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PostCard Companies (by KC):

judikoz wrote:

The problem with the transfer companies or post card companies is not the proceudre it is the lies that they tell to put the fear of God in the elderly and uninformed seller. What these companies have done in the past 10-12 years is destroy the timeshare resale market for all Sellers. When they collect a big fee and then put the unit on ebay for $1.00 and then show that same ad to the next group of vicitims to show them how bad the market is they destroy the market. It is not the upfront fee that is bad it is the lies that are told to collect the upfront fee. KARMA

What you have stated above is correct in large part, but I must respectfully disagree regarding the PRIMARY problem associated with PostCard Companies. The larger issue in the overall picture is one that you haven't addressed (or even acknowledged) at all.

I have NO use for ANY PCC. NONE. Let me be very clear that I would NEVER recommend that anyone EVER pay one red cent (let alone thousands of dollars) to ANY PCC to relinquish ownership of their timeshare. That much clearly stated, whether PCC practices have driven down "resale market values" is true only for lesser value weeks. Prime weeks and prime locations cannot be (and have not been) impacted much, if at all, by the existence or practices of PCC's.

The much BIGGER issue regarding PCC's, in my personal opinion, is that far too many PCC - acquired weeks, when NOT successfully sold for a buck on eBay, too often end up in "ghost owner limbo" (i.e., placed into the names of bogus shell corporations or LLC's of fraudulent intent, which will never acknowledge any mail or bills and will never pay any maintenance fees). These "ghost ownerships" undermine the financial stability of impacted resorts which end up having weeks owned by "ghosts" who will never pay their share of maintenance fees. Foreclosure can then be initiated, of course, but that process costs a facility time and money --- yet still leaves no one responsible for maintenance fees on those weeks for as long as those foreclosure acquistions remain under HOA ownership.

Maintenace fees support a facility's operation. Without same, a facility cannot thrive (or survive long term), once "out from under" developer financial backing and control. To me, THAT is a MUCH bigger problem and issue than the fact that PCC's may have driven down resale market values for "lesser" weeks in many locations.

The bottom line to me is that if someone acquires a timeshare for a buck on eBay from a PCC, good for them --- as long as the new owner is a real person who will accept and exercise personal accountability and responsibility for paying the annual fees associated with that ownership.

This is just my personal opinion and my perspective is obviously quite different from yours, since I am NOT in the timeshare resale or real estate business...