BLT Ebay Purchase Gone South

[mtm65]

So I attempted to purchase a BLT contract from a private seller on Ebay earlier this month. The seller lives in Fla and was going to do the transfer himself. I signed the contract and provided my credit card information for payment on 6/7/15. The seller was to keep us in the loop with the progress of the transfer. This included the contract after he signed it and the ROFR paperwork. I also requested the deed information as proof of his ownership. I did not receive the promised/requested documents. I sent a few reminders and also decided to search the Orange County Comptrollers website for the deed. I was unable to locate a Disney timeshare in his name, only four non-Disney timeshares.

Naturally with the lack of communication and the inability to confirm Disney ownership, I contacted my credit card company and put the transaction on hold. I then informed the seller of the hold and agreed to continue the transaction after he proved ownership and presented me with the signed contract as promised. The seller responded negatively and cancelled the Ebay transaction. In his email response, the seller threatened to report me to DVC when he cancelled the transfer so I would be banned from buying DVC in the future.

So my questions...

Can a seller report a buyer to DVC and the buyer suffer any consequences?

Is there a way to know if the transfer was ever submitted to DVC in the first place?

There was too much money at risk to let this play out and I felt I needed to put the transaction on hold to learn if the seller was real and serious.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

 

[DisneyRegulars]

I can't answer any of your questions, but I just wanted to say I think it was very wise of you to cancel that transaction. It wouldn't be at all difficult for me to prove I owned dvc. Even just sending a pic of my membership cards would be better than nothing.

 

[bumbershoot]

In his email response, the seller threatened to report me to DVC when he cancelled the transfer so I would be banned from buying DVC in the future.

What does he think you did wrong that DVC might care about it?

I'd cancel that credit card immediately....

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I would not worry about a "report to DVC". An idle threat from a person who was very possibly trying to pull a scam.

 

[mtm65]

What does he think you did wrong that DVC might care about it?

I'd cancel that credit card immediately....

He thinks DVC is going to care about me not honoring our contract.

He used a credit card processing service which I have been in contact with. My card information was not shared with him Thanks for the advice!

 

[suebeelin]

Why would Disney ban you from purchasing future dvc contracts based on a private transaction that did not end well?! That sounds fishy to me.

Many contracts are between private owners. Sometimes the transaction does not go smoothly. It happens. It's called the resale market. Disney does not encourage and may even discourage resales. They WANT you to buy direct from them. Disney would not ban you. That's just ludicrous.

A total scam, if I were to put money on it. Contact EBay. I believe there's a restriction on selling timeshares on ebay but I'm not sure about that.

Good luck!

 

[Dean]

So I attempted to purchase a BLT contract from a private seller on Ebay earlier this month. The seller lives in Fla and was going to do the transfer himself. I signed the contract and provided my credit card information for payment on 6/7/15. The seller was to keep us in the loop with the progress of the transfer. This included the contract after he signed it and the ROFR paperwork. I also requested the deed information as proof of his ownership. I did not receive the promised/requested documents. I sent a few reminders and also decided to search the Orange County Comptrollers website for the deed. I was unable to locate a Disney timeshare in his name, only four non-Disney timeshares.

Naturally with the lack of communication and the inability to confirm Disney ownership, I contacted my credit card company and put the transaction on hold. I then informed the seller of the hold and agreed to continue the transaction after he proved ownership and presented me with the signed contract as promised. The seller responded negatively and cancelled the Ebay transaction. In his email response, the seller threatened to report me to DVC when he cancelled the transfer so I would be banned from buying DVC in the future.

So my questions...

Can a seller report a buyer to DVC and the buyer suffer any consequences?

Is there a way to know if the transfer was ever submitted to DVC in the first place?

There was too much money at risk to let this play out and I felt I needed to put the transaction on hold to learn if the seller was real and serious.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

No, there's no way to ban you unless DVC/DVD does it themselves and they would only do so for extreme situations where it would be understandable to anyone. Technically speaking you would have 10 days to cancel anyway and potentially up to a year if certain criteria were met which likely weren't if it were done privately. No way to know other than comparing your actual contract to the requirements, likely an agent selling someone else's contract for a fee, it's unlikely it were truly a private sale as I read it. If you requested the info as stated and they didn't respond until you'd disputed the charge, you're better off it would seem.

 

[mtm65]

Why would Disney ban you from purchasing future dvc contracts based on a private transaction that did not end well?! That sounds fishy to me.

Many contracts are between private owners. Sometimes the transaction does not go smoothly. It happens.

I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF DISNEY ALLOWING A PRIVATE OWNER TO BLACKLIST A POSSIBLE FUTURE OWNER. Disney does not care. That transaction is between you and that private owner.

A total scam, if I were to put money on it. Contact EBay. I believe there's a restriction on selling timeshares on ebay buy I'm not sure about that.

Good luck!

Thanks, I am pretty sure that this was a scam. I wish I could prove it so I could report him. I think that is why he cancelled the Ebay transaction and threatened me with blacklisting. I don't think he wants me digging around any more.

I'm hoping that DVC can confirm or deny the existence of any transfer paperwork.

As far as the money, I should be made whole. The money has not transferred from his credit card processing company to his bank account and it won't now that I have contacted them. It's a matter of my credit card company getting the money back from his processing bank.

 

[bumbershoot]

He thinks DVC is going to care about me not honoring our contract.

Seems like HE is the one who didn't honor anything. He didn't even prove to you that he owns a contract!

He used a credit card processing service which I have been in contact with. My card information was not shared with him Thanks for the advice!

Whew.

If so, though, then it seems less scammy. Weird.

(honestly? I personally would still cancel the CC. just never know...)

 

[mtm65]

No, there's no way to ban you unless DVC/DVD does it themselves and they would only do so for extreme situations where it would be understandable to anyone. Technically speaking you would have 10 days to cancel anyway and potentially up to a year if certain criteria were met which likely weren't if it were done privately. No way to know other than comparing your actual contract to the requirements, likely an agent selling someone else's contract for a fee, it's unlikely it were truly a private sale as I read it. If you requested the info as stated and they didn't respond until you'd disputed the charge, you're better off it would seem.

I agree I am better off. There are other BLT contracts out there and I'm not in a hurry

 

[MrPTato]

I have seen these a couple times on ebay and wondered about them. Sorry it turned sour for you but still glad it didn't get any further if it was a scam.

 

[disneynutz]

Stick with proven brokers, you won't be sorry. If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Bill

 

[pmaurer74]

There have been many times I have almost bought a contract through EBAY. I was not in a position to until now. Is it safe to buy contacts through EBAY, I have heard that the transition is not protected through EBAY and that you cannot use Paypal, is this true?

 

[Dean]

There have been many times I have almost bought a contract through EBAY. I was not in a position to until now. Is it safe to buy contacts through EBAY, I have heard that the transition is not protected through EBAY and that you cannot use Paypal, is this true?

It's actually outside of ebay as I understand it. Some allow paypal, some don't. I'd say most do. Just do your research on the seller as well.

 

[mtm65]

There have been many times I have almost bought a contract through EBAY. I was not in a position to until now. Is it safe to buy contacts through EBAY, I have heard that the transition is not protected through EBAY and that you cannot use Paypal, is this true?

I've learned a few things through this attempt to purchase....

This I already knew. Ebay offers no protection. They do NOT offer any money back guarantees on timeshare transactions. The only thing they offered to do is send messages to the seller on my behalf.

This I did not know. My credit card company would not guarantee that I would get my money back if the seller did not complete his side of the deal. The CC company would fight on my behalf and if they were not successful, I would need to work with Visa to get my money back. No guarantees though. This surprised me because I called CC company and asked this specific question. The rep during my pre-purchase call assured me I was protected.

Credit card processing services (which is what this seller used) often have verification and holding policies to protect from fraudulent transactions. In my case, the processing company had not released the funds to my seller's bank account yet. They were concerned about this and other transactions with this seller. So the funds were on hold. This is what really saved me a lot of hassle and possibly my money.

So in my case, I did not fully understand the limitations of the credit card protection I had. I thought I was more protected than I actually was.

Using an escrow company or settlement company for an Ebay transaction would offer a much better level of buyer protection.

I have bought many things on Ebay over the years with very few problems and no problems that were not settled fairly. I felt comfortable with Ebay, too comfortable. This is the first one that went totally south. I will continue to buy from Ebay but will be much more cautious with real estate transactions. I will only use an escrow company if I ever decide to buy a timeshare on Ebay again

As far as Paypal, I don't think you can pay for a timeshare with Paypal. I didn't explore Paypal because the seller did not list Paypal as an acceptable form of payment.

Hope this helps!

 

[pmaurer74]

I've learned a few things through this attempt to purchase....

This I already knew. Ebay offers no protection. They do NOT offer any money back guarantees on timeshare transactions. The only thing they offered to do is send messages to the seller on my behalf.

This I did not know. My credit card company would not guarantee that I would get my money back if the seller did not complete his side of the deal. The CC company would fight on my behalf and if they were not successful, I would need to work with Visa to get my money back. No guarantees though. This surprised me because I called CC company and asked this specific question. The rep during my pre-purchase call assured me I was protected.

Credit card processing services (which is what this seller used) often have verification and holding policies to protect from fraudulent transactions. In my case, the processing company had not released the funds to my seller's bank account yet. They were concerned about this and other transactions with this seller. So the funds were on hold. This is what really saved me a lot of hassle and possibly my money.

So in my case, I did not fully understand the limitations of the credit card protection I had. I thought I was more protected than I actually was.

Using an escrow company or settlement company for an Ebay transaction would offer a much better level of buyer protection.

I have bought many things on Ebay over the years with very few problems and no problems that were not settled fairly. I felt comfortable with Ebay, too comfortable. This is the first one that went totally south. I will continue to buy from Ebay but will be much more cautious with real estate transactions. I will only use an escrow company if I ever decide to buy a timeshare on Ebay again

As far as Paypal, I don't think you can pay for a timeshare with Paypal. I didn't explore Paypal because the seller did not list Paypal as an acceptable form of payment.

Hope this helps!

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. I am always uneasy with EBAY and this type of purchase but I have seen some great prices go through.

 

[JimMIA]

There are a ton of timeshare resales done on eBay every day with no problem. I bought my Wyndham contract on eBay and had a great experience. But of course, it always is a good idea to research the details before you commit to a purchase.

As I said on your thread over on TUG, he canceled the transaction so you should have nothing to worry about with the credit card. Trying to find out if he actually sent any paperwork is a waste of time.

It's over. I'd move on and find another contract.

 

[supersnoop]

Sounds like he wanted to handle everything himself and either didn't know what he was doing or was trying to scam you. With a deal on eBay, I'd offer to pay the extra ~$300 for a title company to close the deal. Since it'd be less work for the seller, I'd expect him to agree. If he wouldn't, then it's a scam.

 

[Dean]

As far as Paypal, I don't think you can pay for a timeshare with Paypal. I didn't explore Paypal because the seller did not list Paypal as an acceptable form of payment.

Hope this helps!

Sure you can, I've bought several paying with paypal. They also give you some protection but not much. One of the problems with a timeshare is that the time to get finished often takes longer than the window of protection.

 

[pangyal]

I've bought on Ebay with no issues, but through a licensed broker. We were very happy with her, and in fact have since used her for another contract. So, I think that as long as you are dealing with realty companies licensed in Florida and who have a good understanding of the quirks of the DVC sales system, you would be fine. The company we dealt with used Magic Vacation Title as well, who we were familiar with.