Buying into Timeshare (Sleep On It for a day or so)
We always have regrets about one thing or another so don’t let Acquire a time be just that “a regret”
Timeshare, travel club membership and long term holiday products are long and complex arrangement, so give yourself 72 -hour cooling-off period after the sales presentation and before reengagement with them, Don’t sign signed anything and make sure you really want to buy.
This also gives you the opportunity to A simple Google search with the company’s name along with the words “scam” or “fraud” —may tell you all you need to know.
“The Internet has really tipped the balance of power back to the consumer, “Bad actors can’t survive very long if people do their research.”
A sales buffoon may inform you that a particular offer is great and only available for that day only. It’s not be true, it’s simply not a good reason to make a five-figure impulse buy. You’re not dealing with a normal sale you are dealing with a timeshare salesman
Give Travel Clubs and Point Systems “Special Attention”
The term “travel club” was coined as a friendly term of selling and generally refers to companies who’s offers their members alleged massive discounts on travel accomadation in exchange for a heavy upfront fee (sometimes ranging up to several thousand pounds) and ongoing maintenance dues.
In reality salesmen lie! in truth some of these companies offer only measured discount that any holiday consumer could obtain by booking through any online travel agency.
“Travel clubs” are a little more wonky, as there’s is more room for fraud and so you should do your due diligence.”
If the free gift you’re promised for attending a “travel club” sales presentation sounds too good to be true, it probably is. No one is going to give you a brand new car for listening to a sales pitch and/or that “free” weeklong cruise? You might end up paying more in taxes and fees than a consumer paying retail.
Shop Around
If you definitely know you want to come back to the same destination each year or if you’ve found a points-based timeshare that you’re confident will allow you to book great accommodations all over the world you may be ready to buy. But that doesn’t mean you have to buy from the first person you talk to. Shop around. Try The Timeshare shop!
There may be resale timeshares available in the location you’re seeking or even the very same development where you’re considering buying, at and a fraction of the price being asked by a developer or marketing agency.
If you like the idea of a timeshare/ Long term holday products but aren’t sure which operators are reputable and which are not? Check with the TCA.
Big hospitality companies like Marriott, Hilton, Starwood, and Disney have all entered the timeshare race in recent years. These companies have national reputations to maintain, making them more likely than fly-by-night operations to try to ensure their customers’ satisfaction.
Just because they purport to belong to TATOC or the RDO does not give them any credibility. These institutions are sponsored by the industry and will give predominantly industry advice.
Watch Out For Resale Scams
Some of the worst scam artists aren’t selling timeshares. They’re pretending to buy them.
The scammers obtain cold calling list which originate from the resorts and target timeshare owners who may be looking to sell, claiming to have a buyer already lined up.
Never pay a re-seller any up front frees , even for advertising , its illegal and they know it.
In reality all buyer claimed by cold callers doesn’t exist, and the supposed broker disappears with your hard earned money.
“If someone is calling you to buy your timeshare, and you didn’t solicit that call, hang up,” after you have been given their name and details and report them,.
Know Yourself
Are you the type of person who got persuaded into inviting long-lost second cousins to your wedding? Are you incapable of trying a free sample at the grocery store without buying the product? If so, be honest with yourself about whether you think you can stand up to high-pressure sales tactics. And if the answer is no, simply don’t attend a sales presentation for a timeshare or travel club no matter how much you want the free show tickets they’re offering.
No means no and if they don’t accept No ask them “what part of no do you not understand”?
“Sales critters and peddler have all types of psychological games and they play them all”. “If people aren’t willing to buy right away, they pit them against each other, or they humiliate them. Most people can’t stand up to the psychological barrage, and they cave.” Dont be one of them.
Remember: No one can force you to sign anything; you can leave whenever you want, and you’re under no obligation to be polite to someone who is trying to sell you something.
For travellers feeling pressure, just explain you’re not interested in buying and that you are merely there for the free tickets.
You’ve probably seen some sales advertisement or even received a jucy promotion about joining a vacation club/holiday club. Often the material you see is pretty vague, long on pictures of sandy beaches but short on facts. Demand the contract. Tell the salesman to write everything down on paper and demand that paper.
What you get
The short answer is that those clubs are nothing more than a variation of the basic timeshare theme but the carry less re sale value or negivive value. they are in the main a burned and will remain a burden fior life in some cases.
Whether called a vacation club or just a timeshare program, the basic principles are the same.
- You buy into a program that entitles you to the use of a apartment, hotel room, residence, or “villa” for an “interval” of time every year. The minimum interval is usually a week, but you can buy as many weeks as you wish.
- Although you generally buy into a specific location, most programs allow you to trade your interval for a different location, different times, or both. Some of the larger exchange systems provide access to intervals in hundreds of different individual buildings. Typically, you use “points,” based on the purchase price, to determine the quality and time available to you at other locations.
- The buy-in price from a timeshare developer/operator can be as low as £5,000 or as high as £35,000. In addition, you pay some combination of annual “dues,” occupancy charges for the time you actually spend at a facility, and maintenance fees. These can be varied and increase vastly over time. In one sinario they rose over 300 % in one year
- In some programs, your ownership is for a very long time, ownership expires after a set number of years or upon your death.
- With most programs, if you want to get out, it’s up to you to sell your ownership for whatever you can get for it.
- The only “club” element is the name; otherwise, it’s the same timeshare game, you are locked in and their is generally no resale value at all.
What you need to know
The timeshare product can be quite attractive, if you buy into it knowing the facts. Do not look at a timeshare purchase as an investment in the same sense of a home.
As soon as they are acquired they all lose value, in most circumstances the value vanishes the day you buy them.
If you like the timeshare idea, buy a resale. The developer’s mark-up on an initial sale can often approach 50 percent of the selling price. Let someone else take that initial hit. However, although I don’t ever expect to see resale prices that exceed purchase prices, I believe the gap between new and resale prices will narrow over the next 10 to 20 years.
Timeshare sales are still the focus of some extremely high-pressure, and often deceptive, sales practices at certain destination areas. Be very wary of accepting any “free” travel if it requires you to sit through a day or two of intense timeshare huckstering. Whether you want to buy or sell, you’ll find dozens of online timeshare resale agencies some are good some are bad. The bad ones charge you a fee up front or mask the fee say it’s for administration or advertising. Don’t deal with these companies as they are breaking the law from the outset.
Timeshares, of course, aren’t the only travel product that some suppliers try to sell through a “club” setup. The clubs themselves don’t want you to leave are unlikely to assist you as a conflict exists.
For timeshare legal assistance contact Tess (Timeshare Exit and Support Services) Ltd -See here
For free information, free speech and consumer assistance register with Timeshare talk -See here
For exchanges in timeshare check out UKRE –See here
For re sales visit The Timeshare Shop-See here
For more information regarding this article or assistance in any other timeshare related issues please contact the TCA on 01908 881058 or email: info@TimeshareConsumerAssociation.org.uk