Timeshare Presentation

When it comes to timeshares, during the holidays you can always count on the “over the top” sales presentations to really kick in. If you are about to embark on a discounted vacation with the stipulation that you have to attend a 90 minute timeshare presentation, you really need to be prepared. I have written other articles on the topic of being prepared for a timeshare presentation, so I will not be covering that in this article. What I will be covering is the difference between the two.

Here is a list of the top 5 differences between the holiday season and the normal sales period.

1. The Atmosphere – Every holiday season, timeshare sales centers make the atmosphere very festive. You know, Christmas music in the background, a big beautiful Christmas tree with shiny ornaments, hot apple cider, and delicious Christmas cookies. Sounds great so far, doesn’t it? They more than likely have promised you some great free gifts and a great travel deal. This atmosphere is vital to set the psychological stage so the very cheery sales rep can do their job. The sales rep’s job is to get you, the tour, to lower your guard. What you need to remember is that the sales rep is more than likely behind in their sales numbers for the year due to the economy and they have had plenty of time to prepare for this very important part of the sales year. Here is a great statistic for you. More timeshares are sold during thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years than all of the year combined. You think the resort and that sales staff is counting on you? You bet!
2. the Staff – During this time of year, every sales rep, manager, and closing agent/notary is working overtime. they are more than likely not taking any days off and are prepared for the long haul. They get to take their vacations during January, February, and March. The slow period for timeshare sales. During the holiday period, you can count on every stop being pulled out and more than one sales rep and manager coming to your table to seal the deal. They will tell you whatever you want to hear and they expect that some of their sales will kick. The game here is to make as many sales as possible and win with pure volume. They will be dressed in their finest suits and designer shoes.
3. The Resort – Every resort will go above and beyond to ensure that they make you feel that the customer service that you will be encountering will be the norm for anytime you use the resort. The fact of the matter is every resort is fully staffed from maintenance and house keeping to their sales departments. This is not the norm during the rest of the year. One of the biggest complaints that we get is that the resort an owner buys at does not work like they were shown or told. Reservations are not as easy to get, exchanges do not work as explained, and all of the sudden their are fees that they were never told about.
4. The Sales Presentation – During the holidays, you can expect the ultimate dog and pony show. You will be met at the front desk cheerfully, and then your sales rep will come and greet you with a warm welcome asking you if you would like some refreshments. When it is time to make a decision to buy, you will be promised everything under the sun to get the deal done. The one part that you need to be prepared for is the quick close. If you purchase, be prepared for a long front end and a very quick back end. The back end is where you do the paperwork, and sign your documents. Please, read everything and ask every question you can think of. I will be writing an article of questions to ask very soon. The managers and the closing agent will try their hardest to get you out the door as quick as possible. They do not like questions and really get disturbed when you read every document. You are signing a deed, so you need to now what you are signing.
5. Exiting the Resort – After you have been hurried to sign all your documents, a good resort will make you feel like a celebrity by popping the cork on some champagne, and announcing to everyone that you are their newest owner. I remember when I purchased a Saturn many years ago, they did the same thing when we drove off with our new car. They all stood by cheering, taking pictures and patting us on the backs. Months later I found the lease option that I did was not exactly what I thought it was. One of the most important things to remember is to find out what your cancellation period is in the state that you are purchasing in. Ensure that you ask, and make them show you in writing on the cancellation procedure. This is VITAL! That way, if you want to cancel, you have the time and knowledge to do so and you will not need our services.

I hope that everyone reading this Has a wonderful Christmas season and remember not to take the Christ out of Christmas.

Post from: Timeshare Blog

Timeshares and the Holidays

Today we are going to discuss the reasons why you might want to consider canceling your timeshare contract. Many have been inquiring into whether or not they should cancel their timeshares and most are not sure of the reasons, and resources that are available out there. If you have doubted your timeshare purchase, you might want to read further.According to ARDA, American Resort Development Association, timeshare sales increased from 2006 to 2007 by 10.3 percent and total sales in 2007 was $6.1 billion. That’s right, BILLION! In 2007 there were more fixed and floating weeks sold than points. This puts to rest the scam of sales reps stating that within a certain amount of time points will be the only product developers will sell. That is simply not true and not supported by any statistics. The average price in $2007 for a week was $19,247. Remember that was in 2007. This price was on average 14 percent higher than in 2006. In 2008 the average price for a timeshare in the United States was $20,152, an increase of over $900.00. In 2008 sold $9.7 billion, an increase of over $3 billion in one year. The majority of timeshares are in the state of Florida and on or in close proximity to a beach.

What does all this mean? Well, it tells you that timeshares are a popular thing in our culture. It tells you that sales are increasing and because of that, prices are increasing as well. Does this say that timeshares are a bad thing? Not at all. this tells you that anything that has value like this is going to have a huge sales campaign and strategy to get the consumers to the product and hungry for the product. Now that we have all the statistics, let’s get to the meat of this blog article.

What are the reasons that one might consider canceling their timeshare? Here is a simple list of 10 items that if happened, you should investigate canceling the deal.

1. A very long and aggressive sales presentation. Timeshare presentations/tours are supposed to last anywhere from 60 – 90 minutes before the people touring can get their gifts that were promised to them. During this process the sales representative is supposed to build rapport, gather information, and create desire for the customer. They will take you to the models, and ask questions about how you vacation and what you are currently spending. This process should last approximately 45 minutes, which will give them time to show you two options based on how you travel and what you spend. Once that is done and you “puke” at the cost, they will bring in their manager to attempt to get a better deal. You know the one that they bent over backwards for and that is so low that you can never return to get again. I have heard of timeshare tours lasting as long as 10 to 12 hours. That is not a tour, that is being held hostage. If you told them no several times and were there over 4 hours, you might want to really look further into what you have done.
2. If you took a timeshare tour and did not get the gifts that were promised to you, that is completely against every states timeshare regulations and you need to really consider canceling the deal. Any timeshare company that would do business on the front end like this is not a credible company. Just the same as starting a relationship off on a lie. The normal person would not stand for that, and it is a reason to really believe that this is just the start of more bad things to come.
3. If at any time the sales representative starts discussing timeshare ownership would be an investment, they are crossing an ethical line. If this has happened to you, this is a huge red flag and is totally illegal in the US, Canada, and Mexico. This goes against the Federal Trade Commission’s regulations concerning timeshare sales.
4. If you were promised to make a certain amount of money off of rental, your sales rep has crossed the ethical line. They can tell you that you can rent your timeshare out, but they cannot tell you that you can make a certain amount and they should not tell you that they can show you secrets to do this. This is probably the number one breech in ethics that we see. If this has happened to you, get advice.
5. If you were told that you can write trips off on your taxes, or owning will give you a tax break, get assistance. This is completely illegal and timeshare sales reps know that they are not allowed to provide any tax advice. They are allowed to say that you need to seek advice from a tax professional.
6. If you were never told that you have a right under state law to cancel your timeshare and what the cancellation period is, you want to seek advice. This is the consumers right and has to be given.
7. If you were told that because of a certain reason, no matter what the reason is, that you cannot cancel and all sales are final, get advice. Again, you have a right to cancel within the states cancellation period.
8. If you were told not to read the documents and to just sign them and read them later, that is a red flag. Any credible timeshare closing agent will want to take the extra 30 minutes and ensure that you completely understand what you are signing and what your rights are. If you did not get this, seek advice.
9. If you were told that you will never have to pay maintenance fees because of their referral program, or that maintenance fees will never go up, get advice. Many timeshare sales reps will short cut and state this instead of taking the time to explain how maintenance fees work and why they are needed. If you were told this, you might want to investigate.
10. If you were told that you will never have to pay exchange fees, and that you can exchange anywhere without any constraints, seek advice. This is another tactic that the weak sales rep will take instead of taking the time to explain how the exchange program works. You have some places because of location and size that are very difficult to get to and can take up to 2 years in advance to make the reservation.

This is not an all inclusive list. There are other areas that sales reps use to get you to think that you are getting more than what you actually are, but these are the most common. If you have 3 or more and have purchased within the last year you need to contact a timeshare assistance company for advice. As far as timeshare assistance companies are concerned, click here for more information.

Post from: Timeshare Blog

Why Should I Cancel My Timeshare