How to Get Out of a Marriott Vacation Club Timeshare: 5 Legal Options

If you’re searching for how to get out of a Marriott Vacation Club timeshare, you’re not alone. Owners (And their family members) on Reddit and other forums often say they feel confused, pressured, or stuck with rising fees and limited options:

Marriott Vacation Club Exit Strategies
byu/craigl2112 inTimeshareOwners

Whether your financial situation has changed or your usage has dropped, it can feel overwhelming to figure out the safest and most legal way to exit a Marriott timeshare.

The good news? Marriott has an official exit program, and you have several other legal paths depending on how long ago you bought, what you own, and whether you want help from a vetted timeshare exit attorney.

Below, we’ll walk through five proven ways to get out of a Marriott Vacation Club timeshare legally, including when it makes sense to work with a firm like Stonegate, which specializes in negotiation-based cancellations.

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Table of Contents

1. 1. Review your contract
   1. Club points vs. legacy weeks
   2. New vs. established timeshares
2. 2. Contact the Marriott Vacation Club Exit Program
3. 3. Try resale or broker (ROFR applies)
4. 4. Work with a timeshare exit attorney or vetted exit company
5. 5. Continue paying until your exit is finalized

1. Review your contract

Your best exit approach depends on the type of contract you have and whether you purchased a legacy week or Vacation Club points. These determine whether you can rescind, qualify for the Marriott Vacation Club cancellation policy, or pursue another legal option.

Club points vs. legacy weeks

Marriott Vacation Clubs offer deeded real estate interest, and your timeshare could be set up in one of two ways:

1. Legacy weeks: Original Marriott timeshares included a deeded interest for a specific resort. This allowed owners to stay for a week at that resort in a particular unit type and season.
2. Vacation Club Points: In 2010, the program moved to a points system. Depending on your level of ownership, members receive points each year that can be redeemed for stays at any participating resort.

New vs. established timeshares

If your purchase was recent, check whether you can cancel Marriott Vacation Club membership within 10 days. State rescission laws vary from three to 15 days. After that window closes, you will need to explore the Marriott exit program, resale, or legal negotiation.

Carrying the cost of a timeshare you don’t use can add up quickly. If money gets tight, you may find yourself relying on credit cards or other debt just to cover maintenance fees.
Timeshares can also strain your retirement plan if you need more income than expected, reducing long-term growth. For most people, a timeshare isn’t a great investment, but if you own one, or are considering one, make sure you clearly understand the total costs and your options to exit.

2. Contact the Marriott Vacation Club Exit Program

The Marriott Vacation Club Exit Program is the only official channel Marriott offers. The program varies by ownership type, but it may include selling your interest back to the company once your loan is paid off. You’ll need to log in to your MVC account to check whether your contract is eligible.

Be aware that online reviews indicate you will likely need to pay off your contract to use the Marriott exit program. Even if you have paid off your contract, don’t expect Marriott’s offer to match its original value.

3. Try resale or broker (ROFR applies)

If the Marriott timeshare exit program won’t release you, the next step is the resale market. Keep in mind that all Marriott Vacation Club properties are subject to the Right of First Refusal (ROFR), meaning Marriott gets the chance to match any offer before a third-party buyer can purchase it. This affects pricing and can help you understand what your Marriott timeshare is worth before listing it.

Before you go down this route, set realistic expectations for the process. You won’t recoup the money you spent on the contract, and some people simply give away their timeshares to avoid paying annual maintenance fees.

Here are several options for Marriott resales:

• Tug2: Standing for Timeshare Users Group, Tug2 has a forum that contains a wealth of information about timeshares. It also operates a marketplace to sell and give away timeshares.
• RedWeek: This website offers its members do-it-yourself and full-service options for selling a timeshare. The full-service option includes assistance with valuation and closing the sale but charges a commission.  
• Fidelity Real Estate: There are numerous timeshare brokers and real estate firms that will help sell timeshares. Legitimate companies like Fidelity Real Estate won’t charge an upfront fee for their service.
• Ebay: You really can sell almost anything on eBay, including timeshares. Review the website’s travel policy before you get started.

Many timeshare brokers, such as Magical Realty, offer valuation services. At A Timeshare Broker, you can also receive an instant quote.

4. Work with a timeshare exit attorney or vetted exit company

If Marriott can’t or won’t release you from your contract, your next option is a legitimate timeshare exit attorney. Be cautious here: Many non-attorney exit companies rely on “strategic default,” which tells owners to stop paying fees. This method can harm your credit, trigger foreclosure, and expose you to legal risk, and is a concern from owners who say they felt misled.

A negotiation-based legal strategy is safer, especially for older contracts with misrepresentations. Stonegate is a unique timeshare exit firm that takes a legal-first approach focused on reviewing your contract, identifying deceptive sales tactics, and negotiating directly with Marriott.

Here are a few points from our interview with Stonegate’s legal team:

We don’t consider defaulting on a contract to be a legal exit. Walking away and hoping nothing happens is not the same as being released.

Every case gets actual legal oversight, not boilerplate letters. We stay in the trenches with clients until the job is done.

There are legal ways to exit a timeshare. We’re challenging the misrepresentations and high-pressure tactics that led people into contracts they never planned to buy.

According to Stonegate, most of its exits happen through negotiated deed-backs or cancellation agreements, not defaults. Many of their cases resolve in less than 10 months, though timelines vary depending on the contract.

If you decide working with a timeshare exit company is the right step, choose one that:

• uses attorneys, not outsourced processors
• does not rely on strategic default
• provides written terms and realistic timelines
• stays in communication throughout your case

Stonegate consistently meets these criteria.

Typically, strategic default should be a last resort due to the substantial long-term impacts of how it affects your credit and ability to take out loans or refinance in the future.
However, if you are in a stable situation and do not plan to take out any loans for the foreseeable future, this may be something to consider rather than putting yourself in further financial distress by continuing to pay on the investment while building up further personal debt through credit cards, HELOCs, or other personal debt.

5. Continue paying until your exit is finalized

Stopping payments can lead to a Marriott Vacation Club foreclosure, which shows up on your credit report and may make it harder to qualify for future loans. Even if you plan to sell, exit, or negotiate a deed-back, maintaining your payments protects your credit while you work toward a legal and safe exit

To cover those costs, you could rent out your timeshare using one of the following platforms:

• KOALA
• ResortShare
• TimesharesOnly
• Tug2
• RedWeek

A timeshare can seem like a great investment in a lifetime of vacations, but the cost and annual fees can add up. If your finances are being squeezed, consider the above steps to exit your timeshare.

If the process feels overwhelming, contact one of the timeshare exit companies we’ve vetted, like Stonegate Firm, to ensure you’re getting the best representation.