Some Just Don't Get it . . .

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Slough . . .

. . . but the sales weasel said it was RCI's favorite place, and that it is as good as it gets.



Actually, in this case, I was referring to a Goldie Crownie, or former GC, or whatever their rating is du jour, in a luxury gated golf community, with the #4 ranked golf course in the state, and with the #1 and #3 ranked courses in the same resort area, and with 4 major metropolitan areas within a 4-hour drive, and with more than 120 attractions in the same area.

. . .

So you can imagine how much worse the situation is at Slimey Slough.

[bravesfan Member Find all posts View Profile Close bravesfan]

I actually have never seen the locations of your resorts posted but, can only imagine by their nicknames that they are not great destinations.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Some are prone to self-deprecating humor.

Some are not prone to humor.

Even those on the Titanic went down singing, or at least they did in all the movies.

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

I agree that cheap rentals from exchange companies undermine the timeshare system, especially if exchange companies rent out units that owners would have liked to get as exchanges. However, I would like to add a hopeful note here: I think a big part of the problem is the weak economy. Timeshare vacations are a luxury item aimed at the middle class, and a lot of the middle class has cut back on luxury items these past few years. But, modern economies tend to go through "boom-and-bust cycles" and this current weak economy almost certainly will not last forever. (Although there may still be "middle class squeeze," which is a separate issue from the boom-and-bust cycle.) When the economy booms again (and I believe it is when it booms again, not if it booms again), I expect a lot more demand for timeshare rentals.

....
At the Timeshare Stripped Bare conference last year, a major European timeshare developer stated that RCI's rental to the public programs were undermining not only their developer sales but also their owner retention. More developers need to pick up on this and jerk RCI's chain very very hard on the subject. The big exchange companies rarely listen to individual members but they do listen to developers, whom they consider their primary clients. It seems to me the only way to stop RCI's malpractices in this area is for a group of developers to band together and throw down the gauntlet to RCI to either bring this practice to a screeching halt or they will all bolt to II and thoroughly denounce RCI to their members when they do so.

I agree with the need for developers (and HOAs) to pressure the exchange companies to limit their rentals to the public. I'm interested in ideas on how we are owners can encourage developers and HOAs to do this.

... Maybe combine with another resort in the area - move ownerships to one strong resort rather than two struggling ones. Close & sell the one that is leftover. ....

I do think there is excess timeshare capacity is many areas, especially at older resorts with a lot of elderly owners who can no longer travel. In those cases, combining resorts is a great idea. How hard is it to combine resorts? Do all owners have to agree? Or does it maybe require a supermajority, or a simple majority, or just the HOA board?

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

I think a big part of the problem is the weak economy.

I think the problem is the Weeks economy.

[singlemalt_18 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close singlemalt_18]

There are two types of people in the world.

Those who believe there are two types of people, and those who do not.

Those who do not, nullify their premise by their existence.

It seems to me that there are two basic types of TS owners; those who USE their time every year thru either reservation or exchange, and those who do not. So how big a percentage of owners fail to use their time? Anyone have an idea how much excess inventory is created thru non-use and failure to pay annual MFs? I'm sure it has increased significantlly in recent years.

The segment of non-participating owners may be partly responsible for the supply glut as well. That then provides even more inventory for these companies to use them on the cheap as another source of revenue?

[timeos2 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close timeos2]

[I]

The segment of non-participating owners may be partly responsible for the supply glut as well. That then provides even more inventory for these companies to use them on the cheap as another source of revenue?

The non-participating owners could be failng to use their time but can not be in arrears on payments or they can't deposit to RCI/II, etc. so unless the resort made the deposit - unlikely - that time wouldn't be in the exploited discounted exchange company rental pools.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

I do think there is excess timeshare capacity is many areas, especially at older resorts with a lot of elderly owners who can no longer travel. In those cases, combining resorts is a great idea. How hard is it to combine resorts? Do all owners have to agree? Or does it maybe require a supermajority, or a simple majority, or just the HOA board?

In the areas with the most excess capacity, the developers keep on building timeshare.

Combining resorts means closing one, and that procedure takes anything from a supermajority to unanimous consent. For the older resorts, those built before the Uniform Condominium Act was adopted in the particular state, it is unanimous consent. In some other countries, the process would be much simpler, but then that means unscrupulous conmen like Stuart ''The Bullfrog'' Lamont cheating timesharers.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

[I]It seems to me that there are two basic types of TS owners; those who USE their time every year thru either reservation or exchange, and those who do not.

There are two basic types of TS owners who do not use their time every year; those who elect to not use their time and those who have no intention of ever using their time, but are stuck with them, thanks to the legitimate timeshare industry.

There is, or should be, a distinction between the two, between electing not to use and being stuck with them.

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

In the areas with the most excess capacity, the developers keep on building timeshare.

I wasn't thinking so much of the areas with lots of timeshares, such as Branson, Orlando, Williamsburg. These areas do have lots of timeshares, but they also have substantial demand for much of the year. I was thinking more of places such as inland Texas, which just don't seem to have much demand, or places like Cape Cod, where the demand is highly seasonal. And even if developers are building new resorts in a certain area, it may make sense for older resorts to close, especially if they are rundown and have aging owners. This in fact is one of the ways timeshares are so different from other business. If a lot of trendy new restaurants open in a town, it is likely some of the old, outdated ones will close. But when newer, nicer timeshares open, there is no way for the older ones to close.

Combining resorts means closing one, and that procedure takes anything from a supermajority to unanimous consent. For the older resorts, those built before the Uniform Condominium Act was adopted in the particular state, it is unanimous consent. In some other countries, the process would be much simpler, but then that means unscrupulous conmen like Stuart ''The Bullfrog'' Lamont cheating timesharers.

There were two timeshares on Cape Cod that combined recently. Does anyone know how they accomplished it, and how many owners had to agree?

I'll have to look up Stuart ''The Bullfrog'' Lamont; I'm not familiar with him.

[bravesfan Member Find all posts View Profile Close bravesfan]

There are two basic types of TS owners who do not use their time every year; those who elect to not use their time and those who have no intention of ever using their time, but are stuck with them, thanks to the legitimate timeshare industry.

There is, or should be, a distinction between the two, between electing not to use and being stuck with them.

Seems to me that both of those are choosing not to use their time. Not sure why there needs to be a definition. People can certainly use the time that they bought or make an exchange for literally tens if not hundreds of thousands of locations. Just because one area is not available does not mean they can't be used.

[bravesfan Member Find all posts View Profile Close bravesfan]

There are two basic types of TS owners who do not use their time every year; those who elect to not use their time and those who have no intention of ever using their time, but are stuck with them, thanks to the legitimate timeshare industry.

There is, or should be, a distinction between the two, between electing not to use and being stuck with them.

Seems to me that both of those are choosing not to use their time. Not sure why there needs to be a definition. People can certainly use the time that they bought or make an exchange for literally tens if not hundreds of thousands of locations. Just because one area is not available does not mean they can't be used.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

&, thus, the title of the thread.

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

Seems to me that both of those are choosing not to use their time. Not sure why there needs to be a definition. People can certainly use the time that they bought or make an exchange for literally tens if not hundreds of thousands of locations. Just because one area is not available does not mean they can't be used.

A lot of people currently don't have enough money to travel. And, there is a real problem for owners who are no longer healthy enough to travel. (With the baby boomers aging, this is starting to be a lot of owners.)

While I am fortunate not to be struggling with the same health problems Timeos2 has, in the past few years I have had health problems that have been very debilitating. I am hardly ever well enough to travel any more, and I have huge medical bills. [My illness is also why my participation here and "over yonder" has become sporadic.]

I was only 45 when I got sick, and just didn't anticipate anything like this happening. I had to give up my job, and I have not been able to qualify for any sort of disability benefits or assistance with medical bills. All my medical costs are paid out of pocket, a total of over $100,000 since I got sick. Making things even worse, my husband (who was an automotive engineer on contract to a company that went bankrupt) went several years without steady work. (The economy was really bad here in Southeast Michigan.)

Luckily, some of my timeshares I can rent out and cover the MFs, but I have others (mostly ones that I previously used as traders) that are real milestones around my neck. In the current situation, owners like me are really stuck. I can't use the timeshares, but I still need to pay the MF each year, even if I need that money for medical care. My husband and I are trying to avoid bankruptcy, but it's possible the timeshares will be the thing that pushes us over the edge.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

A lot of people currently don't have enough money to travel. And, there is a real problem for owners who are no longer healthy enough to travel. (With the baby boomers aging, this is starting to be a lot of owners.)

While I am fortunate not to be struggling with the same health problems Timeos2 has, in the past few years I have had health problems that have been very debilitating. I am hardly ever well enough to travel any more, and I have huge medical bills. [My illness is also why my participation here and "over yonder" has become sporadic.]

I was only 45 when I got sick, and just didn't anticipate anything like this happening. I had to give up my job, and I have not been able to qualify for any sort of disability benefits or assistance with medical bills. All my medical costs are paid out of pocket, a total of over $100,000 since I got sick. Making things even worse, my husband (who was an automotive engineer on contract to a company that went bankrupt) went several years without steady work. (The economy was really bad here in Southeast Michigan.)

Luckily, some of my timeshares I can rent out and cover the MFs, but I have others (mostly ones that I previously used as traders) that are real milestones around my neck. In the current situation, owners like me are really stuck. I can't use the timeshares, but I still need to pay the MF each year, even if I need that money for medical care. My husband and I are trying to avoid bankruptcy, but it's possible the timeshares will be the thing that pushes us over the edge.

You might find that those who don't get it, don't care either.