Cutbacks in service at Westlake Branson Woods?

[Justjean Member Find all posts View Profile Close Justjean]

I read somewhere in the blogs here about recent cutbacks in service at Westgate Branson Woods. Can someone tell me more? Our kids went there for a tour weekend at the end of week 22 and it seemed like there was almost NO cars in the Branson Woods parking lots. They saw almost no people walking around though there were a couple dozen in the pool in the evening. It creeps me out remembering we saw almost no one there either when we went to visit [and buy] two summers ago. Are they giving owners their weeks?

We own there so I would like to know if they are staffing for a full house or not. We have never used the facilities but have exchanged. Still I wold like to keep our exchange value up.

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

As a matter of coincidence, I am helping someone on another forum to find a Branson timeshare, and this is a question they asked, whether the speedbump in the economy is affecting the level of service and maintenance at resorts.

That is a typical question those who are not informed about timeshares ask. They hear and read about marketing cutbacks, like call centers being closed down, and don't know enough about timeshares to know that that is separate from the operation of resorts, which is done by a different staff with different money (maintenance fees).

I am going to assume from the lack of replies to you that no one has noticed a cutback in the operation aspects of Wastegate. I have not heard of any such cutbacks in the Branson area, and that is something I would normally know about.

Traditionally, Wastegate's approach would be to find a new way, a new fee, to wring more money out of their owners.

BTW, unrelated to this and something most probably not the doing of Wastegate, one local resort at which they have an involvement has levied a special assessment, if I listened right that day, an amount equal to an extra week's annual fee. &, again if I listened right, owners paying it got the right to use an extra week, subject to availability.

Did I get that right (you know who)?

[Justjean Member Find all posts View Profile Close Justjean]

Another Q

Thanks for your response. I haven't been online recently and didn't even know I was getting no replies. Presumably the thing is functioning. If I weren't so far away I'd drive over and check for myself.

I hve another question regarding timeshares. If the members own the resort, is there a time when we get to discuss what's going on with it and have some influence?

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

Thanks for your response. I haven't been online recently and didn't even know I was getting no replies. Presumably the thing is functioning. If I weren't so far away I'd drive over and check for myself.

I hve another question regarding timeshares. If the members own the resort, is there a time when we get to discuss what's going on with it and have some influence?

Not with Westgate. Westgate maintains a firm grip on the homeowners assoc and board of directors to ensure that they maintain the management contract. Like many other timeshares out there, owners are along for the ride.

Owners can take control but, it takes an combined effort and developers are better organized and can fight such efforts with great success. It's a shame that they all sell you on the fact that owners are the ones that own the resort and make the decisions when they know that the HOA/BOD is stacked with company employee's that do whatever the developer tells them to do.

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

I do, or can, go by it every day, depending on what route I take to the golf course. It was still there an hour ago.
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Agreed. When it was Grandvista, yeah, a semblance of control by the owners.

But never, ever at a Wastegate resort. Some have tried to wrestle it away, but it is a never-ending battle.

Our first weeks were with a CFI/Wastegate ugly stepsister Orlando resort. Guess who had the management contract? Guess who called the shots?

A don't wanna scare anyone cuz it really was a crappy place, but even RCI finally dropped it, which if you know the bad blood between King David and RCI, they never would, just to continue to rub it in.

Lot's of stuff left out, that would take hours to explain.

[Justjean Member Find all posts View Profile Close Justjean]

Please do

JLB,
Thanks for the offer if that was one. When you have an opporunity, please do go by and just see if there are anywhere near the cars there that should be for so many condos. I would love to know. I realize that during the days most people are out and about, but, in the late afternoon there should be quite a few I would imagine.

If there just aren't and never are, we may be up against an extreme cost-cutting strategy.

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

As a board member in my condo I can say that I'm sure that many owners at Westgate and other timeshares for that matter are NOT paying their maintenance fees. Somehow they are just shirking their responsibilities.

Some unfortunately don't have a choice (the unemployed or underemployed) but others are just using this as an excuse to blame their regretful purchase on the economy. Anyway because so many people are not able to for whatever reason pay their maintenance fees, I'm sure we are going to see more condo governed places cutting back on services.

Just this morning our board held an emergency meeting to discuss an upcoming assessment when the previous assessment ends just to keep the bank from taking over our funds. So we are not painting the building and having the workers do more of the contracted jobs previously farmed out.

Westgate will have to do the same. Especially since they have so many disgruntled owners and this is a great time to get even with "King David" by not paying him his "royalties". Of course the subjects in King Davids kingdom will suffer some too.

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

I have always said that time is the best friend of the truth and that the way you conduct yourself will determine your ultimate fate. You know, you reap what you sow.

The stuff has been piling up on King David for many years. Eventually it had to get too heavy. For him, personally, it probably will not matter, but there are hundreds of thousands of owners who stand to suffer.

OTOH, you can go OY, say the same things, and have the half a dozen happy owners tell you how sweet life is at Wastegate.

As for checking out cars in parking lots, that would require some creeping around in the early morning hours, not something wise to do around here. In my 20 years and 100-plus resorts, I seldom have seen full parking lots.

[Justjean Member Find all posts View Profile Close Justjean]

What happpens?

So what happens when people don't pay their fees, do they lose their time share or just forfeit their week? If they suddenly start to pay them again do they have to make up all the lost years before they can get a week? Don't think these options are discussed in the contract.

Sorry about your timeshare folks not paying their fees. For some of us this does not even occur as an option, but I would like to know what happens.

I half think David would LIKE people not to use the facility. It preserves it's value in terms of wear and tear on the inside and far less staff would be needed on weekends. Mostly what he wants is to sell more contracts. The fees are chicken feed.

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

All of King David's fees are part of his cash cow, and if you do the math they are not chicken feed. He needs that flow of cash.

The veterans here also know that the more live bodies he can get on his property, the better!!!!
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This is a question I have raised . . . that now is a time for the industry to show something other than their greedy side, if they have one. You will find a thread of that nature that I started.

If I remember to, I will leave a few minutes early tomorrow and alter my route to go up the hill. That would put me through there about 6 AM.

In a couple weeks the summer family peak season will be over.

[Silverhaired1 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Silverhaired1]

..too bad--The Woods probabably wasn't the best place ever built--but it WAS O.K. ..I sold there in 2000 for Grandvista and resided 10 weeks onsite (during the summer) as I was a sales person from their AZ property...I made some lifelong friends while I was there.

[Justjean Member Find all posts View Profile Close Justjean]

Thanks

Thanks for taking the trouble.

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

Wastegate Branson Woods Goes Top Secret

Thanks for taking the trouble.

Thanks . . . but I don't know how you knew I was . . . But I was, this morning at 6:00 AM.

I pulled up to the gate at the bottom of the hill and the guard asked what I wanted. I said an owner had asked me to check out how busy the resort is, how many guests are here.

He said I couldn't do that.

I asked him how many are staying here this week. He said he couldn't tell me. He asked why I wanted to know, so I guess he is either hard of hearing or has a short-term memory disorder, which is common for Branson locals.

I was dressed in the working clothes of a prominent, upscale local business. There was a security guard sitting there in a pickup who could have escorted me up to the main building and back. I had not removed the license plates from my car. It's not like they were busy (6 AM, remember?).

I asked if that was the report that he wanted posted on the Internet, that the number of people staying there is a closely guarded secret.

He asked my name.

I told him to have a nice day, pulled into the turnaround and headed back out. The gate was down and he stepped out the other side of the guard shack and asked my name again. (Perhaps he thought it was I who was hard of hearing or has the short-term memory problem.)

I asked him to open the gate (out) and give my regards to Mr. S. . . . who has POed a lot of people over the years, so it doesn't surprise me that they act like this, certainly not hospitable.

[ace2000 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close ace2000]

Gosh JLB, do you think it may have had something to do with the streamers, bumper stickers, and white shoe polish all over your car calling Westgate 'Wastegate'???

I'm just sayin...

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

I was just thinking . . . I work for a vacation industry company, one that just happens to have a timeshare sector, and the company philosphy is that the employee owns the concern or problem of the guest/customer. We are not supposed to ever say, "I don't know." We are suppose to say something like, "Let me check on that."

It just shows how what is at the top of an organization permeates throughout.