The Manhattan Club Lawsuit - RedWeek's Report & Most Recent Info

thank you. someone is paying attention! now, do we simply follow the line of lemmings to fall over the cliff to the final slaughter? with bluegreen, (as experienced already with eichner) that's where we're headed. bluegreen needs to be challenged to turn the board of directors over to the owners who should have a definitive and policy-making voice in all decisions concerning the running of TMC TIMESHARE (WHICH IS SIMILAR TO A CONDOMINIUM.) correct me if i'm wrong, , but this was a part of the original deeded paperwork. also, the nonsensical back and forth over getting financials and owner contact lists from bluegreen must be stopped. owners have a right to this information and it should be turned over to us (or our legal representatives) immediately.

louisea75 wrote:

I read through many of the Bluegreen reviews on the Consumer Affairs site and nearly all of them said do not do business with this company, it's a scam, they lied etc.

I think the 2 or more positive reviews are fake.

Let me put it this way. Every city and town budget has an expense line item for "uncollected taxes." This is an expense that must be budgeted for. The larger the figure is, the more it impacts property taxes, increases them. The same is true with timeshares. Unpaid maintenance fees is one of the factors that cause them to increase. It's just common sense.

It is my understanding that TMC is going to start foreclosure proceedings. If a week is foreclosed, the owner will lose it and a judgement will be filed for all unpaid maintenance fees. I do not know if legal fees will be included in the judgement.

We were dealt a bad hand. When you are in a hole, it is best to stop digging.

chrisv126 wrote:

"It doesn't take rocket science to realize that many unpaid maintenance fees cause them to increase. What has to be proven??"

would you accept the fact that neither of us (i am not) is a rocket scientist? what needs to be demonstrated is that some owners' non-payment of maintenance fees is increasing the amount of maintenance fees, which is probably unlikely.

"probably agree" doesn't do justice to the fact that a 500+% increase in MF's is usuriously and hurtfully exorbitant causing many owners to default on payment for their own reasons, unaffordably being the main culprit. fyi, i purchased in 2002 and painfully experienced MF increases up to the current 500%. with financial effort and good vibes from a supreme being, i am still (barely) able to make my payments. if things go as forecast by past experience, i'm not sure i will be in a position to continue to maintain MY PART OF THE CONTRACTUAL AGREEMENT, partly in opposition to the other parties of the contract having broken their part of this agreement in a criminal and fraudulent manner (assumed to make the contract void and in need of re-negotiation) , and partly because i simply will not be able to afford these payments.

i hope that you'll agree that most non-payment of MF, owners are not purposely attempting to financially burden other paying owners. that non-payment of maintenance fees greatly contribute to MF increases, is a contention that still needs to be demonstrably proven. it's not a totally unlikely conclusion, but one that might be exaggerated and is still yet to be shown as a direct cause. i implore you to consider putting the primary blame on avarice and greed on the part of TMC as initially planned by its developer IAN BRUCE EICHNER. also keep in mind that this fraud is being perpetuated by BLUEGREEN, our current maleficent leader.

williamm465 wrote:

It doesn't take rocket science to realize that many unpaid maintenance fees cause them to increase. What has to be proven??

I probably agree that a 500% is very high. What year did you purchase Chris?

After years of tracking all posts, I've given up. There is no new information being posted here.

William, my message to you seems to have been deleted. Do you have any idea why it was deleted?

Becky F: As mentioned previously on this forums' thread, we are starting to remove any comments that are in reference to other individuals posting on this forum and not about the Manhattan Club. There were several recent statements about other individuals that were removed. Thanks in advance for your understanding.

I'd recommend that everyone who is serious about getting out of the contracts file a $25,000 lawsuit PRO SE (acting as your own attorney) at 111 Centre Str, Manhattan with Court Clerk. They have a free legal consultant on a first come-first served basis who can help you, but you'll need to do your own homework to file the lawsuit and follow up with the court proceedings. You can use the AG's findings in your evidence of how TMC did you wrong, and you need to specify how they harmed you financially. Check it out. It's much more satisfying than simply complaining to everyone, but it takes time, commitment, and $ to get out of the contracts.

Hi Joy, I appreciate your advice and I think it’s very good advice for those you live near New York. I unfortunately live in California so it would not be cost effective for me to do unless it could all be done through the mail. Any advice on how to do that?

this redweek forum has lost its value in offering reality-based comments and helpful, constructive suggestions about our continued myriad issues and problems with TMC/BLUEGREEN.

the redweek comments and counter comments represent near-childish arguments and one-upmanship..................of which, i admit, i took part in from time to time, much to my regret.

many, i assume, believe that bluegreen will step in and alleviate some of the past unsavory eichner issues with THE MANHATTAN CLUB. that's a not-so-delightful fairy tale.

simply read the contents of the following website from consumer affairs: it's amazing how unfavorably ranked bluegreen is by so many people.

copy/paste it to your address bar: there are over 550 consumer comments about bluegreen, less than 1% favorable; this is our new management team and board of directors.....definitely frightening and bizarre and undeserved by us owners who suffered under the eichner regime.

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/travel/bluegreen.html?page=2

keep in mind that bluegreen will be the primary decision-maker for THE MANHATTAN CLUB. the non-sponsor members of the board of directors will have no voice in future plans, e.g., continued raises in maintenance fees. should we continue to support that scenario? we need to face these debilitating issues head-on with counter actions that are strong, meaningful and helpful to our cause: FAIR AND REASONABLE GOVERNANCE AS PROMISED THE MOMENT WE SAT DOWN IN THE 2ND FLOOR SALESROOM.

our contracts have been violated and voided by primary non-adherance to them by eichner. these wrongs by eichner need to be righted before we proceed with a contract that is clear of irresponsibility (AND NON-ADHERANCE) by the initial offering party, IAN BRUCE EICHNER. BLUEGREEN must accept this corrected contractual agreement as the starting point of our new relationship.

please refer to this website. it will make you more aware of your current position as an owner at THE MANHATTAN CLUB and of how, currently, to expect to be treated by bluegreen as our management team.

IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO VIEW THE FOLLOWING:

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/travel/bluegreen.html?page=2

Hello Joy,

I recall your post about a month back on the other RedWeek thread which was far more detailed in its description of all the steps which would be necessary to file this suit and move it forward. Has anyone, for a fact, done this successfully, meaning, won a judgement against the MC? Please do not cite Irene. Her last post here was about being offered a settlement by the MC that she said she wouldn't accept. Perhaps she did after all. Maybe you know. In any case, I don't want to become a self taught lawyer. So, here is my question: if you can sue for $25K, why wouldn't an attorney take the case for $10K? Why do you need to represent yourself?

Thank you!

Becky, I have no idea. What did you call me? Just kidding

beckyf76 wrote:

William, my message to you seems to have been deleted. Do you have any idea why it was deleted?

Becky F., I live in the SF bay area, and yes, it's expensive to go back and forth with hotels etc. I have 2 lawsuits, so I'm looking at a $50K possible recoup, so it's worth it to me. Also, the prospect of dissolving this lifetime and "heirs get stuck with it" contract makes it worth my while. You might be able to engage a NY attorney and have him/her take whatever percentage. I didn't try to do any of it by mail, but it never hurts to ask or try I guess.

Nathan Z, representing myself was a choice I made, and the internet has helped a lot in educating me on the ins and out of the legal process/court system. The invaluable advice from the free court consultant has also been great. I didn't know where to begin in finding a NY attorney so I went on my own. I don't know how much a lawyer would charge or if it would be worth it for me. I like learning new things, so it's not been too much to do it on my own. I understand the law a lot better!

What is happening with the law firm JM Zimmerman? Didn’t a group of owners pay for representation to submit a new lawsuit? Has that gained any traction?

Nathan Z; People represent themselves because lawyers usually charge by the hour, ($100’s/hr) and people who rep themselves are basically placing a $0.00/hr value on their time. These kind of cases can consume thousands of hours plus expenses.

nathanz2 wrote:

Hello Joy,

I recall your post about a month back on the other RedWeek thread which was far more detailed in its description of all the steps which would be necessary to file this suit and move it forward. Has anyone, for a fact, done this successfully, meaning, won a judgement against the MC? Please do not cite Irene. Her last post here was about being offered a settlement by the MC that she said she wouldn't accept. Perhaps she did after all. Maybe you know. In any case, I don't want to become a self taught lawyer. So, here is my question: if you can sue for $25K, why wouldn't an attorney take the case for $10K? Why do you need to represent yourself?

Thank you!

Hello. Am I correct in thinking that the next planned payments from the lawsuit settlement is scheduled for next month? Even though I did not receive any type of reimbursement last year I am curious to see what happens with this next payment. Thank you.

dennisd283, it never occurred to me that i'm valuing my time at $0/hour. I don't think of myself that way; i'm not my own commodity, and i value myself beyond any dollar figure. It's illuminating that you do. I think of what I want to do, what it will take to get it done, and how I'll get it done. Then I do it, go from there.

kevin631 wrote:

Hello. Am I correct in thinking that the next planned payments from the lawsuit settlement is scheduled for next month? Even though I did not receive any type of reimbursement last year I am curious to see what happens with this next payment. Thank you.

Yes, that is my understanding. I did get a check for $52 last August, so it stands to reason that the next payouts will be next month.

Thank you Deborah.

Thanks for all your help understanding the complex issues at the Manhattan Club.

Dennis, this point has been discussed thoroughly in the past on these threads. The reason the limit is $25K is that the court referred to is small claims court, designed so that small suits can be relatively quickly resolved with or without an attorney. Nevertheless, most people are reluctant to take this route, since they lack the time or inclination. Even if they do represent themselves, avoiding legal fees, is hardly a win. There must be some advantage to being represented by an attorney, and a reason why other attorneys haven't employed this strategy. I'm not convinced that representing oneself is just as effective as having professional counsel. I also don't know where you come up with "thousands of hours" of legal time, which seems exaggerated. A small claims suit is about one owner suing for individual damages. Finally, the AOD signed by the NY Attorney General and the MC specifically excludes its being used as evidence in any other court proceeding. So Joy, I understand that going this route is your personal decision. You are brave indeed. I wish you the best of luck!