Direct Transfers Blog

Friar Tuck Highlights Dilemma

October 7, 2011

If there’s anything we can learn from timeshare companies it’s caution. Direct Transfers has been encouraging consumers to escape timeshare nightmares for years, but as the economy gets worse, so do the conditions.

This time last year, stake holders at the Nottingham Village in Catskill were still pondering what to do with their timeshare, considering getting rid of it, selling it, or using it. With buy-in prices of $10,000 and hundreds in maintenance fees, it’s a strain on any family to own a piece of Nottingham Village – but the pristine beauty and enchanted feeling almost made it worth it.

Unfortunately for those owners, the decision was made for them. An unannounced foreclosure led to the entire resort being shut down. The fact that citizens had paid thousands for the privilege of vacationing there wasn’t as crucial as the fact that the company was out of money and a judge ordered the resort doors shut.

Although they were technically supposed to be considered owners of the Nottingham Village, members of the Friar Tuck Resort Company weren’t notified of the impending foreclosure until it was too late. They only found out when they drove up to the gates and found “Do Not Enter” signs plastered all over the property they had paid thousands for.

Furthermore, Friar Tuck didn’t even have a comprehensive list of timeshare owners so they could contact all of them. Due to an alleged fire, records were destroyed, leaving many owners in the lurch and giving the timeshare company one more escape route.

The moral of the story? You never know what’s going on inside of timeshare companies. Nottingham Village looked perfect until the day the Do Not Enter signs got posted. No one would have guessed that their timeshare company was in foreclosure. Unless timeshare companies make the effort to be ethical, consumers will always be in the dark – and to date, that effort has been rarely made.

Nottingham Village has been closed for a year now, and hundreds of other timeshare resorts are following in those footsteps. The economy combined with a rising number of timeshare owners realizing the fiscal impossibility of their commitment is closing timeshare doors quickly. We at Direct Transfers are happy to see the timeshares go, but sad for the consumers who were hurt in the process.

If you’re considering getting rid of your timeshare, act now. Closing down isn’t the only thing timeshare companies can do without informing the consumer ahead of time. From special assessment fees to random price increases, your timeshare company has full ability to charge you more money or use what you have paid for whatever they chose.

It’s not an if question, it’s a when. The only if question is if you’re tired of giving them control over your finances yet. If you are, call us today and destroy their hold on your budget.

Filed under: News,Timeshare Articles,Timeshare News