Last updated 2026-07-25
TL;DR
A new timeshare typically costs $1,700 to $40,000+ to buy (average around $23,940 per ARDA industry data), plus average annual maintenance fees near $1,120 that rise most years. Resale units often sell for $1 to a few thousand dollars because owners just want out. Add special assessments, exchange fees, and closing costs on top.
How much does a timeshare cost to buy?
The purchase price depends heavily on whether you buy from a developer at a sales presentation or buy resale from an existing owner trying to get out. The gap between those two prices is enormous, and it's the single most important fact to know before you sign anything. According to the American Resort Development Association (ARDA), the industry's own trade group, the average price paid for a timeshare interval was $23,940 in its 2023 State of the Vacation Ownership Industry report [1]. That figure covers products from a one-week fixed unit at a mid-tier resort to a points-based package with a major branded operator. Developer prices commonly run from around $10,000 for a small studio-week interest up to $40,000 or more for larger units, prime weeks, or big points packages sold by brands like Marriott Vacation Club or Hilton Grand Vacations. Resale is a different world entirely. Because timeshares don't appreciate and most owners eventually want out, resale listings often show asking prices of $1 to $3,000 on secondary marketplaces. Some deeded weeks change hands for essentially nothing plus transfer costs, because the seller just wants off the maintenance fee hook. This is the core lesson: a timeshare is not an investment that holds value. It is a prepaid vacation product with recurring costs attached, and the resale market prices it that way. If you're this deep into researching cost, you're probably also wondering how to get out of a timeshare you already bought. That's a separate question from what one costs to acquire, and we cover it later in this article.
How much are timeshare maintenance fees per year?
Maintenance fees are the recurring cost that catches most owners off guard, because the sales presentation focuses on the purchase price and glosses over what you'll pay every single year afterward, forever, as long as you own it. ARDA's 2023 industry report puts the average annual maintenance fee at $1,120 [1]. That's an average across all product types and resort tiers; owners of larger units, luxury resorts, or points-based systems commonly report annual fees of $1,500 to $2,500 or more. These fees typically increase most years to cover rising labor, insurance, and repair costs at the resort. Increases of 3% to 5% a year are common industry-wide, though there is no single national database that tracks this precisely across every resort. Maintenance fees are due whether or not you use your week that year. Miss a payment and most contracts allow the resort or HOA to place a lien on the timeshare interest and eventually foreclose on it, similar to what happens with an unpaid property tax lien in some states. For a deeper breakdown of what's actually inside that annual bill and why it keeps climbing, see our maintenance fees coverage.
What other fees come with owning a timeshare?
| Developer purchase price | $10,000 to $40,000+ | One-time |
|---|---|---|
| Resale purchase price | $1 to $3,000 | One-time |
| Average maintenance fee | $1,120/year (average, ARDA 2023) [1] | Annual, rising |
| Special assessment | $200 to $5,000+ | Occasional, unpredictable |
| Exchange program fees | $100 to $250/year combined | Annual, optional |
| Closing/transfer fees | $300 to $500+ | At purchase or transfer |
Beyond the sticker price and the annual maintenance fee, timeshare ownership carries several other costs that rarely make it into the sales pitch. Special assessments hit when the resort needs a large repair, like a roof replacement or hurricane damage, that the regular maintenance fee reserve doesn't cover. These can range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand in a single bill, and owners generally have little ability to opt out once the HOA board approves the assessment. Exchange fees apply if you use a system like RCI or Interval International to trade your week or points for a stay somewhere else. Expect to pay an annual membership fee plus a per-exchange fee, often in the $100 to $250 range combined, on top of your maintenance fee. Closing and transfer costs apply both at purchase and if you ever manage to sell or give away the timeshare. These can include recording fees, title work, and transfer fees charged by the resort itself, sometimes $300 to $500 or more. Property taxes are sometimes billed separately from the maintenance fee, depending on the state and resort structure, and can add another few hundred dollars a year. Here's a simple comparison of what a typical year looks like: | Cost type | Typical range | Frequency |
Is a timeshare a good investment or a waste of money?
A timeshare is not a financial investment in any conventional sense. It doesn't appreciate, it isn't liquid, and reselling it for anywhere near what you paid is rare to the point of being nearly impossible for most standard products. Think of it instead as a prepaid vacation plan with a recurring subscription fee attached, one you can't easily cancel. If you genuinely love the specific resort, use it every year without fail, and the math of buying beats renting a comparable unit at that location over your expected years of ownership, it can make sense as a lifestyle purchase. That's a narrow case. For most buyers, the honest math doesn't work. You're paying developer markup upfront, then paying a rising annual fee for decades, then discovering the resale market values your interest at nearly zero. Trade press coverage of the industry's cost structure has long discussed sales and marketing costs eating a large share of the purchase price, though there's no single audited public figure that applies uniformly across every developer, so treat any specific percentage you hear as a rough industry estimate rather than a precise universal number. Compare that to booking hotels or vacation rentals directly, where you pay only for the trips you actually take and owe nothing in years you don't travel. If cost is the main reason you're now regretting the purchase, it's worth reading how timeshare cancellation actually works before assuming you're stuck for life.
Are timeshares scams?
The timeshare product itself is legal in all 50 states, regulated by state real estate and consumer protection law, and millions of owners use theirs happily every year. Calling the entire industry a scam overstates it. But the sales process is a well-documented problem area, and a large secondary industry of exit scams has grown up around distressed owners specifically because so many people regret the purchase. The Federal Trade Commission has brought enforcement actions against companies that charged large upfront fees promising to get consumers out of timeshare contracts and then delivered nothing, or worse, damaged the owner's credit in the process. One documented example is the FTC's case against Reed Hein & Associates (which operated as Timeshare Exit Team), in which the agency's stipulated order required the company to stop the challenged practices and imposed a judgment tied to consumer harm [2]. The pattern to watch for: a company cold-calls you, claims to have a buyer lined up or a fast-track exit process, demands payment upfront (often $2,000 to $10,000 or more), and then goes silent or strings you along for months. So the honest answer is: the timeshare itself usually isn't a scam, but the aggressive sales tactics used to sell it and the industry that's sprung up to help you escape it both deserve real skepticism. Verify any company's standing with your state attorney general's office and the Better Business Bureau before paying anything. For a rundown of red flags, see our exit-scam awareness coverage and our vetted timeshare exit companies comparisons.
How do you get out of a timeshare?
There isn't one universal answer, because it depends heavily on how recently you bought and what your contract and state law allow. Here are the realistic paths, roughly in order of how fast and cheap they are. Rescission, if you're still inside the window. Every state gives buyers a right to cancel a timeshare purchase within a set number of days after signing, no questions asked, no penalty. This window is short (commonly measured in a handful of calendar days depending on the state) and starts running from the date you sign or receive the required disclosure documents, whichever your state's statute specifies. You must confirm your state's rescission window and follow the exact cancellation procedure in your contract and state statute, usually written notice sent by a method that proves delivery. Miss the deadline and this option is gone permanently. Deed-back or surrender programs. A growing number of resorts and developers now offer official deed-back (sometimes called "exit" or "surrender") programs that let you hand the deed back, usually if your fees are current and the unit is free of liens. Marriott Vacation Club, for example, has run structured exit programs for eligible owners in the past. These cost little or nothing beyond paperwork fees, and they're worth asking about before paying anyone else. Resale, even at a steep loss. Selling for $1 to a few hundred dollars, sometimes even paying the buyer's closing costs, is common but still cheaper than years of ongoing fees if a buyer exists. Hiring a licensed attorney or verified transfer service to review your contract for exit paths, negotiate a deed-back, or handle a resale transfer properly. What you should never do: stop paying maintenance fees hoping the resort simply lets you go. Unpaid fees can lead to a lien, collections action, and credit damage, and none of that means the resort will release you from the contract. For state-specific rescission rules, start with how do you get out of a timeshare and how to get out of timeshare.
How to sell a timeshare (and what it's really worth)
Selling a timeshare is legal and sometimes possible, but you need to set expectations correctly before you start. The resale market is flooded with sellers and short on buyers, because most people who want a timeshare already have one, and everyone else has heard the horror stories about fees. Start by getting a real sense of value. Licensed timeshare resale marketplaces and licensed real estate brokers who specialize in timeshare resale can tell you what comparable units in your resort have actually sold for, which is often shockingly low, sometimes $0 to a few thousand dollars for a standard week. Never pay a large upfront fee to a company that claims it has a buyer already lined up for your unit. This is one of the most common resale scam patterns regulators have documented: so-called resale companies that charge $500 to several thousand dollars in advance fees for a sale that never happens. The FTC's case against Reed Hein & Associates (Timeshare Exit Team) is one documented example of consumers paying large upfront fees for exit or resale help that didn't deliver [2]. If you do find a legitimate buyer, expect to handle the transfer through the resort or a title company, pay transfer and closing fees, and possibly still owe that year's prorated maintenance fee. Many sellers find it faster and cheaper overall to pursue a deed-back through the resort than to wait for a resale buyer who may never appear. For step by step guidance, see how to get out of a timeshare, which covers the resale process alongside other exit routes.
How to get rid of a timeshare you inherited
Inherited timeshares are their own headache, because you didn't choose the purchase and often don't want the ongoing fee obligation, but the contract typically transfers with the estate regardless. If the estate is in probate, an executor generally has the option to disclaim the inheritance, formally refusing it, before it transfers. The rules for disclaiming an interest vary by state probate law, and there are strict deadlines: under the federal tax disclaimer framework in Internal Revenue Code Section 2518, a disclaimer must generally be made within nine months of the decedent's death to be treated as a qualified disclaimer for tax purposes [3]. Talk to the estate's attorney before making any decision here, since disclaiming affects other heirs and the estate's tax position too. If you've already accepted the transfer and the deed is in your name, you're in the same position as any other owner: you can attempt a deed-back with the resort, try resale, or in the worst case let it go to foreclosure, which will hurt your credit but does eventually end the obligation, often after a lengthy delinquency and foreclosure process governed by state law. Many resorts have started offering simplified deed-back paths specifically for heirs who don't want the property, since foreclosures are expensive and slow for the resort too. It's always worth calling the resort's owner services line and asking directly.
How much does it cost to exit a timeshare?
Exit costs vary wildly depending on the path you take, and this is exactly where scams do the most damage, because distressed owners are primed to pay almost anything to make the annual fee stop. A deed-back through the resort, when offered, often costs little more than administrative and recording fees, sometimes under $500 total. A resale transfer, if you find a buyer, typically runs $300 to $600 in closing and transfer costs on top of whatever (often nothing) you net from the sale. An attorney reviewing your contract for a rescission or breach-of-contract claim might charge a flat fee or hourly rate that varies by state and firm, commonly ranging from a few hundred dollars for a simple consultation to several thousand for active litigation. Then there's the exit company category, where advertised packages commonly run $2,000 to $10,000 or more, and the FTC has documented cases where consumers paid these fees and got nothing in return, including in its case against Reed Hein & Associates (Timeshare Exit Team) [2]. This is the segment to approach with the most caution. Verify any company's complaint history with your state attorney general's consumer protection office and the Better Business Bureau before paying a dollar, and never pay 100% upfront for services not yet performed. No legitimate exit path can promise you a guaranteed outcome, and any pitch that promises one should be treated as a red flag. We built a $149 one-time Timeshare Exit Kit at ExitHonest specifically because most owners don't need a $5,000 retainer, they need an organized way to understand their contract, their state's rescission rule, and their realistic options before they pay anyone else for anything. You can start with the exit-kit-builder if you want a structured starting point rather than guessing.
What's the real total cost of owning a timeshare for 10 years?
Run the numbers honestly and the ten-year picture usually looks worse than owners expect at the sales table. Take a mid-range purchase at $20,000 with a starting maintenance fee of $1,120 (the ARDA average) [1], and assume a conservative 4% annual fee increase, which is on the low end of commonly reported industry increases. Over ten years, maintenance fees alone total roughly $13,450 (summing a fee that grows from $1,120 to about $1,657 by year ten). Add the $20,000 purchase price and you're at approximately $33,450 total outlay over a decade, before counting any special assessments, exchange fees, or closing costs. That's before you've paid for a single flight or meal on any of those vacations. Compare that to booking a comparable week's stay at market rate every year for ten years. Depending on the destination and unit size, many owners would spend less over ten years renting equivalent accommodations on the open market, with zero obligation in years they skip travel entirely and zero exposure to special assessments or a contract that outlives their interest in traveling to the same location every year. This is exactly why the resale market values these products near zero: the future buyer is inheriting a rising fee obligation with a shrinking pool of eager buyers behind them.
How do rescission periods work by state, and why does the window matter so much for cost?
Rescission is the cheapest exit path that exists, because it's free and it's your legal right, but only for a short window after purchase. Every state has a timeshare rescission or "cooling off" statute that lets a buyer cancel the purchase within a specified number of days, with no cancellation fee and full refund of money paid, provided you follow the state's required cancellation procedure exactly. The number of days and the exact procedure (written notice, certified mail, specific delivery address) differ by state, so you must confirm your state's rescission window and required notice method directly from your state's statute or your state attorney general's consumer protection page rather than relying on what a salesperson tells you verbally. Florida, for example, requires timeshare purchase contracts to include specific cancellation disclosure language and sets a rescission period under Florida Statutes Chapter 721. The statute states that a purchaser "has the right to cancel the contract until midnight of the 10th calendar day following whichever of the following days is later: the date the purchaser executed the contract" or the date the purchaser received the last of all required documents, per Florida Statutes Section 721.10 [4]. Other states set their own timelines under their own real estate or consumer protection codes. If you're still inside that window, this is by far the cheapest and fastest cost-avoidance move available: rescission costs nothing but a stamp and following the contract's instructions precisely. Once the window closes, you move into the more expensive and uncertain territory of deed-back, resale, or paid exit assistance covered above. See our state-by-state breakdown starting at how to get out of a timeshare.
Frequently asked questions
How much is a timeshare on average?
ARDA's 2023 industry report puts the average purchase price at $23,940, though developer prices commonly range from about $10,000 to $40,000 or more depending on unit size, brand, and location [1]. Resale prices are far lower, often $1 to $3,000, because the secondary market values these products near zero.
How much do timeshare maintenance fees cost per year?
The average annual maintenance fee is $1,120 according to ARDA's 2023 State of the Vacation Ownership Industry report, though larger units, luxury resorts, or points systems commonly run $1,500 to $2,500 or more per year, and fees typically rise most years [1].
Are timeshares scams?
The timeshare product itself is legal and regulated by state law, so it isn't a scam by definition. But aggressive sales tactics and a widespread upfront-fee exit scam industry are real, documented problems; the FTC's case against Reed Hein & Associates (Timeshare Exit Team) is one example of enforcement action in this space [2]. Verify any company before paying it anything.
How do you get out of a timeshare?
Options include rescinding within your state's short cancellation window if you just bought, pursuing an official deed-back or surrender program through the resort, attempting a resale (often at a steep loss), or consulting a licensed attorney. Never stop paying fees hoping the resort releases you; that risks a lien and credit damage instead.
How to sell a timeshare without getting scammed?
Get a real value estimate from a licensed resale broker first, expect a low or even zero net price, and never pay a large upfront fee to any company claiming it already has a buyer lined up. Regulators have documented this exact advance-fee resale scam pattern repeatedly, including in the FTC's case against Reed Hein & Associates (Timeshare Exit Team) [2].
How much does it cost to get rid of a timeshare?
A resort deed-back program, when offered, often costs under $500 in admin fees. Resale transfers typically run $300 to $600 in closing costs. Paid exit companies commonly charge $2,000 to $10,000 or more, a category where the FTC has documented significant consumer harm [2].
How to get rid of a timeshare you inherited?
If the estate is still in probate, an executor can potentially disclaim the inheritance under the estate's state probate rules and the federal qualified disclaimer framework in IRC Section 2518, generally within nine months of death [3]. If the deed already transferred to you, you have the same options as any owner: deed-back, resale, or in worst cases, foreclosure.
Is a timeshare a good investment?
No, not in the traditional financial sense. Timeshares don't appreciate, they're illiquid, and resale prices are typically a small fraction of the purchase price. Treat it as a prepaid vacation lifestyle product with a recurring fee, not an appreciating asset.
What is the rescission period for canceling a timeshare?
Every state sets its own rescission window and cancellation procedure by statute, and it's typically short. Florida, for instance, gives buyers until midnight of the 10th calendar day after signing or receiving all required documents, whichever is later, under Florida Statutes Section 721.10. Confirm your specific state's rule rather than relying on verbal promises from a salesperson.
How much does a timeshare exit company cost?
Advertised packages commonly run $2,000 to $10,000 or more. The FTC has documented cases, including its case against Reed Hein & Associates (Timeshare Exit Team), where consumers paid these upfront fees and received no actual exit, so verify any company's complaint record with your state attorney general's office before paying anything upfront.
Can I just stop paying my timeshare maintenance fees?
You can, but it's risky: unpaid fees typically lead to a lien on the timeshare interest, collections activity, and potential credit damage, and stopping payment does not mean the resort will release you from the contract. Pursue a formal deed-back or documented exit path instead.
What's the difference between developer price and resale price for a timeshare?
Developer prices average around $23,940 per ARDA's 2023 data and include heavy sales and marketing markup [1]. Resale prices are often $1 to $3,000 for the same or comparable unit, because most sellers just want to stop paying maintenance fees and buyers are scarce.
Sources
- ARDA, State of the Vacation Ownership Industry 2023 Report: Average timeshare purchase price and average annual maintenance fee figures
- FTC v. Reed Hein & Associates, LLC (d/b/a Timeshare Exit Team), Stipulated Order for Permanent Injunction, Case No. 2:19-cv-00107 (W.D. Wash.): FTC enforcement action against a timeshare exit company for advance-fee scam practices
- Internal Revenue Code Section 2518, Qualified Disclaimers: Federal tax rules governing qualified disclaimers of inherited property, including the nine-month deadline
- Florida Statutes Section 721.10, Cancellation of Purchase Contract: Florida's statutory 10-day rescission period for timeshare purchase contracts
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, What is a lien and how does it affect me?: How unpaid debts secured by property, such as maintenance fee delinquency, can lead to a lien
- Internal Revenue Service, Instructions for Form 706, disclaimer references: IRS guidance referencing disclaimer treatment for estate tax purposes consistent with IRC 2518