Posts filed under 'Timeshare Owners'
During the last week, timeshare resale related stories have appeared in the news twice – which is actually a lot for a niche industry! Additionally, both stories relate to previous posts here at Helptimeshare.com:
The Good
Back in May, I pointed out the threat posed to timeshare owners by timeshare recovery companies. Yesterday this issue was highlighted in an article by Diane Lade of the Sun Sentinel. In it, she states that the “Florida Attorney General has received more than 600 complaints in the past 12 months” regarding recovery companies. While it’s great to see these fraudulent entities receiving some attention from the media and regulators, I have to wonder how many thousands of timeshare owners have been victimized in the four months since I originally reported on the problem. Lade goes on to point out that some timeshare resale companies have “closed down but then reopened as a timeshare recovery business” – an astute observation echoing my post describing a recovery company as “a failed timeshare resale company.”
According to Lade, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumers Services regulators are hard-at-work investigating “about 20 timeshare recovery businesses.” Hopefully, these efforts will protect timeshare owners from being conned out of their hard-earned money. …and Kudos to Lade and the Sun Sentinel for calling attention to this phenomenon!
The Bad
On September 3rd, an article by Jon Burnstein (also of the Sun Sentinel), provided some follow-up information on the ongoing timeshare fraud saga of Timeshare Mega Media. In what the FTC has called a “naked fraud,” Timeshare Mega Media contacted timeshare owners claiming “we have a buyer for your timeshare.” According to Burnstein, the operation collected an “estimated $5 million in less than a year,” before closing their doors in May 2010. Not to sound like a broken record, but HelpTimeshare.com reported on the “It’s Already Sold” scam back in February of 2010. Apparently, our warning went unheeded by some 10,000+ consumers in Florida alone… More to the point of why I consider this a ‘bad’ story, Burnstein repeatedly refers to Timeshare Mega Media as a “timeshare resale company.” He goes on to refer to the timeshare resale industry as “fraud-riddled,” and states that “many of the unscrupulous resale companies operate the same way.” I suggest that, for anyone in the media, using this sort of language is, at best, irresponsible: Timeshare Mega Media was clearly anything but a timeshare resale company. According to Burnstein’s own article the company was no more than a criminal front, operated not by timeshare industry professionals but by felons and associates of major crime families.
Please, call them “fake” timeshare resale companies or something, but a distinction needs to be drawn by the media between criminals and timeshare resale companies. There is nothing to suggest Timeshare Mega Media, or its affiliates, had any connection whatsoever to the actual timeshare resale industry. No one in the press refers to the Swiss Watch Industry as “fraud-riddled,” though fake Rolex watches are still a-dime-a-dozen throughout the U.S.
September 7th, 2011
Timeshare recovery companies pose a new threat to timeshare owners; undermining resale values, and negatively affecting public trust in the secondary timeshare market.
Timeshare resales are still relatively new; after all, timeshare itself has only been in America for around 30 years. Added to that, there was no affordable way to mass-market anything prior to the advent of the Internet, or more specifically before Google defined the modern search engine. For all intents and purposes then, the secondary market for timeshares is about 10 years old. As with any emerging market, timeshare resale has faced obstacles and impediments, along with some spectacular successes. Owners that decide to sell find themselves faced with conflicting information, an abundance of uncertainty, and, yes, some scams to be avoided.
While most objective observers will admit that timeshare scams are the exception, rather than the rule, they exist, and many an unsuspecting owner has been led astray by silver-tongued fraudsters. Thankfully, the timeshare resale market is evolving and growing. Legitimate and committed companies are making a difference every day. That said, owners still have to be careful… Many have paid fees to have their timeshares advertised or marketed, but are still waiting for a buyer. During this time is when I think owners are most vulnerable, and this is the very vulnerability that timeshare recovery companies exploit.
Just what is a timeshare recovery company? Typically a failed timeshare resale company with some sort of loose association with a law firm. These recovery (or timeshare advocacy) companies cold-call timeshare owners offering to ‘recover’ funds paid to a timeshare resale company. The catch is that their services require the owner to pay yet another upfront fee. If that sounds fishy to you, then you’re not alone. In a recent case involving a timeshare recovery company that came before the U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida, the Judge included the following in his report:
The Court views Plaintiff’s description of its business with some skepticism. The intended customer base includes individuals who previously made disappointing purchases of time share units (often as the result of sophisticated sales techniques) and who thereafter availed themselves of high priced resale services that failed to deliver as promised. Such individuals must be seen a vulnerable population. Plaintiff’s business includes inducing these individuals to purchase yet additional services with respect to their time shares.
Beyond the dubious nature of timeshare recovery companies, the strategies these firms encourage owners to use in order to pursue a refund often constitute criminal behavior! Owners are given form letters, and told to sign and mail them to the timeshare resale company in question. These letters regularly violate state and federal extortion laws, contain slanderous statements, and constitute defamation; making the timeshare owner themselves criminally liable, and subject to prosecution.
There are free and legal ways for owners to address grievances with resale companies. By getting involved with timeshare recovery companies, owners have nothing to gain and potentially everything to lose… Consider yourself warned.
May 26th, 2011
It’s been nearly two years since I started this blog, and during that time so much has changed in the timeshare industry. As a full-time (and lifetime) timeshare professional, providing commentary on industry trends and events has been exciting, and, at times, cathartic… and I’d like to believe that the posts here helped changes the perceptions of at least some of the many thousands of readers. Timeshare is a great product, but still a relatively new product. It has suffered growing pains, as any new industry does, but these need not be roadblocks; only obstacles to be quickly overcome.
A substantial portion of HelpTimeshare.com has consisted of in-depth reviews of various timeshare resorts. The resorts I’ve reviewed have been properties where Bay Tree Solutions advertisers have owned timeshares. By creating a specific and positive narrative for a timeshare resort, we create reasons for someone to buy there. After much consideration, Bay Tree Solutions has decided resort reviews belong nearer the listings on its primary website. Looking for detailed reviews of vacation ownership resorts? Visit the timeshare resorts page and select a property. At the Help Timeshare Blog, I will continue helping timeshare owners to protect, defend, and preserve their resale values, with current and relevant industry analysis.
Thank you for your continued readership!
May 17th, 2011
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