Special assessment

We are owners at the Kauai Beach Club, and were a little dismayed at the special assessment this year. I know that Mother Nature can do bad things, but I think management should have been better prepared for the runoff problems, and I have a sneaking suspition that they placed an undue burden on the timeshare owners. What do you think?

We totally agree. It seems like Marriott is pricing the owners out of their ownership. We have friends who are thinking of selling out and we too are wondering how we are going to continually afford the high fees and the assessments on top.

I agree. We love the island, and the resort is great, but there are lots better deals out there. We were considering selling our timeshare at the Beach Club, but the price tool a dive after the problems they have had.

Do you know how much you could get for your unit? We have a one bed ocean front. If Marriott resells it I believe they take 25%? so one would have to make enough to get what they put into it. We are also most unhappy because of the ongoing offers not happening. They said they would be heating the pool (always has been quite cool). They said it would happen Jan 07. Now they say there are problems and who knows when/if it will happen. Why didn't they know all these complications before they announced it. And, now will there be another assessment to do that too? It just goes on and on. I think people need to call the resort and talk to someone. We did this past week, but if everyone just remains quiet then they can do anything they want.

traveler wrote:

Do you know how much you could get for your unit? We have a one bed ocean front. If Marriott resells it I believe they take 25%? so one would have to make enough to get what they put into it. We are also most unhappy because of the ongoing offers not happening. They said they would be heating the pool (always has been quite cool). They said it would happen Jan 07. Now they say there are problems and who knows when/if it will happen. Why didn't they know all these complications before they announced it. And, now will there be another assessment to do that too? It just goes on and on. I think people need to call the resort and talk to someone. We did this past week, but if everyone just remains quiet then they can do anything they want.

We are brand new owners this summer (EOY). You seem to have the scoop on what's happening at the reort. Any information is welcome. And how can someone thousands of miles away keep abreast of what's happening? Many thanks...

We have similar serious concerns about the management at the Marriott and the allocation of charges.

It would not be at all unreasonable to conduct some kind of an audit of the allocation. The basis for allocation would be interesting to look at, i.e. on a night's stay basis, on a square foot basis, on the value of the property...etc.

I've noted that the Marriott is giving away a free night with a week's stay, thus sharply discounting the property. This coud impact the allocation method.

Also this may be spelled out in the deed.

Rick Williams

bob639 wrote:

We are owners at the Kauai Beach Club, and were a little dismayed at the special assessment this year. I know that Mother Nature can do bad things, but I think management should have been better prepared for the runoff problems, and I have a sneaking suspition that they placed an undue burden on the timeshare owners. What do you think?

We have owned ar Marriott Beach Club since 1997. At the time, we felt that Marriott was the premier time share on the market. The price at that time was higher than most, but the benefits were greater. Unfortunately, things change over time and the time share industry is no different. Costs go up and you get surprises from mother nature and etc.

Our biggest complaint with Marriott is that we get to many surprises that we are not prepared for and have had little info prior to the surprise. We did not know about this years increases assessments until we received our dues notice for 2007. Apparantly, they sent a summary of additional damage with the drainage system this past summer, but we did not get it. When we received the assessment for this year, I was very upset to say the least, as I had been under the impression that the last assessment was to cover all the damage. I immediately called the new General Manager at the Beach Club and had a long talk about these unexpected surprises and was very disappointed with how it was handled and the owners notified. For those interested, I would call Mr. Bill Countryman at 1-877-924-6424 and express your similar frustrations.

I do not believe that Marriott has intentionly tried to deceive the owners, but I do believe that they have a long way to go in improving timely communications with us.

For you that have purchased recently especially since the flooding problem, you should have been made aware of all the special assessments. Most property transactions that I have been familiar with over the years, have all current assessments paid for as part of the closing. The likelihood of future assessments should have been disclosed as well.

Marriott is an expensive property to own and stay at, far more so than when we bought in 1997. Our othe time shares, especially in Hawaii have also increased dues substantially over the years.

If you have had similar concerns, make them known to the board of directors and Marriott management for the Beach Club. We try to find time on each visit to speak with the Management staff while we are their and get a first hand update as well as vent our frustrations.

Feel free to contact us anytime if you have any specific questions or concerns.

traveler wrote:

We have owned ar Marriott Beach Club since 1997. At the time, we felt that Marriott was the premier time share on the market. The price at that time was higher than most, but the benefits were greater. Unfortunately, things change over time and the time share industry is no different. Costs go up and you get surprises from mother nature and etc.

Our biggest complaint with Marriott is that we get to many surprises that we are not prepared for and have had little info prior to the surprise. We did not know about this years increases assessments until we received our dues notice for 2007. Apparantly, they sent a summary of additional damage with the drainage system this past summer, but we did not get it. When we received the assessment for this year, I was very upset to say the least, as I had been under the impression that the last assessment was to cover all the damage. I immediately called the new General Manager at the Beach Club and had a long talk about these unexpected surprises and was very disappointed with how it was handled and the owners notified. For those interested, I would call Mr. Bill Countryman at 1-877-924-6424 and express your similar frustrations.

I do not believe that Marriott has intentionly tried to deceive the owners, but I do believe that they have a long way to go in improving timely communications with us.

For you that have purchased recently especially since the flooding problem, you should have been made aware of all the special assessments. Most property transactions that I have been familiar with over the years, have all current assessments paid for as part of the closing. The likelihood of future assessments should have been disclosed as well.

Marriott is an expensive property to own and stay at, far more so than when we bought in 1997. Our othe time shares, especially in Hawaii have also increased dues substantially over the years.

If you have had similar concerns, make them known to the board of directors and Marriott management for the Beach Club. We try to find time on each visit to speak with the Management staff while we are their and get a first hand update as well as vent our frustrations.

Feel free to contact us anytime if you have any specific questions or concerns.

We bought this past summer, have stayed at the Beach Club before and loved it. The resort was starting to show a little age, though. Is any of the maintenance fee going to any renovation of the units, halls and other common areas??

And no, they didn't tell us about the special assessment. Thanks....

Their are reserves to cover upgrading the units and the common areas. Keep in mind that we are part of a hotel and I believe major changes to the common areas are depentent on the hotel as well. They are in the process of removing the hidabeds from the rooms and installing murphy beds in their place. This will be a great addition as the hidabeds were terrible even though they are relatively new. They are going to be heating the pool as a result of installing their own power plant to supply much of the electricity for the complex. If and when this is complete, possibly late 2007, we sholud see a reduction in our utility expense in years to come. If you bought your unit from Marriott rather than a private party, I would ask them why you were not notified as to the special assessment(s). I believe by law they are required to disclose all those facts. You might be able to pressure them into some concessions? If you bought from a private party, even though they may still be required to disclose, chances are that there is little recourse. Either way, if this something you feel wronged by, I would suggest that you obtain legal advise. Even though we have had a number of complaints over the years, we have never traded our unit and use it virtually every year. It is still one of the very best time share properties out there. We also believe that Kauai is the best place to vacation that we own two other time shares on different pats of the island. Look forward to hearing from you and maybe meeting on Garden Isle.

traveler wrote:

Their are reserves to cover upgrading the units and the common areas. Keep in mind that we are part of a hotel and I believe major changes to the common areas are depentent on the hotel as well. They are in the process of removing the hidabeds from the rooms and installing murphy beds in their place. This will be a great addition as the hidabeds were terrible even though they are relatively new. They are going to be heating the pool as a result of installing their own power plant to supply much of the electricity for the complex. If and when this is complete, possibly late 2007, we sholud see a reduction in our utility expense in years to come. If you bought your unit from Marriott rather than a private party, I would ask them why you were not notified as to the special assessment(s). I believe by law they are required to disclose all those facts. You might be able to pressure them into some concessions? If you bought from a private party, even though they may still be required to disclose, chances are that there is little recourse. Either way, if this something you feel wronged by, I would suggest that you obtain legal advise. Even though we have had a number of complaints over the years, we have never traded our unit and use it virtually every year. It is still one of the very best time share properties out there. We also believe that Kauai is the best place to vacation that we own two other time shares on different pats of the island. Look forward to hearing from you and maybe meeting on Garden Isle.

I called Marriott about the assesment. They claimed all of the decisions were made by the board and took no responsibility for the assesments. They said they were only the management company. I also asked if we could pay the additional fee over two or three payments and they said yes, but we would be charged late fees and penalties. Pretty ugly! The owners need to do something. But What?

We were at this property (we own here) during the flooding of March 2006, and we were told at that time that most of the special assessment was going to go to the hotel. We followed up with letters to the Board Members, who then just forwarded them to Bill Countryman and did NOT even respond to us directly! We were not at al impressed with our current Board of Directors. Bill Countryman explained all of the reasons and tried to blame some of it on the new Murphy beds, etc. He is in a tough spot, but we think this was way to much for one year. We also had special assessments on another Marriott property we own, so we took a big hit. Like most of you, we love this property, but it is to the point where we can rent it cheaper than we can own it!

Very frustrated!

We happened to be in Kauai in March and drove over - especially to check on the murphy beds. The hotel gave us a key to go look and we are impressed! They are really nice!! so finally feel we have gotten something positive for a change. I imagine they cost a fortune, so it just plain costs a lot for the Marriott quality. However, one does wonder if it would be cheaper to just rent a place - just wouldn't be the quality.

I'm just about to purchase a unit off of Redweek for this property, but I have to say, all of these comments about the huge special assessments concern me. Does anyone know if they're nearing the end of these assessments? Or are they expected year after year for the next several years? It sounds as though a lot of you have gotten incredibly frustrated with the frequency and the burden of these special assessments.

paulap17 wrote:

I'm just about to purchase a unit off of Redweek for this property, but I have to say, all of these comments about the huge special assessments concern me. Does anyone know if they're nearing the end of these assessments? Or are they expected year after year for the next several years? It sounds as though a lot of you have gotten incredibly frustrated with the frequency and the burden of these special assessments.

All special assessments have been paid except for a dangling about $200 from the $600 over three year assessment for the sinkhole/diversion pipes problem. There has been a proposed settlement (not yet final) from "upstream land owners" and, while no decision had been made as of last week about what will occur with the Owners' share of the settlement, it might be applied to wipe out the remainder of the assessment. So, at worst, the total assessment (for an annual one week ocean view) for 2008 will be about $1500.

After reading all the views from others, I believe this will not be the timeshare we buy into. Thanks to this forum we would not have been aware of all the extra expense it would involve.

You should not permit this to be the deciding factor in your decision.

It is a BEAUTIFUL location. The great benefit we found (in addition to how nice the whole complex is) is the resort environment which you don't get at many timeshare sites because of the co-location of the hotel. The location is just going to get better with the development of Kauai Lagoons, with the improvement of the golf courses, the building of the Grand Residences and Ritz-Carlton location, the ocean front improvements, and many other area improvements.

These special assessments are at their end. They were truly "special", due to an emergency situation, and not the result of mismanagement or shorting the reserve fund so that a special assessment was needed to perform refurbishment. Next year the electrical generation and heated pool system will be installed (first quarter) and the 10-year refurbishment of villas will be completed (September to Christmas). It will be an even better place in 2009!

We just returned this week from the Kauai Beach Marriott property. We are some of the many who have owned for quite awhile and had a lot of complaints about the assessments. The club just started having a meeting every week for members while vacationing there. This is new and in addition to their "welcome" get together. It is hosted by the manager. We can be critical and detailed so went to hear what he had to say. We were totally surprised and satisfied with each and every answer to MANY questions about the money, how it was spent, what the future holds and thus now feel a whole new level of confidence. The manager gave us all two email addresses and invited any of us to ask questions ANY time. As I said - We came away with a feeling of satisfaction - FINALLY! We heard every concern addressed and were impressed when so much made sense. Everyone there agreed that the biggest problem has been lack of communication. Had we not been there we wouldn't understand the complexity of the issues - i.e. - how HUGE the damage was, why the pool STILL isn't heated etc. etc. Please feel free to use the email info he gave us to get your questions answered too. Chris.Laletin@Marriott.com or ph# 1-808-246-5011 (lead the meeting) Art.Gillespie@Verizon.net Hopefully I copied everything down right - and hopefully this helps any of you who have questions and doubts about the value of this timeshare. This is, after all, a beautiful property and we'll now start enjoying it again after regaining confidence in the program.

Traveler: those are the email addresses I copied down from the meetings four and three weeks ago (has it really been that long?). Chris LaLetin is the operations manager for Marriott at Kauai Beach (Marriott manages both the hotel for its owner and the Villas for the VOA). Art Gillespie is the chairman of the VOA board of directors, so he is the "lead" representative of the villa owners. Chris was GREAT - direct, transparent, responsive - during the meetings I attended. I was assured that Marriott has very good people taking care of the properties for us.