First a bit of history
The Nordland condominiums were built in 1980 as whole ownership homes with a Scandinavian theme. Some of you may remember the outdoor hot tubs located off the side of the building while the adjacent Villmarksauna buildings had saunas on the top floor of each entryway!
In the mid 1980’s, Smugglers’ began offering timeshare properties to visitors who wanted the benefits of Resort ownership during specified times in the year in lieu of whole ownership. Instead of selling all of the Nordland homes as whole ownership, some were converted to timeshares. When first introduced, it was unclear to us whether our buyers would want the benefits of real estate ownership or would prefer membership interests in an entity that owned a condominium, so we experimented. Smuggs offered some condominiums as deeded timeshares and some as membership in a Club Corporation timeshare.
The membership model provided a Certificate to a not-for-profit corporation incorporated under the laws of the state of Vermont. The Certificate represents the interests of the member, ie; Club Owner, in that condominium for a particular week. These Certificates were our first introduction to timeshare and were only issued for Nordland 16 Owners. They are essentially a stock certificate.
Our experiment taught us that most buyers wanted real estate rather than a Certificate; whether for tax purposes, financing opportunities, or just simply to own real estate. As a result, all subsequent timeshare condominiums throughout the entire Resort were designated as deeded ownership.
Proposed Future
Forty four years after Nordland was created, Club Owners have begun to ask if there is a way to sunset their ownership. They have diligently paid their maintenance fees and wish to transfer their ownership.
Some Nordland Club Owners have already stopped paying their maintenance fees; whether due to financial hardship, changes in the family circumstances, such as death or divorce, or selling to a Timeshare Reseller who stopped paying the maintenance fees. The ownership is no longer used or paid for. The rest of the Owners of that home must cover the operating cost that is left unpaid. [see FAQ below for an explanation.]
Through reorganization, it will be possible to allow any Nordland Club Owner to exit their ownership and also convert the Certificate ownerships to deeded ownerships in a different home. The Nordland Reorganization Opportunity (NRO) objective is to ensure the financial health of the Nordland condominiums. Smuggs will facilitate this deed back program, and Certificate transfers for Nordland 16 Owners. Combining the abandoned weeks with the weeks Owners want to give up in an exit solution will mean the remaining weeks are owned by families who wish to enjoy the condominium and will pay the maintenance fees going forward.
The Nordland Reorganization Opportunity (NRO) plan is to free up all 52 weeks in Nordland 16 so it may be converted to whole ownership. There appears to be a market for whole ownership in contrast to the diminishing demand for ownership in a timeshare condominium.
NRO is similar to a program being completed for the Villmarksauna Owners of V14, V19, and V22, which are also Club Corporation timeshares. The Nordland 16 not-for-profit corporation will be converted from the Certificate ownership to deeded ownership. By making it whole ownership, only one deed need be prepared instead of a deed for each week of ownership – a more streamlined and economical avenue.
Nordland 16 Owners who wish to continue their vacation ownership, will be given priority in selecting an alternative Nordland unit that takes into consideration your specific preferences and circumstances.
Frequently Asked Questions
These Frequently Asked Questions were updated on April 17, 2024 based upon the lessons from the Villmarksauna Reorganization Opportunity.
Please check here periodically for answers to questions about the opportunity as we are likely to make updates.
It appears there is now a critical mass to make a reorganization effort viable. Smuggs owns approximately half of the weeks in each Nordland timeshare condominium. Not many Nordland Club Owners take advantage of purchasing one of the Smuggs-owned Float weeks each year. We’re eager to see these weeks be better utilized. Plus, the unpaid maintenance fees in abandoned weeks are a burden for us all and must be addressed in order to sustain the Nordland property.
The annual Maintenance Fee is calculated based on the cost of operation, care, upkeep, and maintenance of your condominium. All of the Owners in your condominium share this cost equally. If someone doesn’t pay, the costs still need to be covered. The Declaration for your condominium governs its management, including the creation of a budget to cover its obligations. Thus the budget reserves for the “Allocation of Uncollectible Fees” as a contingency to ensure there’s sufficient revenue to pay all of the expenses. These budgets are posted on the Owner Network under “Association Info & Docs” in the subnavigation.
In 2017, Smuggs introduced the Farewell Smuggs Program as a way for Club Owners to exit their timeshare ownership in a graceful manner after years of enjoying their Smuggs experience. Due to a greater supply of timeshares compared to the demand and the internet making it cheap to buy a resale, the value of timeshare properties at Smuggs has fallen. The Farewell Smuggs Program is not available to Nordland Owners due to the mixture of ownership models in the Nordland Association.
Similar to the Farewell Smuggs Program, the Nordland Reorganization Opportunity offers Nordland Club Owners the opportunity to give up their timeshare ownership at no cost and with no compensation. You would not be responsible for finding a new Owner or paying any future maintenance fees. Smugglers’ will prepare all of the paperwork and handle the legal and administrative costs to transfer the ownerships, whether as a deed swap, deed back, or Certificate transfer. Any remaining benefits will be terminated at the time that the property is transferred to a new owner per the Benefits Agreement.
Six of the 31 condominiums in Nordland are timeshares. All timeshare condominiums are broken into 1-week ownerships, with weeks #16 & #45, designated as the maintenance/deep clean weeks. The other 25 condominiums are whole ownership with one deeded Owner owning all 52 weeks.
Roughly half of the weeks, #1-12, #25-34, #51-52, were sold to individuals/families as Fixed weeks. A few spring and fall Float weeks are also privately owned. Smuggs owns the majority of the Float weeks during weeks #13-24 and #35-50 (26 weeks, not counting the two designated maintenance weeks.) You have the right to buy a Float week annually for use in RCI, Wyndham or visiting Smuggs in the shoulder season. Smuggs pays the Float week maintenance fees if they are not used by a Nordland Club Owner.
The ownership model of these Club Corporation condominiums is not ideal for long term management. The Certificates often are misplaced or lost, requiring the Owner to sign an affidavit to receive a new one. Deeded ownership, on the other hand, is executed with a Notary Public and recorded at the Cambridge Town Clerk’s office. The deed database is now searchable on their website. An attorney can conduct a title search and prepare a deed when the Owner is ready to transfer their ownership. In contrast, the Certificates are prepared by Smugglers’ Accounting staff. They are not notarized or recorded. For these reasons, we would like to convert Nordland 16 to deeded ownership with only one Owner of the condominium. The timeshare Owners in Nordland 16 will be given priority in selecting an alternative that takes into consideration your specific preferences and circumstances.
Yes, as long as your current benefit package(s) has not expired. An addendum will be made to your existing Club Recreational Benefits contract reflecting the change of ownership.
We will try to keep the same week if that’s your preference. The 2024 maintenance fees are as follows:
N2 = $679
N4 = $648
N16 = $892
N23 = $894
N26 = $894
N31 = $903
Yes, the Nordland 2024 maintenance fee is now past due. If you have not already paid your 2024 maintenance fee please contact Concord Services immediately to avoid collections. After completing either a deed back, or Certificate transfer any overpaid maintenance fees can be either refunded or applied as a credit towards future maintenance fees.
Yes, once you confirm your intention to exit your ownership, we will prepare the necessary paperwork, which you may complete this summer at Smuggs provided your 2024 maintenance fee is paid.
2024 is the only year we anticipate facilitating this reorganization.
Starting the week of May 21st, we will begin to follow up with those of you who wish to retire your ownership. Owners of Nordland 16 will be contacted as well with next steps on the transfer to a new unit. Preferences will be allotted in the order in which they are submitted according to availability. Thank you for your continued patience while we work through this important project.
If you would like to exit your Nordland ownership, please email Debbie Hudson at [email protected]
Ideally, you must have booked your Home Week Reservation for summer 2024 or winter 2025. Your home will need to be available for the new owner in the next season. Please check with RCI if you are interested in VRO.
Ideally, to be considered for this program your week(s) that occur on or after June 17, 2024 (Week #24) must be available for occupancy by the new owner. It is your responsibility to check with RCI to see if they have filled your week(s). If they have not assigned an inbound guest to your home, they may allow you to withdraw your week(s) from the RCI system. You must not have used the week for an exchange to remove it from the RCI system.
You will have the opportunity to use those banked weeks or accumulated points until their expiration date or the last date of your membership, whichever occurs first, as long as you keep your RCI fees current during that time. For those who wish to swap their Nordland ownership for another, Smuggs will facilitate the ownership changes directly with RCI at no additional cost.
Maybe. If you choose to exit your ownership there are special instructions on how to remove your Nordland week from Wyndham Points. This option is time sensitive and must be acted upon quickly. If you wish to retain your Wyndham membership, but wish to swap your Nordland ownership for another, Smuggs will assist in the facilitation with Wyndham.
Any weeks that start prior to June 17, 2024 (Week #24) may be used by you or a person designated by you, as long as you are current with your financial obligations. Any weeks that start on or after that date must be available to be used by the new owner. If you have made commitments for your future weeks and you are not able to cancel them, you might not be able to participate in certain options offered within NRO. A number of owners have plans for their Summer week that they would like to keep. If possible, we will prepare the paperwork and file the deeds following those Summer commitments. We cannot make that arrangement for Winter weeks though.
If your home is listed for sale with a broker, you may not participate in this program, unless you receive a written cancellation of your listing and submit it to Smugglers’. Read your contract carefully to determine whether or not you are able to cancel your sales agreement in order to participate in NRO.
We ask for your patience as we administer this reorganization. It’s extremely challenging to respond to calls and emails while verifying applicant information and qualification (ie fees are paid and ownership is available for transfer to a new owner.) Please DO NOT CALL or EMAIL us during this process; we will contact you with the status of your application later this spring.
