DavidnRobin
TUG Member
- Joined
- Dec 20, 2005
- Messages
- 11,979
- Reaction score
- 2,350
- Location
- San Francisco Bay Area
- Resorts Owned
- WKORV OFD (Maui)
WPORV (Kauai)
WSJ-VGV (St. John)
WKV (Scottsdale)
As promised, I thought I would update my TS purchase of WSJ from eBay that was sold through GoVacations (Matt Tarpey) - Donate for a Cause - Resort Closings, Inc. (James Tarpey)
We wanted to add a week at a SVN mandatory resort to our recent WKORV OF unit purchase - that had excellent value both as an exchange and in case we need to rent - at a good price (of course). Even though we live in far away CA - we have been to the US and British VI - and it offers the things we love - sunshine, warm water, relaxing atmosphere, pristine beaches - and the amenites of a 1st class resort.
We 'won' this eBay auction on Feb 1 - 2Bd/3Ba Townhouse (~1200sqft, ~$1200 MF, 67.1K SOs) for Week 24 - Unit #3410 for $18.6K We put in a max bid about an hour before the end of the auction and it hit right at the end.
WSJ units are fixed and the weeks are semi-float within their season. Meaning: that WSJ owners can reserve at the 10-12 months point and get their week and unit. At 8-10 months, WSJ owners can look for another week within their season, and at the 8 month point it becomes like the other mandatory SVN resorts. As WSJ can be difficult to exchange into - we wanted to purchase WSJ directly.
Also, we wanted only the early part of the season (Weeks 21-26) as it still safe from Hurricanes (no Hurricanes in the USVI in June in recorded history), and with school out and honeymoon season - this would add to it's rental value. Plus, while hot/humid (year round) there is still a breeze in June to take the edge off. When there is no breeze in the later months of the season - it can seem a lot hotter.
Also - based on Tuggers info - we wanted a unit in Buildings 33 or 34, as they are farther up the hill - and have better views of Great Cruz Bay.
So - bottom line -this eBay auction worked for us.
Since this auction was on eBay - I wanted to make sure I performed due diligence on GoVacations and Resort Closings Inc. since they seem to linked (must use RC as the closing company) - to my dismay since I would prefer as a buyer to choose my own closing company. Never-the-less - I proceeded forward with caution.
First - I made sure the purchase contract contained language about ROFR, the actual deeded unit and week, that prior taxes and MFs were paid, and I only initially sent RC a deposit until I received a copy of the Estoppel letter from SVO stating this and the sellers were the owners of record.
In my research, I discovered that James Tarpey Esq. who is the owner of RC and is listed as 'legal counsel - was obviously a relative of the eBay broker - Matt Tarpey - who is associated with GoVacations and Donate for a Cause. I was not happy about this because it seems to smack of potential collusion. In my research I found out - again to my dismay - that James Tarpey is not a member of the Montana State Bar Asscociation. As it is unlawful to practice law in Montana without being a Bar member - this made me worried and I almost cancelled this TS contract for this very reason as I was worried this was a scam.
It turned out not to be - so I never followed through on reporting James to the Montana State Bar eventhough they wanted me to. They cannot persue without first someone 'officially' reporting it to them. However, if I were James - I would be careful here since all it takes is just one person reporting him.
I found Resort Closings (Kristy) to be very professional and kept me up-to-date on the progress of the deed transfer. I opted for Title Insurance for an additional $225 because of my worries about James and the fact that this TS unit was in the USVI. I insisted on using First American - however, Stewart ended up being used (not RC's fault). Overall, the cost for using RC is a few hundred dollars too high, and I did not like to be forced to use them, but all worked out in the end. It took about 2 months from begining to getting the transferred deed, but this was mainly the fault of the Recorders Office in St Thomas - things work on their own time in the Carribean.
We are looking to add an adjacent week (to week 24) at WSJ - so if any one knows of one - let me know.
and that's the story... let me know if you have questions/comments.:zzz:
We wanted to add a week at a SVN mandatory resort to our recent WKORV OF unit purchase - that had excellent value both as an exchange and in case we need to rent - at a good price (of course). Even though we live in far away CA - we have been to the US and British VI - and it offers the things we love - sunshine, warm water, relaxing atmosphere, pristine beaches - and the amenites of a 1st class resort.
We 'won' this eBay auction on Feb 1 - 2Bd/3Ba Townhouse (~1200sqft, ~$1200 MF, 67.1K SOs) for Week 24 - Unit #3410 for $18.6K We put in a max bid about an hour before the end of the auction and it hit right at the end.
WSJ units are fixed and the weeks are semi-float within their season. Meaning: that WSJ owners can reserve at the 10-12 months point and get their week and unit. At 8-10 months, WSJ owners can look for another week within their season, and at the 8 month point it becomes like the other mandatory SVN resorts. As WSJ can be difficult to exchange into - we wanted to purchase WSJ directly.
Also, we wanted only the early part of the season (Weeks 21-26) as it still safe from Hurricanes (no Hurricanes in the USVI in June in recorded history), and with school out and honeymoon season - this would add to it's rental value. Plus, while hot/humid (year round) there is still a breeze in June to take the edge off. When there is no breeze in the later months of the season - it can seem a lot hotter.
Also - based on Tuggers info - we wanted a unit in Buildings 33 or 34, as they are farther up the hill - and have better views of Great Cruz Bay.
So - bottom line -this eBay auction worked for us.
Since this auction was on eBay - I wanted to make sure I performed due diligence on GoVacations and Resort Closings Inc. since they seem to linked (must use RC as the closing company) - to my dismay since I would prefer as a buyer to choose my own closing company. Never-the-less - I proceeded forward with caution.
First - I made sure the purchase contract contained language about ROFR, the actual deeded unit and week, that prior taxes and MFs were paid, and I only initially sent RC a deposit until I received a copy of the Estoppel letter from SVO stating this and the sellers were the owners of record.
In my research, I discovered that James Tarpey Esq. who is the owner of RC and is listed as 'legal counsel - was obviously a relative of the eBay broker - Matt Tarpey - who is associated with GoVacations and Donate for a Cause. I was not happy about this because it seems to smack of potential collusion. In my research I found out - again to my dismay - that James Tarpey is not a member of the Montana State Bar Asscociation. As it is unlawful to practice law in Montana without being a Bar member - this made me worried and I almost cancelled this TS contract for this very reason as I was worried this was a scam.
It turned out not to be - so I never followed through on reporting James to the Montana State Bar eventhough they wanted me to. They cannot persue without first someone 'officially' reporting it to them. However, if I were James - I would be careful here since all it takes is just one person reporting him.
I found Resort Closings (Kristy) to be very professional and kept me up-to-date on the progress of the deed transfer. I opted for Title Insurance for an additional $225 because of my worries about James and the fact that this TS unit was in the USVI. I insisted on using First American - however, Stewart ended up being used (not RC's fault). Overall, the cost for using RC is a few hundred dollars too high, and I did not like to be forced to use them, but all worked out in the end. It took about 2 months from begining to getting the transferred deed, but this was mainly the fault of the Recorders Office in St Thomas - things work on their own time in the Carribean.
We are looking to add an adjacent week (to week 24) at WSJ - so if any one knows of one - let me know.
and that's the story... let me know if you have questions/comments.:zzz:
