SLTravel and Timshare Freedom Inc info

[walumb01]

I just bought a timeshare off ebay for $1. With closing and maintenance it ends up being $1100 bucks. Has anybody done business with this outfit. Just wanting to know how legit they are and if anyone has a thumbs up or down from their experience

 

[DeniseM]

Without knowing anything about the resort, the dollar amount for closing costs and MF doesn't sound out of line.

For lots of info. already posted about Timeshare Freedom, use the search function (Search this Forum) and search for "Timeshare Freedom."

 

[calgarygary]

Timeshare Freedom is/was associated with Resorts Access Network who used Dharmesh Patel to sell their inventory through eBay. I do not know if SLTravel is in any way connected to R.A.N. I did have a major issue with an eBay purchase but eventually they more than made up for it.

 

[walumb01]

the seller is an agent of RAN and closing company is Timeshare Freedom I bought a 2 bdrm Desert Breezes annual floating 1-52. Great deal if it doesn't fall through. They do everything through credit card so I am assuming I have some recourse if things go haywire

 

[DaveHenry]

I bought a Wyndham points contract through them that turned out to be a non-points fixed week. They eventually refunded my money and took the timeshare back.

 

[walumb01]

my purchase agreement has all the facts straight so i am assuming that the closing company makes sure all is well before it is closed

 

[Talent312]

my purchase agreement has all the facts straight so i am assuming that the closing company makes sure all is well before it is closed

Ha! Do not assume this. They are not working for you, but for the Seller.
Do some checking of your own. Ask the resort to verify that 'x' owns the TS w/o mortgage, that MF's+taxes are not deliquent, and that use is available for the advertised time. If they are reluctant to release this information, offer to fax them your contract or get a release from the Seller.

 

[Carolinian]

These out of state closing companies often do very sloppy deed work. I have seen too many invalid deeds they have recorded in North Carolina.

One part of your due diligence should be to ask who will prepare the deed and any other legal documents. Get an individual name, not a company name. Then call the State Bar of the state where the timeshare is located and ask if that person is licensed to practice law or can otherwise legally prepate deeds in the state where the timeshare is located. The State Bar may have that info online where you can check yourself as to his bar status.

Don't let these companies con you into letting an incompetent prepare your deed.

 

[calgarygary]

my purchase agreement has all the facts straight so i am assuming that the closing company makes sure all is well before it is closed

The closing company is not only working for the seller - they have the same officers as the seller if the SLTravel is indeed affiliated with RAN. They have a history of errors but will eventually correct them. In my case, TF allowed a deed to be registered in my name for a resort in a different city than what was purchased and contracted for. It took a while to correct but was solved in a manner that exceeded expectations.

 

[Carolinian]

Glaring errors, like the wrong resort, can often be caught and corrected by the buyer, but there are deed errors that can totally void the deed that only a qualified professional - attorney or in some cases real estate broker - would catch. It is a real crap shoot to use any closer that is not licensed by the state where the timeshare is located. A deed that may be valid one place may not be valid somewhere else.

 

[walumb01]

Are there any recent dealings with Timeshare Freedom for closing? In searching the forum it looks like they had some accolades a while back and then the most recent ones are less glowing. I don't see any real recent news

 

[pranas]

Stay away from Timeshare Freedom. They are incompetent and very nasty when a shafted customer complains.

 

[Jbart74]

Off Topic but...

I must say that Talent312 and Carolinian have both posted very helpful info in the past. They are two of the people I most respect as a Young member of this group. I wish Carolinian would join TUG so member status could be applied.

That being said (totaly unrelated but I wanted to shout out) I think due dilligence is good advice. Of course you started here, so that's a good start. But check up on the name of the atty preparing the paperwork and recording the deed. There's nothing worse than spending 4-8 months fixing a problem that should not have occurred in the first place.

 

[Jbart74]

To Carolinian

So you have 4000+ posts but you show as a guest on the BBS. Is this simply a manifestation of the computer craziness that it takes to apply your membership to the BBS? It took me about three days, which I thought was crazy. I'm guessing you just gave up. A long, Long, Long, time ago!

Thanks for all of your posts. I learn much from all of them!

Sincerely,

 

[Carolinian]

So you have 4000+ posts but you show as a guest on the BBS. Is this simply a manifestation of the computer craziness that it takes to apply your membership to the BBS? It took me about three days, which I thought was crazy. I'm guessing you just gave up. A long, Long, Long, time ago!

Thanks for all of your posts. I learn much from all of them!

Sincerely,

I think my TUG membership is still paid up. When there were some site changes, however, the last time I had to change a password, it appeared that there was no way to do that without putting a real name in the system, something I really did not want to do, so that I will not feel constrained about raising issues related to RCI while I still have a deposit there. Yeah it is a bit of a pain not being able to post reviews and sale reports as I have done in the past, but those are the breaks.

 

[calgarygary]

Stay away from Timeshare Freedom. They are incompetent and very nasty when a shafted customer complains.

I had a serious issue with TF when I purchased our timeshare. We had won an eBay auction for a 1 bedroom EOY @ Vistana Villages. I can be accused of not doing our due diligence as we did not request a copy of the deed prior to bidding, and for that matter, may not have picked up on the error. It was not until the maintenance fee invoice arrived that we realized we were given the Sheraton PGA in Port St. Lucie. Initially, TF & associates (RAN & D. Patel) only wanted to provide us a refund which we did not want - we wanted the timeshare in Vistana Villages that we had contracted for. Eventually after much communication we received a 2 bedroom, every year @ VV and a refund - so I believe that TF & RAN know how to resolve a customer complaint.