Beware! Don't Do Business with Highend Vacation Properties!!

[kf2tigress Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close kf2tigress]

To all those that are wanting to rent out your weeks, DO NOT do business with Highend Vacation Properties or Corporate American Escrow!!! I have a really good feeling that they are both Fraud Companies.
Here is my story: I got a call out of the blue from a John Mack claiming to be from a company named Highend Vacation Properties and he was a purchasing Agent whose job was to find people willing to rent out their timeshares for his clients that are all over the world. He said that there were no upfront fees & the deal sounded legit to me so he said he would send me the rental contract. I received it, looked it over & signed it. I e-mailed it back to him & then a few days later I got a call from Corporate American Escrow an Anthony Gonzalez, stating that I would need to pay the maintenance fees before I could receive the proceeds. Now this is where I should have stopped & thought about this in a business sense, but I wanted this to be real so I ignored my common sense and sent them the money & wired it no less to Mexico. My timeshare is in Mexico so to me it made sense. I called & spoke with Anthony again from the Escrow Co. & asked him when I would get my proceeds & he said within a week, that was on August the 6th. I called again a few days later & I couldn't speak with anyone, their phones were busy! I finally got in touch with Anthony again on the 16th & he asked for more money for the commission. I said I would not wire any more money & since then I have tried to call both companies several times a day & they either hang up on me or let it go to voicemail.
If anyone has gone thru a similar experience, let me know what you did next. I have spoken to a lawyer and basically it would cost more to sue them than what I lost. I know that I can’t get my money back, but if anyone has any feedback I would really appreciate it.

[dougp26364 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dougp26364]

Never give money up front to a company that promises to rent or sell your timeshare. They're ALL frauds and scams. The exceptions would be something like Redweek where you pay a very small membership fee to participate in their classified adds program.

If you're losses are small enough, you could try small claims court. The problem is going to be collecting any judgement you might get.

[datablade Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close datablade]

I received a phone call from "Tony Perez" of HighEnd Vacation Properties asking if I would be interested in renting 10 weeks of my Buganvilias Resort timeshare in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. His "front desk" person sent a contract proposal via email.

While this offer differs from other companies who ask for several hundred dollars up front (which I always decline) HighEnd claims to only want 5% commission. However they have control of all money and every element of the transaction, plus there are very strange contract clauses, i.e. #4. This clause states the agreement will be void if the timeshare owner uses profane language, become abusive to their staff, or bigoted, etc. In over 35 years of business contract negotiation I have never seen such a clause.

The fact the BBB has rated HighEnd an "F" is telling. Plus the experiences of the gentleman who seems to have been taken advantage of recently.

I would be curious as to how HighEnd had my full contact infomration including Sheraton Buganvilias contract numbers. Someone on the inside feeding them information?

I do own many weeks at this fabulous resort, and am willing to rent them at a fair price. My family vacations at the Buganvilias 2-3 times every year and our best vacations have been staying on their property.

Just wanted to share my insights and a potential warning about the HighEnd Vacation Properties situation.

[kf2tigress Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close kf2tigress]

I am happy to hear that my posts have helped someone avoid the heartache that I have endured. I wish that I would have been more diligent in reading the contract and maybe getting a second opinion on it, but now it's too late for any of that. As long as they don't get any more money from unsuspecting victims, I know it was worth my loss. Thank you for your response. It's much appreciated.

[bagii Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close bagii]

Thank You!

I have been searching and searching for something on High End Vacation Properties and here it is!!! Thank you, Thank You ~ THANK YOU!

We signed and returned the proposal on Thursday (9/16/10). We received the contract yesterday (9/17/10) but have not returned it yet. I have extensively questioned Aaron Castilla, the man calling from High End VP. I even told him I was waiting for my attorney to look over the contract and call me back. He has not seemed to bat an eye at any of my questions or my mention of the attorney, just calmly answered all my questions.

We were a little suspicious but only a little. I had no idea where to go to find information. Everybody I asked said do not pay anything up front! I got in touch with the sales manager at my resort, Sheraton Buganvilias PVR. Thank goodness he gave me this website. He also said do not pay up front. I am so happy with our timeshare and their service. I will make him aware of your post.

I am so sorry you were taken ~ but I appreciate your sharing. I do wonder where High End V P is getting our information.

[kf2tigress Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close kf2tigress]

I appreciate your feedback and I am very happy to hear that I was able to help another person avoid being scammed out of their hard earned money. I am not sure where they get our information, but these scammers are professionals and know what they are doing. I asked a lot of questions too & they were able to convince me that they were a legit company.
They continue to do what they do because they know that legally, we as a consumer can do nothing to stop them. I called Boulder, CO police to report Corporate American Escrow & they said that there was nothing the police could do for me. They wouldn't even take down any information about the Escrow Company. They told me to call the FBI to make the report. I called my local FBI office & do you know that as of this date, they have not returned my call.
I just recently posted a report on ripoffreport.com & ordered their book to see what else I can do to help bring these two companies down. If I can’t see them in prison for what they are doing, then at least I want the satisfaction of knowing that I am hurting their bottom line, which ultimately is all they care about.