Tips on handling timeshare presentations

[lawgs]

jbthi...

yes....we have come to realize that RCI does not really work for US but for their own bottom line ( many things happen behind the scenes that we do not know about ) ...that is why most exchanges we do now are online even though i know they are holding back some of the best "exchanges"


RCI is a necessary evil....but what do they really do for you .....except take $$$$ for exchanges and yearly fees

lucky for us we found out about resales before we bought and we still have all the "privileges" of the people who bought from the developer ( we did use tours to evaluate the type of resort we would like to be in )

we really enjoy DVC and have never regretted joining

 

[st_claire]

I know people that have gone and told them right at the start that they are there for the passes (was offering 2 free theme park passes) and have no intention at all of buying the timeshare. And the sales people say ok, hand them the passes and that's it. They didn't even have to go on the tour.

I have only ever been to one, and that's when I was a kid. Most places won't let you go unless you are married or over 35. But when I went as a kid, we got free video games, but the food was terrible. hehe. They tried to pressure my parents, but we got to go to universal thanks to them so it was worth it.

 

[Purrrrfecta]

Above all, don't tell them you like the resort but can't afford it. They will do everything in their power to make sure you can. I always tell them it's a nice resort and the price is reasonable (even if its $50,000) It just doesn't happen to be what I like or want.

And that is exactly what I did. I was honest. I thought the interior of the resort was unattractive. I do not care for the modern look. The saleswomen, who I might add was very angry at the end of the presentation, said, "Please do not attend anymore timeshare presentations because they are all the same, and you need to be worrying about spending quality time with your son."

Needless to say she received the only tongue lashing from me.

My whole thing is those presenters are like trained dogs. They all have the same speech they have to give, and they are controlled from the corporation. Like I told the sales presenter. It is the company’s fault. They take the risk of allowing people to market their product, and sometimes they do this in a dishonest way. They will say, "get two Disney tickets for twenty dollars, and all you have to do is look at their resort." They forget the hard sales pitch that goes along with it. They company is very well aware of what they are doing to promote their resort. It is the risk they take. The only problem is that they train their sales people to believe they are at fault when they do not make the sale on those people who say they "only want tickets."

 

[disneygals]

Joe,

We stayed at the Cypress harbour in Feb. It's gorgeous, you'll love it. (my hubby had free nights from a work prize). They offered us 300 Marriott dollars to go for a timeshare tour, we didn't have time so not sure how you can use them.

We own at Vistana (resale, thank goodness after reading up about it) and every time we stay there, they offer us $40 to let us know about some new property or program they have. We have no intention of buying (they have all our info and know it's a resale) but I always go because I find it interesting and I'm happy to take their $40.

Vivienne

 

[allforpooh]

Original Post
"Once you have gone and end up buying is there any way out. We made
this mistake and are still paying for this thing a year later. It may be a good
thing for some, but we do not need this. Anyone with advice please let me know."


We also purchased at the Hilton last year, but there is a 30day clause for any time share in Florida. You have thirty days to submit in writing that you want out.

Once home, we were able to look through everything more carefully and found that even though it sounded great there were more rules than would make any vacation planning fun. The banking and cancelling rules were terrible, we would have to plan vacations 2 to 3 years out. So we sent in our letter and had no problem getting our deposit back.

Several months later and lots more reseach we bought DVC, whch is where we wanted to buy in the first place. Up front the price looks alot higher than the other time shares but what you get is so much easier to use and of course its Disney.

Denise

 

[lawgs]

but there is a 30day clause for any time share in Florida

are you sure about that time line......my understanding it was 10 days to "recede" a purchase of time share in florida....

perhaps hilton had a different clause in their contract....

maybe you can clarify this ....

 

[Belle1962]

I was just at a timeshare presentation today and they told me 10 days when I asked. (I said I understood I had 30 days to rescind and they said no it is 10).

 

[Belle1962]

 

[travelitis]

I looked it up in my timeshare contract, and 10 days it is.

 

[disneefamily]

Disnee Dad Says....................................Travelitis, An apology many months later still counts, doesn't it? Hope you are happy with your purchase. I should not have rained on your parade the way I did. While I stick with my facts, I really hope you are happy and use it to its maximum benefit.
To get back on topic, simply show no interest. If you go with the mind set that you don't want the timeshare, even if they gave it to you free, then you will do well.
I'm still smiling that my Westin trip to Maui, was less than the annual dues of the timeshare! And I got $175 in credit at the hotel. I guess they paid me to go there! And I can do it every other year if I stay on the "right list". If not I think I hear Marriott calling!

 

[ciociania]

Hi, that's pretty interesting thread, isn't it? I had a question in a different thread about avoiding a presentation, and received tons of information, that helped my DH and me decide what to do. Since we couldn't avoid the presentation or we would be charged a higher rate, we simply decided to forget the whole deal. I would probably survive the presentation (I am Polish...), but my DH doesn't want to bother with it.

 

[travelitis]

Travelitis says....water under the proverbial bridge, Disnee Dad. Of course an apology counts, but I had to think about why you would be apologizing. Then I read the thread and realized I came down on you too. How about a mutual apology?

After our trip with extended family over Thanksgiving, even my anti-timeshare FIL said it made sense for us as much as we go to Orlando, and that was AFTER we told him the purchase price. Yikes! That would be like DISNEE DAD saying it! ; ) I was fully prepared for the big lecture, and instead, he gave his stamp of approval. I'm still shocked.

I promise, I was as anti-timeshare as anyone could be, even though my dh wanted to consider it. At least for the next few years, this makes sense for us, and we don't even want to exchange. We're either taking the kids to WDW for a week or going on a cruise. The real bottom line for us is purchase price + fees = 8 more years before we save money. It is paid in full, so there's no interest, but in 2012 it will finally save us money. Fees will probably go up, but so will hotel rates. It's more about liking a particular accomodation and amenities than saving money. I think because we bought with that understanding, we've been more satisfied. We never made the purchase looking for a profit later or a big savings.

Here's the tactic my FIL used: He told them he doesn't make any major purchase without ample time to consider it no matter how good it looks. Funny, when we asked if we could have a few hours to think about it, the answer was, "At this price? Of course not, it's a timeshare." With him, they extended the offer to the end of his stay, and they kicked in an extra night or 2 at no charge. Be assertive and pull out that poker face whether you're interested or not!!

 

[juliej2001]

Ah, but if you DO like the place, you may recommend it to someone, who may just be a buyer. Word-of-mouth is what many of these places count on.

 

[travelitis]

Very good point! We do like our accomodation, especially since because of our unit still not being completed we just found out they gave us another upgrade I didn't even ask for. All I insisted on was an equivalent accomodation at a sister resort. We should've had a room with 2 dbl beds, large bath with shower only, mini-frig, microwave, and private laundry. We've been assigned to a 1 bedroom with jacuzzi tub with mini kitchen and wall between the living room and bedroom. Last time I got upgraded because I told them they were going to, and this time I got upgraded because I told them I wasn't looking for an upgrade - just an equivalent accomodation. Now what are we going to do when our building is complete and they stop upgrading us constantly? LOL!

 

[spacewalker]

I have been around the block on this one. If you are going to take advantage of the deals, and you don't want to be pressured, you have 3 choices, period. Marriott, Hilton and Starwood (Sheraton) all have "Vacation Clubs". They have phenomenal success, and written, posted commitments to no high pressure. The other one is Disney Vacation Club, but they don't offer big deals to tour. If you visit an independent, one purpose (selling timeshare) company, expect to get hammered. Those guys know all the tricks posted here and are better at overcoming it than you will be in using them!!!!

 

[Aubrey]

We attended a presentation at Vistana and found it to be pretty pleasant. Our "excuse" for not buying happened to be true. I told the presenter that I was not the buyer but was scouting for my affluent aunt and uncle who were not on this trip but interested in locating several attractive properties worth considering on their trip a few months later. We kept the presenter focussed on the notion that his task was to impress us with the resort and make us like him enough to give his card to the real buyer. Whenever there was "drift" in his attitude, I audibly remarked to my husband that I did not think my relatives would appreciate a pressured approach and that perhaps they really would be happier with DVC. We viewed several properties and in fact they did end up with Vistana (on a resale).

 

[travelitis]

Spacewalker, I have to respectfully disagree with you on the statement that those are the only 3 that don't do high pressure. My thought is that it really depends on the sales person, and it's possible to run into high pressure at any timeshare presentatin. Conversely, you may have a low pressure experience at other timeshares.

 

[spacewalker]

You are 100% right, it really depends on the rep. My point was that the likelyhood of a bad experience is dramatically reduced at those 3 resorts, and very much increased at the independent resorts. That likelyhood is increased by the fact that you have to make more money to get in on the deals at the major resorts, too!

 

[Belle1962]