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Help with just bought timeshare

fbong78

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Hi,

Very2 newbie here... need all the advice I can get.

Me and my wife just bought a timeshare in Vacation Village Parkway in Kissimmee, FL for 2 bedrooms and 3 weeks. The cost is 18K. My questions are:
1. Is this a good deal? Because I see there are many people are selling it for $1 on Ebay.
2. How does the maintenance fees work, if you but 3 timeshares separately. Don't you get charged 3 times as well?
 

timeos2

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Yikes - you are paying approximately $17,900 too much! Hopefully you are still within the rescind period - 7 to 10 days after signing. I so RESCIND NOW! DO NOT WAIT - find the information in your documents & follow the steps exactly.

Once you do that you can easily find a resale for the same resort for a couple hundred dollars or less! The value to any timeshare is the use, you are obligated to the annual fees until you sell and the purchase price has no effect on the fees you will pay. If ypu pay $18K your fees will be say $900. If you pay $100 or less your annual fes will be say $900 (I don't know the actual fes but this is an example. Whatever they are they will be the same for a Developer/Retail purchase & resale buy).

e thankful you found this site & hopefully you can back out unscathed from this very bad "deal. Good luck.
 

AwayWeGo

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[triennial - points]
That's About The Size Of It.

How does the maintenance fees work, if you but 3 timeshares separately. Don't you get charged 3 times as well?
Timeshares are sold by the week -- buy 3 weeks, get billed for 3 maintenance fees.

Different timeshares do the billing different ways. If your 3 weeks are on a single account, it's possible they'll send you 1 bill covering the fees on all 3, I don't know.

Full Disclosure: We like Vacation Village At Parkway. Our first hard-sell timeshare sales tour of the modern era happened there. (We said No Thanks.) Later, we stayed 3 different times at Vacation Village At Parkway -- twice on RCI Last Call & once on RCI Extra Vacation Getaways. In addition, we bought a Vacation Village At Parkway triennial 2BR unit that gives us 30,833 points every year. That was via eBay for $200 or so with free closing & free resort transfer & free points. (We get billed for maintenance fees for our use years only & nothing for the off years.) If we wanted 1 or 2 more units -- annual or biennial or triennial mox nix -- we for sure would shop eBay again. We would never, never ever buy any timeshare from a timeshare company. What they're selling for thousands of dollars is exactly the same as what eBay sellers are selling for $1 starting bids with no reserve, sometimes with free closing, etc. We believe in buying timeshares exclusively resale. That way we save thousands of dollars on exactly the same thing as full freight, or the equivalent, or something even better.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​
 
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Passepartout

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RESCIND ASAP!!! Then buy resale. Save Thou$and$. Follow the rescission instructions buried in your contract exactly.

Welcome to TUG. You are spending WAY too much on something you don't understand. Rescind, then return to TUG and learn about timeshare. We like 'em (with reservations) and use them to improve our lives, but please take the time to learn first.

All the best!

Get to the post office.

Jim
 

fbong78

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Thanks All!

Thank you! I was reading about the 10 days rule a couple days ago and find out about the Ebay resale this morning.

I will call the company and cancel it today.

But I do like the idea of using timeshare for our vacation. I've been reading TUG forum as much as I can get up to this point and found that people recommend Hilton. I haven't found anything that sells for 3 weeks.

Correct me if I am wrong, the average maintenance cost for HGVC in Kissimmee, FL costs around $800-900. If I purchase 3 different HGVC, they would charge me 3 x $900 = $2,700 right?
 

DeniseM

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You cannot call - and if you do they will just argue with you.

You must rescind in writing - find the instructions in your purchase documents and follow them EXACTLY.

More info. about rescinding (I wrote this for a different resort, but the basics apply to any resort) - http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74493
 
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Rent_Share

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Thank you! I was reading about the 10 days rule a couple days ago and find out about the Ebay resale this morning.

I will call the company and cancel it today.

But I do like the idea of using timeshare for our vacation. I've been reading TUG forum as much as I can get up to this point and found that people recommend Hilton. I haven't found anything that sells for 3 weeks.

Correct me if I am wrong, the average maintenance cost for HGVC in Kissimmee, FL costs around $800-900. If I purchase 3 different HGVC, they would charge me 3 x $900 = $2,700 right?

Don't call - Pull out your paper work, read the instructions and follow them to the letter including exact method of delivery.

If you chose to use a different method of delivery, make sure it is secondary to the original sent exactly in the method specified.

Many rescinders get hung up on proof of delivery, the state statutes only require that you can prove mailing by the date, since you cannot be held accountable for the performance of the USPS, UPS, FedEx or the Pony Express.
 

Passepartout

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Correct me if I am wrong, the average maintenance cost for HGVC in Kissimmee, FL costs around $800-900. If I purchase 3 different HGVC, they would charge me 3 x $900 = $2,700 right?

This is correct. And MFs ALWAYS increase at or above the cost of living every year. Regular as clockwork.

I agree with DeniseM- nothing good will come from calling the sales office where you bought. All that will do is cause delay and they will trot out all the reduced-price 'specials' and their own resales and foreclosures to entice you to stay. Just rescind and be done with them.

Jim
 

vacationtime1

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If you call the sales office, they will try to string you along until the rescission period is over -- at which point you will be stuck having paid $18,000 for a $100 timeshare. Further, any verbal rescission to the sales office is invalid.

The only correct procedure is as outlined in post #7: Pull out your paper work, read the instructions and follow them to the letter including exact method of delivery
 

jerseygirl

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fbong78 - did they tell you that you're getting three weeks for one maintenance fee? If so, they've mislead you ...probably using "lockoff weeks" and/or some combination of bonus weeks. While it might be technically possible, maintenance fees are based on the week.

Examples:

Regular 2-BR every year = maint fee $1000/year = one vacation per year ... with the possibility of some sort of bonus week that is almost assuredly not written into the contract

Regular 2-BR every other year = maint fee $500 per year or $1000 in the year of usage = one vacation every other year ... with the possibility of some sort of bonus week that is almost assuredly not written into the contract

Lockoff 2-BR every year = maint fee $1000/year = one vacation per year in the 2-BR or the ability to split and use (or exchange) each half, so two vacations in smaller accommodations.....with the possibility of some sort of bonus week that is almost assuredly not written into the contract

Lockoff 2-BR every other year = maint fee of $500 per year or $1000 each use year = one vacation every other year in the 2-BR or the ability to split and use (or exchange) each half, so two vacations .....with the possibility of some sort of bonus week that is almost assuredly not written into the contract

Salesmen have a way of making you think you're getting something for nothing but there's no free lunch. A lockoff is certainly more flexible ... But it's not a magic potion.

Good luck!
 

tschwa2

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... or you bought 97,000 rci points and the salesman said you can use this for 3 or more weeks. You can and a fair number of people on TUG own Vacation Villages RCI points and I think the MF's are in the $700 range but you have to go through RCI and pay additional membership and exchange fees. It is possible to get 3 or more vacations in the $1000-$1400 range using but you could also buy the same points package off ebay for $1-$1200 including closing. There is also a learning curve to use the system, it is not as easy as going on line and making a reservation for any place or any time.

You should rescind and learn the system and purchase resale if it still meets your needs.
 

fbong78

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@jerseygirl
You were right. They offered me two bonus weeks with the one maintenance fee. So the way I interpret this is that I am getting a total of 3 weeks. So I guess this is too good to be true. :p

Thanks to all of you, I decided to keep my money...:)
I ended up call them because tomorrow is the last day and they gave me the fax number to send the cancellation letter. The Operator didn't do any sales pitching.., I guess they are used to the cancellation.

Based on your experience, how much do you all spend annually for 3 weeks vacation in Gold Crown Resort with at least 2BR/2BA?
 

DeniseM

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There is no average - you can spend anywhere from $600 - $3,000 per week - it depends on the resort and location.

I would NOT depend on what the operator told you to do. You MUST look in your Docs and find the paperwork about the legal way to rescind. These companies sometimes give out the wrong info., to keep you from rescinding.
 

AwayWeGo

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[triennial - points]
Fax, Shmax.

I ended up call them because tomorrow is the last day and they gave me the fax number to send the cancellation letter.
You have more faith in the people on the other end of the phone line than I would have.

If the contract says to rescind in writing within 10 days, via USPS, then I would jolly well send them a written rescission notice & I would make sure it has an official USPS postmark on the envelope as a way of documenting that it was mailed within those 10 days

No way I would trust full-freight timeshare rescission to fax transmission alone, mox nix anything the timeshare company's people say over the phone.

I certainly hope your faith in what they told you is rewarded.

Good luck.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​
 

vacationtime1

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Please. Re-read Rent_Share's sound advice in post #7 about the proper method of rescission -- the method specified in the materials you were given.

If you attempt to rescind by any method other than the approved method, you have not rescinded.

This is a variation of what I suggested in my earlier post, that they will string you along until the rescission period is over, in this case by giving you an inaccurate and legally insufficient method of rescission.
 

theo

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I hear an echo...echo..echo...

Please. Re-read Rent_Share's sound advice in post #7 about the proper method of rescission -- the method specified in the materials you were given.

If you attempt to rescind by any method other than the approved method, you have not rescinded.

OP --- Please read the above as many times as it takes to sink in.

Stay off the phone. In no universe can you legally or successfully rescind by phone conversation.

Follow the written cancellation instructions which were provided to you, in writing, at the time of contract execution, as specifically required by law!
 

T_R_Oglodyte

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More echos --

You have a contract that has specific written language on what you must do to rescind the contract. To rescind the contract, that is what you must do. Don't let anyone tell you anything else. Especially when they have a vested in not having you submit a valid rescission letter.
 

fbong78

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You guys are right...

I just read the document again and it specifically said that it has to go to the Resort Address for Cancellation.
I am going to Post Office tomorrow. Thanks again...
 

Cheryl20772

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I just read the document again and it specifically said that it has to go to the Resort Address for Cancellation.
I am going to Post Office tomorrow. Thanks again...
As long as your letter is post marked in time, you will be safe.
 

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In the stress of finding out they have made a mistake, many posters come here an believe that their method of delivery will give them more peace of mind. Faster, More Secure, Confirmed Delivery etc . . . .

The reality is in order for the rescission to be effective it needs to be "sent" via a specific method.

You were hung up on it "getting there" by the 10th day, the rescission instructions and state statute required it to be "sent" by the 10th day and do not allow for the rescinder to pick the method of sending.

Congratulations on saving $17,999 Plus Interest of $ 8-10 Thousand
 
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Rob&Carol Q

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If you want additional peace of mind, Register the letter. Hardly costs anything and it is proof of mailing.

Don't bother with requiring a signature...they can always NOT sign for something and state they never received it.

You are good to go with a proof of mailing.

Of course...you actually have to do it...so get busy. Then come back and keep us posted on the cancellation process.
 

Rent_Share

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BTW Welcome
 

DeniseM

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If you want additional peace of mind, Register the letter. Hardly costs anything and it is proof of mailing.

Don't bother with requiring a signature...they can always NOT sign for something and state they never received it.

Actually - the post office has a record of it if they refuse to sign.
 

bogey21

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If you want additional peace of mind, Register the letter.

IMO this is bad advice. Registered Mail, although never lost, often takes forever to get to addressee. Reason is that it has to be signed for by just about every Postal Employee who touches it. OP wants two things, proof of mailing and reasonably timely delivery. Last thing he needs is for Resort to think they have a done deal because of delay in receiving Recind Letter.

George
 
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DeniseM

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IMO this is bad advice. Registered Mail, although never lost, often takes forever to get to addressee. Reason is that it has to be signed for by just about every Postal Employee who touches it. OP wants two things, proof of mailing and reasonably timely delivery. Last thing he needs is for Resort to think they have a done deal because of delay in receiving Recind Letter.

George

It doesn't matter how long it takes to get there - the documented date of mailing is what counts.
 
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