How do I get out of my Westgate timeshare?

Last updated 2026-07-26

How do I get out of my Westgate timeshare right now?

Start by figuring out where you stand on the calendar. If you bought recently, within the last week or two, you may still be inside your rescission period, the legal window where you can cancel for any reason and get your money back. This is by far the fastest and cheapest way out, and it costs nothing but a certified letter. If that window has closed, your realistic paths are: Westgate's own deed-back or hardship program if you qualify, selling or giving away the contract on the resale market (often for $1 or less), or working the fees and paperwork yourself over months, not days. There is no fourth option where a company calls Westgate and makes the timeshare disappear overnight. Anyone selling that story is selling you a scam. Westgate Resorts is privately held and does not publish a standard exit program the way some public companies do, but ownership services departments at most large timeshare companies do field deed-back and hardship requests case by case. Call the number on your contract or maintenance fee statement and ask specifically for "deed-back" or "exit options," more than customer service, since these requests often route to a different department. Read our full guide on how to get out of a timeshare for the state-by-state legal backbone behind all of this.

What is the rescission period and am I still inside it?

Every US state gives timeshare buyers a rescission period, a short legal window after signing when you can cancel the contract for any reason and get a full refund, no penalty, no explanation needed. The length varies a lot by state, from as short as 3 days to as long as 15 days depending on where the resort is located and where you signed. Florida, where many Westgate resorts sit (Orlando, Kissimmee, Miami, Cocoa Beach), gives buyers a mandatory cancellation right under its timeshare statute. Section 721.10, Florida Statutes, sets a 10-day cancellation period running from either the date the buyer signs the contract or the date the buyer receives the public offering statement, whichever is later, and requires the purchaser to notify the seller in writing of the intent to cancel. Confirm your state's rescission window before you do anything else, because the deadline is counted from the day you signed, not the day you decide you want out. If you're still inside that window: write a short cancellation letter, cite the statute if you know it, list the contract number, and send it by certified mail with return receipt (or however your contract instructs) to the exact address named in your paperwork. Keep a copy of everything. Do more than call and tell a salesperson you want to cancel, verbal cancellation is nearly impossible to prove later. The statute itself spells out the mechanics plainly: notice of cancellation, according to Section 721.10, Florida Statutes, is effective on the date it's postmarked, and "shall be sent to the address specified in the contract" (Fla. Stat. § 721.10). That single sentence is why certified mail to the exact address in your contract matters more than a phone call ever will.

How do you get out of a timeshare after the rescission period ends?

Once rescission has passed, you're a regular owner, and regular owners have three real paths out: deed-back, resale, or letting the contract go through default (which we don't recommend without understanding the credit and legal consequences first). Deed-back means the resort takes the deed back voluntarily, sometimes for free, sometimes for a transfer fee, sometimes only if your maintenance fees are current and the unit has resale value to the resort. Some big timeshare companies run formal programs for this (Marriott Vacation Club's Exit program and Diamond Resorts' Transitions program are two well-known examples in the industry). Westgate does not publish a named public program at the level of detail those two do, so your best move is calling and asking directly, in writing, for a deed-back or hardship deed-in-lieu arrangement, and get any verbal promise confirmed in an email or letter before you rely on it. Resale means listing the timeshare for sale or transfer through a licensed real estate agent or a peer marketplace. Be ready for a hard truth: most timeshares resell for a small fraction of what owners paid, and a lot of them list for $1 with the buyer only taking on future maintenance fees. Research summarized by the Federal Trade Commission's consumer guidance on timeshares warns that resale value is often minimal and that owners frequently struggle to find any buyer at all. Default means you simply stop paying and let the resort foreclose or pursue collections. We're not going to tell you to do this, since unpaid timeshare debt can hit your credit report and, depending on your state and contract, the resort may pursue a deficiency judgment for what you still owe. If you're already behind on payments and considering this path, talk to a consumer law attorney in your state before deciding, not an exit company salesperson.

How much does it cost to get out of a Westgate timeshare?

Rescission (in-window cancellation)	$0, full refund	Days to a few weeks
Deed-back / hardship deed	$0 to a few hundred dollars in transfer or admin fees, sometimes requires fees paid current	Weeks to several months
Resale through licensed agent/marketplace	Often $0 to $1 sale price, you may pay closing costs; commissions vary	Months to over a year
DIY exit (letters, negotiation, deed-back requests)	Mostly your own time; possible small filing or notary fees	Months
Paid exit company	Commonly $2,000 to $8,000+ upfront, according to consumer complaints tracked by state AGs	Weeks to years, no promised outcome
Default / foreclosure	Ongoing maintenance fees until foreclosure, possible deficiency judgment, credit damage	Months to years	The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has fielded thousands of timeshare-related complaints through its public Consumer Complaint Database, many describing upfront fees paid to exit or resale companies with no resolution delivered afterward. If a company wants several thousand dollars before they've done anything, that's the red flag, not the price tag by itself.

There's no single number, but here's the honest range based on how the exit actually happens. | Exit path | Typical cost to you | Timeframe |

How much do timeshares cost in the first place?

Understanding the original price helps explain why exit is so hard: resale value almost never tracks purchase price. The Federal Trade Commission's consumer guidance on timeshares notes that developer prices commonly run from several thousand dollars to tens of thousands of dollars depending on the resort, unit size, and season, with annual maintenance fees on top that tend to rise most years. Westgate's own price points vary widely by resort, season, and unit size, from a few thousand dollars for a small fixed week to well over $30,000 for larger deeded units in prime Orlando or Las Vegas locations, based on publicly discussed reseller and owner-forum pricing (this is anecdotal, not from a Westgate price sheet, since the company does not publish a fixed price list). Maintenance fees are the real long-term cost driver. They tend to rise a few percent a year, and special assessments (one-time charges for storm damage, renovations, or funding shortfalls) can add thousands more with little warning. This is the single biggest reason owners start looking for the exit door years after the purchase euphoria wears off. If rising fees are your main problem rather than wanting a full exit, it's worth reading about maintenance fee trends before you commit to paying an exit company thousands to leave.

How to sell a timeshare, and does anyone actually buy them?

Yes, people do buy timeshares on resale, but rarely for anywhere close to developer price, and rarely fast. Your realistic resale channels: a licensed real estate agent in the resort's state who specifically handles timeshare resales, a reputable timeshare resale marketplace, or, less commonly, a direct owner-to-owner transfer through a resort's own owner services department (some resorts, including large ones, will facilitate transfers for a fee rather than see the deed go to default). Before you list anything: get current on your maintenance fees if at all possible, since delinquent fees usually transfer with the deed and scare off buyers. Get the exact contract type (deeded vs. right-to-use, fixed week vs. points) clear in your listing, because buyers and agents need this to price it honestly. And expect to hear "we'll take it for free if you cover the transfer costs" more often than you hear a real cash offer. Avoid any resale company that asks for money upfront before they've found a buyer or listed your unit anywhere verifiable. State attorneys general, including Florida's, have pursued enforcement action against timeshare resale operations for exactly this pattern, collecting large upfront fees from owners with vague promises of a buyer who never materializes.

Are timeshares scams?

The timeshare product itself isn't illegal or inherently a scam, it's a real, regulated real estate or right-to-use interest, and millions of people use theirs happily every year. The scam risk shows up in two specific places: high-pressure sales tactics at the original purchase, and upfront-fee "exit" companies that prey on owners trying to leave. The Federal Trade Commission has directly warned consumers about this pattern: its consumer alert on timeshare resale and exit scams describes companies that "charge steep upfront fees for services they don't provide" and cold-call owners with promises to sell or cancel a timeshare quickly. Florida's Attorney General's Office maintains a consumer protection division that fields and investigates exactly these kinds of complaints against companies operating in the state. The pattern to watch for in an exit scam: a cold call or ad promising they can free you from your contract no matter what, pressure to pay by wire transfer or gift card, refusal to put fee structure in writing, and claims they have some special relationship with your resort's legal department. None of that is how legitimate deed-back or legal cancellation work actually happens. See our full breakdown of exit scam red flags and how to check a company before you pay it anything.

How do I get rid of a timeshare I inherited?

Inherited timeshares are their own headache, because you often didn't choose the purchase and may not even want to keep making payments on fees that keep rising. First, don't assume you're automatically stuck. If the deed passed through probate, you generally have the right to disclaim (formally refuse) the inheritance before you accept any benefit from it, though the exact procedure and deadline depend on your state's probate code, so this is a conversation for an estate attorney, not a timeshare exit company. If you've already accepted the property (for example, you've used it or paid a fee on it), you're now the legal owner and the same three paths apply: deed-back request to the resort, resale, or working through hardship options. Contact the resort's ownership services department, explain the inheritance situation clearly, and ask specifically whether they have a bereavement or hardship deed-back process, some resorts do informally even without publishing it. Keep the death certificate and any probate documents on hand, since you'll likely need to prove the chain of ownership before anyone will talk deed-back with you.

Should I hire a timeshare exit company to get out of my Westgate contract?

Maybe, but go in with clear eyes about what you're paying for and what you're not. A legitimate exit company (and there are some) typically charges a flat fee, explains the process in writing before you pay anything, and works through real legal or negotiated channels: reviewing your contract for rescission or contract-defect issues, negotiating a deed-back with the resort, or in some cases pursuing legal claims if the original sale involved fraud or misrepresentation. No company can promise you a specific result, because resorts don't have to say yes to a deed-back request, and any pitch that promises a sure-thing outcome is telling you something no honest business can actually deliver. Before paying anyone: check the company's standing with your state attorney general's consumer protection office and with the Better Business Bureau, ask for the fee structure and refund policy in writing, and never pay by wire transfer, cryptocurrency, or gift card, payment methods that are hard to reverse and common in scam complaints logged with the CFPB and state regulators. This is where a tool like ExitHonest's $149 one-time Timeshare Exit Kit fits a specific gap: it's built for owners who want the letters, the state-specific rescission and deed-back research, and a structured plan to do the work themselves or hand to an attorney, instead of paying $3,000 to $8,000 upfront to a company that may or may not deliver. It's not a law firm, it doesn't contact Westgate for you, and it doesn't promise an outcome, it gives you the paperwork and roadmap so you're not guessing. Compare timeshare exit companies before you decide who, if anyone, gets your money.

What if Westgate won't take the timeshare back and I can't sell it?

This happens more than owners expect, especially with older fixed-week deeded units in markets with lots of resale supply already. Your remaining options at that point: keep paying and using it (sometimes the simplest answer if the fees are still affordable relative to what a comparable vacation would cost), give it away through a licensed transfer to someone willing to take on the fees (yes, people do this, sometimes through timeshare donation or transfer services, though vet these carefully for the same upfront-fee red flags), or, as a last resort, stop paying and accept the consequences, which can include a ding to your credit report and possible collections activity, but generally not the kind of aggressive deficiency judgment pursuit you'd see with a mortgage default, since timeshare interests have relatively low resale value for the resort to recover anyway. That said, this varies a lot by contract and state, so don't treat it as a soft landing you can count on. We are not going to advise you to simply stop paying money you owe under a valid contract. If you're at the point of considering that, get a consumer law attorney in your state to review your specific contract and state's law on deficiency judgments and credit reporting first.

How do I check if an exit company is legitimate before I pay them?

Run these checks before signing anything or handing over money. First, search the company name plus "complaint" on your state attorney general's consumer protection page and the CFPB's public Consumer Complaint Database. Second, check Better Business Bureau accreditation and complaint history, more than the star rating, read the actual complaint text. Third, ask directly whether they've ever been named in a state AG enforcement action, several states including Florida have sued timeshare exit companies for deceptive practices in the past decade. Fourth, get everything in writing: total fee, payment schedule (refuse anything asking for 100% upfront), what specifically they will do, and what happens if they don't succeed. Fifth, never pay by wire transfer or gift card. If a salesperson pressures you to decide today or claims a special deal expires tonight, that's the same high-pressure tactic that got a lot of owners into unwanted timeshares in the first place, and it should make you slow down, not speed up.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get out of my Westgate timeshare fast?

The fastest real exit is rescission, canceling in writing within your state's legal rescission window after signing. Outside that window, there's no fast, sure-thing path; deed-back requests, resale, and legal review all take weeks to months. Be suspicious of anyone promising a fast, no-fail cancellation outside your rescission period for an upfront fee.

How to get out of a timeshare after the rescission period has passed?

Contact the resort's ownership services department and ask about deed-back or hardship options, try listing it for resale through a licensed agent (expect little to no cash return), or consult a consumer attorney about your contract's legal standing. Confirm your original rescission deadline first in case it's later than you think.

How do you get out of a timeshare without paying an exit company?

Yes, it's possible. Write directly to your resort's owner services department requesting a deed-back or hardship deed-in-lieu, keep maintenance fees current if you can, and list the unit yourself on a licensed resale marketplace. This takes more of your own time than hiring someone, but it avoids the $2,000 to $8,000+ upfront fees many exit companies charge.

How to sell a timeshare when nobody wants it?

List it with a licensed timeshare resale agent or marketplace, price it realistically (often $1 to a few hundred dollars, not what you paid), and be upfront about current maintenance fees. If no buyer emerges, ask the resort about deed-back, or consider a licensed transfer/donation service, always vetting for upfront-fee red flags first.

How to get rid of a timeshare I inherited and never wanted?

If the deed hasn't passed through probate yet, ask an estate attorney about disclaiming the inheritance before accepting it. If you've already accepted it, contact the resort about deed-back or bereavement hardship options, and consider resale or a licensed transfer if deed-back isn't available.

Are timeshares scams, or is Westgate specifically a scam?

Timeshares are legal, regulated products, not scams by definition, though high-pressure sales tactics are common industry-wide. The bigger scam risk for existing owners is upfront-fee exit companies making promises they can't keep. Check any company, including timeshare developers themselves, against your state attorney general's consumer complaint records before paying anyone.

How much is a timeshare, on average?

The FTC's consumer guidance notes developer prices commonly range from several thousand dollars to tens of thousands of dollars depending on the resort and unit, with annual maintenance fees on top that tend to rise most years. Actual Westgate prices vary widely by resort, unit size, and season, and the company does not publish a fixed price list.

How much do timeshares cost every year after purchase?

Beyond the purchase price, expect annual maintenance fees that vary by resort and unit type, plus occasional special assessments for repairs or renovations that can add hundreds to thousands of dollars with little notice. These fees typically rise a few percent most years.

How to sell timeshare interests fastest?

Price realistically from the start (often $0 to a few hundred dollars, not resale-value-as-investment), use a licensed real estate agent who specializes in timeshare resale in the resort's state, and keep maintenance fees current so the deed transfers cleanly. Faster sales almost always mean lower or zero price, not a premium offer.

Can I just stop paying my Westgate maintenance fees to force an exit?

We can't advise that. Unpaid fees can lead to collections, credit damage, and in some states a deficiency judgment after foreclosure, depending on your contract and state law. If you're considering this because you can't afford payments, talk to a consumer law attorney about your specific contract before deciding.

What is a deed-back program and does Westgate offer one?

A deed-back program lets an owner voluntarily return the deed to the resort, sometimes free, sometimes for a transfer fee, often requiring fees paid current. Westgate does not publish a named public program like some competitors do; ask its ownership services department directly and in writing whether deed-back or hardship options are available for your contract.

Is it worth paying $149 for a timeshare exit kit instead of a full-service exit company?

It depends on whether you want to do the work yourself. A structured kit with letters and state-specific research costs far less than the $2,000 to $8,000+ many exit companies charge upfront, but it doesn't contact the resort for you or promise an outcome. Full-service companies may do more legwork but carry higher upfront-fee scam risk.

Sources

1. Florida Statutes, Section 721.10, Cancellation: Florida's 10-day timeshare cancellation window and the requirement that cancellation notice be sent to the address specified in the contract
2. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Consumer Complaint Database: Publicly searchable database of consumer complaints against timeshare exit and resale companies, including upfront-fee complaints
3. Federal Trade Commission, Timeshares and Vacation Plans consumer guidance: FTC consumer guidance on timeshare pricing, resale value, and warnings about exit and resale scam patterns
4. Florida Statutes, Chapter 721, Florida Vacation Plan and Timeshare Act: Florida's statutory framework governing timeshare contract cancellation rights
5. Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Alert: Selling Your Timeshare: FTC warning that timeshare resale and exit companies often charge steep upfront fees for services not delivered