Five Biggest Lies In Timeshare
Unfortunately for the consumer, lies run rampant in the timeshare industry. This problem has existed from the inception of the industry, and is likely to continue. Please click the button above to contact Linx Legal if any of these have happened to you. If you have purchased and/or upgraded a timeshare, then you have encountered some of these lies. Listed below are the five most common complaints that we receive at Linx Legal.
Rental
Many timeshare reps tell you that you can make money by renting out your timeshare, therefore making it more likely that you buy. Have you ever been told that you could rent out your timeshare to help offset maintenance fees? In their training, most timeshare sales reps are told not to say this. Guess what happens? They say it anyway. Have a look at the Wyndham rental market on Ebay. As you can see, you are much better off renting a unit when you want to go on vacation.
Resale
Were you told that you could sell your timeshare for a profit? That simply does not happen on this planet. A timeshare is a depreciating asset, and you will not be selling one for a profit. Check out the Wyndham resale market on Ebay. Timeshare units sell for pennies on the dollar. We use Wyndham timeshare as an example because they are the biggest, therefore there are more listings. This shows you that you will not be selling your timeshare unit for a profit.
Buyback
A buyback is when the resort/developer buys back your timeshare unit. Sales reps often offer you a buyback in order to make you think the unit is worth more than it really is. When making any purchase, you like to feel that you got a great deal, right? This is yet another tool in the arsenal of commissioned sales reps. The sales reps will sometimes tell you that the developer will buy back your unit for the same, or even higher price. This is rarely true, and pretty much never happens.
Refinance
Many timeshare reps will tell you to purchase now, and then refinance later with your bank at a lower rate. This is simply a sales tactic, and is not true. Think about it for a minute. Why would your local bank lend you money on something where they would have no collateral? As you can you see from the above resale market link, your timeshare does not hold a lot of real value. There is nothing of real value for the bank to foreclose on, if in fact you stop paying on the loan.
False Sense of Urgency
False sense of urgency is when a sales person or manager makes you think that the deal is only good for a short period of time. Were you ever told that the deal offered to you was good for today only? They may even offer you a military discount, or even a police officer discount. This discount is presented to you as a way to thank you for your service. The bottom line is that this is not a discount at all. They know full well the lowest price they will sell you a unit for today.
False sense of urgency is used in the upgrade process as well. Upgrade your timeshare today in order to lower your maintenance fees, they might say. Upgrade your timeshare to get a better pick of weeks, or upgrade to get a better choice of locations. It’s almost always pressure to do this today. These “upgrade” deals are not good for only today, though you will be relentlessly pressured into thinking so.
If you liked this article, you will likely also enjoy our infographic on the timeshare sales process.