Remembering why you bought your timeshare!

Timeshares are still a great investment if you remember why you bought yours! Too many owners nowadays jump on these timeshare forums and hear how someone was scammed or cheated and paid too much money and now want to know how to dump their unit. A lot of owners jump on this band wagon and hate their timeshare for no other reason than others complaining about timeshares. Yes people lost job and income or children grew up and don't need such a large unit and this happen to us few years ago with daughter getting married. There are real reasons for selling but many start blaming others for buying in first place which is bull! You are adults and no one can talk you in buying something you don't want. Many of these owners that can afford their timeshare should stop complaining like others and go back and spend a week in their resort. Maybe they will remember why they bought it years ago and want to start using it again.

We have been in timesharing since 1983 and our only complaint was we hated dealing with RCI. We sold that resort and bought into one in location we love going to that dealt with II and have owned for many years now. We sold out around 1992 and away from timesharing for about ten years. While on vacation in Maui at a great hotel my wife wanted to go look at a resort we once exchanged into and after seeing it again said she wanted us to go back into timesharing. We went back and bought in same resort as before. Because of family now growing up we did sell our two bedroom two years ago to another owner at our resort and this last year sold our odd year unit during our stay there and now only own a even year at same resort.

Bottom line we have always been happy in timesharing because we bought a timeshare we wanted to return every year so we will never think we lost money. We bought and figure we saved money every year we owned and stayed their. Our thinking is we saved at least a $1000 a year in hotel cost savings. Many owners figure they paid $----- and ten years later it should be sold for that amount and this is foolish thinking.

I posted few years ago that when jobs return many owners will regret dumping/selling their unit. When families work they will always go on vacation. I still can't believe how much money we spent in hotels in most cases double or more our maintenance fee's of our timeshares. We spent more for less time and as great as the hotels were they had bedroom/bathroom and coffee makers and you had to eat out every meal at high cost and as my wife said in Hawaii I want my kitchen back and bring friends with us. Cooking saved us alot of money and being able to bring friends with us made the timeshare world perfect for our family.

PHILL12

phill12 wrote:

Timeshares are still a great investment if you remember why you bought yours! To many owners now days jump on these timeshare forums and hear how someone was scammed or cheated and paid to much money and now want to know how to dump their unit. Way to many people jump on this band wagon and hate their timeshare for no other reason than others whining about it.

Yes some people lost jobs,income...

The reason why so many bought (from the developer) was because the salesperson(s) lied, exaggerated, misled, misrepresented, and oversold what owning a timeshare could do for the buyer.

True, the buyer should have done more research before quickly handing over thousands of dollars for and on-the-spot, spur-of-the-moment purchase but those purchases were likely based on all the lies and misrepresentations the salesperson(s) used.

For instance, did the salesperson(s) disclose to the buyer during the sales presentation that maintenance fees would increase faster than the buyers' wages? Did he/they mention property taxes and/or reserve funds?

What about the classic, "Oh, you can rent it out for [well above your maintenance fees]" when we all know that it's not as easy or guaranteed as it sounds?

Then, of course, there's the ploy where they hand you the catalog for RCI or Interval International telling you that you can exchange anytime, anywhere at any of these zillions of resorts for a "small" exchange fee. Yeah, right.

Oh, don't forget about "Why rent when you can own? You're buying a property with equitable value that you can sell down the road if you ever tire of your timeshare." Yeah, sell for how much?

Now, I'm not saying timeshares are evil. Many owners who did their research made wise purchases and are happy. But those who bought from those salespeople are probably angry and frustrated that all those promises made at the presentation are far from coming to fruition.

As for those who "now want to know how to dump their unit", that's probably because they realize that they can rent for less than the amount of their maintenance fees and, inversely, cannot recover their maintenance fees if/when they rent it out (if they can even find a renter).

Also, the last sentence that I quoted from you may sum up some owners' frustration. They bought thinking that it would provide them with a lifetime of travel savings only to find out that three years down the road, their situation changes and can no longer afford the maintenance fees or the travel expenses.

I read this with interest. I'm trying to identify those items mentioned that a reasonable person couldn't have anticipated had they read the sales documents. Of course, they could have rescinded the transaction during the few days following their purchase.

My primary complaint with timeshares is that there is no reasonable exit strategy and this is deliberately left out of the sales presentation. Proper disclosure of the consequences of the resale of your unit would caution buyers to the potential pitfalls.

dennish144 wrote:

I read this with interest. I'm trying to identify those items mentioned that a reasonable person couldn't have anticipated had they read the sales documents. Of course, they could have rescinded the transaction during the few days following their purchase.

My primary complaint with timeshares is that there is no reasonable exit strategy and this is deliberately left out of the sales presentation. Proper disclosure of the consequences of the resale of your unit would caution buyers to the potential pitfalls.

Before the 2007 recession hit (and timeshare was a HOT item), people could actually resale a sellable timeshare for what they themselves bought it for on the resale market. I sold several for what I paid on the resale market before the recession hit, however since the recession I doubt I would be able to sell any of my previous resale bought timeshares for any price. There's little market for timeshares these days.

As for an 'exit strategy' when you sign on the dotted line to buy a timeshare ..... with all due respect, it's not the developer's responsibility to offer such. It's just like signing on the dotted line to buy a home. The real estate salesperson doesn't include an 'exit strategy' in the contract. I don't believe many people that bought timeshares or developers ever thought that such a downward spiral recession would hit.

If someone desperately wants out of a developer bought (or even resale) timeshare, then they can offer it at Redweek's Bargain Basement .... thousands have successfully done such.

lancec13 wrote:

The reason why so many bought (from the developer) was because the salesperson(s) lied, exaggerated, misled, misrepresented, and oversold what owning a timeshare could do for the buyer. ==================================== We as many in the early eighties bought from the developer because there wasn't the resale we now have with computers. Honestly we never felt lied to because the salesmen did give us information on timeshairing and the resort. He did tell us we were buying a vacation week for use or exchange for many years and would save money and he was right. When we left timesharing we spent alot more than our maintenence fee's even now and had less time and space in hotels. We were never once told we could keep it 10-20 years and sell for what we paid. We were told we had the use of our unit for thirty years because it was Mexico and at that time americans could only own the use of the unit for 30 years then it returns to the resort. Each year like buying a car a timeshare value goes down again for common sense people this was obvious. We were told we could exchange through Rci which was also true. Maintenance fee question was a common sense question when we asked about the fee's going up as the resort gets older and was told just like buying a home cost go up with age. phill12 =================================== True, the buyer should have done more research before quickly handing over thousands of dollars for and on-the-spot, spur-of-the-moment purchase but those purchases were likely based on all the lies and misrepresentations the salesperson(s) used. ==================================== How many people buy cars and being told it gets 40 miles to the gallon to then find out your lucky to gets 35 miles? Bought a house to later find some old pipes or roof problem, thats part of life and a buyer should be smart enough to have these things checked before buying. ================================phill12

What about the classic, "Oh, you can rent it out for [well above your maintenance fees]" when we all know that it's not as easy or guaranteed as it sounds? ====================================

Before 2007 you could rent in most 4/5 star resorts most good weeks but renting a timeshare was never the reason to be buying one. Even now you still rent for more than your fee. phill12 ================================== hen, of course, there's the ploy where they hand you the catalog for RCI or Interval International telling you that you can exchange anytime, anywhere at any of these zillions of resorts for a "small" exchange fee. Yeah, right. ====================================

Again why would a adult with any common sense think you could buy a one bedroom 3 star resort and exchange to any location in the world each year? phill12 ====================================

As for those who "now want to know how to dump their unit", that's probably because they realize that they can rent for less than the amount of their maintenance fees and, inversely, cannot recover their maintenance fees if/when they rent it out (if they can even find a renter). ==================================== This was one of the points I was trying to make in that for many reasons many people want to dump their timeshares but there are also many that read these forums and decide they want to dump their unit when they can still be enjoying it in use or exchange. I hate the term DUMP because this says owner doesn't see any value in owning so why should a buyer.I guess this means a home owners taxes went up so he should dump their house too. ==================================== Also, the last sentence that I quoted from you may sum up some owners' frustration. They bought thinking that it would provide them with a lifetime of travel savings only to find out that three years down the road, their situation changes and can no longer afford the maintenance fees or the travel expenses.

Again how is this the developers fault that they bought something and few years later things happen and they can't pay the bills? It seems you list all the excuses for these buyers being taken without giving the buyers the blame they deserve in this because there the ones that maybe jumped on free vacation and had to sit through the resort presentation and get free money or dinner . Anyone in timesharing knows when you except this you will get a hard sell because that is why your getting these freebies! I would never stick up for timeshare developers but they are doing their job and anyone with common sense knows this going in. They don't hold a gun to your head forcing you to buy they gave you freebies to sit listen and hope to buy. I have over the years heard and read many postings when being told by some of the other old timers on these forums that they can just say NO and leave. It never fails that some will repost saying if we leave before our 90-120 minutes we don't get our freebies. Or like Hawaii they would make you pay your five day stay which was only right! LMAO There is enough blame to go around in timesharing for problems and I have always stated the one of the down turns in timesharing was when owners wanted to rent their weeks and this became a bidding war to the bottom which cost the exchange company the units and locations to make exchanges. It is funny how its everyone elses fault but the buyers but then they dump their unit and leave the other owners at the resort paying for their missing maintenance fee's!

Bottom line we all know if a timeshare sales person mouth is moving they probably are 50% lies. Its up to the buyer to ask right questions, never buy at that time and that deal that ends when you leave is always on the table. I will say same as I have many times along with other old timers on these forums trying to help people before they lose money. If you want to go to these tours don't take your credit cards with you and don't sign anything. Go home and read these forums like Tug or Redweek and learn. I doubt many people go to a home showing and buy at the point. Again " COMMON SENSE"

PHILL12

I have written several posts on this site stating just your point, Phill12. There are many on this site that accept no responsibility for their purchase and blame everyone under the sun for their purchase. Some have no real excuse because they have never even used their timeshare not even knowing how to use it. They blame the salesman, but don't take advantage of of the rescission period. Exit strategies should have been discussed with the salesmen before signing or during the review of the contract. When you buy a car, a home, or anything else you need to ask key questions prior to signing or during the rescission period.

Perhaps more disturbing to me is the continuous flow of misinformation that permeates the threads that are created here. I have seen so many ridiculous accusations that it makes my skin crawl. I read that people are forced to buy their timeshares, that they are forced to turn their deeded weeks to points or their weeks were turned to points without their signing or knowledge. These folks have neglected to do one thing from the very beginning. They have neglected to read their contracts and that's their fault. It's not the salesman's fault they did not read it. It's not the developer's fault they did not read it. It's not the bank's fault they did not read it. The responsibility falls squarely on the shoulders of the buyer. We have a hard time in our country accepting responsibility for our actions, example the bailout of all of the people who bought homes that could never afford the homes in first place. It's a sad commentary on our society right now.

charless345 wrote:

I have written several posts on this site stating just your point, Phill12. There are many on this site that accept no responsibility for their purchase and blame everyone under the sun for their purchase. Some have no real excuse because they have never even used their timeshare not even knowing how to use it. They blame the salesman, but don't take advantage of of the rescission period. Exit strategies should have been discussed with the salesmen before signing or during the review of the contract. When you buy a car, a home, or anything else you need to ask key questions prior to signing or during the rescission period.

Perhaps more disturbing to me is the continuous flow of misinformation that permeates the threads that are created here. I have seen so many ridiculous accusations that it makes my skin crawl. I read that people are forced to buy their timeshares, that they are forced to turn their deeded weeks to points or their weeks were turned to points without their signing or knowledge. These folks have neglected to do one thing from the very beginning. They have neglected to read their contracts and that's their fault. It's not the salesman's fault they did not read it. It's not the developer's fault they did not read it. It's not the bank's fault they did not read it. The responsibility falls squarely on the shoulders of the buyer. We have a hard time in our country accepting responsibility for our actions, example the bailout of all of the people who bought homes that could never afford the homes in first place. It's a sad commentary on our society right now.

You said it straight and I totally agree with you! For many its always someone elses fault they bought. I understand many families on hard times and timesharing is a bill they just can not keep paying but for many this is not a problem. For many its just a excuse to get out without paying while your follow owners pay your maintenance fee's. One of the biggest problems I hear all the time is "I can not afford the payment and the maintenance fee's too. Bottom line if your making payments you had no business buying the timeshare. We bought our second unit through our resort getting owner discounts. We did make payments but it was only for six months and it was paid off. I had heard people locked in to ten year or more payments at high interest rates which is just crazy.

PHIL

I agree with a lot of what was said. I also want to address the changes in the industry over the years. I bought my first timeshare back in the days when it was just beginning. My first timeshare was in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It was a thirteen year contract. I enjoyed using it and trading with RCI for other destinations.

Years after that timeshare expired I purchased one in Las Vegas to use exclusively to travel there. I also purchased two in Ormond Beach, Florida to use just for exchanges. I traveled extensively using exchanges through RCI. I enjoyed my exchanges throughout the USA and Europe.

Then things changed. RCI was bought out by Cendant and corporate greed kicked in. They began to sell the more desirable weeks on the open market depriving owners of the choice exchanges. I had to settle for locations that were available rather than what I wanted. I used up the weeks I had banked and the time I had left with my contract with RCI. I then rented out my weeks until I could get rid of the two Ormond Beach timeshares. I kept the Las Vegas timeshare because like you said it is a location that I travel to often and would never part with.

Then the industry changed again. They started to sell points. The problem that I have with points is that they can sell more points than they have units. So what do they do. They include run down resorts to use as locations to say they have units available. The expense of purchasing points in some programs has become so high that the some corporations use high pressure sales tactics and misrepresentations to sell them. They keep the prospective buyers at the presentation for hours wearing them down and bringing in their closers to get them to sign on the dotted line.

A lot of people purchase these programs when they are in a state of euphoria while on vacation in a beautiful resort. Then when they get home and reality settles in they realize what they committed themselves to. A lot of them signed finanace agreements with high interest rates to purchase their plans. Most of them realize this after the recission period and are now bound by what they agreed to.

People should take responsibility for what they do but I can see room for improvement in the process. I would also like to see and exit program for people who need to rid themselves of their property. There are too many defaults that drive up maintenance fees for the other owners. By coming up with an exit plan HOAs could get new owners to pay the fees they are losing along with the legal fees the have to spend to only get the property back at the end.

I believe that most owners are satisfied and happy with their purchases but it can be better if everyone could be that satisfied. These forums are a great way to open the conversation and hopefully come up with some solutions to make timeshare ownership better.

donp196 good post and I do agree with you. Only thing I can see for exit plans are when the resorts have a resales office as our resort and has since they sold out all the units years ago. I really can not think of anything else that a resort could offer that would help. Even a resort can not sell a unit that is worth say $3000 now and owner still owes thousands of dollars on it. When you buy a house your only exit choices are to sell and you can hire your same realtor that helped you buy it. Other choices not good but walk away like many of these timeshare owners do leaving others to make up their fee's.

Phil

phill12 wrote:

Again how is this the developers fault that they bought something and few years later things happen and they can't pay the bills? It seems you list all the excuses for these buyers being taken without giving the buyers the blame they deserve in this because...

Well maybe you missed the point in my previous post where I said "True, the buyer should have done more research before quickly handing over thousands of dollars for and on-the-spot, spur-of-the-moment purchase..", but remember your original question was somewhere along the lines of why so many are frustrated with their timeshare purchase and are looking to dump them.

We're all free to differ on these boards but my take is that people are frustrated because they bought based on the lies, half-truths, misleading statements, speculative prophecies, and twisted facts and figures the salesperson(s) told them.

And if the buyers do like their purchases, that's fine and dandy but situations change for such owners where it's no longer feasible for some to own the timeshares. Now, that they need to sell their timeshares, they find out that they're worth a tiny fraction of what they originally paid. Sometimes they may have to give it away for free as well as absorb the closing costs and the following year's maintenance fees.

Based on that, it's understandable why they are angered and frustrated. I'm not saying that they are justified in assessing all the blame on the salespeople, just saying I understand why they're frustrated and want to dump their timeshare.

lancec13

What I'm saying is yes many are having hard times and need to get out of the timeshares but many just want out because of all these forums and the complaining and now feel cheated and want out and many expecting to sell for the price they paid. These same people would be better off going back and enjoying their timeshare like years earlier when they bought it. Many of these people would want to get their money back now and then buy same resort for cheaper price. When we sold our Mexico condo in 1986 we went to the tour at the Ridge in Lake Tahoe to buy our unit because we had already spent time visiting the resort and loved it. The Tower building had just been completed and we bought for $18000 [Developer} and seven years later sold it for $15000 dropping $3000 but having seven great vacation there and Maui and Orlando (before it was over built)and Cancun plus four years up at Lake Tahoe. When we came back we bought The Ridge Tahoe Resort again and only paid $7500 and the price difference didn't change our thinking one bit. We enjoyed our vacation time when it was $18000 and when it was $7500. My point here is that owners have bought their unit and must have loved the resort so stop complaining because now you feel scammed and lied to and go back and enjoy your vacation and forget how much you paid. Like my earlier post stated in the ten years out of timesharing we spent more money in hotels/food than we paid for our timeshares and spent less time there! Because of the high price tag we also took less vacations and more weekend trips to Reno/Tahoe.

Vacations are up with jobs returning and because of all the troubles around the world America is becoming the number one vacation spot again. I have stated this before that if the timeshare business could stop renting we would all be better off. Renting has become race to the bottom on prices. Exchange companies would again get all the best locations so owners would re-join these companies like II and prices would stop falling on timeshares. With the prices falling we get places like Redweek/Tug with pages of renting ads and owners having to play the lower price game to the point its not worth the money or time. If this isn't bad enough you have places like E-bay or Craig's list even dealing lower prices.

When we bought the subject of renting your week never even came up as you were buying a unit for your family vacation and if you wanted to travel then you could exchange and go to new places. Our first four exchanges with II we had our first choice within weeks of signing up Like Hawaii twice, Orlando and Cancun all in five star resorts and now you wait a year and get down to your last choice or one you didn't want. Renting has hurt timesharing more than anything else. Phill12

lancec13 wrote:

We're all free to differ on these boards but my take is that people are frustrated because they bought based on the lies, half-truths, misleading statements, speculative prophecies, and twisted facts and figures the salesperson(s) told them.

That's why it's so important to have all the promises made verbally by a salesperson in a presentation be part and part parcel of the contract. It's sad but true that anything a salesperson tells you verbally will not hold up in a court of law, but a written contract (with all promises included) will UNLESS you take a tape recorder.

phill12 wrote:

It is funny how its everyone elses fault but the buyers but then they dump their unit and leave the other owners at the resort paying for their missing maintenance fee's!

I have to agree with Phil .... if you buy a house and a few years later grow tired of the maintenance costs for upkeep or mortgage payments .... one can't just go to the original builder or mortgage broker and say that you want to return it .... it just doesn't work that way in real life ..... a LEGAL contract is signed by all parties, including the timeshare buyer .... that's why there are timeshare closing services making the purchase a legal issue.

I don't know why but many people think that just because a timeshare is a 'luxury item' and 'not really needed for everyday life' that they should have an exit plan or be able to just return it to the resort ..... remember, there's a legal contract involved.

I think it unfortunate that there is a tendency to look at a timeshare as anything like real estate and this may be why so many become disillusioned later on. A timeshare purchase is more like paying upfront money for a right to a recurring resort reservation with knowledge that, in addition to the large upfront cost, you will pay for the annual reservation whether used or not (maintenance fees). If viewed this way, most of us would not expect any recovery of the initial payment. However, most of us would question the extraordinarily high amount of the upfront payment.

We have and continue to enjoy our Marriott timeshares and find value in using them. Reading these forums also makes me grateful that I bought quality Marriott timeshares. Marriott is in this for the long term. I even like the flexibility added by the points program and use this option frequently.

I love my timeshare, and i agree, people should take a minuet and remember why they bough it. I think people are getting so frustrated because the sales people are taking advantage of owners. they do not disclose things they should.. but they are salesmen/saleswomen. I also think people that are taken advantage of are trusting, and maybe elderly, not that is the main reason i just mean elderly owners may not do as much research as maybe the younger generation would do. To be honest i was someone who made an on the spot buy with out doing research. I did get help with my issue and am now back to my original points and original payment, but i am a little more cautious now. my kids love going away and having a great time. I am glad i bought mine, but i do understand the frustration sometimes..

tarag92 wrote:

I love my timeshare, and i agree, people should take a minuet and remember why they bough it. I think people are getting so frustrated because the sales people are taking advantage of owners. they do not disclose things they should ....

From my previous post in this thread ..... anything they told or promised you should be part and parcel of the written contract ..... what is told to you verbally has no standing in a court of law .... only what is stated in the legal written contract.

If the statements all had to be in writing the presentation would only be about twenty minute long. This would cause job losses to these sales people as most people would not buy if told the truth!

Timeshares are not for everyone but if you buy at a location you want to go back for many years or exchange they are great and worth the money if buying resale. My daughter stills talks about resorts we exchanged into and didn't want us to sell our two bedroom couple years ago. As she is having a baby girl within next two weeks she already said how nice it would be for us to exchange for them to family resorts and area's like Orlando and Hawaii. Phil

Phil you can go to Redweek or other sites and rent a week in Orlando for less than the owner is paying in maintenance fees. The Orlando market is saturated with timeshares. Why obligate yourself to a lifetime of never ending increasing fees. With the increase in maintenace fees and exchange fees it's probably cheaper to rent someone elses unit than own one.

Your right and I would not want a timeshare in Orlando even though years ago we thought of Disney. What my daughter was saying was keeping our two bedroom in Lake Tahoe and they could still come because like us her and husband love the Ridge Tahoe. Point was we could make exchanges for them in few years to places like Orlando. Rent wise we did rent a Maui condo off Redweek last year for their honeymoon. They got Maui and we baby sit there home in Texas.They got the better deal!

jayjay,

If you are talking about when i made my mistake buy, I did sign, and when I had it taken care of, that was all done through the lawyer of the company that helped me out. All paper work was read, and sign, and the lawyer took care of everything else.. it is all legal and binding.. but thanks for your concern.