It would appear that since 2017 when a previous posting was made with concerns expressed about the lack of a successful sales and rental marketing ( which relates to relinquishments), that all these years on we seem to find ourselves in a similar scenario, except that now we appear to have 30% of weeks up for sale of which 86 are stock weeks owned by the club..

Until such time as sales are achieved for those owners wishing to sell their weeks, all of these weeks have the potential to rent out and earn some commission for the club in that process,. Or for those wishing to subsidise their increasing management fees in the interim, part rentals could be another mutually beneficial way forward for owners and UOCL alike.

Both of these scenarios however depend upon an effective advertising campaign, but it would appear that this in turn would incur further costs for the club. Catch 22 scenario?

Sadly, until such time as an effective advertising campaign is forthcoming however ( beyond reliance upon owners word of mouth to effect sales) it appears that even with the latest new options to try and sell stock weeks (to be discussed at the EGM) that concerns still remain with regard to a growing ageing population of owners still unable to sell their weeks.

How many of Underscar’s owners are aware of this problem?

And how will increasing numbers of owners unable to sell , result in putting off potential purchasers ? Isn’t this of sufficient concern to all owners going forward to have the opportunity to discuss and reevaluate the need for an advertising campaign before this becomes a major problem for all owners?

The background complexities re SYKES and HOTL that have since become apparent and the fact that owners are now hopefully back in control of events, thanks to the best endeavours of the board, now only accentuates the need for an effective marketing and rental strategy which in turn depends upon an effective nationwide advertising campaign.

Presumably increasing commissions earned in this way would also have the potential to lower management fees for all owners?

Might the outlay for effective nationwide advertising subsequently pay for itself and act as reassurance for all owners, and incentivise potential purchasers going forward?

The problem is accentuated by the apparent current marketing of sales and rentals of Underscar (not maximising its potential), and the need for greater clarity and user friendly website that should easily identify, in pictorial form, the overall layout of lodges within the development and their associated names, with ease to ”click” on lodges from this overall layout so as to make easy comparison and be further informed of costs and availability for any given week (for both purchase and rental).
Likewise for clarity and ease of cross referencing back to this overall layout of lodges, the ability to see a complete list of weeks available for rental across the whole development for any given year. Likewise for sales.
At present the forward direction to other Heart of the Lakes properties when a week is currently unavailable for rent, as opposed to redirecting to other rental weeks available within the Underscar development, sadly appears to be compromising owners and not maximising the marketing potential of Underscar.

As a new owner at Underscar its clear that owners here are battling with the same issues I see at other resorts whre we own (or have owned). Whats different though, is that you are talking about it and know that it needs addressing.
All timeshare resorts will need an exit strategy sooner or later and as owners we will all need an exit strategy. The only difference is how far away our needs are…..
The answers are already here in the suggestions that have been made.
First of all it needs to be controlled and as such ”death” is a good control point on the basis that it is a fact. Taking back the weeks could even be profitable for the club if it offers to take back weeks upon death of the owner. This might be upon payment of a number of years of maintainance fees to give the club time to sell the weeks.
As time passes and we get the confidence that owners arent leaving in droves it might be possible to make the exit scheme available to living members perhaps based on ”Number of years of ownership”
And lets remember that the value / desirability of a resale week in club with an exit strategy has got to be better than one that hasnt tackled this issue.
I’d love to hear the thoughts of lots of other owners on here so we can have a good debate which can inform the direction of travel.
Best wishes to all

That would seem a very reasonable way forwards, giving certainty to current owners. If the Board has a viable letting / resale strategy, it could even gain income for UOCL. The same would be true of a current owner ’walk away’ offer of, say, 3 times management fee to end all liability. UOCL gets a lump sum and then letting or resale fee for the surrendered week. However, the Board have rejected any consideration of such a system

We have purchased other timeshares via Worldwide Timeshare who we found very easy to deal with. Similar quality to Underscar for £1500 to £2000 a week, sleep 6, in UK, admittedly peak season. Obviously the seller did not receive that amount. I still feel the descendants should be protected from having to deal with the problem and that the Club could offer to take the week from them for say £1 if they want, and sell it (through Fisherbeck?) and be left in the position of continuing maintenance receipts and no significant outgoings.

It would appear that TATOC have gone into administration

https://www.timeshareconsumerassociation.org.uk/2017/05/08/tatoc-in-administration/

It is correct that the Club needs to repeatedly address the unfortunate reality of the deaths of members. At the moment we are considering future options including points that have been made by the Trustee. The Board will keep members advised of their thinking and welcomes comments made on the message Board. Peter Allen

Anne Simpson’s suggestion is worth serious consideration. The time will come when every Resort will have to have a defined exit strategy. dld261

Sorry to repeat this response ( as this was a response to another question) but could one solution be for any given year where any property(s) falls under this unfortunate circumstance upon death of an owner, that priority be given to a closed auction where existing members could have the opportunity to bid for the timeshare week, and thus avail themselves, if affordable, of a significantly discounted week ( without impacting the prices as seen by the general public)?

As I indicated at the AGM, sales are possible but one must be realistic about the price. Our apartments are NOT investments. There are a number of genuine resale companies out there. Talk with – or google – TATOC for some guidance.

For information, we did have two separate weeks and for various reasons wished to get rid of one. We have successfully sold through eBay for, I have to admit, not much, but it did cover all the fees to eBay and the transfer costs, still leaving us a little extra. The message is that there probably is a way to sell, just don’t expect much!

In response to Caroline Thompson, what would you suggest when the apartment proves to be impossible to sell? There must be sensible provisions on death and surrender during a life time without recourse to court proceedings which benefits nobody.

The inherent problem is that there may be no resale possible (based on current evidence), so that the estate is unable to dispose of the week(s). In that case, there is a problem in that the legal costs of pursuing an estate for ongoing charges will far exceed the monies outstanding, especially as every instance will need a fresh legal case. During the potentially lengthy proceedings, the remaining owners will be having to provide funds to keep cash flow going anyway. Surely better to come up with an agreed plan in advance rather than fire fight

on death of an owner, the property must not become the responsibility of the rest of the owners. the property should be sold when no longer wanted, whatever the circumstances