A company out of Colorado Springs, CO called Ideal Lending Solutions contacted me saying that they had a buyer for our timeshare at Summer Bay in FL. They asked for us to send them $2495 as "hard costs" which are to be used for getting the needed paperwork for closing. Has anyone heard of them or dealt with that company?
We have been hearing about many unscrupulous telephone marketing companies that are calling sellers and making all kinds of unbelievable offers for their units, only to require some form of upfront deposit, please read below.
Reputable resale agents charge commission after the sale and take their fee out of the proceeds...they don't charge the seller any upfront fees, the problem is that most units have little to no value in today's market.
Some resale companies sell timeshares and some just sell ADVERTISING and have no intention of every actually selling your timeshare.
Here are some warnings signs with these kinds of companies:
1) Do they say that they already have a renter/buyer for your timeshare? (or an established market like people attending conventions.)
2) Are they offering to rent/sell it for far more than the market value?
3) Do they want you to pay a large up front fee?
4) Do they want your credit card number before they send you a contract?
5) Do they claim that you, the seller, have to pay for taxes, closing, a title search, or other fees in advance?
If you answer yes to any of these questions, then this is the usual scenario:
Once you pay the fee and receive the contract, you discover that the company has only promised to advertise your resort, not to rent/sell it, and they don't mention having a renter/buyer in the contract.
Then, you won't hear anything from them for a long time, and when you contact them, they will tell you that the renter/buyer backed out, but they will advertise your timeshare on their over-priced website.
Finally, when you try to get your money back, they will point out that you signed a contract, and it's only for advertising.
When you try to challenge it with your credit card company, they will tell you the same thing. - You signed a contract for advertising, and it's too late to dispute the charge.