Marriott Aruba Ocean Club Owners Being Ripped Off By Marriott - READ IF AN OWNER

[modoaruba]

How do you spell relief?

Are we supposed to feel better that the high fees are now not as high but still are?

We "possibly" bought into a defective building and are paying for about half of the replacement costs of the roof. As noted in Allan's article,we are not getting propper reimbursement from Marriott from the areas they utilize in our resorts,etc.

Yeah, great reprise in costs.

 

[Chemee]

We bought our 1-bedroom in 2001. Below is a list of our fees since then. Anyone want to guess what year the resort was considered sold out, turned over to the HOA, and therefore, out from under Marriott's protective wing? Since then, fees have been way too much for us.

Aruba Ocean Club, 2010
1 bedroom
$989.90 (per maint fee bill on-line)
$337.30 special assessment

Aruba Ocean Club, 2009
1 bedroom
$1257.04
$492.30 special assessment

Aruba Ocean Club, 2008
1 bedroom
$837.00

Aruba Ocean Club, 2007
1 bedroom
$805.00

Aruba Ocean Club, 2006
1 bedroom
$683.00

Aruba Ocean Club, 2005
1 bedroom
$637.66

Aruba Ocean Club, 2004
1 bedroom
$613.84

Aruba Ocean Club, 2003
1 bedroom
$596.40

Aruba Ocean Club, 2002
1 bedroom
$566.48

Aruba Ocean Club, 2001
1 bedroom
$555.31

 

[modoaruba]

We bought our 1-bedroom in 2001. Below is a list of our fees since then. Anyone want to guess what year the resort was considered sold out, turned over to the HOA, and therefore, out from under Marriott's protective wing? Since then, fees have been way too much for us.

Aruba Ocean Club, 2010
1 bedroom
$989.90 (per maint fee bill on-line)
$337.30 special assessment

Aruba Ocean Club, 2009
1 bedroom
$1257.04
$492.30 special assessment

Aruba Ocean Club, 2008
1 bedroom
$837.00

Aruba Ocean Club, 2007
1 bedroom
$805.00

Aruba Ocean Club, 2006
1 bedroom
$683.00

Aruba Ocean Club, 2005
1 bedroom
$637.66

Aruba Ocean Club, 2004
1 bedroom
$613.84

Aruba Ocean Club, 2003
1 bedroom
$596.40

Aruba Ocean Club, 2002
1 bedroom
$566.48

Aruba Ocean Club, 2001
1 bedroom
$555.31

So if you add in the cost of your week and you did not finance it,
you are averaging $2,000/week.

 

[lovearuba]

fees

Geez, I think these are going up at a faster rate than health care premiums

 

[griffer331]

I just added up every week and the average I came up with was $837.10

 

[modoaruba]

I just added up every week and the average I came up with was $837.10

You did not include the cost of the TS and divide by 10 which would put the average close to $2000 at this time.(10 years)

Just got next year's bill in the mail as I write.

2010 operating fee-----------632.21
replacement reserve----309.93
utilities-----------------147.26

Total-------------------------1089.40 for 1BR Gold


In March there will be an additional 337.30 assessment charge.


Real Total-------------------1426.70

What a bargain

 

[Broadwaydanny]

Relief?

Between Maintenance and "assessment almost 2 GRAND? ( 2 BR )

That's relief?

Certainly NOT what I signed up for or what I was told when I bought the week.

Will March 2010 be the END of the assessments, or will this be an annual thing?

 

[modoaruba]

Between Maintenance and "assessment almost 2 GRAND? ( 2 BR )

That's relief?

Certainly NOT what I signed up for or what I was told when I bought the week.

Will March 2010 be the END of the assessments, or will this be an annual thing?

When you buy your pet puppy you have to feed it.
As it gets older and bigger you have to feed it more.
Didi they neglect to tell you that?

 

[billymach4]

When you buy your pet puppy you have to feed it.
As it gets older and bigger you have to feed it more.
Didi they neglect to tell you that?

They neglected to tell you about the visits to the veterinarian. Boy do they really stick you with a bill.

 

[Broadwaydanny]

Can anyone here tell me how long the assessments will last, or will I continue to get [unclear] answers about puppies like I did from Modoaruba?

If the salesman sells me a teacup Yorkie, I have a good estimate of how much it will cost to feed as it gets older.

If the salesman sells me a teacup Yorkie that was defective, and it grows into a Pit Bull, well.....you get the picture now?

 

[Broadwaydanny]

Are we suckers?

Take a look at what other Aruba lovers are asying about our "puppies" .....

http://www.aruba-bb.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=75441&sid=cbee58d9d7eb569e922802e1842bfb92

We were all sold a bill of goods. Period.

 

[SueDonJ]

The March, 2010 bill is the last for this Special Assessment, which was spread over two years. You can find quite a bit of information about your bills at the Aruba Ocean Club page of my-vacationclub.com. Sign in and click the "Owners" tab about halfway down the page for links to various financial statements and notices from the GM and BOD.

I'm sorry if my using the word "relief" bothered people. But honestly, I only meant relief in the sense that the bills for 2010 are a little bit less than what was expected following the last year's turmoil and financial overhauling at the resort. Of course you're not expected to be jumping for joy, but every little bit helps.

 

[lovearuba]

Real perspective

Take a look at what other Aruba lovers are asying about our "puppies" .....

http://www.aruba-bb.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=75441&sid=cbee58d9d7eb569e922802e1842bfb92

We were all sold a bill of goods. Period.

You are right and to put it into perspective it does make sense to look at other fees on the same island. Ours are outrageous and really need to get back to reasonable. I enjoyed reading the link, its great to hear what non-Marriott owners think about this. I hope you signed up to work on getting transparency, if not send me a pm and I will send you some information. Marriott has indicated this is the last of the assessments and supposedly the higher maintenance fees will prevent a future one. I have no reason to believe this because their credibility has seriously suffered with owners at the ocean club.

 

[Dean]

Take a look at what other Aruba lovers are asying about our "puppies" .....

http://www.aruba-bb.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=75441&sid=cbee58d9d7eb569e922802e1842bfb92

We were all sold a bill of goods. Period.

You do realize that some active posters on that board are very anti timeshare and some just simply not nice or reasonable. As I posted on that BBS, La Cabana is actually more according than is the Marriott with a SA of $2K for a 2 BR and for a lot less than the OC owners are getting out of it.

 

[modoaruba]

You do realize that some active posters on that board are very anti timeshare and some just simply not nice or reasonable. As I posted on that BBS, La Cabana is actually more according than is the Marriott with a SA of $2K for a 2 BR and for a lot less than the OC owners are getting out of it.

Hope you are not aiming at me.
I just try to look at the raw financials.
When we first bought it was very reasonable and we were naive.
We thought that at 7 years we would break even.
But with escalating costs and special assessments the break even costs are delayed by a few more years.
Comparing the going rental fees for equal units and seasons at this time sets us back even more.
This is not being anti TS.
This are statements of financial common sense.
What the future will bring is unknown just like the special assessments were unknown 10 years ago when we bought.
Can anyone assure us that there will not be anther in the next 10?
I don't think so.
Playing to the other side,if the economy recovers and rentals go up along with increases in values of our TSs,then the break even weeks will narrow of course.But does anyone really believe that?
Bottom line--we still own the liability.

 

[Dean]

Hope you are not aiming at me.
I just try to look at the raw financials.
When we first bought it was very reasonable and we were naive.
We thought that at 7 years we would break even.
But with escalating costs and special assessments the break even costs are delayed by a few more years.
Comparing the going rental fees for equal units and seasons at this time sets us back even more.
This is not being anti TS.
This are statements of financial common sense.
What the future will bring is unknown just like the special assessments were unknown 10 years ago when we bought.
Can anyone assure us that there will not be anther in the next 10?
I don't think so.
Playing to the other side,if the economy recovers and rentals go up along with increases in values of our TSs,then the break even weeks will narrow of course.But does anyone really believe that?
Bottom line--we still own the liability.

Not at all, you are way off base. Broadwaydanny posted a link to another BBS where many there are definitely anti TS. I was alerting him to allow him to give him perspective on the thread linked and responses on that BBS in general. That's why I said that board, not this one. That said, it is a great place to get Aruba info and most of the people there are nice as well, just some have a different perspective.

 

[Broadwaydanny]

How do you spell RELIEF?

S - E - L - L

I am on the other Aruba BB most of the time and I've never perceived it to be anti TS, or anti anything else for that matter. Actually, the topic of timeshares rarely ever comes up there.

The folks there were genuiely surprised at what we are paying compared to the aggregate of other TS on the island. I perceived NOTHING anti timeshare in what they were saying. Actually, I believe most of the posters own TS themselves at other venues on the island.

To the poster who confirmed March 1020 as the "last" assessment, thank you.

However, if anyone here really believes that will be the last one, I have a bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you.

Who here wants to start a pool to guess when the NEXT assessments will take place?

 

[Dean]

S - E - L - L

I am on the other Aruba BB most of the time and I've never perceived it to be anti TS, or anti anything else for that matter. Actually, the topic of timeshares rarely ever comes up there.

The folks there were genuiely surprised at what we are paying compared to the aggregate of other TS on the island. I perceived NOTHING anti timeshare in what they were saying. Actually, I believe most of the posters own TS themselves at other venues on the island.

To the poster who confirmed March 1020 as the "last" assessment, thank you.

However, if anyone here really believes that will be the last one, I have a bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you.

Who here wants to start a pool to guess when the NEXT assessments will take place?

SA are really quite unusual with Marriott, I doubt there will be another in the near future at tht resort. While I don't post often to that board, I definitely disagree with you as to the TS slant. Look at applicable thread's over the next few months, I think you'll get a different perspective, esp where the Marriott is involved.

 

[qlaval]

Take a look at what other Aruba lovers are saying about our "puppies" .....

http://www.aruba-bb.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=75441&sid=cbee58d9d7eb569e922802e1842bfb92
...

I would not give to much credit about what's writen on that thread.
This forum is well know for the anti-Marriott sentiment of a small but quite vocal group.
(OC, SC, and Stellaris included, which they called Marriottville....)
The worst posts have seen there usually came from TS owners of the resorts I wouldn't like to stay in anyway... :ignore:

 

[lovearuba]

information for users

Thanks for posting Mark, there is a lot of information on the website for owners so it is nice to be able to share comments, read the newslines and participate in the new forum. Have a great day

 

[Kelly&Sean]

I went to this site and to view the information it stated that you had to be a registered member. So I went to register and in the terms it states that my name will be added to the list of concerned owners. I do not want my name added until I see the information presented. Is there a way to register without my name being added? The Disclaimer includes "You are also agreeing that you support efforts to gain more transparency on the ASSOCIATION (Aruba Ocean Club Association Board)." The Privacy Policy says "The administrators of this site will not use your personal information for any purpose other than to support the efforts to gain transparency on the Aruba Ocean Club Homeowners Board. Your information will not be provided to any other parties. It may be used to provide Marriott Vacation Club International a listing of owners that support the goal of gaining more transparency on the Aruba Ocean Club Homeowners Board."

 

[tlwmkw]

Kelly&Sean,

It sounds like this web-site is fishing for names to add to the list of concerned owners. If transparency is important why are they creating a members only site? Why not just make it open to anyone who wants to see what is going on- then they can opt for their name to be added to the list?

Where is the big law-suit that was supposedly being filed on behalf of the owners? There was much talk of this months ago and now nothing has happened. I gave up reading this thread because nothing new ever comes along and this just sounds like more of the same. Efforts that would ensure that the building is sound and that future expense would therefore be kept at a minimum would be more prudent.

tlwmkw

 

[lovearuba]

you are sadly mistaken

Kelly&Sean,

It sounds like this web-site is fishing for names to add to the list of concerned owners. If transparency is important why are they creating a members only site? Why not just make it open to anyone who wants to see what is going on- then they can opt for their name to be added to the list?

Where is the big law-suit that was supposedly being filed on behalf of the owners? There was much talk of this months ago and now nothing has happened. I gave up reading this thread because nothing new ever comes along and this just sounds like more of the same. Efforts that would ensure that the building is sound and that future expense would therefore be kept at a minimum would be more prudent.

tlwmkw

You are making assumptions on information that you are not privy to. The transparency cause is related to transparency of information for owners related to their timeshare, not non-owners. It is an owners website and only owners that are not happy with the way they get information related to board meetings and maintenance fees. You should not assume that nothing has happened behind the scenes. A lot of things are happening. If you are an owner and you go to the website and read the opening page and you do not agree to the mission of the group behind the website then you should not go forward with registration.

 

[SueDonJ]

... If you are an owner and you go to the website and read the opening page and you do not agree to the mission of the group behind the website then you should not go forward with registration.

That's certainly fair, it's a restricted website after all, but it does put owners such as Kelly&Sean in a tough spot. How are they supposed to know if they want to support the mission, if they don't have access to the information that would explain the perceived need for the mission?

Kelly&Sean, I'm not an owner there so do not have access to that website. But I would guess that if you read through this entire thread (whew!) you will be able to learn enough to know whether or not you are interested in registering at that website.

 

[Dean]

You are making assumptions on information that you are not privy to. The transparency cause is related to transparency of information for owners related to their timeshare, not non-owners. It is an owners website and only owners that are not happy with the way they get information related to board meetings and maintenance fees. You should not assume that nothing has happened behind the scenes. A lot of things are happening. If you are an owner and you go to the website and read the opening page and you do not agree to the mission of the group behind the website then you should not go forward with registration.

That would seem to conflict with the disclaimer at the right top of that initial page that says:

All personal information provided to this site will be used strictly for the purpose of communicating updates regarding the Aruba Ocean Club. It will be kept strictly confidential and will not be sold, shared or otherwise disclosed to any other party.

I don't have a problem with a separate owners site, I suggested it several times in this discussion and I think it's the proper way to proceed for such a group. However, it would seem that there may be owners that want to investigate prior to deciding to add their name to any list that might be used to communicate with Marriott or in any other way. I'd suggest that one should allow owners there to sign in and then have a separate option of adding their name to any list. As it stands now, sharing any names from a list collected in such a way is illegal without the express permission of the owner to do so. Still, any such list would not meet any criteria that Marriott (or any other company would have) to document such names legally for a proxy or other communication with Marriott, lawyers or other entities.