Timeshare Buy Back Program Legit?

[trustno1]

My parents have had a DRI account for many years. I understand HGV has acquired DRI back in 2021. Recently, my parents have been contacted by a realty company and a title company (working together) stating that they are working for HGV to buy back timeshares. They are referencing a press release from March of this year that states HGV is buying back shares of common stock...

Yahoo News - Hilton Grand Vacations Announces New Share Repurchase Plan

I've searched online for many hours today, including searching through this site, but cannot find anything, or anyone else, talking about HGV buying back timeshares. My belief is that the above report is for shares of stock, not timeshares.

These 2 companies are very aggressive, and my parents are up there in age. I fear they may get more personal information or a transfer of ownership from my parents.

Can anyone here please help? Is this a scam? They have asked them to sign a LOI. Once they have that they will deposit $50k into their bank account and ask them to pay back a commission fee of $500.

For the time being, I've asked my parents not to answer any calls from these companies. They did reach out to HGV today for advice but are waiting for a reply.

Thanks in advance for your time.

 

[trustno1]

My parents have had a DRI account for many years. I understand HGV has acquired DRI back in 2021. Recently, my parents have been contacted by a realty company and a title company (working together) stating that they are working for HGV to buy back timeshares. They are referencing a press release from March of this year that states HGV is buying back shares of common stock...

Yahoo News - Hilton Grand Vacations Announces New Share Repurchase Plan

I've searched online for many hours today, including searching through this site, but cannot find anything, or anyone else, talking about HGV buying back timeshares. My belief is that the above report is for shares of stock, not timeshares.

These 2 companies are very aggressive, and my parents are up there in age. I fear they may get more personal information or a transfer of ownership from my parents.

Can anyone here please help? Is this a scam? They have asked them to sign a LOI. Once they have that they will deposit $50k into their bank account and ask them to pay back a commission fee of $500.

For the time being, I've asked my parents not to answer any calls from these companies. They did reach out to HGV today for advice but are waiting for a reply.

Thanks in advance for your time.

Sorry Admin. Looks like I posted the above in the wrong Hilton section. Feel free to move it.

 

[GT75]

NP Moved.

 

[HuskerATL]

HGV will not contact owners to buy back deeds/points. Anyone calling is either a scam or an exit company trying to make money from your parents. Often times, the exit companies take their money and they are still stuck with the deed/points.

Just to add, there are no HGV weeks worth $50k on the post-sales market so that raises an immediate flag.

Don't talk to these people.

 

[oceanblue2]

HGV sent out this e-mail yesterday regarding scams.

Education Alert: New Timeshare Fraud Tactics Hilton Grand Vacations remains committed to protecting you from fraudulent timeshare schemes. In fact, earlier this year, HGV won a landmark ruling in federal court against two third-party timeshare exit companies targeting Owners with predatory scams. The ruling established a precedent to protect Owners from future scams by identifying these companies engaged in false advertising. Despite the court’s ruling, fraudulent timeshare companies are still operating globally and targeting Owners like you. This is why we’re committed to helping you stay up to date on the various fraud methods they’re using to try and deceive you.​

New Timeshare Fraud Education Video: To educate our Owners and Members on recent fraud activity, we created an education video that offers tips, resources and examples of ongoing timeshare schemes. You can view the video here.​

The Latest Timeshare Fraud Scams Around the world, timeshare scammers use a variety of communication tactics to defraud Owners. Recently, there’s been an uptick in scams originating from Mexico claiming to be able to sell, rent or transfer your ownership with individuals posing as HGV Team Members, U.S. attorneys, U.S. escrow and title companies, or even officials from the Mexico Department of Tourism or Mexican Tax Administration Services. That’s not all — the U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions earlier this yearagainst associates of the Jalisco New Generation drug cartel who targeted U.S. residents seeking to exit their timeshare by claiming to have a buyer, but the timeshare Owners would need to pay taxes and other illegitimate fees before finalizing the deal. And in Europe, fraudulent companies continue to defraud Owners and Members through various tactics — some of which have reported receiving a falsified notice that a European Order for Payment (EOP) has been issued against them for past-due maintenance fees. As well, recent reports have shown an influx of emails being received by Owners and Members from third parties that induce scare tactics and falsely claim they were misled about their ownership and membership purchases prior to HGV’s acquisition. In both examples, these fraudulent operators will offer their assistance to help fight the claims being made when, in fact, they’re scamming Owners and Members by charging for services not being performed and are not required.​

As always, if the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Never commit to any payments or provide personal information over the phone.​

Educational Resources to Help You For more information, including articles, our new video, tips on how to identify timeshare scams and ways to report fraudsters to the authorities, login to The Club website and visit your dedicated Timeshare Fraud Education page. Additionally, you can visit vacation-times.org for a list of reported alerts on numerous scammers. As always, when in doubt please reach out to us. Contact information is also available after you log in to The Club website.​

 

[LannyPC]

Recently, my parents have been contacted by a realty company and a title company (working together) stating that they are working for HGV to buy back timeshares.

Can anyone here please help? Is this a scam? They have asked them to sign a LOI. Once they have that they will deposit $50k into their bank account and ask them to pay back a commission fee of $500.

These have all the hallmarks of a scam.

1) An unsolicited phone call.
2) An offer too good to be true --- depositing $50,000 into their bank account?!?!
3) An upfront fee, this one is called a "commission fee".

 

[HuskerATL]

Was I contacted by a Scammer to Sell or Rent my Timeshare?

A checklist for owners to determine if a Timeshare company is legitimate or a scam

tug2.net

 

[trustno1]

WOW! Thank you so much for the replies. I was fairly certain this was not legit but needed to hear it from others.

Here's the situation... my parents do not want to continue on with the timeshare (nothing to do with this scam). Is their best option to go with the HGV/DRI Transition program? They want out as soon as possible.

 

[LannyPC]

Check out this sticky thread about DRI accepting deed backs:

https://tugbbs.com/forums/threads/s...e-back-your-diamond-resorts-timeshare.224859/

The main piece of advice we would give to you and your parents is to not go seeking the "help" of these exit/relief/cancel companies, charities, or law firms. They are usually scams.

Also, you and/or your parents can advertise the TS for giveaway here in TUG's Free Timeshares section.

 

[trustno1]

Check out this sticky thread about DRI accepting deed backs:

https://tugbbs.com/forums/threads/s...e-back-your-diamond-resorts-timeshare.224859/

The main piece of advice we would give to you and your parents is to not go seeking the "help" of these exit/relief/cancel companies, charities, or law firms. They are usually scams.

Also, you and/or your parents can advertise the TS for giveaway here in TUG's Free Timeshares section.

Is the program you mentioned the same as the Transition program I am seeing on the web?

Apologies, I see now it is the Transition program. I'll do some research on this. Thanks!

 

[letsgobobby]

this is 110% a scam and it wouldn't matter if we were talking about timeshares, turntables, or Rick Astley bobblehead dolls:

"$50k into their bank account and ask them to pay back a commission fee of $500."

 

[Arusso]

My parents have had a DRI account for many years. I understand HGV has acquired DRI back in 2021. Recently, my parents have been contacted by a realty company and a title company (working together) stating that they are working for HGV to buy back timeshares. They are referencing a press release from March of this year that states HGV is buying back shares of common stock...

Yahoo News - Hilton Grand Vacations Announces New Share Repurchase Plan

I've searched online for many hours today, including searching through this site, but cannot find anything, or anyone else, talking about HGV buying back timeshares. My belief is that the above report is for shares of stock, not timeshares.

These 2 companies are very aggressive, and my parents are up there in age. I fear they may get more personal information or a transfer of ownership from my parents.

Can anyone here please help? Is this a scam? They have asked them to sign a LOI. Once they have that they will deposit $50k into their bank account and ask them to pay back a commission fee of $500.

For the time being, I've asked my parents not to answer any calls from these companies. They did reach out to HGV today for advice but are waiting for a reply.

Thanks in advance for your time.

Thank you for posting and being concerned for your parents' financial well-being. The responses by fellow TUGGERS will help you as well as countless others navigate scams. As you can see, there is unanimous consensus your parents were contacted by an notorious TS Exit company that specializes in preying on us seniors. These companies are despicable. They purchase owner lists and make "cold calls." They target seniors because it is common knowledge many seniors, for a variety of reasons, no longer benefit from TS ownership. Therefore, if a senior who is not conversant with this issue is considering disposing a TS, points, etc, the offer these scammers propose is very enticing. Hot off the press....TUG's weekly newsletter for week #37 posted this morning. discusses this very issue and how to dispose of an unwanted ownership. Good luck.

 

[trustno1]

Thanks again to all who took time to reply. I've advised to ignore all phone calls and emails coming from these 2 companies. Still waiting to hear back from the general inquiry made to HGV regarding the validity of the situation (although we now know this to be a scam). Also, we found the "Transitions" program by going to the HGV main page --> menu on the left --> Profile & Settings --> Transitions. Yesterday, an inquiry was made to see if the accounts would be eligible for Transitions (waiting on the review).

My question is... is there any difference between the Transitions page on HGV site (mentioned above) and the steps outlined in the DRI deedback sticky here on TUG mentioned above? Irregardless of the Transition approval, should they just begin the process laid out in the deedback post?

Thanks again.

 

[RX8]

@trustno1 It is common for scammers to come at their victims with both a realty company and a title/escrow company. Victims might feel comfortable knowing there is a title/escrow company involved. The fact is that these two “companies” are created by the same scammer. The biggest red flag, other than the cold call and request for upfront payment, is that the websites will be new, likely created only months before.

Can you please share the names of the companies? It serves a purpose of warning to others who may be contacted by the same scammers. If they do a Google search of the company name they will see the TUG thread on the scammer.

 

[pedro47]

Will Hilton go after this exit company with a lawsuit, to stop them for using their license name in their advertisement?

 

[TUGBrian]

Thanks again to all who took time to reply. I've advised to ignore all phone calls and emails coming from these 2 companies. Still waiting to hear back from the general inquiry made to HGV regarding the validity of the situation (although we now know this to be a scam). Also, we found the "Transitions" program by going to the HGV main page --> menu on the left --> Profile & Settings --> Transitions. Yesterday, an inquiry was made to see if the accounts would be eligible for Transitions (waiting on the review).

My question is... is there any difference between the Transitions page on HGV site (mentioned above) and the steps outlined in the DRI deedback sticky here on TUG mentioned above? Irregardless of the Transition approval, should they just begin the process laid out in the deedback post?

Thanks again.

nothing.... transitions predates the purchase of DRi by Hilton Grand Vacations.

it is not a buyback, but instead a giveback (that requires you to pay a fee to HVC/Dri)

 

[trustno1]

nothing.... transitions predates the purchase of DRi by Hilton Grand Vacations.

it is not a buyback, but instead a giveback (that requires you to pay a fee to HVC/Dri)

Thanks Brian. Would you advise them to follow these steps...

To start this process, the owner must send an email to: Transitions@hgv.com , lossmitigation@diamondresorts.com and or leadcollector@diamondresorts.com with the subject line stating: Inventory Takeback.

In the email itself the owner must include:
-Resort Name
-Owner(s) Name(s)
-Account Number
-Inventory owned (ie. weeks, points, etc)
-any other important information regarding the deed

or just wait on HGV to respond back to the inquiry they made on the HGV Transitions page?

We understand this is not a buyback (money transaction) but rather a deedback (wash my hands of the TS) with a fee.

 

[trustno1]

Will Hilton go after this exit company with a lawsuit, to stop them for using their license name in their advertisement?

The belief is that this is not an exit company but rather a scammer. An inquiry has already been made with HGV. We'll see if they reply and request all information... which we'll gladly provide.

 

[trustno1]

@trustno1 It is common for scammers to come at their victims with both a realty company and a title/escrow company. Victims might feel comfortable knowing there is a title/escrow company involved. The fact is that these two “companies” are created by the same scammer. The biggest red flag, other than the cold call and request for upfront payment, is that the websites will be new, likely created only months before.

Can you please share the names of the companies? It serves a purpose of warning to others who may be contacted by the same scammers. If they do a Google search of the company name they will see the TUG thread on the scammer.

At some point, I will provide all names, email addresses, website names and documents they emailed. For now, we want to get this TS given back to HGV/DR and done with first.

 

[pedro47]

My parents have had a DRI account for many years. I understand HGV has acquired DRI back in 2021. Recently, my parents have been contacted by a realty company and a title company (working together) stating that they are working for HGV to buy back timeshares. They are referencing a press release from March of this year that states HGV is buying back shares of common stock...

Yahoo News - Hilton Grand Vacations Announces New Share Repurchase Plan

I've searched online for many hours today, including searching through this site, but cannot find anything, or anyone else, talking about HGV buying back timeshares. My belief is that the above report is for shares of stock, not timeshares.

These 2 companies are very aggressive, and my parents are up there in age. I fear they may get more personal information or a transfer of ownership from my parents.

Can anyone here please help? Is this a scam? They have asked them to sign a LOI. Once they have that they will deposit $50k into their bank account and ask them to pay back a commission fee of $500.

For the time being, I've asked my parents not to answer any calls from these companies. They did reach out to HGV today for advice but are waiting for a reply.

Thanks in advance for your time.

To the OP: Welcome to the TUG Website.
Bacon "Where Knowledge is Power."

 

[TUGBrian]

Thanks Brian. Would you advise them to follow these steps...

To start this process, the owner must send an email to: Transitions@hgv.com , lossmitigation@diamondresorts.com and or leadcollector@diamondresorts.com with the subject line stating: Inventory Takeback.

In the email itself the owner must include:
-Resort Name
-Owner(s) Name(s)
-Account Number
-Inventory owned (ie. weeks, points, etc)
-any other important information regarding the deed

or just wait on HGV to respond back to the inquiry they made on the HGV Transitions page?

We understand this is not a buyback (money transaction) but rather a deedback (wash my hands of the TS) with a fee.

id certainly await an initial response, if that fails then use the other options.