know I have 5 days to cancel ...

Yes you do have five days to cancel so get right to it! Follow the rescission instructions very carefully including where to send the rescission letter.

One of our volunteers is a British citizen and I have followed many Canadians who bought US and Mexico timeshares. The Canadian government has issued a warning to Canadians about buying Mexico timeshares and the US Treasury has sanctioned a Jalisco Mexican Cartel for distributing fentanyl and timeshare exit scams in the US. I have know Canadians who fell victim to the Cartel. This reporter reached out to me, but he was looking for US victims since it is USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2024/02/22/thousands-of-americans-fall-prey-to-mexican-cartel-cjng-timeshare-scam/72695295007/

Is there any government or creditable legal firm in NJ that can assist in settling a timeshare termination?

josem404 wrote:

Is there any government or creditable legal firm in NJ that can assist in settling a timeshare termination?

You don't need "any government or creditable legal firm" to "[settle] a timeshare termination". Seeing that you posted in the thread with the title "Walking away from a Mexico Right to Use", I'll assume that you have a Mexican right-to-use (RTU). If you want to "terminate" it, the best way is to just stop paying and the resort will just terminate your membership because that's all you really have anyway, just a membership.

You might face a bunch of annoying collection calls and letters and possibly a hit to your credit score, but that's about it.

Again, I emphasize, you do not need to hire any legal firm, government agency, or exit company to end your agreement.