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Developer Bankruptcy: What a mess at French Quarter in Branson

dougp26364

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I've been following postings on Redweek.Com in their forums about the bankrutcy of the developer of French Quarter Resort in Branson, MO. All I can say is what a mess and what a lousy job of keeping owners informed by the HOA.

It appears the bankruptcy has settled. From reading the posts on Redweek it appears there are problems with clear title to many of the units. The developer just didn't process them when a sale was made, thus, owners may not have clear title.

Then there are the owners in building 8, which was the last building built. The land under building 8 was used as security for loans. The new owner of that land is claiming that those who purchased units in building 8 own nothing. If I understand this correctly, he's saying they're not owners, own nothing, have no rights and are due no refunds of purchase prices. There is someone on Redweek who states he is a S. Carolina attorney representing a couple who purchased a unit in building 8 with title insurance and is asking anyone who may have knowledge contact him.

At any rate it appears FQ may become a poster child of how badly things can go wrong, even if you purchased direct from a developer. Some of those units were rather expensive 4 bedroom units sold as little as a few years back. I'd hate to think about the complications of owners who borrowed money at a very high rate of interest and now own nothing.

We own a unit in building 2 at FQ. There is no loan against the unit and we'ver received reasonable usage from it. While I'm not overly worried about the financial aspect of this resort imploading upon itself right now I am concerned about the future of this resort. It would be great if the HOA would keep owners better informed on what is or what might happen.

Currently, the resort is being managed by Southwind, which is the management arm for Spinnaker Resorts. Others at FQ have posted that Spinnaker salesmen can't even offer FQ owners the opportunity to "upgrade" to a new unit at one of Spinnakers resorts. IMHO that was not a good sign.

The HOA's last comment was they believed that once the bankruptcy was settled, they'd be able to straighten out the title issues. For those who bought from the developer this is likely to be easier. For those who purchased resale it might have been a good idea to pay for the title insurance.

I don't know how this will all pan out but, it is one huge mess. At this point I'm almost sorry we own at the resort even though we enjoy our stays there and the resort has remained well maintained. We have a vacation stay planned there for September. Normally I don't plan on doing updates but this trip could be an exception. Not that I'd really trust a salesmen 100% with anything they'd tell me but, it'd be interesting to see what they had to say.
 

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Spinnaker?

Currently, the resort is being managed by Southwind, which is the management arm for Spinnaker Resorts. Others at FQ have posted that Spinnaker salesmen can't even offer FQ owners the opportunity to "upgrade" to a new unit at one of Spinnakers resorts. IMHO that was not a good sign.

My understanding is that Southwind manages this resort, but Spinnaker doesn't own it. So I wonder why there would be any Spinnaker salesmen there.:confused:
 

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My understanding is that Southwind manages this resort, but Spinnaker doesn't own it. So I wonder why there would be any Spinnaker salesmen there.:confused:

We had purchased a resale week at Grand Regency several years ago. When we stayed there, we took the tour to get a better handle on how the system worked. At that time whomever was managing FQ was also managing GR. We liked the units, the grounds and the location at FQ we eventually purchased a unit there.

On our first stay at FQ we took the owners update tour again. At that time, the sales staff was selling both FQ and Palace View, which was managed by Southwind or Spinnaker. There was also a Spinnaker sign up at GR when it looked as if they migh continue construction at that site. There has been some sort of relationship between Southwind, FQ and GR for a number of years.

The problem is the HOA does about as poor of a job as possible keeping owners informed about what it going on. I use to go to owners updates just to get the salesmens take on the activities but, I came to the conclusion much of what they knew was made up as they went. Since my wife hates sales tours and since I don't really enjoy being lied too (Disney's coming to Branson. A law was passed saying no more new timeshare builds in Branson and inventory will run out this year so buy now), I hate to go to them anymore. Besides the lies, I can't really trust anything I'm told about the extent of the damage the bankruptcy will cause FQ owners.

The best I can tell is that resale buyers might find they don't have clear title. Without title insurance they could find they own nothing. If they bought resale for very little money, this could be a good thing. If they bought retail and still owe money on the loan this could be devistating. At this point I'm not certain I have clear title to my ownership but, I'm not to worried about it as losing my ownership wouldn't kill us and this could be an easy out. We really own more timeshares than we need and decreasing it by one EOY ownership would be fine by us. Especially if we don't have to do anything.
 

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Being resale or retail would have zero impact on the deeded rights or lack thereof. If the resale buyer didn't get a legally binding deal when they bought an existing ownership then the original buyer didn't have one either.

You are right that it's a mess. I'd hate to be an owner there or have the risk of payment demands for fees / taxes that I may not even have a right to use. Truly a mess. Worse than most Developer bankruptcies it sounds like. Good luck to all you owners. That's some Annual Meetings I'd be SURE to plan on attending.
 

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Being resale or retail would have zero impact on the deeded rights or lack thereof. If the resale buyer didn't get a legally binding deal when they bought an existing ownership then the original buyer didn't have one either.

You are right that it's a mess. I'd hate to be an owner there or have the risk of payment demands for fees / taxes that I may not even have a right to use. Truly a mess. Worse than most Developer bankruptcies it sounds like. Good luck to all you owners. That's some Annual Meetings I'd be SURE to plan on attending.

What's been told to owners is that they're hoping to get clear titles once the bankruptcy is closed and, supposedly it has been closed (not sure since the HOA remains silent). For developer purchasers it should be one stop shopping. For resale buyers it could be a nightmare depending on how many times the week has been sold and re-sold. I can't imagine being the third or fourth purchaser of a week and it turns out the original developer purchaser never had clear title executed.

I'm not certain attending the annual meeting would do much good. Like I've said, the HOA has been silent on the subject. They tell everyone they have very little or no information. Google searches have turned up very little information on the subject as well.
 

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I learn something new every day

On our first stay at FQ we took the owners update tour again. At that time, the sales staff was selling both FQ and Palace View, which was managed by Southwind or Spinnaker. There was also a Spinnaker sign up at GR when it looked as if they migh continue construction at that site. There has been some sort of relationship between Southwind, FQ and GR for a number of years.

I found this warning on Ebay to not buy at French Quarter from SPINNAKER! However, Spinnaker doesn't even identify FQ as one of their resorts in Branson on their website. Interesting.:ponder:
 

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I found this warning on Ebay to not buy at French Quarter from SPINNAKER! However, Spinnaker doesn't even identify FQ as one of their resorts in Branson on their website. Interesting.:ponder:

I believe it's because they only manage the property. They also manage Grand Regency @ Thousand Hills in Branson. Both, I believe, were tied to the developer of FQ. Southwind took over management of both GR and FQ when the original developer filed chapter 7 bankruptcy. Both resorts have been better managed since Southwind Management took over. Neither resort has made any significant upgrades since the bankruptcy filing. If memory servce me correctly, the HOA stated they would maintain but not significantly ugrade until the dust settled and we all knew where we stood. No sense in tossing good money after bad I suppose.

The resort has been maintained. I would like to see some upgrades to the bedding in the units. They could also use a little updating, although the decor really hasn't become dated yet.
 

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CNBC's American Greed: GREEDY MESS @ French Quarter Resort in Branson, MO

I've been following postings on Redweek.Com in their forums about the bankrutcy of the developer of French Quarter Resort in Branson, MO. All I can say is what a mess and what a lousy job of keeping owners informed by the HOA.

It appears the bankruptcy has settled.

Doug,

I feel sorry for any timeshare owner impacted by this mess. http://www.fqresort.com/ sure looks like a nice swimming pool and the kind of resort I would enjoy staying at.

Maybe I could understand this thread better after watching an upcoming AMERICAN GREED on CNBC. Can someone tell them they have potential viewers for a show like "GREEDY MESS @ French Quarter Resort in Branson, MO"?
 
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glypnirsgirl

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I went to US Pacer and looked up what I believe is the bankruptcy filing. This looks like a strategic bankruptcy to me.

It appears that Regions Bank had an UNRECORDED Deed of Trust securing a note of over $800K. By filing the bankruptcy, French Quarter prevented Regions Bank from being able to file the Deed of Trust.

Looking at the schedules, it appears that the company was close to solvent even with the Deed of Trust.

They also owe a chunk of change for Missouri taxes.

elaine
 

timeos2

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What's been told to owners is that they're hoping to get clear titles once the bankruptcy is closed and, supposedly it has been closed (not sure since the HOA remains silent). For developer purchasers it should be one stop shopping. For resale buyers it could be a nightmare depending on how many times the week has been sold and re-sold. I can't imagine being the third or fourth purchaser of a week and it turns out the original developer purchaser never had clear title executed.

I'm not certain attending the annual meeting would do much good. Like I've said, the HOA has been silent on the subject. They tell everyone they have very little or no information. Google searches have turned up very little information on the subject as well.

I simply cannot understand why so many HOA Boards seem to think that being incognito and ignoring owners inquiries is a good management plan. Our two Boards have the reverse philosophy and try to go overboard with detailed information to the point where some owners say they are swamped. But it has been very effective as owners seem to feel a part of the property and not just see it as an annual bill to be paid.

As far as the deeds at FQ actually the resale buyers might well be in a better spot than the retail ones. Any question of the validity of the deed would be at the original retail level. After that any resale was likely handled correctly to pass the ownership - if it existed - to the next buyer. If the originals are cleaned up then the subsequent deeds are OK. But if the original was faulty the original owner and possibly the last buyer of a resale are at risk - but it all stems from the clouded retail sale. Resale has no bearing on it. And if the resale buyer had a warranty deed they may get their money back! The retail buyer, with a warranty deed, might too but probably only if the deed was properly recorded. Since that appears to be the hang up they might not even with a warranty deed as officially the deed doesn't actually exist.

As has been said, what a mess. But resale buyers aren't at any greater risk and may in fact be better protected.
 

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Doug,

I feel sorry for any timeshare owner impacted by this mess. http://www.fqresort.com/ sure looks like a nice swimming pool and the kind of resort I would enjoy staying at.

Maybe I could understand this thread better after watching an upcoming AMERICAN GREED on CNBC. Can someone tell them they have potential viewers for a show like "GREEDY MESS @ French Quarter Resort in Branson, MO"?

You've done better than I have. They changed the location of the webpage and I had not found this new page.

What surprised me most was seeing photo's I had taken of the resort used on their photo's section of their page. The funny thing is, I don't recall giving them persmission to use my photo's or selling them the rights to use my photo's. Good thing I'm not a proffesional photographer bent on making a case for copyright infringement.
 

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You've done better than I have. They changed the location of the webpage and I had not found this new page.

What surprised me most was seeing photo's I had taken of the resort used on their photo's section of their page. The funny thing is, I don't recall giving them persmission to use my photo's or selling them the rights to use my photo's. Good thing I'm not a proffesional photographer bent on making a case for copyright infringement.

They really used your photos? That's hilarious. I'm not sure if I'd be flattered or mad. :)
 

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They really used your photos? That's hilarious. I'm not sure if I'd be flattered or mad. :)

Let's just say I'm not to pleased. They could have at least contacted me about using my photos. I'm relatively easy to deal with and I'm not very demanding.

Here's a link to my photo web page. http://dougp26364.smugmug.com/Trave...anson/20714676_z5H9Bd#!i=1646136037&k=3fGbx5p .

Look at the pictures on FQ's website, then look at my photo album. I think it will be easy to see which photo's they used. If you look at photo #8, the exact same cars are in the stalls as is in the photo on FQ's webpage. On page 2 photo #3 is the photo they're using on their home page.
 
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Heck, it looks like all of the photos they used are yours!
 

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Holy crap, those are absolutely your photos. This would appear to be copyright infringement. It wouldn't hurt to have a brief convo with an attorney to discuss the situation, options and implications. Although...if French Quarter is as shadily managed as it seems, it wouldn't be surprising if you were subsequently countersued for stealing their photos.
 

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Let's just say I'm not to pleased. They could have at least contacted me about using my photos. I'm relatively easy to deal with and I'm not very demanding.

Here's a link to my photo web page. http://dougp26364.smugmug.com/Trave...anson/20714676_z5H9Bd#!i=1646136037&k=3fGbx5p .

Look at the pictures on FQ's website, then look at my photo album. I think it will be easy to see which photo's they used. If you look at photo #8, the exact same cars are in the stalls as is in the photo on FQ's webpage. On page 2 photo #3 is the photo they're using on their home page.

You actually copyrighted your photos?

I email photos to resorts, bars, bands, and all over facebook and I used to tell them that "I own these photos and you have my permission to use them anyway you want."

I did this so the pics could be shared without anyone worrying about copyrights or things like that. I like it when I see my snapshots showing up in various places.
 

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You actually copyrighted your photos?

I email photos to resorts, bars, bands, and all over facebook and I used to tell them that "I own these photos and you have my permission to use them anyway you want."

I did this so the pics could be shared without anyone worrying about copyrights or things like that. I like it when I see my snapshots showing up in various places.

Under U.S. law, a copyright exists inherently. No one needs to "copyright" anything. As long as it is an eligible piece of intellectual property, the copyright already exists. So the thing is, copyright protection. One must be able to prove that they are the creator of the work and own or control the copyright (copyrights can be sold/transferred or licensed).

I suppose there are certain actions (like in your example) that effectively waive copyright protections.
 

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You actually copyrighted your photos?

I email photos to resorts, bars, bands, and all over facebook and I used to tell them that "I own these photos and you have my permission to use them anyway you want."

I did this so the pics could be shared without anyone worrying about copyrights or things like that. I like it when I see my snapshots showing up in various places.

You haven't had to copyright individual photo's for years. Copyright laws apply as soon as you take the picture. Proving these are my photo's is relatively easy.

I'm not so upset that they used them. I'm more upset that they used them without asking my permission or offer to remiburse even a token amount.

These were not professionally done and there are enough flaws I'm amazed they choose them for their website. If I'd have known they wanted photo's for their website, I'd have used my tripod and taken a little more time with my settings. One things for certain, I'd have used a better lens than the ultra cheap 18X55mm that came with my first DSLR.
 
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Thank you both for educating me on the copyright issue. I knew I own the photos I take but did not know I also have a copyright on them.
 

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There are some question about 'fair use' and 'public domain' of photo's and other works once they have been published online, but in general things are you hold the copyright

The problem with photo sharing sites like that, ALOT have it in their Terms of Service that they own the rights to all work published on their site, I think TUG owns the rights to everything we write on it....so before I consulted a lawyer, i'd check your photo sharing sites TOS
 

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It appears that Regions Bank had an UNRECORDED Deed of Trust securing a note of over $800K. By filing the bankruptcy, French Quarter prevented Regions Bank from being able to file the Deed of Trust.

Is it possible then that this bankruptcy is for the benefit of owners?

George
 

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There are some question about 'fair use' and 'public domain' of photo's and other works once they have been published online, but in general things are you hold the copyright

The problem with photo sharing sites like that, ALOT have it in their Terms of Service that they own the rights to all work published on their site, I think TUG owns the rights to everything we write on it....so before I consulted a lawyer, i'd check your photo sharing sites TOS

This is true but, someone had to give permission and someone had to have been paid. What do you think the odds are that Smugmug was contacted about releasing the rights to my photo's to be used on FQ's webpage?

I'll start by asking FQ to provide the release to use these photo's. If they don't have one, they'll need to get one, either from me or from Smugmug.
 
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Doug, what if a TUG member would like to use your photos for one of their rental ads, would you be open to that? Or perhaps you'd just like for us to let you know in some way.

I've rented about 5 of my timeshares within the last 5 years, so I'm not a heavy hitter, but I thought about seeing if you had any good pictures that I could post. You've got pictures of just about every timeshare I own. I didn't do it, but I'll admit I thought about it.

Just curious, if you want to be compensated for that. I'd understand either way.
 

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Doug, what if a TUG member would like to use your photos for one of their rental ads, would you be open to that? Or perhaps you'd just like for us to let you know in some way.

I've rented about 5 of my timeshares within the last 5 years, so I'm not a heavy hitter, but I thought about seeing if you had any good pictures that I could post. You've got pictures of just about every timeshare I own. I didn't do it, but I'll admit I thought about it.

Just curious, if you want to be compensated for that. I'd understand either way.

I have been and have given premission in the past. SFX has used some of my photo's for their online directory.

Edit: I sent you a PM
 
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Had a good conversation this afternoon with Southwind Management:

As to my pics, I have a bigger problem. Seems they obtained them from various sales sites around the internet. I guess it's time to step up to a higher level of membership with Smugmug to prevent the theft of my photo's for commercial use. I'm not a hard guy to get along with. It's just not nice to use someone else's work without permission. Now that they know, things have been worked out.

I really just wanted to put photo's up for timeshare users to view. I never thought I'd have a problem with people using my photo's without permission. To be honest, I've never thought they were that good and definately not professional quality.

As to FQ and GR, all I can say is what a mess but, it's not as bad as it could be for most and it's worse that it should be for others.

It's something of a tangled web with family members involved, a son who thought he could do it better than his dad, being wrong about that, being bailed out by dad once or twice before dad allowed him to flop and, now we're in bankruptcy.

The bad news is the owners of building 8 and those who bought preconstruction in building 9 own nothing. The construction company that built building 8 was never paid. Individuals involved with that filed a lien and eventually foreclosed. That building has been locked. Those owners never received a deed because the original developer never issued deeds. Thus, they're hanging out in the wind waiting to see what happens after the trustee sale.

SWM has been working with those owners who were willing to continuing paying MF's by providing them with inventory to either use or exchange through RCI. Once the trustee sale is completed, this could change depending on who purchases the unsold inventory and who the management company is after the sale. Southwind is debating bidding on the unsold inventory. If they remain in control then they'll probably (no promises) work with the buyers of buildings 8 and 9 who have been paying MF's. How that will work is anyone's guess. Get credit for upgrading? Maybe the new owner(s) will buy building 8 back from the group that foreclosed? Be given unsold inventory in buildings 1-7? I'm purely speculating and the person I talked with didn't mention any of those options. He just said it's more likely that SWM would work with those who had worked with them in good faith.

The remaining owners in buildings 1-7 have, or should have, deeds for their ownership. They'll only be affected by whomever buys the unsold inventory at the resort. Apparently that will be who decides who the new management company will be.

The original sales office that burnt down wasn't owned by FQ. I had assumed there was cash problems when it burnt and wasn't rebuilt (ie: developer took the insurance money and ran). That wasn't necessarily the case since FQ LLC didn't own that property. I'm not certain how/why it was rebuilt and is being used as guest registration now. We didn't get into that in our converstaion and, to be honest, it doesn't matter to me.

The Copper Tree Hotel where FQ owners could rent rooms inexpensively, which was used as an incentive for people to buy, wasn't owned by the developer either. I know the sales department made it sound as if it was and that it'd always be there but, it wasn't. If you've been there recently you know that building has been razed.

Grand Regency was brought into the bankruptcy because the original developer of FQ, who also had control of GR and had planned to build out that resort in the future, used unsold inventory there as collateral for loans that were involved in the bankruptcy. So GR was drug into this as well and that inventory is part of the trustee sale.

The trustee hasn't been forthcoming with information to anyone. In fact, the trustee got into an issue with the court because he/she attempted to include assessts that could not be included in the sale. Specifically, land that had been foreclosed on and was no longer owned by the orignal developer. Some of that land had already been sold! This, of course, delayed settling the bankruptcy.

At this point SWM is anticipating the trustee sale being competed in 30 to 90 days. They have been holding off on filling positions because, if they lose the management contract for FQ and GR, they'll be overstaffed. They don't want to fill positions that might have to be eliminated in the next few months.

Man is this a nasty bag of snakes or what? I suppose I'm glad I own in building 2 and don't have quite as much to worry about. I'll be glad when it's settled and done. At this point, I believe I'd just as soon have SWM continue to manage both properties vs starting anew with someone else. It's scary to think of a company like Westgate, Celebrity, Festiva et....taking over.
 
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