Too good to be true!

[MichelleClink]

Hello all:

I am hoping to get some assistance. I was contacted by a broker, Dean Howard Properties to purchase my Grand Mayan timeshare. So far, they have not asked for any fees, but they are requiring that I pay the transfer fee ($14K) and then wait 3 weeks to get paid. This doesn't seem right to me, is this how these transactions are usually done?

Thanks so much for the help!

 

[Luanne]

Sounds shady to me. The first rule when selling a timeshare is never pay any money upfront. And that sounds insanely high for a transfer fee.

 

[MichelleClink]

Sounds shady to me. The first rule when selling a timeshare is never pay any money upfront. And that sounds insanely high for a transfer fee.

That's what I think too. Thank you for your reply!

 

[cayman01]

complete scam

 

[westybeachbum]

Michelle didn't state that we (I'm Grandpa) have a contract signed by the broker and ourselves stating : "8. It is expressly understood that Dean Howard Properties has an interested Purchaser ready, willing and able to complete the purchase of said property at the price specified in clause #3. Dean Howard Properties guarantees to pay the total amount stated in clause #3 plus the reimbursement of transfer costs, taxes, maintenance fees and any other expenses incurred during the transaction of this Agreement of Purchase to the Seller"
Also the $ 14K is not a transfer fee, rather it is 10x the maintenence fee that is required by Grand Mayan when selling the timeshare.

 

[tschwa2]

Michelle didn't state that we (I'm Grandpa) have a contract signed by the broker and ourselves stating : "8. It is expressly understood that Dean Howard Properties has an interested Purchaser ready, willing and able to complete the purchase of said property at the price specified in clause #3. Dean Howard Properties guarantees to pay the total amount stated in clause #3 plus the reimbursement of transfer costs, taxes, maintenance fees and any other expenses incurred during the transaction of this Agreement of Purchase to the Seller"
Also the $ 14K is not a transfer fee, rather it is 10x the maintenence fee that is required by Grand Mayan when selling the timeshare.

That is the transfer fee but unless I paid that fee directly to Vidant rather than the broker, the escrow company or anyone else, I'm pretty sure that the money will be gone, the buyer will disappear, Dean Howard will try to milk you for a few additional fees and as soon as you stop paying and asking for your guaranteed payback they will disappear and sell your name to some other scammer who will promise to help you recover that money for just a small upfront fee. You may also see if you could pay the fee by CC ideally directly to the resort and have a guarantee that you will be paid and the check actually completely cleared before you time to dispute is over.

 

[TUGBrian]

contacting you out of the blue and offering way more than your timeshare is worth are two of the biggest red flags out there.

 

[Jan M.]

Any time they want money from you, for any reason, no matter what they are calling it, if you are unwise enough to send them that money you can kiss it goodbye because you will never see a penny of it again. Sign nothing, send them nothing, and hang up the phone the next time you get a call from anyone about selling your timeshare.

Take a good look at the timeshares for sale on eBay and here on TUG. Sometimes they sell for a few grand and sometimes sellers are giving their timeshares away and even pay the closing and transfer costs. You can safely assume that anyone who tells you that they can get you good money for your timeshare is trying to steal your money.

 

[CO skier]

Michelle didn't state that we (I'm Grandpa) have a contract signed by the broker and ourselves

That contract is not worth the price of the paper it is printed on.

They are trying to bilk you out of $14,000 (see the bolded part below about "maintenance fees"), or as much money as they can get out of you. Too many people are so desperate to get out of their timeshare that they fall prey to these kinds of scams.

This Dean Howard Properties timeshare seller gets an "F" rating:

https://www.checkbca.org/report/dean-howard-properties-156272320

From the website: "Consumers should beware of unsolicited calls, emails, or mailings from anyone claiming they have a buyer for your timeshare or vacation property and asking for fees in advance. Many timeshare resale schemes begin with a salesperson contacting you with an offer to broker a sales transaction for your timeshare. Often times they require a fee to be paid to them, many times through wire transfer, to cover past "maintenance fees", "legal and processing" fees, "closing costs", or another fee before the sale can go through. Many individuals who have paid these fees never hear from the companies again. Some fraudsters have even posed as legitimate businesses in order to perpetrate the fraud and after they have collected their fees, they disappear.

Business Consumer Alliance urges timeshare and vacation property owners to use caution, especially if you receive unsolicited contact offering to sale your timeshare. ..."

 

[DaveNV]

To the OP: Take a minute or two and Google "Dean Howard Properties" (use the quotes to keep the term together) and "Scam" in the same search box. You'll find a lot of hits, including a website stating 335 people have been contacted directly by this company, each with an unsolicited "too good to be true" offer for their Mexican timeshare. If they truly had a buyer for your specific timeshare, why so many inquiries? Short answer: They don't. But they only need to bilk a few people at a time before they disappear into the night - with your money, leaving you with little recourse, and an empty wallet.

Their website domain was created last October, by someone in Scottsdale, AZ, not Oklahoma City. That doesn't prove anything, except that they haven't been around long, which is common for scammers. "Snatch and run" is a frequent behavior for scammers. You can use your common sense and draw your own conclusions: "If it walks like a duck..."

My advice is to stay away from this, or any company, insisting you pay up front to sell your timeshare to a "ready" buyer. Real estate doesn't work that way.

Dave

 

[LannyPC]

So far, they have not asked for any fees, but they are requiring that I pay the transfer fee ($14K) and then wait 3 weeks to get paid.

Do you see the contradiction here? In one breath you are saying "they have not asked for any fees", and in the same sentence saying "they are requiring that I pay the transfer fee ($14K)".

 

[theo]

That is the transfer fee but unless I paid that fee directly to Vidant rather than the broker, the escrow company or anyone else, I'm pretty sure that the money will be gone, the buyer will disappear, Dean Howard will try to milk you for a few additional fees and as soon as you stop paying and asking for your guaranteed payback they will disappear and sell your name to some other scammer who will promise to help you recover that money for just a small upfront fee.

I don't claim to know much about Mexican timeshare operations, but I certainly don't need to know much at all to recognize this blue highlighted input above as sage and appropriate advice. In no universe should a transfer fee (...and yes Grandpa, that $14k is indeed a transfer fee) ever be payable to any entity other than directly to the resort operation itself --- and certainly not to some obscure, unknown "broker" with an "unidentified buyer". Moreover, payment of a transfer fee should be the very last step in processing any ownership change, not the very first step (and certainly not before the [surely non-existent] buyer is ever even identified). It's clearly just another scammer operation, plainly and simply stated.

Once the OP makes it very clear to "Dean Howard Properties" that no money will be paid upfront in any amount and that any and all seller costs will only be paid by deduction from the transaction proceeds, all conversation will promptly cease and be replaced by the sound of crickets, since there is really no buyer anyhow and therefore no "proceeds" to work with or disburse in the first place.

Lace up those running shoes and break into a sprint right now, OP --- in the opposite direction from these lying, thieving parasites.

 

[MichelleClink]

Thank you all so much for your comments. Grandpa received documents today requesting that he wire the 14K to some bank account in Mexico. The closing company was identified as Gains Equity Holdings in Minnesota, and those smooth talkers had several conversations with him trying to get him to do it. They even told him they had contacted Grand Mayan to inform them that we would be transferring our membership. He contacted Grand Mayan, and they indicated they were already aware of Dean Howard Properties and indicated they were never contacted about the transfer of our timeshare. Thankfully, Grandpa is on board and realizes this is a scam.

I appreciate all of the feedback from you all, and hope that maybe this will save someone else from having to deal with these people.

Michelle

 

[CO skier]

Thankfully, Grandpa is on board and realizes this is a scam.

That is a relief, and your efforts saved him $14,000, maybe more.

 

[MichelleClink]

He has taken me and my family on some pretty epic vacations, so I think we are even!

 

[CO skier]

So Michelle,

If you do not want the timeshare and Grandpa wants out what to do?

Review the contract, closely. As a timeshare in Mexico, there may be no downside to just stop paying the maintenance fees.

 

[CO skier]

He has taken me and my family on some pretty epic vacations, so I think we are even!

I just love Win-Win situations.

And that is the thing with timeshares; they can be a burden, or they can be epic vacations. It just depends on how they are used (or unused).

 

[MichelleClink]

Actually, Grandpa is a pretty good negotiator and we don't pay maintenance fees unless we use the week. Also, he gets 1 free Senior week per year, so for the past 5 years we have gone for free. So, I think it was just that he could have used the money. I told him maybe he should list it here on TUG, and someone legit might want it.. Any takers???

 

[bnoble]

Not with a $14K transfer fee.