Help with timeshare value

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

Hi all,

My name is Nicole and yesterday we got talked into buying a timeshare. I usually do a lot of research before making any decisions and actually left my license at home and unknowlingly had my checkbook. This is very unlike me. The closing is not actually complete because they do not have my license info so I think it will make it easier to get out of if it was a bad deal.

They are still in preconstruction of a new resort in the Berkshires in Mass (although some units are already built and being used). It's a 2 bedroom/2 bath split with balcony. It is really a nice place. They said demand is high and supply is low because the berkshire's prevent a lot of growth by developers in the area. So it is not over saturated. They said the value will go up to 30+ once construction is complete in a year. We bought a bi-yearly deed for 13K in a red week. Is this a good deal? The maintenance fees are 400 locked in rate every other year. The trading power should be excellent there because it meets all the requirements for a good trading power. What should I do? I was thinking of getting out of it and buying one somewhere else for <5K. I'm not sure if I would have equal trading power and I know it wouldn't be as close by.

Please any help or suggestions would be helpful. If I can find what the market value for a timeshare is in the area it would be helpful. Where can I get this info? I can then go back to the sales manager and try and get them to lower the price or I will back out.

Also what are your experiences with being able to go where you want when you want if you book let's say 5 or 6 months in advance.

I am excited to travel the world in my lifetime and with my kids in the future. I'm only 23.

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

I would rescind NOW, then look around and see where you really want to go. There are already at least two nice timeshare resorts in the Berkshires and they're not good traders or in high demand. You can get a great resale deal (for a fraction of the price you paid) at, for example, Vacation Village in the Berkshires, if you decide that's where you want to go every year.

Don't assume that because you have not provided your license number that the contract is not binding. It is. Your driver's license number has nothing to do with a real estate purchase.

Rescind NOW following the instructions to the letter. Usually they ask for a letter stating that you want to rescind, and it has to be mailed via the US Postal Service, and you should send it certified return receipt requested. That way you have the postmarked receipt to show when it was received at the resort. Timeshare contracts give you only a very few days to rescind, sometimes as few as three days. So send that letter right NOW!

Good luck!

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

Thank you for the advise! Should I stop payment on my check right away? Will this help my case?

If I had any intention of buying it I would have done some research before hand.

I'll do everything I can to get out of it. It has been < 24 hours.

Thank you!

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

You did not get a good deal, you need to cancel right now. That is an outrageous amount of $ for an EOY Berks week. There will be clear instructions in the contract for how to rescind, follow them to the letter (certified/registered mail, etc...). By law you have a number of days to rescind, I'm not sure what it is in Massachusetts. Even though you didn't have your license, you should proceed as though the contract is completed (it likely is) and rescind. If you haven't yet signed anything (I'm sure they didn't let you get away with that), then don't.

That area has a lot of extra timeshare inventory, it becomes worth a fraction of what you will pay, the minute you buy, if you're lucky. The only place up there with low supply and high demand is the Ponds at Foxhollow in Lenox, and only the prime summer Tanglewood weeks. (The "Red" designation means little, btw). I know that's not where you bought.

I consistently trade into units up there, or get in on cheap Last Calls, at Vacation Village and Oak N Spruce, even in prime summer. Cheap rentals abound, too. The fixed Maintenance Fee, btw, is only until the developer sells out, then the Maintenance Fees will go up a lot.

With all the extra inventory at Vacation Village and Oak N Spruce, I was surprised to hear that Silverleaf is going to expand and build another development anyway at Snowy Owl. Well, what do they care, once they sell to the unknowing newbie, they're out of there and it's the owners' problem.

You are young, you have lots of time to enjoy your first timeshare purchase, if you don't get ripped off. You're also lucky, you found us in time! Many of our members found us AFTER their first purchase, and then learned how to buy their second one...

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

Thank you for the advise! Should I stop payment on my check right away? Will this help my case?

If I had any intention of buying it I would have done some research before hand.

I'll do everything I can to get out of it. It has been < 24 hours.

Thank you!

It can't hurt to stop your check. I'm not sure which developer you brought from, but I have an idea, so the stopped check may save you some trouble getting your deposit back. You will still need to rescind the contract, though, otherwise you will be liable.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

Follow the directions to rescind now and put a stop payment to be safe.

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

Nicole, Many people will jump in to help you and i suspect we will all have similar advice. First, you were very smart to immediately research and come ask questions while you still have the opportunity to rescind. Second, we on the forums love timeshares and find them to be a great way to vacation with our family, so we completely support your belief that owning a timeshare will enable you to travel comfortably and affordably with your family. Third, almost all timeshares lose over 50% of their value the minute the purchase from the developer is completed. Buying in the resale market can save you thousands of dollars, in your case many thousands of dollars. You can look at ebay to see what timeshares sell for. Search for timeshares and then on the left check off completed auctions. Many very nice timeshares that trade very well sell for 1K-3K for annual use. If you don't like ebay you can purchase from individuals or brokers via Redweek or other listing services. You need to educate yourself for a month or two before purchasing something, and I know that your decisions will be well thought out once you have acquired that knowledge base. Bottom line for today is to rescind while you have the opportunity. Follow the instructions precisely (if they say use USPS, do so) and certify it to document compliance with the time requirement. Good luck.

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

Nicole, I PM'd you, and I imagine a lot of others did, too! Please don't hesitate to ask any questions, we are always THRILLED to help others avoid getting ripped off by developers!!!

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

I want to thank you all very much for your help and advise! After I get through rescinding I will do lots of research and have many questions on how to get the right timeshare at the right price for us!

My boyfriend is going home in about an hour to get the check # so I can stop payment today! Tonight I will be reading the document on how to rescend and will take care of rescending procedures tomorrow!

I didn't sleep good last night. I knew after reading some of the forum last night that this was a bad idea (which is why I had to post first thing). I am so happy that there is a place like this out there and everyone had such a quick response. I wish I could reach out to all the other many people that bought this yesterday!

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!

And to think how excited I was after leaving yesterday....boy oh boy

--Lesson learned (fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me)

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

It's good to be excited! But soon you will be excited that you found a great deal on the resale market!

We resisted timesharing for years. Now we really enjoy it, and we're going all kinds of places we just never could afford or get around to before.

[tonyg Goomba & Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tonyg]

My guess is that you bought at Vacation Village in the Berkshires. Of course you overpaid and should rescind. The Berkshires have 6 or more timeshares and the only high demand time is the snowy winter and the warm summer and maybe the leaf season. Oak and Spruce sells resale for a pittance (check Ebay) and rentals can be had for around $ 300 at VV. After this learning experience, come back to us and read and absorb timeshare data. In a short time you will be able to pick out a better place to buy and at the resale price of $ 5 or less for as good or better a place and every year.

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

What does PM'd mean? I've never seen this acroynm before.

Thanks
- newbie

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

Private message. Look at the upper RH corner of your screen and it says:

Private messages: 1 (or whatever number)

Click on that and you'll see the heading for my message. Click on the heading and you can read the message. It's like getting an e-mail in your timeshareforum account.

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

It was the Vacation Village in the Berkshires. We got the 1st week in february (ski season). One of the cheaper red weeks. Even though it was EOY, we get a free vacation from RCI every year and they split the 2 bedrooms into two different ones so you can exchange each one seperately and end up with 2 vacations a year total. We were clearly lied to by the sales people, not that I should be surprised. They said with red we could get anywhere we want anytime we want without a problem as long as we booked in advance. Also that values were good (because we were getting a special deal to the preconstruction) and demand was high. What a scam!

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

It was the Vacation Village in the Berkshires. We got the 1st week in february (ski season). One of the cheaper red weeks. Even though it was EOY, we get a free vacation from RCI every year and they split the 2 bedrooms into two different ones so you can exchange each one seperately and end up with 2 vacations a year total. We were clearly lied to by the sales people, not that I should be surprised. They said with red we could get anywhere we want anytime we want without a problem as long as we booked in advance. Also that values were good (because we were getting a special deal to the preconstruction) and demand was high. What a scam!

First week in Feb that place is empty except for the weekend. The only good trading winter week up there is week 7, President's week (and then xmas and New Year's). The free RCI week is pretty bogus, it is a bonus week, they are hard to use (limited choices, usually low demand/season), and they ain't free. The lock-off feature is nice for trading, if you buy it at a good resort, in high demand.

And, you can't get anywhere anytime with RCI anymore, no matter what you've got, but that's another story.