What would you do if...

[urple2 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close urple2]

A work acquaintance calls you and tells you that while in disney world, the family bought a brand spanking new Westgate timeshare...

He was soooooooo excited.

1.) stay out of it and let them just enjoy their newly found purchase. Afterall, some people don't want other people's advice.

2.) tell them to rescind immediately and offer help with a cheaper way to enjoy timeshare.

3.) suggest calmly that they might be able to do better and find out how many days they have had this agreement since vacation.

4.) relax and remember someone has to buy these things retail.

5.) other alternatives?

What is the cancellation time frame in florida anyway?

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

A lot of my answer would revolve around how close this person is... close enough to call you with this news, or did it just come up in the course of an otherwise work-related discussion?

I once let someone at work who I wasn't very close to buy Marriott from Marriott. They were sold on the points conversion, I didn't argue. A close friend would have gotten the pushier Glitter...

Then again, Westgate ain't Marriott.. maybe a subtle shot at option 3, and go from there.

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

A work acquaintance calls you and tells you that while in disney world, the family bought a brand spanking new Westgate timeshare...

He was soooooooo excited.

1.) stay out of it and let them just enjoy their newly found purchase. Afterall, some people don't want other people's advice.

2.) tell them to rescind immediately and offer help with a cheaper way to enjoy timeshare.

3.) suggest calmly that they might be able to do better and find out how many days they have had this agreement since vacation.

4.) relax and remember someone has to buy these things retail.

5.) other alternatives?

What is the cancellation time frame in florida anyway?

Ugggh.

I think I would have to try to suggest rescinding or I couldn't sleep at night. Maybe with an e-mail of current final ebay auction prices for the property...and PRAY they can still cancel.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

I have run into this a few times. First thing I do is ask how long ago they bought it. If it is with in the get out time I tell them what to do. If it is not I tell them good luck and give them this web site.

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

You're damned if you do and damned if you don't

[jackio Gold Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close jackio]

I would opt for #3, first finding out how long ago they signed. If it was a close relative I'd give it the "whaddaya crazy???"

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

I have to agree with what most have recommended. Find out if they still have time to rescind. If so, go with number three.

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

If you do go with rescind, you can add that we have a group of Westgatehaters here on TS4Ms. You could also show them what Westgate is reselling for.

[cindi Member Find all posts View Profile Close cindi]

That exact senario did happen to me. A close colleague at work came back from vacation, having stayed at Westgate Lakes on that promotion thing they do. They bought a very off season, EOY 2 bedroom there for huge bucks.

I told him about the problems, including cheaper resale prices, off season -low trading power, etc. He immediately cancelled the purchase. Whew.

I couldn't have stood myself if I had stood by and let him get taken like that. He was interested in timeshares anyway, because of all my timeshare stories, so I felt somewhat responsible.

[m61376 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close m61376]

Casually find out what day on their trip they bought it. If it is outside of the rescind period just congratulate them. If there is still time to do something about it I would tell them they should look here, on Tug, ask them if they want to know what resales have been going for, etc., all the while reinforcing that they need to rescind immediately then research it and can always repurchase from the developer next week or next month. Most people upon hearing that they can save thousands (if not >10K) will listen, although I am sure a few of my friends would still be convinced it was not the same thing.

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

I dealt with something similar last summer. I helped plan a trip to Kauai for one of my kids teachers-as it turned out-our time on Kauai overlapped. They called me right after they signed for an EY week at Poipu Point or whatever they call it today. I felt awful. I felt like it was my fault. They knew I bought my t/s's resale but I guess they didn't realize how much I'd saved. I couldn't let it go. I told them to rescind and think about it and if they really wanted the week-that in the end I could show them how to buy for at least 1/3 of the price. I even called back and apoligized for being so pushy and that if they felt it was right then to just ignore me-but I had to tell them or else I would not have slept that night.

In the end, they rescinded.....had a baby and the teacher decided to take a leave of absence to be with the baby......made possible by all that money (they paid cash) that was returned after they rescinded.

Whew!

So, I guess my advice is to help them-in the end-they will be very grateful.

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

I dealt with something similar last summer. I helped plan a trip to Kauai for one of my kids teachers-as it turned out-our time on Kauai overlapped. They called me right after they signed for an EY week at Poipu Point or whatever they call it today. I felt awful. I felt like it was my fault. They knew I bought my t/s's resale but I guess they didn't realize how much I'd saved. I couldn't let it go. I told them to rescind and think about it and if they really wanted the week-that in the end I could show them how to buy for at least 1/3 of the price. I even called back and apoligized for being so pushy and that if they felt it was right then to just ignore me-but I had to tell them or else I would not have slept that night.

In the end, they rescinded.....had a baby and the teacher decided to take a leave of absence to be with the baby......made possible by all that money (they paid cash) that was returned after they rescinded.

Whew!

So, I guess my advice is to help them-in the end-they will be very grateful.

Whenever I send anyone anywhere, I always tell them to be sure not to buy any timeshares without talking to me first. I generally try to get them to avoid the salespitches, too.

[urple2 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close urple2]

Thanks all for the great responses. I do feel like calling back but I hate to be the grim reaper... after calculating the timeline for their purchase,leaving for vacation 3/30 to 4/4... I'm kinda thinking that they probably already missed their opportunity to rescind.

Does anyone know the typical rescinsion (sp?) on these things?

Thanks!

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

Whenever I send anyone anywhere, I always tell them to be sure not to buy any timeshares without talking to me first. I generally try to get them to avoid the salespitches, too.

I did that too.

Here, let me extend my story. We get home and the following month some really good friends are going to Maui. You know, the kind you can use foul language with I tell them all about my teacher friend and what happened. They say things like "That's crazy and that would never happen to us" Fast forward to them staying at Maui Marriott and calling me. "Guess what? We are buying a t/s. 59,500. Real Estate isn't getting any cheaper and it's a good investment. An investment-WTF? They are so much smarter than this-honestly. I laugh and say "You got me" No, they say-they are serious. No! You're not! I say. A flurry of phone calls back and forth and they never say they were not serious-but on my advice they never went back to finalize the paperwork-luckily they had called in between signing.

Neither of these couples take a lot of vacations. Both Hawaii trips were most likely once in a lifetime for them. You get caught up in the beauty of those islands and wham-o-you are instant t/s prey-just like they hope.

The second couple just wanted to trade to MMC with a Hawaii week!!-I told them I can book Getaways all day long for them. It is tough though-they see what I am and can do and they want to be a part of it. The can't reconcile why it's good for me and bad for them. My extended family has the hang of it-though-they just mooch off me

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

Thanks all for the great responses. I do feel like calling back but I hate to be the grim reaper... after calculating the timeline for their purchase,leaving for vacation 3/30 to 4/4... I'm kinda thinking that they probably already missed their opportunity to rescind.

Does anyone know the typical rescinsion (sp?) on these things?

Thanks!

Bill it is normally 10 days. I'm hoping it's 10 days and they still have time. Don't think of yourself as the grim reaper but as Superman.

The Florida Real Estate Time-Share Act (FRETSA), Chapter 721 of the Florida Statutes - (F.S.) clearly applies to all time-share plans consisting of more than seven time-share periods over a span of at least three years and in which the facilities or accommodations are located within the State of Florida. The Time-Share Act requires a developer disclosure that purchasers may cancel the contract within 10 days of contract signing or receipt of the public offering statement, whichever is later