Upfront fee resale companies are against the law in Florida .... report them ASAP

lancec13 wrote:
...seems Florida is the only state trying to shut down these companies.

Well, there are several plainly evident reasons for this:

1. There are more timeshare weeks in the state of Florida than exist in all of the rest of the country combined together. Accordingly, it's only logical that any attempts at regulation would begin in Florida.

2. Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum wants to get elected to be the next Governor of Florida. His (only relatively recent) "interest" in this particular timeshare issue MAY well be sincere, but it is definitely also a public image "winner" (...like petting dogs or kissing babies).

In the final analysis, it will take FEDERAL legislation to drive EVERY upfront fee parasite in the U.S. out of business and out of existence and back into their holes in the ground. Until there is Federal jurisdiction and regulation, these parasites will simply move their operations out of Florida (...as some have already done, in fact).

================================================== UPDATE follows below: ================================================== Well, AG Bill McCollum has officially LOST in his bid to become the next Governor of Florida.

So, I guess we'll see just how much real "steam" and focus this recent "upfront fee timeshare lising company reform" (and associated court decisions) will have in Florida going forward, since AG McCollum will be GONE from the FL government as of January, 2011. Too bad, really, since he has been very much "pro consumer" while AG of Florida.

Last edited by ken1193 on Aug 27, 2010 10:09 AM

So to my understanding, it is illegal for an upfront fee scam outfit to:

A) operate in the state of Florida;

B) sell its "advertising" for a resort in Florida;

C) sell its "advertising" to a resident of Florida (regardless of where the unit is located).

If that is the case, how would situations B & C work if the company is located in Texas? Who would prosecute it and its crooks? Florida or Texas?

Lance C.

Has anyone been contacted by Corporate Resort Specialists? Their mail drop is in Las Vegas.

They got me for a Corporate Sale and needed my money up front to complete the process.

Phillip H.

philliph32 wrote:
Has anyone been contacted by Corporate Resort Specialists? Their mail drop is in Las Vegas.
They got me for a Corporate Sale and needed my money up front to complete the process.

Complete what process? If they have a legitimate sale/buyer lined up, you should not have to pay anything as the seller.

Lance C.

philliph32 wrote:
Has anyone been contacted by Corporate Resort Specialists? Their mail drop is in Las Vegas.
They got me for a Corporate Sale and needed my money up front to complete the process.

Yup.....they "needed your money upfront" alright. The "process" they completed was to promptly deposit your money into their bank account. Nothing more is going to happen and you will never hear from them again. Corporations, by the way, DON'T buy timeshares.

If you paid by credit card within the past 60 days, you can TRY to dispute the charge through your credit card company. If longer ago than 60 days, or if paid by some other means, then you have essentially made a (non-deductible) voluntary contribution / donation to these parasites and have just unfortunately learned an expensive life lesson.

Last edited by ken1193 on Aug 27, 2010 07:15 PM

Any chance that any state's A-G is going to start taking action against these PCCs that claim that they will "cancel" your timeshare contract (and then merely assume power of attorney)?

Lance C.

lancec13 wrote:
Any chance that any state's A-G is going to start taking action against these PCCs that claim that they will "cancel" your timeshare contract (and then merely assume power of attorney)?

No, not likely. Since the PCC's who merely establish PoA make that fact abundantly clear, in writing within the contract, there is really no illegality involved. Unfortunately, some people either don't bother to read the contract, or they fail to understand (or even bother to try to understand) that a mere Power of Attorney to authorize a PCC to TRY to sell the timeshare is very, VERY different from an actual legal change in ownership by the preparation and formal recording of a new, valid deed in a new owner name.

Last edited by ken1193 on Aug 31, 2010 07:25 AM

marshallr12 wrote:
I think this is a great post! To carry it a bit further what are your thoughts, or the law, on companies that want an up front fee to advertise or rent your week?

My thoughts are that ALL UPFRONT FEE resale companies should be outlawed .... why they are allowed to continue their fraud is beyond my comprehension.

R P.

Actually, I found one company that has helped me get my money back. and they didn't try to "re-list" my property. They were a legitimate Debt Collections company who sent a cease and desist letter to my listing company, and with a Power of Attorney, were able to negotiate a refund through my credit card company. I just wish I had found this company sooner, because I wouldn't have spent so much money. In the past 5 years I have spent over $10,000 to "list" my property, and have never even had one inquiry about it. They should all be shut down in my opinion. Oh, if anybody wants the name of the collection company, please send me a message.

Jodi M.

jodim79 wrote:
Oh, if anybody wants the name of the collection company, please send me a message.

There is actually no mechanism on RedWeek by which to "send you a message", unless you actually provide an email adress within your post. That said, I don't know if the site moderators would object (or consider it "advertising") if you just outright identified the company name..

Last edited by ken1193 on Sep 03, 2010 12:34 PM

I was afraid to mention the name, because I didn't want it to get booted off, and THEY REALLY DID GET MY MONEY BACK. Maybe I can give you some tips to finding it yourself. I did a Google search for fee recovery laws, and their company was the only one that came up with a verifiable address and phone number. The other ones came up with a form ... which I filled out for a few of them and got calls from other listing agencies, offering to get my money back if I listed with them (and paid more fees). I also checked with sunbiz.org, and they are listed, and with Dept. of Consumer Services, and they are listed, and with Florida Office of Financial Regulation, and they hold a Consumer Debt Collections license, with no complaints against them. Hopefully that helps.

Jodi M.

jodim79 wrote:
I was afraid to mention the name, because I didn't want it to get booted off, and THEY REALLY DID GET MY MONEY BACK.

Personally, I have no need or use for any such entity. I just thought others who might be interested could benefit from identification of the agency, or a means to contact you directly (which you offered, but without providing any avenue by which to actually do so).

If you don't want to provide an email address for contact, then just name the company outright. The worst that can possibly happen is that a moderator MAY remove the comapny name from your post, if deemed to seem like "advertising". If so, so be it. What have you got to lose?

Last edited by ken1193 on Sep 04, 2010 04:17 AM

The name of the company is Timeshare Financial Recovery. They do charge a 20% retainer up front, but I figured what can it hurt, I am already out so much, if it doesn't work, oh well, what have I got to lose. They actually got me refunded, and it took about 2 months. They were always very accomodating when I called for an update, and told me every step they were taking, even who they spoke to at the company. A much better experience than I had with the listing agencies, who seemed to never be in when I called. Finally, a legitamate company! I cannot stress enough on this forum, how you should NEVER pay an upfront fee to list your timeshare, or to sell your timeshare. That is like saying you should pay upfront to sell your house!

Jodi M.

jodim79 wrote:
The name of the company is Timeshare Financial Recovery. They do charge a 20% retainer up front, but I figured what can it hurt, I am already out so much, if it doesn't work, oh well, what have I got to lose. They actually got me refunded, and it took about 2 months. They were always very accomodating when I called for an update, and told me every step they were taking, even who they spoke to at the company. A much better experience than I had with the listing agencies, who seemed to never be in when I called. Finally, a legitamate company! I cannot stress enough on this forum, how you should NEVER pay an upfront fee to list your timeshare, or to sell your timeshare. That is like saying you should pay upfront to sell your house!

I smell a shill ..... http://tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=127842&highlight=Timeshare+Financial+Recovery

R P.

jodim79 wrote:
The name of the company is Timeshare Financial Recovery. They do charge a 20% retainer up front

A 20% retainer of what ?????

R P.

Last edited by jayjay on Sep 05, 2010 07:39 AM

it was 20% of the money I had spent to list my timeshare. Why is it that if a company does a good thing, everyone thinks you are full of *&^%, but if I wanted to post a bad company on here, then I would have a 1000 replys? Can't someone ever give kudos to a company that has helped them without being ridiculed?

Jodi M.

jodim79 wrote:
it was 20% of the money I had spent to list my timeshare. Why is it that if a company does a good thing, everyone thinks you are full of *&^%, but if I wanted to post a bad company on here, then I would have a 1000 replys? Can't someone ever give kudos to a company that has helped them without being ridiculed?

By the time they charge clients 20% upfront and 20% upon completion there's not much left for the client .... I would have to see verifiable positive ressults by many people that this company has helped them ..... sorry, in researching the company all I can find are negatives and that this company is merely made up of former upfront fee resale scammers that's found a new scam to rip timeshare owners off.

R P.

Actually, when I looked them up on Google, I found one post from pissedcustomer.com, but upon reading the post, found it was a former employee. There was something also on TUG, but that one seemed to be locked, so I couldn't get any information. I have worked at companies before that have had employees try to bash them on the internet. All I know is that I was a happy customer, and I don't understand why it is so hard for someone to give an honorable mention for something good. Is this world really that cynical?

Jodi M.

As far as anything having to do with timeshares in the same sentence with upfront fees, then yes the world is cynical.

R P.

jodim79 wrote:
Actually, when I looked them up on Google, I found one post from pissedcustomer.com, but upon reading the post, found it was a former employee. There was something also on TUG, but that one seemed to be locked, so I couldn't get any information. I have worked at companies before that have had employees try to bash them on the internet. All I know is that I was a happy customer, and I don't understand why it is so hard for someone to give an honorable mention for something good. Is this world really that cynical?

The problem is, you seem to be the only person that has reported a positive experience with this company, and yes, the thread concerning the company on Tug was shut down being that a company shill was posting.

R P.