Massanutten TIMESHARE SCAM SCAM SCAM

[MassanuttenOwner]

Why would you buy resale? Why wouldn't you just pay to stay a week wherever you want?! That makes no sense either!

 

[tschwa2]

THE BANK HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT AS THE MORTGAGE IS PAID OFF. And to answer your question, I made this post so anyone googling Massnutten during a presentation, will see this and NOT purchase from them!

If the mortgage is paid off you need to contact the HOA (not the developer) and depending on what you own the HOA will take the unit for no fee or a nominal fee. Otherwise you can advertise it for sale. Most weeks at Massanutten have no value but a handful are worth $100 to even $1000. I paid about a thousand recently for a Regal Vista week 29 that had been converted to RCI points. I actually paid closer to $2000 all in including the current year MF, the closing costs and the transfer fee and rci transfer fee.

Your options are to default on the MF's (which might be your best bet if you have not income coming in and large medical bills) or to advertise and try to find a taker. Depending on your week and section this could be easy or it could be difficult and it could require money out of pocket to sweeten the deal in terms of paying the closing and transfer and prepaying a year or two in MF's.

 

[tschwa2]

Why would you buy resale? Why wouldn't you just pay to stay a week wherever you want?! That makes no sense either!

I own resale at Massanutten because I can usually use internal exchanges back into Massanutten for less than $200 per week in a 2 BR full kitchen unit during most of the year and I can usually rent what I own for a couple hundred over what I pay in MFs for prime weeks which usually allows me to stay a week or two in the summer for free using the profits and either staying in my own unit if it doesn't rent or a prime exchange for around $400 per 2br per week.

 

[bluehende]

If you do not own, then this has nothing to do with you! Did I say the resort was not nice? They are nice but owning a timeshare is not something I would recommend to anyone! It has caused us headaches and I've lost a lot of money because of it!

Many people are in the same boat as you. They succumbed to high pressure sales and paid way too much. Stop and think for a minute. That money is gone. People here will help you now get value out of your purchase or give you good advice on how to get rid of it. They are doing so even after you have called them idiots. I have researched Massanutten resales extensively and at this point it does not make sense for me. Had you done the same thing you would have found good advice that would have led you to avoid your problems. Had you come here you would have received very good advice on how to save a lot of money. Everyone here wishes you and your wife the best and do sympathize with your problems. On this board you will find a lot of people who are quite happy with their timeshares. And yes even some Massanutten owners. All of us idiots will be here to help when you get over your anger and accept you made a mistake As soon as you are willing to move forward you will realize you have gotten some good advice already.

 

[RX8]

...Timeshares will ruin your life! Stay away!!!!

I am relatively new to timesharing with a resale purchase in 2012 of a fixed summer. I have stayed at my resort (not Massanutten) every year since 2012 with my family. My maintenance fees are significantly less than if I had to rent. It has also "forced" us to plan for this trip every year. My boys think of this as their second home and we are making memories as a family. The timeshare purchase has not ruined our life but has in fact enhanced it.

It is understood that timeshares are not for everyone. I would not want to own if I could rent it cheaper than my fees, if I couldn't plan ahead or if I struggled financially with the annual maintenance fees. While TUG has always preached "buy resale and buy informed" many here paid developer prices for at least one of their timeshares (usually their first before finding out about the resale market). Many have said that they learned from that past decision but that they had fantastic vacations with their families because of that purchase.

I wish you and your wife well. If you are at the point that you cannot pay, and the HOA won't take it back, either try to give it away on TUG or elsewhere or just let it go into default. Since it seems many here like the resort you just might find a taker.

 

[RX8]

Why would you buy resale? Why wouldn't you just pay to stay a week wherever you want?! That makes no sense either!

With most timeshares it is not like a hotel where it is easy to find availability any time you want. To find a week available at a timeshare resort for a specific week would mean that either the HOA would have to "own" that week themselves (usually a foreclosure) or the owner would have to list their week as a rental hoping to cover at least their maintenance fee amount, if not more. If neither happens the week you want won't be available.

 

[silentg]

I’m sorry about your wife’s illness. I’m sure you are venting on us which is understandable you are very stressed.I have been timesharing since 1981 and have exchanged many times . Have also stayed at my own timeshares too. I tend to buy where I want to stay and have been fortunate enough to get all the timeshares I have now resale. There have been problems with some of them and we have terminated a few weeks and also purchased others. I agree with you about presentations, I’m never going to one again. I tell them I’m on vacation and happy with what I have and politely ask them to leave us alone so we can enjoy what the resort has to offer. I don’t own Massanutten but if read good things about it and may go there someday.
My advice is join TUG we are all just people who enjoy timeshares. Put an ad in Marketplace to rent, sell or exchange your week. Make the best of it until you can be done with it.
Silentg

 

[Iggyearl]

To the OP (original poster) - I get it. I agree with you. You got screwed. But that is what retail timeshare sales is all about. If you go to the complaint sites - Ripoff Report, Pissedconsumer, Consumeraffairs, et al - you will find plenty of company. But this site is a timeshare "USERS" site. These people know about the details of their ownership. If they originally bought retail, they found a way to make it work. These are lifetime contracts that depreciate quickly. Reservations need to be made months in advance. The product is for those who plan well ahead.

You DID have a rescission clause in your contract. You could have canceled, but you would have had to read your contract regarding the details. Many people don't. This is not all Massanutten's fault. You spent a lot of money without knowing the full details. To paraphrase John Belushi speaking to Flounder (after they wrecked his brother's car) in Animal House: "You f##ked up. You trusted us." The jerks that sold you this product were jerks. And you trusted them.

If it makes you feel better, there are a number of complaint sites on the internet. "Timeshare" is a popular topic. But most of the people here are using the product successfully. I wish you could have all the money back in your pocket. I know you would have a better use for it. Your wife's circumstances make it terribly worse. Be well and best of luck.

 

[MassanuttenOwner]

I’m sorry about your wife’s illness. I’m sure you are venting on us which is understandable you are very stressed.I have been timesharing since 1981 and have exchanged many times . Have also stayed at my own timeshares too. I tend to buy where I want to stay and have been fortunate enough to get all the timeshares I have now resale. There have been problems with some of them and we have terminated a few weeks and also purchased others. I agree with you about presentations, I’m never going to one again. I tell them I’m on vacation and happy with what I have and politely ask them to leave us alone so we can enjoy what the resort has to offer. I don’t own Massanutten but if read good things about it and may go there someday.
My advice is join TUG we are all just people who enjoy timeshares. Put an ad in Marketplace to rent, sell or exchange your week. Make the best of it until you can be done with it.
Silentg

Thank you This is all very frustrating because they are threatening to take us to civil court as well and we just can't afford it.

 

[A.Win]

Like tschwa2, I am another very happy Massanutten owner. I slowly add to my ownership year after year because I like this resort. IMO, it is a huge bargain in RCI. Vacation Villages manages several other properties that are well priced in RCI too.

 

[VacationForever]

Timeshare ownership is certainly not for everyone. Most developer purchases are overpriced. However at many timeshare resorts, the maintenance fees for the stay is typically quite a bit lower than paying rack rate. Hence the mantra of TUG is to buy resale and buy at where you want to go, saving on exchange fees. There is small segment of the folks who run a profitable business renting out timeshare that they own.

 

[silentg]

Thank you This is all very frustrating because they are threatening to take us to civil court as well and we just can't afford it.

These are probably scare tactics. Are you behind on your Maintenence fees? If so I suggest you pay them then ask if they will take back your week or help you rent it. Speak to someone higher up than the person who answers the phone. Good Luck!
Silentg

 

[davidvel]

Thank you This is all very frustrating because they are threatening to take us to civil court as well and we just can't afford it.

I am glad that you seem to be stepping back. I think if you present your issues in this more moderated tone, you will get lots of help here. If you can try to put aside how you got duped, and separate your personal and financial issues, you will have a clearer picture of how to get this resolved. You just have to accept a few things as reality, even though you don't like them and feel screwed (probably rightfully so).

-These are businesses and don't care about your problems, just like cable, or water and electric companies. When you don't pay, they shut you off and threaten legal action

- Debt collector (of all types) have as their primary goal to have you continue to respond to them. If you can't pay, then talking to them is a waste of your time.

- ranting and raving, chastising people who are trying to help you, does a great disservice to yourself.

If you have quit your job, have no income, and mounting medical bills, the last thing you should be worried about is this timeshare HOA debt. Talk to a good financial/ bankruptcy lawyer about your options. Focus in the things that truly matter. Good luck to you.

 

[chapjim]

Wow. All of you are complete idiots especially due to the fact that this is not real property and is worthless! How can you defend a company that utilizes high pressure sales tactics and LIES to consumers to get them to sign a contract and tells them they actually own real property which is false! If it were such a good deal and NOT a scam, then why make it a legally binding contract? Why not sell it as it is..... an overpriced vacation membership worth nothing. I've stayed at better resorts for less than the price of owning a timeshare! WAKE UP! You're all brainwashed by the resort!

Do you have a deed? If you do, how does it describe the property?

 

[chapjim]

This was OP's first post on TUG. Something tells me it might be his last, at least on this thread. I can't see him trying to defend his rant.

Wow!! Was I ever wrong on this!!

 

[silentg]

Wow!! Was I ever wrong on this!!

I’m hoping he gets this resolved, doesn’t need the extra stress.

 

[chapjim]

I’m hoping he gets this resolved, doesn’t need the extra stress.

[Deleted]

 

[mtforeman]

I am writing this in regard to my timeshare with Massanutten! Stay far far away from this group as they are indeed a timeshare scam and want nothing more than to take your money! It is impossible to book a reservation and upon sending multiple letters to try to come to some type of amicable resolution, Michael Owens, the "Hospitality Director" ignores all requests and sends you to collections or worse, submits a warrant in debt and brings you to court, even if you've told them you can't afford it!! This company does not care about anything other than money and could care less about their "owners"! If you ever go to a Massanutten timeshare presentation, say NO a thousand times!!!! They are also under the management of Great Eastern Resort Management which is who Michael Owens is associated with! Timeshare is a waste of money and I'm not sure how it is still legal as it is not real property!!!!!! Trust me when I say, Massanutten is the worst of the worst and I have made this thread so everyone who has had Massanutten can share their awful experiences, that way, everyone knows how horrible this company is so that everyone stays far, far away!

I’m a bit confused. I have a 1-52 flex week and was late on maintenance this year...didn’t pay until March 15 or so (my fault entirely) but I was still able to book a fall week over Halloween worth 15 tpu each half. I think that was quite favorable, considering I was ready to accept the consequence that there would be nothing at all available due to my own tardiness, but in fact there were many free weeks, just not high prime anymore...

 

[mtforeman]

Why would you buy resale? Why wouldn't you just pay to stay a week wherever you want?! That makes no sense either!

Well, for us, we normall pay maintenance fees in advance and book prime weeks (like New Years) or have a fixed week like over July 4. While we have gotten rid of most of our timeshares except one at this point, getting a beautiful four bedroom condo over July 4 or New Years for 750 a week isn’t realistic...

(At least this was why we originally bought, though our needs have changed now and we use differently)

 

[mtforeman]

I own resale at Massanutten because I can usually use internal exchanges back into Massanutten for less than $200 per week in a 2 BR full kitchen unit during most of the year and I can usually rent what I own for a couple hundred over what I pay in MFs for prime weeks which usually allows me to stay a week or two in the summer for free using the profits and either staying in my own unit if it doesn't rent or a prime exchange for around $400 per 2br per week.

This also. Since our kids are grown and we eliminated most of our timeshares, we kept one flex at Massanutten to use the internal trades. Our one timeshare can get us about four weeks for hubby and I at 159 extra a week internal trade. This generally gets us four weeks a year for 1200 a year including trading fees, or 300 a week overall. If we want more we can do last call as well.

 

[beach nana]

I am writing this in regard to my timeshare with Massanutten! Stay far far away from this group as they are indeed a timeshare scam and want nothing more than to take your money! It is impossible to book a reservation and upon sending multiple letters to try to come to some type of amicable resolution, Michael Owens, the "Hospitality Director" ignores all requests and sends you to collections or worse, submits a warrant in debt and brings you to court, even if you've told them you can't afford it!! This company does not care about anything other than money and could care less about their "owners"! If you ever go to a Massanutten timeshare presentation, say NO a thousand times!!!! They are also under the management of Great Eastern Resort Management which is who Michael Owens is associated with! Timeshare is a waste of money and I'm not sure how it is still legal as it is not real property!!!!!! Trust me when I say, Massanutten is the worst of the worst and I have made this thread so everyone who has had Massanutten can share their awful experiences, that way, everyone knows how horrible this company is so that everyone stays far, far away!

 

[beach nana]

I am a longtime owner....We purchased resale in 2004. I have LOVED Massanutten and usually
visit there 2 or 3 times a year. The resort.....I do love, truly. But, on March 20, 2018, I gave in to an update with the sales team. I knew I couldn’t buy anything, and I tried to refuse , but they have very good marketing people. Just 60 minutes. So, this 74 year old retired teacher went to the presentation. I said no, said no, again and again....and was supposedly ready to leave with my Massanutten gift cards. But...I had to go into another room for an exit interview.
I was exhausted by this time and when the sales agent “offered” an RCI points package at Presidential Villas at Chancellorsville....I was not interested. Then she said, “if you buy this points package, you can deposit each of your units at Eagle Trace and receive 27,500 points per unit each year to give you 55,000 points annually. The package they wanted me to buy was biannual and does not begin until 2020. She told me what I owned and highlighted it on a weeks schedule. I went through closing...and signed all their papers...that I did not have time to read. So, I spent the remainder of that day and most of the next reading the documents. Since I pay my MF a year or more in advance, I already have my 2018 unit reserved for Nov. I called RCI and asked them to deposit my units at Eagle Trace to my new points account. I did NOT own the weeks she had highlighted, but the RCI agent said my week was worth 27,000 points. So she began to deposit.....and during the transaction, it changed the value to 18,000 points. She asked what I wanted her to do and I did not deposit the points. Since my reason for purchasing was to have the 55,000 annual points, I immediately called Karen Glover, my closing agent, and told her I was going to cancel the purchase. I had to leave a message, so she called and I have the sweetest voicemail telling me that she is correct about the weeks I own and that everything was as they had told me. Then, I receive an email from the sales director telling me that they are right and RCI was wrong and don’t rescind. He promised to take care of it. To my sorrow, I trusted those two people.......and I will never feel the same about that beautiful place. Like a fool, I gave Eric time to get things “worked out”, and by May,I’d heard nothing. So...I texted him and he said he was working on my behalf. I had sent a
letter to Great Eastern Resorts on May 1 explaining what had happened and asking to rescind.
They had my address and phone number, but no one felt the need to respond to me. They had
THE MONEY! I have lost ALL respect for Great Eastern Resorts now, but I am just one of their
Idiots to them. I really don’t know how they can live with themselves. I have to believe that you don’t treat people the way they treated me and many others and not suffer some consequences in life. So....my suggestion is ON’T TRUST ANYONE IN THE TIMESHARE SALES DEPARTMENT AT MASSANUTTEN!

 

[SABOTEURw]

I found this thread to be very interesting as my wife and I purchased....correction...signed a loan to purchase from Massanutten Resorts Sunday. We visited with every intention to just get the promised $250.00 gift card and not buy anything. Having previously signed a timeshare contract I didn't use with my previous wife I'm well aware of the danger of making impulse decisions concerning timeshares. I figured it would be easy saying no considering (1) I've been through this before, (2) I'm close to retirement and can't afford long term commitments, and (3) my wife is currently suffering through her 3rd bout with cancer. It's foreseeable that we won't be doing much travel considering the circumstances.

What I hadn't counted on was how beautiful the resort is. Even still, I was firm in my resistance not to succumb to their sales pitch. That is, until they dropped the price of purchase to a range I could easily manage, and...

...I noticed my wife really wanted me to say yes, though she tried best as she could not to influence my decision.

Dead giveaway.

When I agreed, the tears started flowing. Hadn't seen my wife that happy in quite a while. We've never had a honeymoon and we haven't traveled in the 2 years we've been married. We simply can't afford it. But Mannanutten Resort offers a reasonable enough destination we can visit that won't cost us too much. And I wanted something my wife could look forward to doing in whatever time she has left.

Now the dilemma. I know at some point this purchase is gonna become a real pain in my behind. So the first thing I decide to do is figure a way to get rid of this 10 year loan. I planned to borrow the amount from my retirement fund, but decided instead to simply withdraw the amount and pay 20% federal and state income tax on the amount withdrawn. So with the mortgage out of the way, I can easily set aside funds monthly for maintenance fees. Which comes to why I'm here.

I'm sure there"s something I'm missing. Is there any advice you can offer that allows me to minimize needless expenses and to maximize use of this property on a limited budget?

Thanks in advance.

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[Panina]

I found this thread to be very interesting as my wife and I purchased....correction...signed a loan to purchase from Massanutten Resorts Sunday. We visited with every intention to just get the promised $250.00 gift card and not buy anything. Having previously signed a timeshare contract I didn't use with my previous wife I'm well aware of the danger of making impulse decisions concerning timeshares. I figured it would be easy considering (1) I've been through this before, (2) I'm close to retirement and can't afford long term commitments, and (3) my wife is currently suffering through her 3rd bout with cancer. It's foreseeable that we won't be doing much travel considering the circumstances.

What I hadn't counted on was how beautiful the resort is. Even still, I was firm in my resistance not to succumb to their sales pitch. That is, until they dropped the price of purchase to a range I could easily manage, and...

...I noticed my wife really wanted me to say yes, though she tried best as she could not to influence my decision.

Dead giveaway.

When I agreed the tears started flowing. We've never had a honeymoon and we haven't traveled in the 2 years we've been married. We simply can't afford it. But Mannanutten Resort offers a reasonable enough destination we can visit that won't cost us too much. And I wanted something my wife could look forward to doing in whatever time she has left.

Now the dilemma. I know at some point this purchase is gonna become a real pain in my behind. So the first thing I decide to do is figure a way to get rid of this 10 year loan. I planned to borrow the amount from my retirement fund, but decided instead to simply withdraw the amount and pay 20% federal and state income tax on the amount withdrawn. So with the mortgage out of the way, I can easily set aside funds monthly for maintenance fees. Which comes to why I'm here.

I'm sure there"s something I'm missing. Is there any advice you can offer that allows me to minimize needless expenses and to maximize use of this property on a limited budget?

Thanks in advance.

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I would rescind now while you can and buy on the resale market. You can still give your wife what she wants without paying for it.

 

[SABOTEURw]

I would rescind now while you can and buy on the resale market. You can still give your wife what she wants without paying for it.

Thanks for the suggestion. Please forgive my ignorance but I'm a fish out of water here. I assume the resale market consists of people selling their timeshare. Any recommendations on where I might look?

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