Timeshare Maintenance Fees

A timeshare maintenance fee is the annual charge every owner pays to keep the resort running, owed for as long as you own the timeshare whether or not you travel. In 2024 the average was about $1,480, and these fees tend to rise faster than inflation, so the long-term total matters far more than this year's bill.

What do timeshare maintenance fees cover?

Your maintenance fee is your share of the cost of operating the resort. It pays for housekeeping and upkeep of the units, landscaping and shared amenities, staff wages, insurance, property taxes on the common property, utilities, and a reserve fund set aside for future repairs and renovations. The resort, usually through its owners association, sets a budget each year and divides it among all the intervals, so your fee reflects both the resort's costs and how many owners share them.

The fee is mandatory and ongoing. You owe it every year for as long as you hold the timeshare, in years you use it and years you do not, and the obligation continues until you legally transfer or end your ownership. It is one part of the full timeshare cost, alongside the purchase price and any financing.

How much is the average timeshare maintenance fee?

Industry-wide, the figure to know is the $1,480 average annual maintenance fee in 2024, up 17.5% in one year. Your own fee depends on the resort, the unit size, and the location, so it can run higher or lower. The direction, though, is broadly shared across the industry: fees climb most years, as the figures below show.

Last verified: 2026-06-17. Source: ARDA, State of the Vacation Timeshare Industry (2025 ed., 2024 data) (2025)

Why do timeshare maintenance fees keep going up?

Maintenance fees rise for the same reasons any property's operating costs rise, plus a few specific to timeshares. Labor, insurance, and utility costs increase over time, older resorts need more frequent repairs, and the reserve fund has to be topped up to pay for major renovations down the road. Insurance is a growing pressure at coastal and hurricane-exposed resorts, where premiums have climbed sharply. Because the budget is split among owners, any shortfall, including fees that delinquent owners did not pay, can push everyone else's share higher. Increases in recent years have outpaced general inflation, so it is safer to plan for the fee to keep climbing than to assume it will hold steady. Our guide to whether timeshare maintenance fees will increase looks at that trajectory in detail.

Maintenance fees versus special assessments: what is the difference?

Your regular maintenance fee is the predictable annual charge built into the resort's budget. A special assessment is different: it is an extra, one-time charge the resort levies when it needs money the reserve fund does not cover, such as a roof replacement, a major renovation, or repairs after a storm. Special assessments are not optional, are not included in the quoted maintenance fee, and can arrive with little warning. A single assessment can range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand per owner in a difficult year. When you estimate the cost of owning, treat the maintenance fee as the floor, not the ceiling.

What happens if you stop paying your timeshare maintenance fees?

Stopping payment does not make the timeshare go away, and it carries real consequences. The resort can add late fees and interest, refer the unpaid balance to a collection agency, and report the delinquency to the credit bureaus, which can lower your credit score. Because most timeshares are deeded real estate, the association can ultimately foreclose on the interest, and in some cases pursue you for what is still owed. The full sequence, from late fees to foreclosure, is laid out in our guide to what happens if you stop paying timeshare fees. Walking away is not a clean exit, and our guide to walking away from timeshare maintenance fees explains why, including what can pass to your heirs. If you want out, the legitimate routes, a deed-back, resale, or cancellation, are laid out in our guide to getting out of a timeshare, and whether the ongoing cost is worth it at all is the question our are timeshares worth it guide works through.

Sources

American Resort Development Association, State of the Vacation Timeshare Industry, 2025 edition (2024 data), for the average annual maintenance fee and its year-over-year increase. U.S. Federal Trade Commission, consumer guidance on timeshares (consumer.ftc.gov), reviewed June 2026, for deed-back guidance and exit options. U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, guidance on debt collection and credit reporting (consumerfinance.gov), for the consequences of nonpayment. Last reviewed June 18, 2026.