Original Message:
Re: Misrepresentations in the timeshare world .... beware (by Jay K.):
jayjay wrote:TIMESHARE SCAMS Timeshare Scams will not work if Sellers do not send the Scam Artist any money. Beware of whom you are dealing with. How can you tell if it is a Scam Artist? If he asks you for money up front or ahead of the closing it is generally a scam. All fees can be taken out of a closing if your timeshare is truly sold. If you are advertising your unit yourself on a reputable advertising website you should not pay more than $50.00 for an ad.Although timeshares had a very bad reputation in the 1970s/1980s, in the last several years their reputation has gotten better with the advent of high end names such as Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt and the many ultra nice accomodations (apartments and amenities) in other resorts.However, there are still misrepresentations and lies a prospective timeshare buyer should be aware of.
Developer Sales:
1. Lies told by (some) developer timeshare salespeople are that you can trade your week for anywhere in the exchange company's wishbook (catalog of resorts). Not true as it depends on supply, demand, season you own and VEP (Vacation Experience Profile) of your resort.
2. If you should desire to sell your timeshare week in the future, you can make a profit by doing so. If anything you will take a huge loss when trying to sell a developer bought timeshare (there are very few timeshares that hold their value).
3. You can rent your timeshare on years you don't use it and make a profit. Many owners who rent do well by merely recovering their maintenance fees if they can rent their week at all. Again, supply and demand are the key words in the equation for both rentals and resales.
4. Many developer salespeople will omit telling you about the 7+- day rescission period in your contract (called a cooling off period) where you can rescind your purchase without penalty. Please read your contract backwards and forwards.
5. This deal is good only for today.
5. They don't tell the prospective buyer about the resale market, but that's not their job. It's up to the consumer to educate themselves before buying any timeshare.
Resales:
1. Beware of upfront fee resale companies. They take your money and you will more than likely never hear from the company again.
2. Beware of companies such as Timeshare Relief that will tell you your timeshare is worthless and they will take it off your hands for $3000 +- and turn around and sell it on Ebay for $1.
There are many other misrepresentations and scams regarding timeshares. Before you commit to buying any timeshare, whether developer or resale, please educate yourself on the topic. Edcuation is knowledge and knowlege = power for the consumer.
If anyone can add to the timeshare misrepresention list above, please do so. Those I listed were some of the main things to look for off the top of my head.
• ADVERTISING SCHEME
This is the most common scam in the timeshare world today. Upfront fee companies soliciting with postcards, telemarketing, sending emails to Sellers of timeshares that they can sell their timeshare for prices comparable to or for more than what the resort is selling for. This is the first lie. These Companies have almost convinced the public and the Government that they are legitimate. It isn’t the upfront fee that is the scam. It is the lie they tell you to get the upfront fee. They will tell you this is the only fee you will pay. This is another lie. If it is an advertising company that is actually selling timeshare they are probably working with a Broker that will sell your timeshare and charge you a commission. So what the advertising company becomes is a middle man that is lying to you about not having to pay another fee. Some of these companies actually own the Brokerage that will be selling the timeshare and charging you a commission. Unfortunately the Owners of these companies know how to go around the laws that are set in place to control advertising companies. There is a lot of work to be done in this area by the Government. There are many stories that go with this scam. They will tell you they have open houses at the resorts. They will tell you they have sold your type of unit for large dollar amounts. They have Buyers waiting for weeks like yours. They say they deal with Real Estate Brokers that will also assist in selling your weeks. What they are selling is overpriced advertising that very seldom ever sells timeshare. They have sold you a bill of goods. The telemarketer that calls you to sell you an advertising scam is sitting in a boiler room type environment. They are soliciting other owners to sell or rent their unit. They are not Brokers or agents. By law they cannot show your timeshare to anyone, charge a commission on the sale or advise you of a recommended asking price. Providing you with an estimate of value or a recommended asking price is an act of being a licensed real estate agent/broker in most States and therefore may be fraudulent without a current and valid license. Tell that to your credit card company to get a refund of the advance fee. All they are able to do is put your advertisement online and wait for an interested party to find it. You can do that yourself and save hundreds of dollars.
• YOUR TIMESHARE IS SOLD.
They call and tell you they have sold your timeshare. All they need to do now is the title search. You will have to federal express a check to them for the title search. It is $700.00. The fed ex fee can be deducted from your closing fees. You should not have to send any money prior to the closing. The $700.00 will be paid by the Buyer at the closing. The Buyer doesn’t want to pay the fee ahead of time in case there is a title problem. The Scam Artist receives the check and then sends you a legal looking contract. They may send the contract ahead of time to make it look legitimate. The Scam Artist will then disappear, disconnect the 800 number you are using, or call you to tell you the Buyer backed out but they will use this title search for the next sale on your timeshare.
• BUYING TIMESHARE FOR A NATIONAL COMPANY.
The Scam Artist states that they are purchasing timeshare weeks for the executives of a large nationally known company. This nationally known company is looking for timeshare units to buy to rent out and use with their employees. In order to be guaranteed a spot for the national company to purchase your timeshare you must reserve a spot so that they will not purchase someone else’s unit. You must wonder how they could have placed your unit on the market for sale if you never gave them an approval. In all cases the Owners are offered a large amount of money for their units. This Scam moved from State to State.
• GUARANTEED SALE SCAM
Watch out for companies that guarantee a sale. In an attempt to get your money upfront some companies will guarantee to sell your timeshare. No company can guarantee your timeshare will sell. They can guarantee that they will advertise it until sold. They will tell you that you will get your money back at closing if anyone else sells it before they do.
• GUARANTEE AN OFFER
Be cautious of companies who guarantee to bring you an offer on your timeshare. What typically happens in these cases is that the same company who is guaranteeing to bring an offer, will themselves make you the offer for a ridiculous price; say $100. This keeps their guarantee of an offer “legitimate,” but obviously isn't what you had in mind. If they are going to bring you an offer they don’t need an upfront fee to bring the offer.
• THE BUYER WAITING SCAM
You receive a call that someone has a buyer waiting to purchase your property. Of course you'll be required to pay a fee in order for them to forward this buyer to you. Once you pay the fee, the buyer either suddenly gets cold feet, or you never hear another word from the person or their company again. Sometimes they will tell you they are working with an out of town Buyer and have to have an answer now and will ask you for a fee for various reasons. All of the reasons are bogus.
• APPRAISALS
The only time you should pay a fee for an appraisal for a timeshare is NEVER. At this time it is almost impossible to appraise a timeshare that is sold on the resale market. There is not enough data complied to produce a bona fide appraisal. If you need an appraisal for a divorce or the IRS you should make sure you are using a licensed appraiser who is risking his license to give you an appraisal.
• PAYS FOR ALL CLOSING COSTS.
This is supposed to pay for all closing costs when the unit closes. Closing costs are paid at time of closing not before. Any excuse given for this is a lie.
• SMALL COMMISSION WHEN SOLD.
All the commission should be paid when sold. Why do they need any of it ahead of time?
• PAYS FOR TITLE CHARGES.
Wrong. Title companies do not collect their fees prior to closing. You will get your money back at closing. Wrong. There will never be a closing.
• VACATION CLUB.
They ask you to meet them at a hotel so that you will never have to pay for a maintenance fee again. All of a sudden you belong to a Vacation Club and you have parted with several thousand dollars to join a vacation club. Your timeshare is then given to a person to sell on eBay for whatever it will bring. The person selling the timeshare gets the profit from the sale so they don’t care how much it sells for. The person selling you the Vacation Club gets your money. The value of timeshares has decreased due to the large amount of these timeshares showing up on eBay and other sites so every one gets scammed with this one.
• DONATE YOUR TIMESHARE.
If it is a donation you should not have to pay anything. Especially for an “appraisal” to prove the value. Check to make sure the company you are donating to isn’t just advertising the timeshare on eBay and getting the profits as in the example of the Vacation Club. Before donating, determine how and when the deed is recorded and the resort is notified of your donation so you are off the hook with the resort for future fees! Then follow up on this to be sure it is done.
• WE BUY YOUR TIMESHARE.
But you must pay closing cost, appraisal etc. If you have to pay anything to sell your timeshare don’t do it.