Timeshare scam

Is Timeshare a scam?

Timeshare scams do exist.  Just like insurance scams, automotive scams, rebate scams, real estate scams, investment scams, etc.  In any industry, there are dishonest elements.  Timeshare is not unique.  Fortunately, what is saving timeshare today are quality companies with big names that answer to stockholders.  The Ma and Pa salesperson scams are becoming fewer and fewer (not that all small companies are scams).  Where someone decides to take a tour and for what resort does not have to be a 'shot in the dark'.  The company a prospect deals with should be able to give them plenty of information about the resort they will be touring so that they can do their own research on them before they take the tour. 

Is Timeshare a trap?

There are three types of timeshare tours:  Quality, 'Over-priced hype' and Fraud.

• Quality tour:   Luxury hotel chains know how to build excellent resorts. Customer satisfaction is their business.  Most likely these would be chains that many are familiar with or have long-standing, credible reputations.  Rarely are guests booked into the resort.  A quality tour will usually find themselves booked in a hotel separate from the resort.   Total vacation deals at the resort along with vouchers for restaurants and shows or theme parks will be priced per person and will be pricier, although still a deal by anybody's standards.  Deals including lodging and show/park tickets and restaurants in the $99-$250 range total for 2-4 people will most likely be in a hotel off the resort.  Either way, the whole vacation experience (even the tour) should be relatively stress-free.  Reputable companies are careful to not 'burn' prospects during the tour.  Their philosophy is, "These are potential owners and we treat owners great!" 

• 'Over-priced hype' trap:  These could be resorts well-known or ones most have never heard of.  The 'hype' comes in when the prospect is given the impression that they'll be staying in luxury accommodations and all they have to do is take a 90-minute tour.  The reality for some has been quite different.  Lodgings that are far from luxurious, overbooked hotels, lack of promised transportation, scheduling conflicts with the tour, etc. (the list of possible vacation snafus is endless.)  Then the tour itself is, admittedly for some, longer than 90 minutes and very high-pressured.  What they sell is, quite likely, still a good product but is referred to as 'over-priced hype' because it can leave the traveler frustrated and regretful of agreeing to take the tour, although it is not technically fraud.  'Over-priced hype' is no longer the 'status quo' thanks to large responsible companies. 

• Fraud trap:   According to Webster's dictionary, fraud is defined as "deceit, trickery, sharp practice, or breach of confidence, perpetrated for profit or to gain some unfair or dishonest advantage."  This is reprehensible conduct which should not characterize the timeshare industry.    Example of fraud in this linked article:  "HUD Moves to Shut Down Fraudulent Land Sales Scheme: Hundreds of seniors victimized in phony timeshare scam     ...."obtaining mailing lists of persons who owned timeshares for several years. Buyers Source would then send timeshare owners a post card offering to buy their timeshares "for top dollar" and "without any tricks or gimmicks." Consumers would be directed to meet with Buyers Source salespersons in motel rooms where they were told they must purchase a lot from Buyers Source. The company would sell plots of land for as much as $32,000, after paying only $1,000 to $5,000 to acquire the lots only weeks earlier......."

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