Manhattan Club Lawsuit

why don't you simply post what you found out about maintenance fees payments instead of having all us share owners contact you via email? just post your information right here in the redweek.com forum; that would help us all much quicker than having to individually contact you by email. thanks.\

keep in touch.

chris

I was thinking the same thing myself. It would be much easier if you could please post the information for everyone to read. Thank you

PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU DID ABOUT FEES AND THE MC RESPONSE. THANKS

One thing i have not seen mentioned enough on this site ( i may be mistaken) is their sales tactics. Specifically I'm referring to their selling of additional units at above market prices.. Is it not obviously fraudulent to sell primary units at prices which they do when once they hit the mkt they are worth nothing...........Is it legal for mgmt to sell more units when in the secondary mkt they will become worthless? Please help me with this thanks Kurt

Kurt, you are correct. Not only was it fraudulent to sell something that at the same time TMC was devaluing behind the scenes, but they reportedly continue to sell timeshares via a third party as I've reported to the Attorney General below ...

Attorneys Schneiderman, Meier, Farooq & Rendin,

In apparent violation of your order for The Manhattan Club to cease and desist selling timeshare interest in their New York property they have reportedly entered into a side agreement with BlueGreen Timeshare to sell TMC shares on their behalf.

Just last week BlueGreen hosted meetings at World Golf Village in St. Augustine, FL during which attendees were advised that BlueGreen has recently "bought into TMC" in NYC and, because of this deal having been made, as BlueGreen owners they can now secure a unit at TMC easier than the original TMC timeshare owners.

This is concerning for two reasons; first, The Manhattan Club has ignored the New York Attorney General's order and continues to generate revenue via selling timeshares, and second, TMC's actions fly in the face of we TMC owners who have paid a premium for product and services not delivered. This all goes to support our charges and demand for remuneration.

Respectfully,

Charles McGill

(cell) 516.902.1817

Owner Number - 14049 Timeshare Unit Number - 1715 Contract - One Week Gold Flex Interest Purchase Price - $24,493. Maintenance Fee - $610 now $2,659.33 Date of Purchase - 2/3/2001 Sales Executive - Vicky Tree Owners - Charles & Robyn McGill

I would not waste any more time calling TMC to vent and complain. They simply have no interest.

Rather, comprise letters to Eric Schneiderman describing what you believe to be unfair, illegal, or unscrupulous treatment since acquiring your TMC timeshare. Mr. Schneiderman's office is interested in learning of any Marketing mail correspondence you may have ever received from TMC, any promises that were made regarding time availability or stable/capped maintenance fees, info regarding the salesperson's representation that TMC would buy the unit back if ever we wanted, info regarding your own personal experience with getting your requested time for the timeshare you bought.

Below is my report to the Attorney General. Everyone aware of this forum should do the same. Mr. Schneiderman's office is very receptive and is interested in these details. The AG's office has followed up with me with questions several times after receiving my complaint. They have advised me that they do not look at this forum, so, if you don't formally make your written complaint to the Attorney General's office, your voice is not being heard ...

Eric Schneiderman, Esq. New York Attorney General’s Office The Capitol Albany, New York 12224-0341

Re: Timeshare Owners vs. The Manhattan Club

Counselors Schneiderman, Meier, Farooq & Rendin,

The purpose of this writing is to formalize my complaint and to contribute to the evidence pool on Plaintiff's behalf in the above referenced action.

My wife and I responded to a direct mail campaign of the defendant in 2001, met briefly with a Sales Executive, and purchased one week of a one bedroom suite, Gold Flexible Interest. During the sales presentation we were assured that the maintenance fees had not and likely would not increase in the foreseeable future, and that they may even decrease over time. We were also verbally assured that these time shares were steadily increasing in value and could always be sold at a profit in the future, as prior owners were purportedly doing.

In the course of the 13 years we have owned this property we were able to secure our stay there only once. We have called or written to TMC to try to plan a family vacation every year since purchasing 13 years ago and, other than the one occasion, have consistently been denied availability.

During this time our maintenance fees were increased from the initial agreed upon $610 ... to $2,659 annually. That's $2,659 for a week hotel stay (that we cannot even obtain!) on top of another $24,493. that we originally paid for the privilege.

We have dutifully paid all of the fees and maintenance expenses as billed trusting that the State was about to intervene and disallow this continued fraud and the personal threats. We are willing to testify or sign an affidavit attesting to the untruths and misstatements made by the defendant in the course of presenting and selling this property, as well as to our inability to claim what we paid for over the course of our 13 years of ownership.

Sincerely, Charles & Robyn McGill

Timeshare Unit Number - 1715 Owner Number - 14049 Contract - One Week Gold Flex Interest Purchase Price - $24,493. Maintenance Fee - $610 now $2,659.33 Date of Purchase - 2/3/2001 Sales Executive - Vicky Tree Owners - Charles & Robyn McGill

Charles McGill

(cell) 516.902.1817

Chris is absolutely right. If you have something valuable to share, do it. Not appropriate to dangle information in front of owners as if it's a tease. You need to demonstrate your credibility. If you have learned something significant about owner issues and taxes and maintenance fees, share it.

Thanks for sharing your letter. Did you mail it to the Attorney General's office? ( I see the address you posted)

I am preparing my letter and have seen (I think) both ways (email and post) on this site. Please advise.

This whole situation is ludicrous, and as I read your letter, I just can't comprehend how they've gotten away with this fraud again, and again, and again...........

Thanks again,

Patti Boro

I also sent my information directly to the AG as he requested I do. His office is very responsive to your letters and will ask for copies if any pertinent documents you might have or experience relating to their case.

irene,

your input is missed. hope you're ok.

get back with the dissatisfied MANHATTAN CLUB GROUP. pls continue your good work.

just sent an email to wwtccorp@gmail.com for information concerning what he has done re: manhattan club maintenance fees and taxes. i also asked him to share this information directly with us owners in this redweek.com forum. hopefully we'll get some useful information from him. keep an eye out for this info. if you don't see it here, email the above address to find out why sharing isn't forthcoming.

fellow owners, keep in touch!

chris

Patti, I sent my written complaint via email to each of the attorneys reflected in my letter. I think they probably prefer email, and they have been following up with their investigation by contacting and extensively interviewing me over the phone.

If you all comprise similar letters that describe your inability to use your timeshare purchase as intended and forward your complaint to Mr. Schneiderman's office you will be heard!

Below are the email addresses of the 4 attorneys at the Attorney General's office that I sent my Complaint to. The cc to Valerie is to keep NBC informed in case they want to televise any follow ups to their initial broadcast on this fraud.

eric.schneiderman@ag.ny.gov, andrew.meier@ag.ny.gov, serwat.farooq@ag.ny.gov, jeffrey.rendin@ag.ny.gov

cc: Valerie.patriarca@nbcuni.com

If anyone has an update to these contacts please advise.

alexcrystal22@gmail.com is undeliverable. Please send me another email address as I would like to be included in the class action suit. Thank you.

I am at the TMC right now and ran into another owner who directed me to this site. I had no idea all this was going on but felt that I had been taken for a ride and logged a complaint with the consumer protection board in 2010. I have my complaint and the letter they sent me telling me that the TMC a did nothing wrong. Stunning. I sent copies them of all my e-mails and letters of complaint and the CPB did nothing. So I will support your claim and will send all my correspondence to the attorney general. I also checked the ACRIS site that the other owner directed me to and did not see that my deed was registered on the site I checked!

Oddly enough, on this visit I brought my deed with me and after reading your comments I did not see anything anywhere where it says you have to book 9 months in advance. I believe it is an RCI thing. I did book about that far in advance in the hopes that I could get something. I also told the RCI rep that I was an owner whether that helped at all.

You must watch, as an owner, that they do not charge you the housekeeping fee of $30.00 per night which they did to us in 2013. When we questioned them at the front desk we were told that everyone has to pay it. We have since complained to the manager and are working with them to receive some kind of compensation this time around and availing ourselves of the over priced drinks and food on the 26th floor is not it. Hmmmm, how about putting the charge back on my card?

Hi Cris, you mentioned in your post " just sent an email to wwtccorp@gmail.com for information concerning what he has done re: manhattan club maintenance fees and taxes". Could you please kindly share what you wrote regarding the taxes? This year I wanted to pay taxes only. Requested the tax amount over the phone with MC and found out that the amount differs from the amount that was announced in the Annual Budget. When the charge for taxes was posted on my CC, the description stated it was a payment for 'Cleaning and maint services', not taxes. I disputed the description but the MC refused to change it.

fibon, i get the distinct feeling that whoever wrote that nonsensical "antidote"to not paying maintenance fees/taxes at the manhattan club is as much a fraudster as the principals at the CLUB. i originally asked him to post his "fix" in this forum; his response to me was an email from an alleged attorney's office (unidentified of course). he also fled from the truth by saying that each case is different and settlements were too numerous and diverse (or something like that) to publish here in this redweek forum. STEER CLEAR OF THIS FRAUDULENT SCAMMER. i'm not sure if the following is the appropriate and/or the legal thing to do but here goes: i have 2 weeks; i sent in two separate checks to the manhattan club for the amount of my taxes owed and made it very clear on the checks as to where the monies were to go (FOR TAXES OWED ONLY). i did not pay the outrageously exorbitant maintenance fees simply because i don't appreciate being robbed. that's my take on the matter for now and until the nys attorney general, eric schneiderman has indicated that his case against the manhattan club has been won or lost, whatever the outcome is; then i will seek other courses of action for payment or non-payment of the maintenance fees.

pls respond to this email.

chris

Thanks so much for the info!

I would be interested in filling out the survey for Manhattan Club.

I would like to ad something to the lawsuit. In our case we own a Penthouse share-which of course was not was and promised (own balconies where you could have your breakfast-ha ha) etc. Our timeshare fees include the cost of renovations on the floors below (which were supposed to be another corporation and they proved this to us by not allowing us to use the floors below if Penthouse was not available). They asserted that we were not entitled to those rooms because we were a separate entitity. However, if you were on a floor below, you are allowed to use the penthouse instead. Ditto with the cost (which for penthouse was $30,000) and promise of raises in value. You can't give the timeshare away because of the high maintenance fees.

James Carrano