Maintenance fees on the average increase at and 8 to 12 percent rate every single year. The average timeshare owner pays about 850$ a year in maintenance fees for their timeshare ownership. These fees have to be paid even if the owner does not use, or is unable to use their timeshare.

If these fees are not paid. The timeshare companies are very aggressive as to the means they go about collecting these fees. Collection agencies, harassing phone calls at home and work, even taking out liens on other property owned, Ultimately hurting the timeshare owners credit.

Sometimes owners will even see an extra charge in the breakdown of their fees in the amount of 5$ or 7$ to an organization called ARDA (American Resorts Development Association )

(ARDA) Donates money to lobbyists who help push for and pass bills that make it impossible for timeshare owners to exit their timeshares.

They are also responsible for the recent bill passing which allows the management companies to increase maintenance fees with no limit. The limit used to be that timeshare developers could not increase maintenance fees by more than 100%. 

So when owners pay that voluntary donation to ARDA they are in a way fueling their own demise.