Bill

HB 2261

84(R) - 2015
House Business & Industry
House Business & Industry
Business, Industry, & Commerce

Vote Recommendation

Neutral
  • Neutral
  • Neutral
  • Neutral
  • Neutral
  • Neutral

Author(s)

Jason Villalba

Bill Caption

Relating to the transfer or termination of certain timeshare interests.

Fiscal Notes

No significant fiscal impact to the State or local governments is expected. 

Bill Analysis

HB 2261 seeks to address deceptive practices in the timeshare transfer industry by requiring increased notice and disclosure from the transferer and transferee. 

Increased disclosure under HB 2261 calls for more general information to be reported upon entry to the contract, names of those authorized to use the timeshare interest, and for payment of transfer service fees. Notice is required both transfer and termination services.

HB 2261 makes it a deceptive trade practice for failing to disclose required information, making false or misleading statements, and/or encouraging or inducing a timeshare owner to end payment of a contract before the completion of transfer or termination of a timeshare interest. 

The bill exempts from its provisions a broker or salesperson licensed under The Real Estate License Act acting as a broker, agent, or salesperson under that person's license in connection with the transfer or termination of a timeshare interest; a developer, timeshare interest association, or managing entity for a timeshare interest to be transferred or terminated; and an attorney, title agent, title company, or escrow company that provides only closing, settlement, or other specific transaction services in connection with the transfer or termination of a timeshare interest and does not otherwise engage in the specified activities of a person to whom the bill's provisions apply. 

Vote Recommendation Notes

HB 2261 provides increased protection from predatory services that charge a fee for the transfer or termination of timeshare interests without truly having buyers lined up. This bill seeks to protect timeshare owners from aggressive solicitors who make their money off of upfront non-refundable transfer fees, not by taking the actual timeshares themselves, without actually having a buyer lined up. No real property is maliciously transferred to these companies but they do cheat timeshare owners out of hundreds to thousands of dollars. However, the timeshare owners have a responsibility to protect their property and could easily call the company when their timeshare is expired before handing over their hard-earned money. Due to this conflict, we are neutral on this legislation.