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LAMAN34 screwed me on E Bay.What to do?

mamiecarter

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BAIT AND SWITCH TIMESHARE AUCTION

I bid on a one bedroom lock out (Two Studios)floating Summer week at Sea Mist in Maine. I was really happy to get it for $1400. I sent the money to Timeshare Closing Services by Paypall.

Then I get a contract that says one studio. I had noticed that after I bought mine Laman34 auctioned of an Identical one bedroom lockout which sold for $800. So Scott for laman34 on the telephone tells me they separated the deed and sold it twice. He offered me my money back or I could buy one half of the lockout for half of my bid. So I said I would take half for half price. That was two weeks ago and I have not heard from LAMAN34 since.

What do I do now? I won the first auction so it seems to me I have a right to the whole one bedroom at the auction price. Do I have any recourse here?

It seems posible to me that they are going to keep my money tied up indefinetly. Ive already not bid on 3 timeshares I would have wanted if this one wasn't pending. Scince they cant deliver what they promised can I get all my money back including the transfere/escrow fee?

Who do I reort this too? I can try EBay but they are not good about things like this.Any other place I can try to get some help from?

Timeshare closing Services refuses to talk to me about this. All I get is someones voice mail.

Anyone have any ideas what I can do?
 

teepeeca

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Mamiecarter

Layman34 WILL make it right. If he offered your $$$ back, you will get it. Did you send the $$$ to the escrow company? If so, they will refund your money asap.

If , after you talked to "Scott", and they said that you could have the unit for 1/2 the bid price, they will honor that.

I have bought several timeshares from that company, and have been "nothing but pleased"..

I would like to take "exception" to your title, that you have been "sc****" by them. When an error was discovered, they "tried" to make it right---offering to give you your $$$ back, OR, to sell you the unit for 1/2 price. The choice was yours.

Have you contacted the escrow company??? What did they say??? Believe it or not, SOMETIMES things can't be done in a "minute or two".

Tony
 

PA-

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mamiecarter said:
BAIT AND SWITCH TIMESHARE AUCTION

I bid on a one bedroom lock out (Two Studios)floating Summer week at Sea Mist in Maine. I was really happy to get it for $1400. I sent the money to Timeshare Closing Services by Paypall.

Then I get a contract that says one studio. I had noticed that after I bought mine Laman34 auctioned of an Identical one bedroom lockout which sold for $800. So Scott for laman34 on the telephone tells me they separated the deed and sold it twice. He offered me my money back or I could buy one half of the lockout for half of my bid. So I said I would take half for half price. That was two weeks ago and I have not heard from LAMAN34 since.

What do I do now? I won the first auction so it seems to me I have a right to the whole one bedroom at the auction price. Do I have any recourse here?

It seems posible to me that they are going to keep my money tied up indefinetly. Ive already not bid on 3 timeshares I would have wanted if this one wasn't pending. Scince they cant deliver what they promised can I get all my money back including the transfere/escrow fee?

Who do I reort this too? I can try EBay but they are not good about things like this.Any other place I can try to get some help from?

Timeshare closing Services refuses to talk to me about this. All I get is someones voice mail.

Anyone have any ideas what I can do?

He offered your money back. If you are not bidding on others because you don't want both, tell him you want your money back and bid away. He's not likely to steal your money. TCS is licensed escrow company, and can lose their license over something like this. Plus, Laman uses Ebay too much to risk a negative feedback. So, you're in the drivers seat. If you want your money back, ask for it. If you want the studio for $800, take it. If you've read the boards for awhile, you're already aware that TCS is unresponsive and slow, so if you're going to proceed, you have to put some pressure on them (through Laman, if nothing else).
 

Spence

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I used to be a Sea Mist owner and i've never heard of the configuration you described.
 

Carolinian

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Something does seem fishy here. If they sold the whole 1BR lockoff, they should not be turning around and selling part of it the next week.

Isn't this the outfit that acquires the timeshares they sell in a rather questionable way?
 

Dave M

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Something else seems strange about this. You state that "...they separated the deed....". Most resorts don't allow that. Thus, you should be sure to contact the resort and ask if they allow deeds for lockouts to be split into two ownership pieces.

If the resort doesn't allow such splits, they would simply refuse to recognize your ownership, no matter what the closing documents that you get state.
 
J

JoeMid

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I would file a not as advertised complaint and get my money back from Paypal.
Is PayPal in the business of dispute resolution?
 

JillChang

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If you paid by paypal, you can file a claim to stop payment. Under the reason, describe item not as listed. Whenever I have a problem with ebay auctions and seller is slow to reply, this will always get them going ASAP.

The other thing you can do is file a dispute with eBay as well, again, that really get their attention and get right back to you.

Both of the above methods are ways to get things done fast.

Third method, of couse, if you use credit card when you pay with Paypal, which I always recommend, is to speak to your credit card company and stop payment through the CC company. You don't have to pay for anything that has not been delivered. In this case, tell cc that the "exact" item you purchased has not been delivered as per contract, and ebay auction is a contract.

Of course, the first method alone usually worked for me before for other auctions, I rarely have to go to step two. I am not sure it will work with timeshare, but I believe it will, the principles are the same.

good luck
 
J

JoeMid

JillChang said:
Third method, of couse, if you use credit card when you pay with Paypal, which I always recommend, is to speak to your credit card company and stop payment through the CC company. You don't have to pay for anything that has not been delivered. In this case, tell cc that the "exact" item you purchased has not been delivered as per contract, and ebay auction is a contract.
Can't the CC company say, sorry, we delivered the money to PayPal, that was your contract with us?
 

somerville

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Isn't Square Trade, which eBay requires sellers to subscribe to, supposed to prevent this sort of thing from happening?
 
J

JoeMid

somerville said:
Isn't Square Trade, which eBay requires sellers to subscribe to, supposed to prevent this sort of thing from happening?
Square Trade is a money making FARCE. Did you know that they will accept a RCI or II EXCHANGE CONFIRMATION as 'proof' of ownership if you're applying for a 'Seal' to post a vacation rental?
 

rja

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Why not call him? You said you spoke by phone before? In this day and age of spam, it's easy to not see a couple emails. I get hundreds of emails a day I have to wade through.

Laman34 has active auctions, a whole lot of positive feedback, and mistakes happen. Before you run off to the authorities, make sure you've really tried to work this out.
 

JillChang

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JoeMid said:
Can't the CC company say, sorry, we delivered the money to PayPal, that was your contract with us?

I used to own a business and I take credit cards for large purchases all the time so I know the rules very clearly and I have to be very carefull in taking cc both for my protection and the protections of my customers. If you paid for something that wasn't delivered, or fraud (which will count in this case), the card holder can always call cc company and cc company will charge back the vendor. Card holder must provide supporting document, in which case I believe he does.
 

calgal

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I would get my money back and purchase elsewhere. Separating the deed but then selling another 1 BR identical to the one you bought doesn't make sense. At the very least,it is careless and not the way to do business. Don't worry that you have missed other ebay opportunities. There are always more opportunities waiting to be listed.
 

Black Diamond

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Third method-is the way to go

"Third method, of couse, if you use credit card when you pay with Paypal, which I always recommend, is to speak to your credit card company and stop payment through the CC company. You don't have to pay for anything that has not been delivered. In this case, tell cc that the "exact" item you purchased has not been delivered as per contract, and ebay auction is a contract."

This is the quick and easiest way to get your money-Paypal and Ebay may send you nasty -grams about the need to use their dispute resolution process -for a fee!!!

My CC company was quick about giving a credit after I completed 1 form and showed them all the ebay listing, emails and paypal receipt. Sent copies and the next month the money was credited and had no finance charge on that amount.
 

teepeeca

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Has the "original poster" responed to the offers made by the "Layman" company??

From what I can tell, they made an offer to "accept 1/2 of the bid price for 1/2 of the unit you thought you were buying"; cancel everything, and have a "full refund".

Also, from your posting, YOU have NOT responded to their offers. WHY NOT???

As I have said before, "I" am "well satisfied" with their company/offers !!!

Tony
 

mamiecarter

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laman34 progress note Thanks for the advice

Thanks for all the many ideas about this sorry mess with my purchase or attempt to purchase a onebedroom lock out at Sea Mist in Maine. I did infact tell Scott (Is he with Timeshare Closings or the seller? I don't know at this point) That I would take 1/2 of what I bought at halfprice but I really wanted the whole thing and I think the seller is obliged to deliver what I bought for the price I won it on EBay at.

So I got an EMail from Scott today that he is working on it but it will take time. It has been about four month scince the auction closed so time is running out. If lamon34 is a reputable company that it is safe to buy from they will make good on this and honor the terms of their auction. If they haven't got the timeshare they sold me I'll take a Summer Cape Cod instead althoughI would prefere the Sea Mist. Who knows.. they may be as bad to buy from as their reputation for scaming naive people out of their timeshares sugests. I guess I am about to find out. Thanks TUG..I'll keep you posted.
 

EileenSRN

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Time Running Out??

I think it has already run out. Everything suggested were things to be done in the first 30 - to 60 days after the auction closed. IMHO you are at their mercy. Have you contacted the resort to see if they will allow a unit deed to be split? I sure hope you didn't know of their reputation before you bought. Every time I consider a unit, I "search" the seller's name here before I do anything else. I respect the opinion and research of the TUGGERS who take the time to confirm questionable activities of some sellers.
 

caribbeansun

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eBay real estate auctions are not binding, they are merely an expression of interest in what is being offered. So technically you have no ability to "force" the seller to deliver.

mamiecarter said:
I did infact tell Scott (Is he with Timeshare Closings or the seller? I don't know at this point) That I would take 1/2 of what I bought at halfprice but I really wanted the whole thing and I think the seller is obliged to deliver what I bought for the price I won it on EBay at.
 

Keitht

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teepeeca said:
I would like to take "exception" to your title, that you have been "sc****" by them. When an error was discovered, they "tried" to make it right---offering to give you your $$$ back, OR, to sell you the unit for 1/2 price. The choice was yours.

The S word as used by the OP in this sound perfectly reasonable and totally accurate to me. They bid for 2 studios as a single item, presumably because that is what they wanted. After the event the vendor has unilaterally decided to change what they are selling and re-advertised half of what they had already sold.
The prospective purchaser has the view that an agreed sale has been reneged on by the vendor. That seems to be an accurate description of what happened.
What the vendor then tried to do to make amends / cover their tracks (you chose which is accurate) isn't the point. From what is being said in the thread, the vendor is highly experienced so I find it unlikely that they made a mistake in the original ebay posting and didn't realise until after the event. If the vendor is so upstanding and beyond reproach surely they should be the one to take the hit on the mistake, not the purchaser.
 

CaliDave

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caribbeansun said:
eBay real estate auctions are not binding, they are merely an expression of interest in what is being offered. So technically you have no ability to "force" the seller to deliver.

In many states timeshare auctions are binding.
 

rickandcindy23

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Ebay sellers need to take more time with their ads.

Part of the price you pay is the closing and transfer fees. I would be very upset if I had to pay full closing costs and any other expenses for half of a unit. It just makes it that much more expensive to own. You should tell him you will pay for half of the unit at half of all costs.

The guy should have corrected his advertising to reflect what was truly being sold. Some of the sellers are in such a hurry that they do not change their ads to reflect the actual purchase, which leads buyers to believe they are getting something they are not. That is fraud. It may be a mistake, maybe not in some cases. Some ads have conflicting information: one part of the ad will say it is an annual, then another part will say every-other-year. One part of the ad will say two bedroom, then another will say one bedroom.

This seller is one of those that associates with Chad Newbold and the scammers that bilk the elderly out of their timeshares, isn't it? I don't know why we have to be careful about our suspicions on some of these sellers because I get postcards every three months from three different companies who are meeting with timeshare owners that want to get out of their timeshares: Timeshare Relief, Vacation Solutions and another that I cannot remember. All of those websites are registered with Chad Newbold, according to information that one TUGger posted, and this guy's ebay username was registered under the name of Chad Newbold. I think if a jury heard the evidence, it would convict.

Sure, the guys are nice. Con artists are nice. They sell timeshare pretty cheap, so we take advantage of that fact. But the question in my mind from now on is always going to be, "Where did they get this week that they are selling for pennies on the dollar?" I don't like being suspicious, but I am.

Recently, posters have defended themselves and others against accusations made here on TUG. I guess the people involved will never admit on TUG that they are part of that group. I am still wondering how I came to purchase a great week for the price I paid from one of the sellers in question. My husband says not to worry about it. I guess that is easier, but I cannot help but think about it. :(
 

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Laman34 corrected the error on our purchase.

I recently purchased a timeshare from laman34 on ebay. When they faxed the papers for closing and escrow, I noticed an error in the description - I bought 2 weeks and you could not tell that for sure on the papers. I immediately contacted laman34 and told him of the error and he sent a new set of documents stating that I had purchased 2 weeks. We then signed and faxed the papers with the correct information We also paid via Paypal with a credit card to the closing company.

I was pleased with the speed of making the corrections. We have not completed closing on this, but having purchased Mexican timeshares on ebay previously, I know it takes about 6 weeks to complete the transaction.
 

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4 months is way too long to wait for "ANY" mistake to be corrected. I think the only reason Scott from Laman34 contacted you is because they read this forum.

You "NEED" to take action NOW with your credit card company, it may be too late already, but in this case, it is a genuine fraud. Once you get your money back, then if you still want whatever timeshare they are offering you, then you can buy it again.

Personally, I will not deal with Laman34, I read many posts here how they scams seniors into giving their timeshare and paying laman34 a fee on top or that!!! Add this on top, I think regardles of how good a deal they have on eBay, I will not buy from them. It is the best protest as consumer. I think of it as buying stolen goods, if we knowingly buy them, we are as guilty as they are, and we ARE participating in their scams!!!!!
 
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