Buying Resale....any Horror Stories??

[shelleym]

When buying resale, any STRONG recommendations for which company to use and which ones to definitely stay away from?

Thanks for any help!
Shelleym

 

[Dean]

When buying resale, anyone STRONG recommendations for which company to use and which one to definately stay away from?

Thanks for any help!
Shelleym

I don't think it matters that much as they are can give you good service most of the time. The big 3 or 4 get more inventory and at least 3 of them seem to be very customer friendly. There's the one banned one plus the other two talked about a lot on this board. Email me (not PM) and I can give you the other two plus some additional ones to consider.

 

[carlos1117]

TTS is painless, efficient and cost effective. If you have the time, resale is the way to go. Most of the paper work is in the background and you save at least 8-10 per point over purchasing direct.

First, I would decided which type contact you were looking for,i.e., which resort,UY, number of points. Then call TTS and they will either have something similar in inventory or be on the look out when something does pop up.

We used Jason and were pleased with his services.

Mike

 

[CarolA]

I have used two companies with good results. The board sponsor and on one other (that I can't name)

If you come across Reid Resort Realty, I would be VERY cautious. I tired to use them. NO service. When I posted that I heard several other horror stories. I feel sorry for folks who list with them.

 

[Disney Doll]

We bought a 230 point OKW resale from The Timeshare Store with Pat Spell as our broker back in 2002. This was abit before Disney got a little stricter witht he ROFR hting though.

We had no problem whatsoever. It took about 6-8 weeks start to finish and was a completely smooth transaction. Paperwork came, was easy to understand and complete, we were notified of everything in a timely manner.

No complaints.

 

[tamu91]

We bought our contract thru TTS with no problem whatsoever. There are few others that I'm sure Dean has mentioned to you by now but it'll probably comes down to who has the specific contract you need at the right price.
Good luck and come back and let us know the details

 

[stacy6552]

We had a very bad experience with The Timeshare Store. If they have THE contract that you want I would refuse to work with Jerry.

 

[JimMIA]

Unfortunately, there are a few horror stories about resale, but they don't involve the brokers. I think all of the major brokers in the resale space are ethical, professional companies.

The horror stories - and some are worse than others - involve sellers, not realtors. I can tell you of three situations which happened in the last six months, one of which I was personally involved in, and the other two which were cussed and discussed quite a bit on these boards.

It has to be said that all of these cases involved sellers from outside the United States...and if I were a buyer, that would be one of the first questions I asked of a broker -- where is the seller? [Flame suit on, fire away - ]

My case was an inconvenience, and even I would not call it a "horror story," but it illustrates some of the difficulties of the resale market. A broker had a contract for sale at a certain asking price. We thought the price was fair, and we agreed to the original asking price. The seller (from Argentina) jerked us (and the realtor) around for almost two weeks, and then came back saying they now wanted MORE than the asking price. That's a no-no in real estate transactions and we said no because we don't do business with sleezy people.

The other cases actually involved the same unscrupulous seller, and two separate unfortunate buyer-victims. In that situation, the seller (who happened to be in the U.K.) signed two contracts for sale, let the two contracts go through ROFR (which they passed), and then refused to close. They cited some silliness about having to pay for a notary ( ) and the exchange rate (which, in truth, was quite favorable to them ). That was a really sleezy episode and really hurt two different buyers.

The reality, as a buyer, is that you have no practical recourse in a situation like that. You get your deposit back, but you lost that contract you thought was yours, and you have to start all over. Sometimes the bad guys do win.

 

[SueM in MN]

We had experiences with the Timeshare Store more than once and have no complaints. One of our experiences was weird (and not so good), but that wasn't TTS's fault. The owners accepted our offer, but the sale was taking forever. The seller kept saying they would get the papers taken care of. What finally ended up was that the ownerrs were getting a divorce and one was trying to sell the DVC ownership without the other knowing about it. That sale fell thru, but TTS found us another similar contact, so wee ended up happy.

 

[Zurg]

I have used two companies with good results. The board sponsor and on one other (that I can't name)

2nd what Carol said.

I do that a lot. She talks faster than I do.

 

[SueM in MN]

It has to be said that all of these cases involved sellers from outside the United States...and if I were a buyer, that would be one of the first questions I asked of a broker -- where is the seller? [Flame suit on, fire away - ]

My case was an inconvenience, and even I would not call it a "horror story," but it illustrates some of the difficulties of the resale market. A broker had a contract for sale at a certain asking price. We thought the price was fair, and we agreed to the original asking price. The seller (from Argentina) jerked us (and the realtor) around for almost two weeks, and then came back saying they now wanted MORE than the asking price. That's a no-no in real estate transactions and we said no because we don't do business with sleezy people.

The other cases actually involved the same unscrupulous seller, and two separate unfortunate buyer-victims. In that situation, the seller (who happened to be in the U.K.) signed two contracts for sale, let the two contracts go through ROFR (which they passed), and then refused to close. They cited some silliness about having to pay for a notary ( ) and the exchange rate (which, in truth, was quite favorable to them ). That was a really sleezy episode and really hurt two different buyers.

The reality, as a buyer, is that you have no practical recourse in a situation like that. You get your deposit back, but you lost that contract you thought was yours, and you have to start all over. Sometimes the bad guys do win.

I think you don't deserve any flames for warning people to be careful about sellers outside the US.
There is a lot more potential for misunderstanding, both because words that seem clear to the seller may mean something different to the buyer and because practices might be different in the seller's home country.
I don't know, but I would not be surprised to find out that things we might consider unethical (or against our laws) might be considered perfectly acceptable "bargaining tools" in some other countries. Things like accepting an offer and then asking for more money or accepting 2 offers and letting the buyers fight about who gets the sale are not nice or acceptable here, but might be expected in some other cultures.

 

[crisi]

We had our first offer rejected (at list price) when the seller decided not to sell. Not exactly a horror story, but a risk of resale - sellers can change their minds. Most of the time they do it long before Jim experienced.

Our second contract was accepted and went through...but closing took much longer than expected. Once again, not a horror story, just something to be aware of.

 

[JimMIA]

I think you don't deserve any flames for warning people to be careful about sellers outside the US.
There is a lot more potential for misunderstanding, both because words that seem clear to the seller may mean something different to the buyer and because practices might be different in the seller's home country.
I don't know, but I would not be surprised to find out that things we might consider unethical (or against our laws) might be considered perfectly acceptable "bargaining tools" in some other countries. Things like accepting an offer and then asking for more money or accepting 2 offers and letting the buyers fight about who gets the sale are not nice or acceptable here, but might be expected in some other cultures.

Everything you say is entirely true. However...these folks wouldn't be selling DVC contracts without already going through the purchase process at least once, so they should have some familiarity with the drill.

In addition, if I were going to buy or sell property in another country, my first steps would be to find out what the legal and cultural lay of the land is there. I also don't believe things are that different between the UK and the US -- our legal system is based on English Common Law, including the part about a contract being binding on all parties. Things are not that different.

In my particular case, the seller never executed a contract with me. It might be said they thought they were using a negotiating tactic, rather than being unethical -- although the manner in which they did that indicates otherwise. Either way, they definitely did enter into a sales agreement with the broker, and they clearly violated that.

In the other two cases, however, the UK sellers signed contracts on both sales, let both deals go all the way through ROFR, and then, 4-6 weeks into the process, decided they didn't want to close. It's hard to view them as anything other than grossly unethical.

EDIT: We have to keep in mind, however, that as egregious at the two UK situations were, the vast majority of resale contracts go through without a hitch. ROFR is the big bogey-man in resale, not usually the sellers, and definitely not the realtors.

 

[Dean]

One of the issues related to the incidents Jim is talking about, as I recall, was that the broker relisted the contract for sale after the seller had backed out the first time for one of the sellers.

 

[JimMIA]

One of the issues related to the incidents Jim is talking about, as I recall, was that the broker relisted the contract for sale after the seller had backed out the first time for one of the sellers.

That's true, but they immediately de-listed the contracts when the issue was raised here.

On my transaction, they de-listed immediately -- in fact, when the seller asked for more money, my realtor pointedly told me that I was under no obligation to respond at all to that and that she certainly would not if she were in my place.

I had no complaints with the realtor in my situation. That can happen to any realtor. They offered a contract in good faith, and when they saw the seller was not dealing in good faith, they dumped them.

 

[Dean]

That's true, but they immediately de-listed the contracts when the issue was raised here.

On my transaction, they de-listed immediately -- in fact, when the seller asked for more money, my realtor pointedly told me that I was under no obligation to respond at all to that and that she certainly would not if she were in my place.

I had no complaints with the realtor in my situation. That can happen to any realtor. They offered a contract in good faith, and when they saw the seller was not dealing in good faith, they dumped them.

Jim, then the question is why re-list to start with. They obviously knew what they were doing prior to the issue being discussed here. I do realize that the people in charge might not know what was going on, but it certainly speaks to the person who was willing to re-list. Besides, I'm sure this is a big part of where their DVC business comes from so they couldn't afford not to do the right thing in this situation regardless of their preferences otherwise.

 

[JimMIA]

Jim, then the question is why re-list to start with. They obviously knew what they were doing prior to the issue being discussed here. I do realize that the people in charge might not know what was going on, but it certainly speaks to the person who was willing to re-list. Besides, I'm sure this is a big part of where their DVC business comes from so they couldn't afford not to do the right thing in this situation regardless of their preferences otherwise.

I can't answer that. Actually, if my memory serves me correctly, all three of the properties (mine and the two UK contracts - I think I misspoke regarding my contract above) were initially re-listed, and a controversy ensued here on the DISboards.

After a couple of days, I received a concerned phone call from the broker wanting to know what all the fuss was about. I told them, and they immediately de-listed all of the contracts.

I was told that the broker was not aware of the problems with the contracts, and I take him at his word. The realtor I was dealing with was out with a medical issue, and it is entirely possible that the broker was not aware of what happened in my case.

I can't speak to the UK cases, but under the circumstances, it seems like management certainly should have known about that mess. If they weren't informed of that one, they need to pound a bump on one of their employee's heads.

I would hope that all resale brokers have a candid talk with any buyer listing a property, and explain to them that a listing is a listing, and a contract is a contract. From what I've heard, sellers backing out or otherwise playing games is not an uncommon practice. Issues like that can only hurt the reputation of both the broker and the whole resale industry.

 

[Dean]

I can't answer that. Actually, if my memory serves me correctly, all three of the properties (mine and the two UK contracts - I think I misspoke regarding my contract above) were initially re-listed, and a controversy ensued here on the DISboards.

After a couple of days, I received a concerned phone call from the broker wanting to know what all the fuss was about. I told them, and they immediately de-listed all of the contracts.

I was told that the broker was not aware of the problems with the contracts, and I take him at his word. The realtor I was dealing with was out with a medical issue, and it is entirely possible that the broker was not aware of what happened in my case.

I can't speak to the UK cases, but under the circumstances, it seems like management certainly should have known about that mess. If they weren't informed of that one, they need to pound a bump on one of their employee's heads.

I would hope that all resale brokers have a candid talk with any buyer listing a property, and explain to them that a listing is a listing, and a contract is a contract. From what I've heard, sellers backing out or otherwise playing games is not an uncommon practice. Issues like that can only hurt the reputation of both the broker and the whole resale industry.

It sounds like we agree. IF they re-listed knowing the issues, that is a problem. And while certain people would be considered the "Captain of the ship" and be held responsible, that doesn't mean they truly knew initially or had control. If I read your post correctly, we also agree that anyone who knowingly re-listed in this type of situation would put their ethics and honesty out for question. But every situation is different and must be handled accordingly. I'm sure none of us know the specifics of the cases in question to make a definite judgement on any of the issues. It just gives us a springboard to discuss the general principles involved.

But I'll repeat that doing the "right thing" after it came up does not help because there are other motives that come into play. Not doing the right thing would have answered a lot of questions in a negative fashion though. Things happen with any company and the question is what do they do then. I haven't bought or sold anything through the 4 that get talked about on this board but have bought through other companies. I've had ROFR come into play and I've had sellers back out. In all cases, the agent made an obvious and successful effort to find a comparable item of equal or better value.