# Copy of article written about The Manhattan Club



## jaymax (Jul 23, 2012)

Time runs out for owners of midtown time-shares.  Overbooking brings Manhattan Club stakes down as owners scramble for exits.
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By Amanda Fung <http://www.crainsnewyork.com/personalia/19/Amanda+Fung>
@amandafung <http://twitter.com/amandafung>
AP/World Wide Photos
*END OF TIME?:* Sales of stays at Ian Bruce Eichner's Manhattan Club have
fallen short.

*Published:* July 22, 2012 - 5:59 am

Late last year, Jimmy Cottone took drastic action. He dumped his share in
the Manhattan Club, a ritzy midtown Manhattan time-share condominium, for a
mere $1. That's $16,999 less than he paid for it nearly a decade earlier,
but one buck more than what he figured was its actual value.

"The time-share is completely worthless," said Mr. Cottone, a Long Islander
who has not only seen his annual maintenance fee quintuple to $2,000, but
found he was unable to book time to use his share no matter how far in
advance he called to make reservations, owing to overbooking.

In the end, after finding no takers for his stake on eBay, Craigslist and
other online sites, Mr. Cottone handed it over to the Manhattan Club's
owner-operator, Ian Bruce Eichner, chairman of Continuum Co., and other
firms, for a dollar.

Mr. Cottone has loads of company in a once-glistening project that has
drawn a growing army of detractors over the course of nearly five years. A
Yahoo online group where owners voice their complaints has drawn 493
members since it was created in 2007. Three years later, a website called
the Disgruntled Manhattan Club New York Timeshare Owners, which chronicles
the owners' plight, went up. More recently, a similar site appeared on
Facebook, and *TimeSharing Today* published an article by a former owner
titled "My Manhattan Club Experience: A Tale of Frustration."

It's all a far cry from the situation in 1997, when the club opened. At the
time, it was billed as the first major time-share condominium in New York,
where visitors could have a high time in the city at a relatively low cost.
The property at 200 W. 56th St. was a bankrupt hotel that Mr. Eichner
bought and converted into two properties, the 286-suite Manhattan Club and
the Park Central Hotel. The cost of work on the club alone came to $141
million, according to Continuum's website. Initially, shares were marketed
at prices starting at $10,000, depending on the size of the unit. Today,
they start at $35,000.

Back in 1996, Mr. Eichner, who declined to be interviewed for this article,
told *The New York Times* that if all the time-shares were sold, 18,000
customers a year would buy seven-day stays or the flex-time equivalent. As
of 2010, exactly 14,872 had been sold. Since then, there has been a growing
number of resales—including owners turning their shares back to Mr.
Eichner, who rose to prominence as a developer 30 years ago but lost
several properties in the real estate collapse of the 1990s and three years
ago surrendered his $3.9 billion Las Vegas casino resort to a bank.

While time-shares are relatively rare in Manhattan, some have been quite
successful. Shares in 78 units at the New York Hilton that were set aside
for time-shares in 2001 sold out in about four years, according to Kim
Kreiger, senior vice president of Club and Resorts at Hilton Grand
Vacations. That led to the ground-up construction of Hilton's second
time-share, West 57th Street by Hilton Club, with 161 units. That launched
in 2009 and is 90% sold.

Industry experts note that Hilton has an edge because of its brand.
Moreover, its time-shares are translated to points, not days, that can be
used across its time-share resorts around the globe. Manhattan Club owners
buy into one property, although owners can trade with other time-shares
through RCI, a time-share exchange.
WASHING THEIR HANDS

At this point, many Manhattan Club owners simply want to wash their hands
of the whole experience.

"I am trying to get out of it, and it is almost impossible," said Zenon
Hac, a teacher in New Jersey, who paid $20,000 for his time-share in 2002
and wants to give back his share for $1.

Other angry owners like Mr. Hac say they, too, would love giving shares
back to the sponsor, but they say the developer is only compiling a waiting
list and is not buying any shares back. In retaliation, Mr. Hac and others
have recently stopped paying their annual maintenance fees, ranging from
$1,800 to $2,500 a year, in protest of how the club is being run.

"I refuse to pay," said Tony Caliguire, a firefighter in Albany, who
attempted to sell his $20,000 time-share online for $10,000 last year, but
got no bidders. "My credit is at risk, but why should I pay for something I
can't use?"
ALL TOO WIDELY AVAILABLE
PropertyShark.com
*BLOCKED EXITS:* Many Manhattan Club owners are eager to sell their shares
in the West Side property and move on but in some cases are finding it
“almost impossible” to do so.

Others are going to court. Last year, five owners sued Mr. Eichner and
related entities, accusing them of fraud and other misconduct. They accused
the manager of "intentionally overselling the occupancy capacity of the 286
time-share units by renting them throughout the year to the general public
through Expedia, Hotels.com and other travel websites."

"This has been going on for a long time, and people are getting ripped
off," said Steven Blau of law firm Blau Brown & Leonard, which represents
the plaintiffs. "I can get a room faster by using an online travel site,
while owners are paying taxes and maintenance fees during the year."

Two months ago, however, a federal judge dismissed the suit. Now, with a
different time-share owner as a client, Mr. Blau has filed a suit in state
court alleging "deceptive business practices."

"I think we have a very good chance; otherwise, I would not be wasting my
time," said Mr. Blau, who has been contacted by about 200 Manhattan Club
time-share owners since filing the first lawsuit. "I think justice will be
served."
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Entire contents ©2012 Crain Communications Inc.


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## Maple_Leaf (Jul 24, 2012)

*A timeshare is only as good as its governance*

The Manhattan Club is Exhibit A.   In timeshare real estate LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION is always trumped by incompetent governance.  IMO it is a lesson to all of us to do our due diligence WRT resort governance before buying.


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## Karen G (Jul 24, 2012)

*Such a sad situation*

It is so sad to see what has happened to MC owners. We owned a unit there  for 2 or 3 yrs. but were able to sell it about 8 yrs. ago before things got so bad. We have so many great memories of time spent there.


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## timeos2 (Jul 24, 2012)

The Manhattan Club was (past tense) a great deal when opened, a good trade a few years later and now is a disaster for owners. The maintenance has slipped badly, the fees have skyrocketed (making the cost MORE than an average stay in the already very costly NYC area vs the bargain they were for a great unit in the early days), the management is under the thumb of the Developer (a negative at ANY resort/system) and now resale of VERY costly purchases is at or near zero.  What a sad outcome for what remains a great location at a (now) OK (was once great) resort.  It is far easier now to simply rent a stay there rather than trading in (there is a daily penalty fee attached for that through RCI) or owning ($2000+ in annual fees and virtually impossible to get a reservation as an owner!).  

How far it has fallen.  A primer as to how bad management and a bad Developer can ruin even the best resort.  Owners and potential buyers everywhere beware. Owner control of the Association is critical. Owning any resort that does have it is a very risky place to own.


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## tschwa2 (Jul 24, 2012)

Maple_Leaf said:


> The Manhattan Club is Exhibit A.   In timeshare real estate LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION is always trumped by incompetent governance.  IMO it is a lesson to all of us to do our due diligence WRT resort governance before buying.



And then again is it incompetence or pure greed on the part of the developer/manager or a healthy combination of both.


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## RX8 (Jul 24, 2012)

How can the Manhattan Club legally RENT the owner's weeks leaving owners unable to make reservations?  That just doesn't sound right.  If they CAN do this what would prevent other timeshares from doing the same?


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## Maple_Leaf (Jul 24, 2012)

*Other timeshares have rules*



RX8 said:


> How can the Manhattan Club legally RENT the owner's weeks leaving owners unable to make reservations?  That just doesn't sound right.  If they CAN do this what would prevent other timeshares from doing the same?



Other floating week timeshares have rules making this difficult.  For example, where I own you can reserve a week in your season up to 2 years in advance of check-in, in another season up to 90 days in advance, and unreserved weeks can be rented by the resort up to 30 days in advance.  Manhattan Club appears to be operated a lot like RCI...a rental business cloaked in timeshare veneer.


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## timeos2 (Jul 24, 2012)

When you have a questionable Developer to start and then have them remain in control of the Board & Management there is zero checks and balances. They can easily manipulate the reservation system - under their sole control with no oversight - to favor getting them the best and most profitable times. They can also raise the fees at will. This appears to be exactly what is occurring at the once proud MC - and it appears to be happening at many other developer controls resorts as well.  Even some very big & respected names.  it is a no win situation for owners to be in that type of resort or system.  Virtually no exceptions.  Own where owners have the control and preferably where management is by an independent group not a sales or developer based group for the best chance of a good ownership experience. Otherwise you'll find you are at the mercy of the big cheese just as MC owners have found out all too well.


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## Picker57 (Jul 24, 2012)

Sorry to hear all  this; how dismal to be paying those kinds of fees and having those problems. We're booked in there the last week in October (courtesy of SFX), so it's good to be able to lower our expectations a bit.  Still, it'll be great week because of the location and (hopefully) the season. 

        ------------Zach


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## Glynda (Jul 26, 2012)

*MC*

I was able to trade into MC three years ago and gave it to our daughter and SIL.  They loved it!  I was hoping to trade in there next year and take our granddaughter.  It's too bad the owners are having such a hard time.


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