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Sep 01, 2004 -- Get rid of your timeshare by donating it

Clark has received many calls over the years from people who are stuck with a timeshare they just can't seem to sell. The truth is that timeshares are extremely difficult to sell no matter what you paid for them or when you bought them. Even if you love your timeshare, sometimes your circumstances change and you need to sell your week. The trouble is that there is no solid, active secondary market for selling timeshares because they lose about 80 percent of their value the moment they are sold. But there may be a new way to solve this problem. Clark read about the new option in the Wall Street Journal, but he wants you to keep in mind that it is very new. It’s a donation program called “Donate for a Cause,” and it allows you to donate the timeshare to a charity and claim a tax deduction of $4,900. There is no fee at all, and you don’t need an appraisal, according to the Journal. Clark wonders if there are any gotchas, and he wants you to know that you will be a guinea pig if you get involved. But he talked with the owner to find out if there are any gotchas, and he couldn't find any. Even the annual maintenance fees you have to pay are transfered with the donation. So, where does the timeshare go? When you transfer the ownership, you get a receipt for your donation and the proceeds go to a non-profit organization of your choosing. The Web site for information is donateforacause.org. The owner also recommends that you discuss the tax issues with your accountant before you deduct it.

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What others are saying

  • selling a time share
    the last comment from Clark was 9/2004. Is there any more recent informatin about selling time shares?
  • TimeShare for Sell
    My husband and I purchase a timeshare on Hilton Head Island,SC in 2007 we upgrade to the Platinum Season which we have the 4th of July week-has 3 bedrooms which sleeps 8-10 people located at the Island links at Coral Resorts. We have paid maintenance fee for this year, and they are not due again until 2011. We also have the points which we have accumalate, we have not used. Any one interest email me angelaburnett@bellsouth.net. I will give more detail information. I contacted Donate for a Cause, and the timeshare do have to be paid for in order to donate it. Thank you.
  • Shell Vacation Time Share
    I am so ready to donate my timeshare to the Donate For Acause organization. I read some donation process was facing issue and some not. For those who donate smoothly your Time Share, could you share with us what organization you were donating to. I believe we all make mistake having the Time Share. Now we don't want to make second mistake and donate to the wrong organization. Please Advise. Thank you.
  • Donate for a Cause
    Do not use Donate for a cause based in Bozman, Montana. We have been dealing with this company for other a year and its been a nightmare for us. You can not trust this company, has almost cost us bad credit for unpaid maintenance fees which they claimed they were going to pay and did not. We paid the maintenance fees with late fees added on and still are trying to get the money baqck from this company. They had collected the money from the buyer. We started out to do a good thing and just got burnt from this company and its still on going.
  • Donate for a Cause
    I was told my timeshare could be sold by this organization and went through all the steps required. I just got a letter that they need $800.00 to complete the process. Of course they say that the EIGHT HUNDRED DOLLARS is tax deductable.
  • Donating Timeshare
    I recently donated my Florida Timeshare through donateforacause.com. This organization is very honest and did exactly what they said they would do. It did not cost me one cent out of pocket.They said there was a 90% chance they would accept my timeshare and then it would go through a timeshare broker who would handle all the transfer paperwork at no cost. It took about three months and I am now free of my timeshare. I can't say enough about this organization.
  • timeshare donation
    Sadly, in order to donate a timeshare to charity, the charity has to be able to sell your timeshare for at least some profit. This eliminates many of you from donation if you are unable to sell your timeshares for any amount of money. and yes the timeshare must be paid off in full, and have no outstanding fees/taxes/liens against it.

    You can read more about the tax deduction for timeshares in the tug advice section, where there is an article written by a certified CPA specifically for that purpose.
  • Timeshare Donation
    Pam, if you never probated your husbands estate i'm not sure what you expect the Donate For A Cause to do. They can't be responsible to complete that process. If you have a property in Hawaii i'm sure they would love to take it if it doesn't have estate problems.
  • Timeshare Donation
    I donated my timeshare 2 months ago and everything went smoothly. It didn't cost me anything. The timeshare is out of my name and i have my tax receipt for my donation. Glad to be rid of it.
  • Can I donate my timeshare even if I owe the dues.
    I have no job and I am on disability. I cannot pay the exorbitant dues. Therefore, I decided to donate it back to the organization and they are demanding $385 to do a title search. I cannot afford to pay the cost. Need assistance.
  • Timeshares
    I was coaxed into buying a timeshare when the economy was much better and my husband and I had steady paychecks. My husband is now almost out of work and we are struggeling with the monthly payment. What can I do to get out of it without filing bankruptcy on it....I paid $12,000 and owe $9,000. I just can't keep up the $200 a month payments and now the maintenance fee is due $438.00.
  • Timeshares
    Can i donate it if I'm still paying/owe on it???
  • Donate For A Cause
    I donated my property to them last September and everything went smooth. The timeshare is out of my name and i have a tax receipt for my donation.
  • selling timeshare
    there is a link on donateforacause.org and say it can be tax deductable... what if you don't file taxes?
  • TIMESHARE
    WE GOT A CALL FROM GLOBAL TIMESHARES.THEY SAY THEY HAVE A BUYER.aLL THEY NEED IS 1,300 TO DO TITAL SEARCH. THEY WILL FAX US A CONTRACT. cAN THIS BE FOR REAL
  • donate for a cause
    Beware that with the current financial climate you may get an email like me, they said they would take it but now want $900 to help market it.
  • Donate for a Cause
    My husband & I started talking with this organization in the spring. My husband passed away in June. I continued to work with them, INCLUDING signing over the 3 properties' deeds with the expectation that they would immediately take over the properties. That was months ago. Then in December they informed me that they no longer wanted the one property and they weren't sure about the other two, but would keep trying. I can't afford the monthly charges much longer and have now lost months in this process. PLUS, I have given them signed deeds!! What a mess!
  • Donate For a Cause
    I donated a Westgate Timeshare a year ago. They were great. Took my charitable donation and don't pay the high maintenance fee any more.
  • timeshare
    tried talking with Apex professionals LLC there you pay to make the headache that started off so well go away. I paid it to make it gone will keep you informed
  • Timeshare Selling Sites like TUG
    Be careful posting on these sites. After I left a post to find information about selling my timeshare I start to receive scam/spam emails phishing for my bank information like the Nigerian 419 scams. Better to make a new email address specifically for that purpose and not use your main one.
  • Time Shares
    I do not what to comtinue paying for at time share. While that effect my credit?
  • TIMESHARE DONATION
    CLARK, DO YOU STILL RECOMMEND DONATING A TIMESHARE TO "DONATE FOR A CAUSE". IS IT A REPUTABLE ORGANIZATION?
  • timeshare
    We are in desperate need to sell our timeshare. Have you heard of any other ways to sell? Does the donate thing work?
  • Donate for a Cause
    I have experience working with Donate for a Cause. NINE MONTHS AGO I started working with them trying to donate my timeshare, per Clark's information. Since the timeshare was originally purchased, my husband passed away, with a death certificate and will, which was probated here in Missouri. Although Donate for a Cause accepted my timeshare for donation and I immediately sent them my late husband's death certificate (he was an owner), it took them nine months to let me know that in fact they didn't want my timeshare unless I probated his will in Hawaii - where the timeshare is located. This will cost hundreds of dollars - which they are not willing to pay for. At this point, now that 9 months have passed, they have decided they don't want the property due to the probate issue and have left me high and dry. I already paid them to secure a copy of the title and other assorted documents. This is a rip off. Buyer beware! Communication with them is difficult at best. They do not return emails or phone calls until days later and then don't do what they say they'll do. Don't fall into this trap!
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