Biennial timeshare maintenance fees: what owners actually pay

Last updated 2026-07-26

what does "biennial" mean on a timeshare maintenance fee bill

Biennial means every two years, not twice a year. If your timeshare is on a biennial maintenance fee schedule, you get billed once every other year instead of annually, and the bill is roughly double what a comparable annual fee would be for that same interval. Some resorts also split ownership itself into biennial "odd year" or "even year" use, where you only get to use the unit every other year. That's different from a biennial billing schedule on an annual-use week. Read your public offering statement or your association's governing documents to see which one applies to you, because the paperwork language ("odd-year interval," "biennial assessment cycle") isn't always obvious from the coupon book alone. The confusion matters because owners sometimes assume a biennial bill means they're paying half of what an annual owner pays. They're not. Over any four-year stretch, a biennial owner on a $2,400-every-two-years schedule pays the same as an annual owner paying $1,200 a year. The math doesn't favor either side by itself; it depends on the base fee amount, not the frequency. If you're unsure how your specific ownership is billed, call your resort's owner services line (not a third-party "transfer" company) and ask them to read you the fee schedule section of your contract. This is the same first step we'd recommend before doing anything else, including reviewing options like a deed-back program or figuring out how to get out of a timeshare.

how much do timeshares cost, including fees

Upfront purchase price (developer-direct)	$15,000-$30,000+
Resale purchase price (same week, secondary market)	$0-$3,000 (some given away free)
Annual maintenance fee (average)	$1,260/year
Biennial maintenance fee (billed every 2 years)	~$1,000-$2,500+ per bill
Annual fee increase	3%-5%/year, commonly reported
Special assessment	Varies widely; can be $500-$5,000+ one-time	These are averages, not promises. Your resort's fee schedule, reserve fund health, and recent storm or renovation history will move your actual number up or down.

The average timeshare purchase price was $23,940 in 2023, according to the American Resort Development Association's owner survey conducted with Ragatz Associates. That's the resale-agnostic average across new purchases; resale prices are typically far lower, often a few hundred to a few thousand dollars for the same week, because the developer's marketing and sales commission costs (which can run 40-50% of the purchase price) aren't recouped in resale. The average annual maintenance fee in that same 2023 ARDA/Ragatz data was $1,260. That figure is an annual-equivalent number across all owners surveyed, including biennial and points-based owners, so a biennial owner's actual per-bill invoice is closer to $2,000-$2,500 if their per-year cost is near that average. Maintenance fees have also been outpacing general inflation. Industry survey data and state consumer-affairs pages note that fees commonly rise 3% to 5% a year, and special assessments (one-time charges for storm damage, roof replacement, or renovation) are billed on top of the regular fee and are not optional once the association board approves them ^[1]. Here's a rough cost table based on industry survey data and typical resort disclosures: | Cost item | Typical range |

why do maintenance fees keep rising even on a biennial schedule

Maintenance fees rise because the costs they cover, property insurance, utilities, staffing, landscaping, and reserve contributions for future repairs, all rise too. A biennial schedule doesn't insulate you from that; it just bundles two years of increases into one bill, which can make the jump feel bigger when it lands. Insurance costs are a major driver in coastal and hurricane-exposed states. Florida's Office of Insurance Regulation tracks statewide property insurance market conditions, and commercial and condo association premiums have risen sharply following major storm seasons; timeshare resorts are billed as condominium-style associations, so they absorb the same market pressure. Reserve fund requirements are another factor. Many states require timeshare and condo associations to maintain adequate reserves for major repairs (roofs, elevators, pools). If a reserve study finds the fund underfunded, the board can raise regular fees or levy a special assessment to catch up. This is a legal and normal part of association governance, not a sign of fraud by itself. A biennial owner who skips a year of billing doesn't skip the cost trend; they just see it every other year in a bigger chunk. If your last two bills were $1,900 then $2,300, that's roughly a 21% jump over two years, which sounds alarming but works out to about 10% a year, not far off the higher end of the commonly cited 3%-5% annual range for a single bad year (storm-driven insurance spikes push individual years well above the long-run average).

are timeshares scams

The timeshare industry itself is legal and regulated at the state level; it is not inherently a scam. But the sales process has a long, well-documented history of high-pressure tactics, and a separate scam industry has grown up around owners trying to exit, which is the more dangerous problem for most people reading this. The Federal Trade Commission's guidance on avoiding timeshare resale scams warns that companies sometimes charge large upfront fees, thousands of dollars, promising to sell, rent, or cancel a timeshare, and then deliver nothing ^[2]. The FTC's guidance states plainly to "never wire money or send a check to anyone who guarantees they'll sell your timeshare" and to be skeptical of unsolicited resale offers ^[2]. Separately, several state attorneys general have brought enforcement actions or issued consumer warnings against timeshare exit companies for deceptive upfront-fee practices. The Arizona Attorney General's consumer information page on timeshares warns residents to research any exit or resale company before paying anything upfront. If a caller promises they can get you out of your contract, promises a resale price, or asks for a large payment before doing any work, that's the classic red flag pattern regulators describe. So: the timeshare product itself is a real, if often overpriced and hard-to-exit, vacation ownership structure. The scam risk is concentrated in (a) aggressive original sales presentations that misrepresent resale value or investment potential, and (b) the exit and resale services market, where you need to vet any company before paying anything upfront. We cover the red flags in detail in our guide to timeshare exit companies.

how to get out of a timeshare, step by step

There's no single button that works for everyone, and no legitimate company can promise a specific outcome, but there is a sane order of operations. First, check whether you're still inside your state's rescission window. Every state that regulates timeshares gives buyers a short right to cancel after signing, no reason required, but the length varies a lot and the clock usually starts at signing or at receipt of the public offering statement, whichever your state's law specifies. Confirm your state's rescission window before doing anything else, because if you're still inside it, canceling in writing following your contract's instructions is by far the fastest and cheapest way out. Second, if the rescission window has passed, contact the resort or management company directly and ask about a deed-back, surrender, or exit program. Many major operators now run their own official exit or take-back programs precisely because they don't want the maintenance-fee headache of unresponsive owners on their books. This costs nothing or very little in many cases, compared to third-party exit companies. See our full deed-back programs overview. Third, if a deed-back isn't offered, look at resale, even at a steep discount or $0 listing price, transferring the deed to anyone willing to take over the fee obligation legally (through a proper closing, not a "we'll handle the paperwork" verbal handoff) at least gets you off the deed and the fee roll. Fourth, if you're getting nowhere, be extremely careful about paying anyone a large upfront fee for a promised exit. Review a timeshare call list of contacts and steps before hiring anyone, and check any company against your state attorney general's consumer complaint database and the Better Business Bureau first. We also built a self-directed option for owners who want a structured, lower-cost starting point: the $149 one-time Timeshare Exit Kit at /exit-kit-builder walks through the rescission check, deed-back request letters, and documentation steps without charging the thousands of dollars a full-service exit company often does. It's not a guarantee of cancellation, no legitimate product can promise that, but it's a fixed, transparent cost versus an open-ended one.

how do you get out of a timeshare if the rescission window already passed

Missing the rescission window doesn't mean you're stuck forever, but it does mean your remaining options take longer and require more paperwork. The core paths are deed-back/surrender, resale/transfer, or, in rare cases, legal action if the original sale involved fraud or misrepresentation. Deed-back programs, where the resort takes the deed back voluntarily, are increasingly common. Some major timeshare operators have formal surrender programs; others handle it case by case if you write to owner relations and explain your situation (age, inability to use it, fee burden). There's usually no guarantee of acceptance, and some programs require you to be current on fees and have no outstanding loan balance first. Resale is legal but the market is weak. Because original purchase prices bake in heavy marketing costs, resale values for the same interval are often a small fraction of what was originally paid, and many owners end up giving weeks away for $1 or less just to transfer the deed and stop the fee clock. Be cautious of "we can sell your timeshare" pitches that ask for money upfront; the FTC's warning about advance-fee promises applies directly here ^[2]. If you believe the original sale involved actual fraud (falsified income verification, undisclosed material terms, forged signatures), some state consumer protection statutes allow a longer challenge period than the standard rescission window, but this generally requires an attorney and evidence, not a phone call to an exit company. Check your state attorney general's consumer protection page for how to file a complaint and whether they track patterns of complaints against your specific resort.

how to sell a timeshare and what it's actually worth

Selling a timeshare yourself, through a licensed timeshare resale broker or a peer-to-peer marketplace, is legal and often cheaper than paying an exit company, but expect a low sale price or, honestly, no profit at all. The resale math is blunt: original purchase prices average near $24,000, but the same week resold often lists for a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, sometimes for $1 just to transfer the deed. That's because the buyer isn't paying for the sales commission, marketing, and developer overhead baked into the original price; they're paying close to the bare value of a future week's use, minus the ongoing fee obligation they're taking on. Before listing, get a copy of your deed and current maintenance fee statement, confirm there's no outstanding loan balance (lenders won't let a deed transfer with a lien unresolved), and check whether your resort has a right of first refusal clause that lets them match any sale price before you can sell to an outside buyer. Avoid any resale company that asks for a large upfront listing or marketing fee before producing a single verified buyer; this is the pattern the FTC specifically warns about ^[2]. Legitimate licensed real estate brokers handling timeshare resale typically work on commission from the sale proceeds, similar to standard real estate transactions, not a big fee paid before any sale happens.

how to get rid of a timeshare when nobody wants to buy it

If resale isn't realistic, either because the market for your resort and season is dead or because the fee burden scares off every buyer, deed-back and surrender become the more realistic path, and in some cases simply staying current on fees while you sort out an exit is the safest interim step. We want to be direct about one thing: don't stop paying maintenance fees as a strategy to force an exit. Unpaid fees can lead to a lien on the property, collection activity, and damage to your credit, and they don't make the association release you from the contract faster. If cost is the real emergency, contact your resort's owner services directly and ask about hardship programs, payment plans, or an accelerated deed-back; some operators have these, especially for older owners or inherited interests nobody in the family wants. Inherited timeshares are a specific version of this problem. An heir who never wanted the interest and never signed anything can sometimes disclaim the inheritance formally through the probate process, refusing to accept the property, which in many states prevents the debt and obligation from transferring to them. This needs to happen through the estate's probate process, generally before accepting any benefit tied to the property, so talk to the estate's probate attorney early, ideally before any maintenance fee bill in the deceased owner's name gets paid by the heir personally. For a broader menu of exit paths beyond resale and deed-back, our alternatives overview and our page on how to get out of timeshare walk through options like donation, timeshare-specific nonprofits that sometimes accept unwanted weeks, and rental-to-offset-fees strategies for owners not ready to fully exit.

how do biennial fees compare to annual fees over time

Year 1	$1,260	$0 (or bill lands this year)
Year 2	$1,310	~$2,570 (bundled)
Year 3	$1,362	$0
Year 4	$1,417	~$2,780 (bundled)
4-year total	$5,349	~$5,350	The totals land almost identically, as they should, since it's the same underlying obligation split differently. The practical difference is budgeting: a biennial owner needs to set aside roughly $105-$115 a month in a sinking fund to avoid a shock every other year, while an annual owner budgets a smaller monthly amount but pays every single year without a break. Neither structure is better or worse by default. What actually matters for your wallet is the base fee level at your specific resort and how aggressively your association's board has been raising it or levying special assessments, not whether the bill shows up every year or every other year.

Run the same total cost forward and the billing frequency, biennial versus annual, doesn't change the long-run total; it changes your cash flow and how sticker shock hits you. Here's a simplified four-year comparison using the 2023 ARDA/Ragatz average annual fee of $1,260 as the baseline, assuming a 4% annual increase (within the commonly cited 3%-5% range) ^[1]: | Year | Annual owner pays | Biennial owner pays |

what should I do before my next biennial fee bill arrives

Get ahead of it instead of reacting when the invoice lands. A few concrete steps make a real difference. Request your association's last two or three years of financial statements and reserve study, if available. Timeshare and condo associations in most states are required to prepare annual budgets and, in many states, periodic reserve studies; these documents show you whether a special assessment is likely coming and why fees have moved the way they have. Budget monthly, not biennially. Divide your last actual bill by 24 and set that amount aside each month in a separate account, so the "surprise" bill isn't actually a surprise to your checking account. Ask directly whether a special assessment is planned. Boards typically vote on these before billing, and owner-relations staff can usually tell you if one's under discussion, even before the formal notice goes out. If the fee trajectory has become unsustainable for your budget, start the exit conversation now rather than after another increase. A written deed-back request, sent while you're current on fees, is generally received better by resort owner-relations departments than one sent after you've fallen behind.

Frequently asked questions

How do you get out of a timeshare with biennial fees specifically?

The process is the same as any timeshare exit: confirm whether you're still inside your state's rescission window, then pursue a deed-back or resale if that window has passed. Biennial billing doesn't create a special exit path or extra rights; it just changes when your bill arrives, not your legal options for canceling or transferring the deed.

How much is a timeshare with biennial fees compared to annual fees?

The purchase price is the same regardless of billing schedule; the average developer-direct purchase price is about $23,940 ^[1]. The maintenance fee total over any given period is also roughly equal between annual and biennial billing; biennial owners just pay in a larger lump every other year instead of a smaller amount every year.

Are timeshares scams, or is it just the exit industry that has scam risk?

The timeshare product itself is legal and state-regulated, not a scam by definition, though sales presentations are often high-pressure and overstate resale value. The bigger scam risk sits in the exit and resale industry, where the FTC warns owners to be skeptical of any company demanding a large fee upfront before delivering results ^[4].

How to sell a timeshare with high biennial fees when nobody wants to buy it?

List through a licensed resale broker or peer-to-peer marketplace at a realistic (often very low or $1) price, be transparent about the fee obligation in the listing, and confirm your resort's right of first refusal before finalizing any sale. If no buyer emerges, ask your resort about an official deed-back or surrender program instead.

How much do timeshares cost per year if I'm on a biennial plan?

The 2023 industry average annual-equivalent maintenance fee is $1,260 ^[1], meaning a biennial bill near that average would run roughly $2,300-$2,600 every other year, plus any special assessments the association board approves separately from the regular fee.

How to get rid of a timeshare I inherited that has biennial fees?

Talk to the estate's probate attorney before accepting any benefit from the property; in many states an heir can formally disclaim an inherited timeshare through probate, which can prevent the ownership and fee obligation from transferring to them personally. Once accepted, the standard deed-back or resale paths apply.

Can a special assessment show up even on a biennial fee schedule?

Yes. Special assessments for storm damage, major repairs, or renovations are billed separately from your regular maintenance fee and apply regardless of whether you're on an annual or biennial billing cycle. They're approved by the association board when the reserve fund can't cover a needed repair.

How to get out of timeshare contracts still inside the rescission window?

Cancel in writing following the exact method your contract specifies (many require certified mail to a named address), before your state's rescission deadline expires. Confirm your state's specific window length on your state attorney general's consumer protection page, since it varies and is usually short, often measured in days from signing.

What's the difference between a biennial fee and biennial (odd/even year) ownership?

A biennial fee is a billing schedule: you're charged once every two years for annual-use ownership. Biennial ownership means you only get to use the unit every other year (odd or even years), which is a different structure entirely. Check your public offering statement to see which applies to your specific week or points package.

How to sell timeshare interests that are odd-year or even-year only?

The same resale channels apply, licensed brokers, peer-to-peer marketplaces, or a resort deed-back, but expect a smaller buyer pool since odd/even ownership limits usage flexibility. Disclose the odd/even structure clearly in any listing; buyers who don't realize this upfront often back out mid-transaction, wasting time on both sides.

Should I stop paying my biennial maintenance fee if I'm trying to exit?

No. Stopping payment can trigger a lien, collections, and credit damage, and it does not speed up a legitimate exit or deed-back. Stay current while you pursue rescission, deed-back, or resale; contact owner services about hardship or payment plan options if cost is the urgent problem.

How do I know if a timeshare exit company charging an upfront fee is a scam?

The FTC specifically warns owners to be skeptical of guaranteed resale promises and upfront-fee demands before any work is done ^[4]. Check the company against your state attorney general's complaint database and the Better Business Bureau, and be skeptical of any company that claims a guaranteed acceptance, since no legitimate service can promise your resort will accept a cancellation or deed-back.

Sources

1. Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Timeshare consumer information: Maintenance fees are billed by associations for operating costs and reserves, and special assessments are billed separately from regular fees
2. Federal Trade Commission, "Avoiding Timeshare Resale Scams": FTC warning to be skeptical of guaranteed resale promises and upfront payment demands for timeshare resale or exit services
3. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: Explains what a timeshare is and general consumer considerations before purchasing
4. Federal Trade Commission: FTC enforcement actions against deceptive timeshare exit companies
5. Internal Revenue Service: Tax treatment of timeshare property and whether maintenance fees are deductible
6. California Office of the Attorney General: State-specific rescission period and consumer rights for timeshare buyers
7. Nolo: Comparison of state-by-state timeshare rescission period lengths