Minnesota Timeshare Dispute Lawyers

Stuck in a bad time share that you need to get out of?  Joseph M. Flanders has experience negotiating, settling, and fighting time share disputes inside and outside Minnesota.

Time shares disputes can be messy sources of stress and anxiety that most people do not need in their lives.  Many people have spent a great deal of time and energy trying to negotiate out of unwanted time shares – only to face a brick wall.  This is where a good attorney can be invaluable.

MN Time-Share Disputes

Buyers of time shares often find themselves in situations they did not think they would be in when they initially bought the time share.

Why?  There are many reasons.  The most common being that people enter into time share agreements but do not read the contracts which are shoved in front of them by the time share communities or assocations.  (It goes without saying that it always a bad idea to sign a contract the you (1) have not read or (2) do not understand what it means).

Another common reason for time share disputes  is that the buyers just don’t  use the time share as much as they thought they would.  Failure to use the time share is often not a valid reason to get out of a binding contract.

Furthermore, the associations are often not willing to release people from the maintenance fee obligations.  As such, when people do not pay their time share fees, the associations turn unpaid assessment cases over to bill collectors rather than pursuing foreclosures.  This is a common tactic but not necessarily a correct one if debt collection law is not complied with.

Finally, a time share owner will often get very tired of paying extraordinarily high maintenance fees charged by time share communities.  Again, the time share owner may be contractually obligated to pay those fees and they may see no way out of the contract.  Fortunately, the law firm has experience in dealing with common time share disputes.

Time-Shares Outside of Minnesota

Most time share disputes that the firm handles take place in states outside of Minnesota.  Common time share dispute states include vacation destinations like Florida, Arizona, Lousiana, etc.  The nature of the time share doesn’t change in most instances. However, the law that applies can be very different depending on what state your time share is in.

If you have dealt with a time share dispute, you know that there may be problems with what law applies – or “jurisdiction”.  This is a big deal and should be addressed by a lawyer.

Essentially, contracts which were signed by time share owners will usually have provisions in them which state that the law where the agreement was signed applies to disputes.  Therefore, an agreement signed in Florida will often state that Florida law applies.

Don’t let this stop you.  The firm has found that many companies who draft these contracts do not have offices in Florida – just like a Minnesota person does not reside in Florida beyond a week or so each year.  What does this mean?  Basically, it means that the businesses behind these contracts often don’t want Florida law to apply any more than people in Minnesota do.

The law firm has experience negotiating around the jurisdictional problems contained in time share contracts.

The Federal Fair Debt Collection Practice Act (FDCPA) and Time-Shares

One point of good news for many time share owners is that the FDCPA does apply because time shares are consumer debts.  This means that time share companies must comply with the FDCPA when communicating with time share owners about collecting debts.  These debts may include maintenance fees, association fees, and other costs which the time share owner may have agreed to pay (unknowingly or not) in the contract.

Fortunately for some time share owners, if the companies do not follow the FDCPA requirements, they can be subject to a large fine and other sanctions under the FDCPA.  Obviously, this is a powerful tool for time share owners and their lawyers to use when negotiating or just plain trying to get out of their time shares.

Time Share Dispute Resolution Lawyers

As stated above, Joseph M. Flanders is a lawyer with experience resolving complicated time share disputes.  He knows when to be aggressive if necessary and works hard to protect his clients best interests.

For more information or a free consult on your time share problems, contact Flanders Law Firm LLC at 612-424-0398.