Timeshare Nightmare

1. TIMESHARE NIGHTMARES (AN EXPOSE' OF THE TIMESHARE INDUSTRY​) AUSTIN NEIL AARONSON Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

2. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

3. TIMESHARE NIGHTMARES (AN EXPOSE' OF THE TIMESHARE INDUSTRY​) Austin N. Aaronson 2180 W. State Rd. 434 Longwood, FL, USA 32779 Copyright© pending 2015 All rights reserved Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

4. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

5. FORWARD I have been practicing law in the state of Florida since 1988, focusing on contract litigation. With my staff, most of our practice involves timeshare disputes, so we have a good deal of insight into the kind of shenanigans that go on with timeshares. You can view our credentials at ​www.aaronsonlawgroup.com​. As to the book itself: It is a poorly kept secret that many timeshare deals are procured by questionable tactics. Along these lines, each chapter starts with a discussion of some legal or quasi-legal aspect of how timeshares work. Some of these chapters also involve practical explanations of 'how they get away with it'. Thereafter, each chapter goes on to give one or more ​entertaining​ case studies to illustrate the concepts previously discussed in the abstract. These stories are based on real life examples of cases that have come into our office through our clients. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

6. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

7. CHAPTER ONE TIMESHARE ORIGINS The Official Version The first timeshare in the United States was started in 1973 by Caribbean International Corporation (CIC) based in ​Fort Lauderdale​, ​Florida​. It offered what it called a 25-year "vacation license" rather than ownership. The company owned two other resorts the "vacation license holder" could alternate their vacation weeks with, one in ​St. Croix​ and one in ​St. Thomas​; both in the ​U.S. Virgin Islands​. The contract was simple and straightforward. C.I.C. promised to maintain and provide the specified accommodation type (a studio, one bedroom, or two bedroom unit) for use by the "license owner" for a period of 25 years (until 1999 from 1974, for example) in the specified season and number of weeks agreed upon, with only two extra charges: a $15.00 per diem (per night) rate, frozen at that cost for the life of the contract and a $25.00 switching fee, should the patron decide to use his/her week/weeks at one of the other resorts. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

8. The presentation's logic was based on the fact that the cost of the license and the small per diem, compared with the projected cost of hotel rates climbing in the next 25 years to over $100.00 per night, would save the license owner many vacation dollars over the span of the license agreement. The license owner was allowed to rent or give his week away as a gift in any particular year. The only stipulation was that the $15.00 per diem must be paid every year whether the unit was occupied or not. By 1980, the Florida Legislature had passed laws making timeshares into condominiums, with deeded weekly intervals. This meant that in addition to the price of the owner's vacation week, a maintenance fee and a homeowners' association (HOA) had to be initiated. This fee simple ownership also spawned timeshare location exchange companies like ​Interval International​ and ​RCI​ so owners in any given area could exchange their week with owners in other areas. In more recent years, issues have arisen in association allegations of deceitful sales practices. Alleged overbooking, as well, has been cited, especially with the advent of 'floating use plans' and/or 'points' systems requiring reservations far in advance, or requiring the consumer to book accommodations far inferior to those marketed at the point of sale. From a purely legal standpoint, the unilateral transition from a deed system to a points system, which has become increasingly popular among developers, can be regarded as an unlawful confiscation of real property. This book will explore some of these issues in detail, with case studies illustrating the concepts based on the experiences of clients of the author, a practicing ​attorney​ who has dealt with hundreds these cases over the years. How Timeshares Really Happened Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

9. If you 'google' the word timeshare, Wikipedia will tell you that the first timeshares were created in the early 1970s. This is not true. The first timeshares were actually created in prehistoric times by Neolithic homo-sapiens, specifically Cro-Magnon men. Og, a prominent resident of an African Rift Valley, and the alpha male of his tribe, lived there with his wife, children, and concubines. Their home consisted of a cavern with dozens of distinct chambers carved out of limestone by the leaching of water through eons of time. Having established himself as clan leader, he took over the largest cave chamber. He then instituted a system of homage whereby his clan members would pledge a portion of their kill to him. In return, they were able to occupy certain designated chambers of the cavern, on a continual basis, throughout the year. The best hunters even received animal hides, with a 'chart' of sorts, etched in blood, reflecting exactly which cave chambers they 'owned'. This arrangement made things, if not exactly comfortable, at least a lot better than sleeping under a rock. The clan spent more time inside enjoying barbequed mammoth and less time on the tracking trail, wandering endlessly from kill to kill. But things got so safe and prosperous that the clan members began to multiply, and eventually ran out of room in the cave. Under Og's system of homage, those members offering the least sizeable kills were ousted, and went back to sleeping outside. The hides were revoked, and a 'points' system was instituted, 50 points for a squirrel, 500 for a yak, and so on, up to 20,000 points for a mastodon, the mother-load. Many of Og's subordinates reverted to hardship, eating only what little was left of the carcass pledged to Og. Attrition from the cold and harsh elements also took its toll, and the number of clansmen began to dwindle. But Og, for his part, became more and more prosperous, stockpiling dried meat by the ton, and even hanging trophy beasts' busts from the cavern walls. Most of the clan members were relegated to one visit, or 'vacation', into a single cave chamber, Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

10. per year, while Og took over the rest of the cavern. Tribal morale began to drop. Often the 'accommodations' were less than promised, as stains from cooked animal fat accumulated, and graffiti covered cave paintings of triumphant mammoth kills during happier times. Whispers of an impending cavern coup began to circulate, polarizing the tribe, as clansmen pitted off one against the next, swearing allegiance to Og, or his chief rival, Gor. Gor promised to spread the wealth around and open the caves back up, share and share alike, to all that would support him. Eventually, under cover of night, Gor and his henchmen snuck in, and gored Og with a broken mammoth tusk. Gor was proclaimed leader, and he and his henchmen thrived. Former Og pledges fled, taking to the mountains, and eventually starving in the winter of the barren wasteland. Back in the caves, there was just enough room for all. The hide system was reestablished, the dried meat distributed, and life became comfortable once more. But history has a way of repeating itself. CHAPTER TWO TIMESHARE GRIEVANCES The Classic Case During a typical timeshare sale, promises are made during the process verbally and in glossy literature touting the opulent surroundings and accommodations in exotic locations throughout the world. However, when you finally book and travel to whatever site may be available - if anything at all - you find yourself in something less appealing. The prices that you pay annually Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

11. could easily have bought you a four star resort with unlimited resort destination options. When you complain about it to the resort developer, you are directed to read the fine print in the contract full of disclaimers and waivers that purport to justify this bait and switch. What's worse, there doesn't seem to be any way out. If there is a classic scenario reflecting the essence of timeshare grievances, this might be it: You respond to an add online touting a discounted cruise. You cruise with your wife, with the understanding that you'll have to sit through some sales pitch. During the pitch, you realize they're selling vacation 'ownership'. It's really a timeshare, touted by a team of slick salesmen during a high pressure sales pitches involving promise after promise about the opulent surroundings, the exotic locations, and the prudent 'investment' you are making. You are further told that the developer had a resale department and would either re-sell it to a third party or buy it back if not. There are literally people 'waiting in the wings' to jump on your deal if you don't act right then and there. After several hours of this charade, you finally capitulate and sign off on the documents, as much to get out of the room as anything else. Sometime later, you get back home, and try to book a vacation for later in the year. No dice. You are told to go back and read your closing documents. You finally have a meaningful chance to review the paperwork, and come to realize that the sales representatives dramatically understated the cost of the timeshare. For the first time you begin to understand the prohibitively expensive nature of the purchase. You realize that the many of the exotic vacation amenities and locations are not even accessible. You can't believe that you fell for it. You try to call the developer. The developer does not respond to your complaints, and refuses to give contact information to field questions or concerns about its practices. Finally, they refuse to provide an accounting upon request for a line item reconciliation of revenue versus expenses in the handling of 'maintenance fees', which continue to escalate without any documented justification. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

12. Timeshare Entrapment - An Allegory “Ownership” is usually a good thing. The term “ownership” implies dominion, investment, or entitlement to the thing owned. Timeshare “ownership”, on the other hand, may feel more like entrapment than anything else. This is because a timeshare, when considered in light of all the baggage it entails, especially the debt typically incurred to finance it, is a net liability. Even after it’s paid off, the timeshare typically is not saleable on any secondary market, as exorbitant and escalating maintenance dues assessed year after year substantially reduce or eliminate any appeal to a would-be buyer. Thus, the ‘ownership’ of a timeshare is often more properly characterized as ‘entrapment’ than dominion or investment. So if a timeshare is a trap, what kind is it? Is there some kind of physical analogy or metaphor which properly describes timeshare entrapment? There are many types of physical traps. The dead-fall, the snare, the pit-fall, and the various spring traps, are but a few. The dead-fall is a crude, cruel, and obvious trap. It consists of a heavy, flattened stone, tenuously propped up by a stick, which is baited at the base. The weight of the stone crushes the hapless little animal tugging to free the bait when the stick collapses. Few animals will fall for this one, much less the sly fox, the wily coyote, or the ever-industrious beaver. Even the wild boar, a generally impetuous brute of reckless disposition, will seldom be allured upon sighting such an obvious ruse. Its human equivalent would be something like a deed to some unseen swampland in a far off place. It worked a time or two, perhaps, many years ago, but that’s about it. More than a few animals, on the other hand, will still fall for, and fall ​into​, the covered pit trap. Hence the term 'pit-fall'. ​Particularly​ the witless wild boar, hungry and headstrong, and a hedonist at heart, will be inclined to allow his acute sense of olfaction and hunger overwhelm his better judgment. He’s a slave to his instincts, and this very lack of resolve will soon find him Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

13. falling ​headlong, ​precipitously into the bottom of the abyss. Colloquially, and not to cast aspersions of cannibalism in the direction of the poor porker, but you might even say that he fell for some kind of ‘pig-in-the-poke’ trickery. The proverbial pig-in-the-poke was once a commonly employed graft involving a stray possum or some other animal touted as a piglet and sold in a burlap sack, sight unseen. Now days, it generally refers to any sales scheme where you just don’t know quite what you’re really getting. A used car from a dusty corner lot, perhaps, with no car-fax. But it’s still not as sophisticated as a timeshare sale. And then there’s the ​snare​. This sophisticated little trap generally entails the use of a bent-over sapling or counterweighted rock strung to a hold, ​tenuously​ held to a ground-based anchor. The hold, in turn, is attached to a noose of sorts. It will ensnare even the craftiest fox, as he bends down to pick the bait planted just behind the looped noose, tugging at it a little, unwittingly triggering release of the trap. Imagine the terror in the mind of the helpless little vermin as he’s raptured rapidly into the heavens – animal heaven, to be sure, but sadly before his time. Be it the fox, the clever little squirrel, or even the Briar Rabbit, none are immune to this treachery. So now we’ve come to the point where the actual physical trap is a much closer analog of the metaphorical timeshare trap. The latter is baited, not with cheese or a raisin, but with free theme park tickets or a discounted resort stay. And although there’s still crude, brute force behind it, its deployment is far more camouflaged, more nuanced. Perhaps the wiliest coyote will fail to appreciate the jeopardy concealed in the hair-like filament of the limp-lying loop, if he sees it at all. Just so, the practiced physician, the studious accountant, and the learned jurist may well fail to appreciate the subtle ways of the timeshare sales subterfuge. Indeed, even the sagacious professor is overwhelmed by the opulent resort surroundings, the guile of the saleslady, and her Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

14. silky-smooth marketing pitch. Everything looks, feels, and sounds so solid, so legitimate. And, so thinks the learned man, "Behold, it's all right in front of me, marble floors, Grecian statues, soaring ceilings, a four-star, silk-stocking resort!'" But alas, all the bricks and mortar in the world will simply falter, collapse, and crumble to the ground like the ruins of ancient Rome. Only it doesn't take a thousand years. Indeed, not five minutes need pass. Nay, in the twinkling of an eye, and with one stroke of the pen, the sage man, giddy with excitement, sets his inked plume to the parchment. Like Chamberlain at Munich, penning words of appeasement. And now London is in ruins. Case Study - Guy and Veronica Guy was a lowly stock boy living in Newark. He had always wanted to vacation in Florida, especially one December when it was oh-so-cold. He also wanted to impress Veronica, his girlfriend. He saw an ad offering half-priced hotel tickets. He noticed an asterisk, though, next to the offer, something about an investment seminar. Guy figured with the money he saved on the hotel, he'd have plenty left over to invest, so he jumped on it. And when they arrived at the Hiftgorse Hotel south of Miami, the front desk directed them to the concierge, who told them to meet 'Stan' there the next morning. They took a rugged old shuttle bus with some other tourists at the hotel, and drove a long, long way. The highway became an avenue, the avenue a street, and the street a dirt road, until they got deep into the wilderness, a swampy jungle. This was truly an adventure, Guy thought. Veronica was frightened, though. What if there were snakes, much less alligators. Finally, they arrived at the location, a remote outpost in a camping area that looked like an open-air retreat. Was this the investment property, Guy wondered? It Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

15. could use some development, but the price would surely be cheap. Stan introduced them to his friend Ben, a hulking, bear of a man, with a brushy mustache. In a deep, almost gruff voice, Ben started saying good things about investing in the property -- that it would go up and up in value, and that they could vacation there any time, and so on. They showed the tourists all kinds of glossy literature picturing the property, once it was developed. Beautiful resort rooms and amenities in a lush, subtropical wonderland, with sandy beaches, a water park, and even a golf course. Guy was really impressed. Veronica not so much. She thought she noticed a serpent slithering just off the pavement of the veranda. She insisted that Guy take her back to the hotel, right then and there. Guy was crestfallen, but he really liked this girl. Who knows, maybe she'd even let him sleep next to her on the sofa one evening. So finally he had to interrupt Ben. "Sorry, Ben, but we have to go back now." "You'll go back when everyone else goes back, please. We're just getting started." "But we've already decided not to invest here. There's no point in waiting." "In that case, you won't be going back at all." Veronica started to cry. Guy threatened to call the police. But Ben took out his wallet, opened it up, and flashed a five pointed emblem at them. And so, to make a long story short, Guy and Veronica became proud timeshare owners. Not that the timeshare itself was ever developed. Properly speaking, they became owners of Florida swampland. To this day, Guy dutifully pays his annual dues, $1,250. He often wonders what Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

16. they are for. On the flip side, he and Veronica finally got married. Now only Guy sleeps on the couch. The moral of the story: Never book at Hiftgorse in the South (of Florida). Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

17. CHAPTER THREE TIMESHARE SALES PSYCHOLOGY Sociopaths and Actors as Timeshare Salesmen Definition of a ​sociopath​: 1. a person with a psychopathic personality whose behavior is antisocial, often criminal, and who lacks a sense of moral responsibility or social conscience. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sociopath The manipulative con-man. .. Sociopaths are characterized by an absence of empathy and poor impulse control, with a total lack of conscience. About 1% of the total population can be defined as sociopaths, according to a detailed psychological profile checklist. They tend to be egocentric, callous, manipulative, deceptive, superficial, irresponsible and parasitic, even predatory. The majority of [sociopaths] are not violent and many do very well in jobs where their personality traits are advantageous and their social tendencies tolerated, [including sales]. ​From Craig, M., Catani, M., Deeley, Q., Latham, R., Daly, E., Kanaan, R., Picchioni, M., McGuire, P., Fahy, T., & Murphy, D. (2009)​. According to a recent study, sociopathic tendencies are not only advantageous but especially prevalent in certain occupations, including sales. ​The Wisdom of Psychopaths: What Saints, Spies, and Serial Killers Can Teach Us About Success Hardcover – October 16, Dutton, 2012. People with a background in acting are also well suited to sales in general. Many performers are naturally and exceptionally good at appealing to the emotions of their audience—even if it’s an audience of one prospective buyer. Advice from an acting adviser: "This works to your advantage if you have giftedness, training, Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

18. and experience as an actor or actress. You may already instinctively know how to read people and “play” to their mood and affect." http://www.billhendricks.net/2014/04/jobs-for-actors-and-artists.html​. You've heard about all the starving actors in Hollywood. Guess what? They don't all stay there. One of them may very well be playing you like a fiddle during a timeshare pitch. According to a recent Harris poll, real estate sales in general are the at the bottom of all occupations in terms of respect. http://www.harrisinteractive.com/vault/Harris-Interactive-Poll-Research-Pres-Occupations-200 9-08.pdf. ​And of all possible jobs in real estate sales, timeshare hawkers are probably the bottom feeders. The level of trust that we tend to accord to others is generally consistent with how trustworthy we are ourselves. http://www.strategicleadershipinstitute.net/news/scientific-proof-that-trusting-people-makes-the m-more-trustworthy/ ​. However, if you are particularly trusting, you may also be more vulnerable to manipulation. Most of us desire, instinctively, to believe that those around us share our moral and ethical values. But as much as you want to believe that you can trust people you meet, in some contexts, you simply cannot. And nowhere is this more apparent than in the timeshare industry. Think about it objectively. You may pay dearly for something that is not only a net liability, but a ​perpetual​ one at that. Whether it's from ​Westgate​ or Diamond, or some other timeshare developer, the chances are good that you're being taken for a ride. Confessions of ​Westgate​ Timeshare Salesmen The following text is quoted ​verbatim​ (typos and all) from an ex-salesmen at ​Westgate​, a preeminent timeshare developer: Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

19. Pros​​: The pay. Cons: Everything... The pay which is good even becomes bad when you work for the devil himself to get it. As a timeshare sales rep for ​Westgate it truly is like selling your soul to the devil on a daily basis. Trainers expect and train u to do whatever it takes just to sell & lying is just the beginning of it. Management lie to u and play psychological games with their reps daily just to get u amped to sale each day aka the morning "rah" meeting. & if you don't sale... It's definitely ur fault! And no one else's they embed in ur head that everyone and anyone can be "sold" that walk through the doors. Which is not true, along with tons of other lies! If u need quick money, fine work here. Do so at your own risk, & know what your are getting yourself into. I learned a lot here in my 2mos of employment but at the price I had to pay, it was not worth it. This place is beyond WRONG, it's a part of the evil that exists in this world!!! Advice to Management​​: None!... They all know what's going on, it apart of Westgate's culture. The wrong doing is accepted. For anyone, who has continued to work here for at least more than a year in sales, wrong is a part of who they are - coldhearted. And another ex employee: Pros: Hospitality perks: park tickets etc. Cons: Deceptive company, lies to employers and guests. They book packages with no quality assurance and allows sales reps to deceive guests. And yet another: Pros: 2 week training allows you to learn what you need to know to sell their product. Good way for people with little or no education to make a living, so long as they don't mind lying to get the product sold. Cons: Product is worthless so they have to bait-and-switch their presentation...you're pretty much selling air. Anyone can look around on the internet and find deals on travel for less Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

20. than they'd pay annually for a timeshare. Literally the only qualifications to work there as a sales rep are passing a background check and a drug test. The people make the job - and the people here made the job less than desirable. This was just a sampling of the handwringing that you can read from ex-employees at http://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Westgate-Resorts-Reviews-E253667.htm​. There's nothing that we can add to this. Some Dissembling Required Dissembling, defn. concealing one's true motives, feelings, or beliefs​. Chances are that you've had to assemble something in your life. Perhaps it was an office desk, a bookshelf, or maybe tricycle for your kids. But have you ever ​dissembled​ anything? It's an interesting concept, that of taking apart, not literally, but rather metaphorically. Some context is necessary: We are all skeptical, to varying degrees. This is a natural, good instinct, something that we need to protect ourselves. One who lacks skepticism entirely is vulnerable, or even gullible, and easily taken advantage of. A dissembler is engaged in ... slowly, methodically, breaking apart this natural psychological defense. He wants to incrementally chisel away at the walls of our natural skepticism until they come crumbling down, even to the point that we'll believe anything he says. Why it necessary for the timeshare salesman to engage in dissembling? Because the salesman is pitching a lemon - a fundamentally flawed concept. For many reasons, including the fact that timeshare is a net liability, that it is essentially inalienable, and that it is therefore a perpetual obligation, there exist no viable economic reason to buy into one. Case Study - The Bensons Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

21. Brian Benson, an account man with a Chicago area consulting firm, worked hard through the winter of '13. His commute into the Loop from out in western suburbs was a dreary trek, driving through wind-swept snow to the metro station, standing out on the platform in the bone chilling wind, then crowding into the train like one of so many sardines during the 45 minute ride into downtown. He'd put in a long, arduous day in his little cubicle, making sales calls, following up on existing accounts, and generally stressing over complaints from disgruntled clients. His primary consolation was a sense of security in the idea that it was all for a worthy cause. After all, Jen and the kids depended on him. He pictured her back home reading to little Bryce from Dr. Seuss. He thought of Brittany, off at school for the first time, finding her way in the world. During the work day, he would try to put in a call to home when he could, during break time and lunch, and occasionally when he could steal some time between account calls. He was the quintessential family man. One night in February after the train ride back out to the suburbs, while walking out to the car there in the commuter lot, he slipped on a patch of ice, and fell headlong onto the frozen asphalt. He was out like a light. When he came to, he tried to shake it off, staggered groggily on to the car, and then drove home in a stupor. Jen greeted him at the door, but turned white as a ghost when she saw the gash on his forehead. Off to the hospital they rushed, where Brian stayed overnight for observation. The next day they resolved that it was time for a vacation. Jen responded to an email touting a dramatically discounted stay at the luxurious Playa del Mar in Acapulco, in late March, during spring break. Brian had a week of accumulated vacation time, and so it was decided - the whole family was going to paradise! After a layover in Houston, they landed at Acapulco Internacionale, and then rode the rest of the way in a shuttle full of giddy tourists, mostly families like the Bensons, before checking into the resort at the front desk. Brian hadn't seen Jen so excited in a long time, as much for the kids as Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

22. herself. After check in through the front desk, they were told to see the concierge, who would help plan their stay. There Carmen, a comely, sophisticated-looking Mexican woman promised tickets to a local water park, part of the package deal, but reminded them that they had to sit through a presentacion ​in the morning​. ​Jen didn't remember having seen this requirement, much less had she told Brian and the kids And where would the kids stay, after all? Not to worry, Carmen assured, there was a nursery and playground facility, and the kids would be safe and sound. So in the morning, after an early breakfast, the family prepared to split up. "Don't cry …now, now… it's only for a short time… we'll all go to the water park after this… you know, sliding boards, waterfalls…". Jen's words of encouragement seemed to do the trick. Brian gave the kids a big hug, kisses were traded all around, and Jen reluctantly let go of little Bryce, teary eyed, to be led off at the hand of "Ms. Maria. " Brittany, with her time in kindergarten, wasn't as timid, skipping along beside. The couple ambled over to the convention center area, where they joined perhaps a hundred other tourists in a seminar room, tables aligned facing the front where there was a power point projector. Glossy literature lined the tables. No sooner had they settled in, than a waitress, of sorts, 'Davila', offered them some 'tapas'. There were chips, salsa, quesadillas, even ​margaritas​, all 'complimentary.' It struck Brian and Jen that cocktail service was peculiar, especially in the morning on a family vacation. Also, and they had just eaten. They politely declined. Many around them did not, though. Finally, "Raul" took the podium. He was a squat, middle-aged man, graying around the temples, suited in navy pinstripes. His subject matter: Investment in the hospitality industry. He started off a little subdued, but after a wry joke or two, and some chuckles from the audience, the spirit seemed to take hold of him, and he commenced to deliver a pitch of salesmanship with so much Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

23. conviction that he seemed to be invoking the wrath of the Almighty against anyone who'd dare resist. "As God is my witness, this is the most dynamic thing to hit these shores since Cortez...you cannot, ​must​ not miss out on this opportunity… because if you do, there are ten more of you out there waiting to buy into this investment…look at the person next to you… now picture ten of him just waiting to jump on it…. scary thought, huh… better to keep the wolves at the door…" But after an hour or more of this, Brian still had no idea what he was selling. References to vacation 'ownership' abounded, but it all sounded very much like a timeshare pitch. Finally, it was time to break out. Someone named Sylvia appeared out of nowhere, and beckoned the couple into a side office. After a while, it finally became clear that they ​were selling timeshares after all, repackaged as ​vacations ownership​ so as to avoid all of the pejorative connotations. Brian wasn't biting. He and Jen, after about an hourly of politely declining interest for every conceivable reason, started to get up and leave. This was hard, because they were dealing with ​real​ people, and they frankly felt somewhat indebted for having accepted some of the hospitality. But they each agreed that it simply made no sense for their family, financially or otherwise. Sylvia begged them to wait 'just another five minutes', so that she could consult her 'manager' about sweetening the pot of incentives. Brian was still standing, and becoming frustrated. "We don't want or need any more incentives, we just want to get on with the vacation with our kids…". Immediately, a towering figure calling himself "Domingo" blocked the doorway. Scowling, he tried to put the shocked couple on the defensive: "You do not like our resort seńor?... You show up here, on our dime, accept all our 'graces', and then try to just walk out on us. .. ". He was literally brow-beating Brian. "Where are you from…Chicago I see…I wonder how you would like it in Chicago, if I show up at your home and [defecate] on your front porch…" Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

24. Things went on like this for several minutes, but it seemed eternal. Jen's concerns were no longer merely about the fear of offending Sylvia. She actually began to wonder how they could physically​ escape from the little office. There was Domingo, in all his bluster, trying to intimidate her much smaller husband. When it became apparent that this was all well beyond the pale of any reasonable civility, Brian, still on the defensive, actually made reference to calling the police. "You go ahead, Seńor, call any cop you want, there's the phone, right there on the table." Brian started to lift the receiver…"I happen to know someone there who can help you, ask the receptionist for my brother Eduardo, the Chief". At this point, Jen began to sob uncontrollably. Brian knew he had to focus. He had no idea where his kids were. He would be lucky to get out of there at all, at least any time soon. He could continue to resist, and risk something ​very​ bad, who knows what. Or he could simply sign some paperwork, get out of there, be back with the family, and hopefully gone as soon as possible on the next flight out. In the end, the poor couple capitulated, signed the paperwork under duress, scooped up the kids, and caught the red eye flight out to Houston later than evening, where they spent the rest of their 'vacation'. But not before they saw Domingo in the lobby, as they were leaving, chatting it up with Carmen, in Spanish of course. Domingo seemed to notice them, bags packed, in a hurry to get away. "Señor, Señor, not so fast…" Jen's heart skipped a beat as big Domingo ambled over, broodingly… he reached in his coat pocket, pulled out an envelope, and handed it to her husband…"You almost forgot your tickets to the water park, Seńor." Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

25. CHAPTER FOUR THE ESSENCE OF A TIMESHARE Legal Theory Meets Practical Reality What is a timeshare, really? No doubt, your timeshare developer sold it to you as a real estate 'investment'. Chances are good you were told that it would appreciate in value, that there were other investors 'waiting in the wings' to jump on the opportunity, and that they even had a 'resale' department in house to buy it back when if and when you wanted to sell. By now you understand that these were a pack of lies. Not only can you not sell it, but you can't Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

26. even get out from under the perpetual debt associated with continued ownership. And the reason for that: simply because it's a net liability. In this book we document the ways in which vacation 'ownership' makes absolutely no sense from a financial standpoint. But at the most fundamental level, a timeshare is different from any other interest in 'real estate' that you could possibly have. Ostensibly, you have bought into a resort facility in the nature of a condominium, the unit owners of which have 1/52 divided interests in any given unit on an annual basis, as well as the common elements of the facility. This is in contrast to any other legal interest in deeded real estate, which invariably give you an ​undivided​ interest in the property. "Undivided" simply means that you have total access to the real estate ​all of the time​, although it may often be shared with a spouse or other family member. But even more fundamentally, all legalese aside, what have you really purchased? The right to occupy several hundred square feet in space at some elevation within the confines of some walls that currently exist, for a certain duration each year? Pretty ethereal stuff, huh (?), especially when you stop and think that the building itself is only temporary and depreciating as the clock ticks away. But did you really get even that much? Stop for a minute (or more), and read the fine print of your contract. Better yet, I'll save you the time. Invariably, there will be some red tape in the contract in the nature of a 'floating use plan'. This floating use plan gives the timeshare developer the right, unilaterally (no one's saying that this is necessarily legal) to deny you access to ​your deeded unit and make you occupy another one. If you don't believe me, read the whole contract, top to bottom. It's in there, somewhere. Or, if your developer is still on the deed system at all, insist on occupying ​your​ unit this year during your vacation. Chances are good that you'll be disappointed. And this is assuming that your timeshare developer is on the deed system at all. Most have converted to a system of 'points', the ownership of which is even more tenuous. More on this in Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

27. Chapter 7. So now we've reduced your legal interest in the timeshare purchase to, at best … the right to possibly occupy a certain unit at some elevation in space within four walls of a facility that currently exists, ​while it exists​, for one week a year, ​in the discretion of the timeshare developer. We would suggest to you that such an interest is so tenuous, so ephemeral, that it's beginning to resemble, more and more, the last fading smile of that proverbial Cheshire cat. Timeshare Philosophy: A Platonian Perspective When you're forced to write a regular blog about timeshares, as we do as part of our marketing, you're always looking for fresh perspectives on what they really are and what if any merit there is to the concept. In the interest of avoiding endless repetition, sometimes you're even forced to reach a little. This is one of those times. Plato was the first to articulate the concept of archetypical phenomena. At the risk of oversimplifying, an archetype in the platonian tradition is simply an idealized version of an object or abstraction. The archetype thus lacks physical substance, but represents instead the 'essence' of the thing conceptualized. In the platonian realm, seemingly 'real' objects are but penumbras​ - shadowy and flawed manifestations of their idealized archetypical essence. A platonian timeshare is a good thing. It has the appeal of ownership of one's own resort condominium property, uniquely accessible at least once annually in a desirable location or locations. It's not just a hotel room, but a condominium unit. Much larger, much nicer. You can't be there to take care of it most of the time, but you don't have to. Other people maintain it for you. Because you 'own' it, unlike a rental unit, you're actually ​invested​ in it. Thus you can rent it out or even sell it. And best of all, if you're on some kind of 'points' or exchange system, you can access dozens of similar resorts, each one more opulent than the one before, all over the world. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

28. A ​real​ timeshare, not to be confused with its archetypical counterpart, is not as good. Although you 'own' it, as a practical matter the resort developer has unique access to your 'ownership' information, especially contact data, as well as that of all the other 'owners.' This superior access to information allows the developer to circulate voting proxies, installing its own stooges onto the board of the owner's association. These insiders, in turn, hire an affiliate of the developer to manage the resort. The actual 'owners', who lack this critical contact information, are unable to galvanize meaningful opposition to the rigged process. Thus, resort 'maintenance' fees are higher than they would be for a standard condominium - higher by an order of magnitude. If you do some basic arithmetic, multiplying your one week annual dues by 52 weekly intervals, you'll see for yourself. The penumbral timeshare also diverges from its philosophical counterpart in terms of accessibility. Those 'points' of access that sounded so good in theory are decidedly less appealing in practice. Especially since they keep selling more and more of them, without actually ​building anything new. They were supposed to get you to Hawaii, but now you can't even get to Hackensack. Think of it as a hunt club. You bought into it first, and hunted to your heart's content. Trophy after trophy, meal after meal. Your garage freezer was stocked with venison. But after a season or two, you couldn't help but notice that your haul was diminishing. Maybe you get a stray yearling if you're lucky. Soon you'll be lucky to bag a rabbit. And who are these peculiar fellows in the lodge? Didn't you used to have the run of the place? Now you're sharing a room with some dude named Brutus. At this rate, next year you'll have to share a cot with him. The platonian timeshare also differs from its real world version in terms of its 'investment' aspect. If Plato owned a timeshare, he would loosen his toga, and relax on his timeshare sofa. He'd rent it out every year he couldn't use it. And when he got a little older and didn't really use it at all, he'd sell it to someone younger with a family - Aristotle, perhaps. At a profit, no less. But Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

29. you're not Plato, not Aristotle. Heck, you're not even Yogi Berra. You've tried to rent it. Lord knows you've tried to sell it. Maybe you should have majored in philosophy. Surely you would have steered a mile clear of this catastrophe. And so the moral of the story is this: Philosophy can have practical applications. Also, timeshares are not good. Case Study - Bubba and Daisy Bubba was a journeyman construction foreman in West Virginia. He was a hardworking, honest man, and a veteran of two army tours overseas. He relied on his wife Daisy to keep track of all things financial, like paying the monthly bills, balancing the check book, and following up on funny little charges that might crop up from time to time on their bank statement. The kids were growing up way too fast, so about a year ago they had decided it was time to take a family vacation. But they had unwittingly bought into a timeshare plan following a sales pitch given during their stay in an Orlando area resort. There developer had recently converted their deeded interest to 'points'. Daisy wondered how they could do this without her consent. Now that they were on the 'points' system now, she knew the family had to either use 'em or lose 'em. So Daisy called to book one of the resort destinations in their network. In spite of paying almost $400 per month, she was told that she couldn't return to the same resort. In fact, she couldn't stay at ​any​ of the resorts shown in the glossy photos that she still had from the sales pitch. Finally, after consulting with Bubba, she settled on the Wayfarer, mainly because it was located somewhere on the sea in California. Daisy had always wanted to go to California and see the Pacific Coast. Over and over she had seen the movies and shows about it, the sweet and salty aroma of the ocean, the shimmering water next to sugary sand set against the majestic backdrop of mountains off in the distance. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

30. They arrived at the airport in San Diego, and rented a car. Daisy made sure it had G.P.S, for they surely weren't back home anymore, and the last thing they needed was to lose their way. Bubba took the wheel, struggling to adjust to all the new technology. Teddy, 16, kept giving his pop unsolicited advice on how to use the device, but Bubba couldn't seem to pick up on it. Even Dixie piped up: "just type the address in Daddy." Finally, Daisy figured out how to set it. A robotic female voice began to advise them. "Take a legal u-turn as soon as possible…now take a slight right turn…" and so on. Onto the busy freeway, they drove within sight of the Pacific ocean. Dixie begged them to stop, but Bubba was afraid of having to reset the G.P.S. again, and so they turned inland, as directed, and drove for many miles. As they drove eastward, the beautiful coastal mountain landscape became drier and drier, until cactus plants hung low over the highway like so many hitch hikers. They were in the desert now. The G.P.S. told them to exit, and to exit again, and once again, until the freeway became a dusty back road. Finally, and suddenly, as they wound through the desert landscape, through the valleys and over the hills, they were startled to behold massive body of water, looking so out-of-place that Bubba did a double-take. "What the devil?" Perhaps they would be staying at a sea-side resort after all. The kids got excited. "Maybe they'll be chicks in bikinis" Teddy said. "And smoking hot surfer dudes!" said Dixie as well. Daisy frowned, though. There was something wrong with this picture Bubba noticed a sign off in the distance. He slowed down as they wound around a curve down onto the alluvial plain just off the massive lake. In the fading light of dusk, it came slowly into focus: "The Salton Sea." Daisy burst into tears. She had seen t.v. documentaries about this infamous place, artificially created by diverting the Colorado River into the middle of the Mojave desert, and then Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

31. abandoned when it became so salty and toxic that even the fish fled, their dry skeletons littering the beaches. Bubba tried to console her: "What's wrong Honey?... We're almost there. You said you wanted a seaside resort..." But the rest, as they say, is history. The Wayfarer Hotel turned out to be a 1950s vintage fleebag motel​ that had recently been reopened and then 'renovated', to 1960s standards. Alas, there was nothing to do there, and for the most part the family whiled away their vacation time driving aimlessly through the desert like feckless wanderers in search of some illusive oasis. One morning, though, Bubba decided to drive to Laughlin, just across the Nevada border, to try his hand at blackjack. Daisy would join him, and the kids would hang out a the local water park. On the way, Daisy noticed a rattling from the engine of their rental Malibu. But Bubba's hearing had long since failed from the rattling of a machine gun. "Don't you hear that, Bub?" "Hear what, Hon?" "That rattlin' sound." "Say what?" "THAT RATTLIN!" "Come again?" That very second, a sound of some profound mechanical distress resounded from the engine, like the howling of woman in labor. Even Bubba heard it. They all jerked forward in their seats, straining the seatbelts, as the car slowed to a dead silent halt, save for the hissing of the boiling radiator. The Chevy had thrown a rod. They were in dessert now, as they had been for several days, but now its stark reality was beginning to sink in. And it did. 108 degrees in the shade, if you could find some. The rest of this account might have been tragic if it hadn't been for a happy coincidence Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

32. involving the elopement of a stock-boy from Winslow, AZ, with his debutante-wife, on their way to the Burning Man Event. And the fact is, that they just happened to be on that little back road, at that particular time. On occasion, Bubba and Daisy still talk about it. By now, as scary as it was at the time, they can even look back and laugh. Their conversations generally go something like this: "Robert", (Bubba's given name), how could you?" "Easy babe, you wanted it..." "Wanted what, to break down in the dessert?" "No, to see the sea". "I wanted to see a real sea, not the Salton Sea." "Well, you got your wish, see Honey? "What the Heh..?" "You saw the Pacific. You saw the Salton. Now you've seen almost every sea there is to see." "Forget it, Bub..." Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

33. CHAPTER FIVE TIMESHARE NOMENCLATURE What's in a Name? "What's in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet." Romeo and Juliet, Act II, scene 2 The nomenclature that we use effects our perception of the thing we're talking about. Consider the word 'sick'. At one time, it was used in standard English exclusively to describe a condition of infirmity. As time goes on, it has taken on an urbanized, colloquial character, to describe something that's "crazy, cool, insane". ​http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=sic. As in, "you could've been getting down to this 'sick' beat.'"​ Shake it off, Taylor Swift. Thus we have gone from an adjective with a decidedly negative definition, denoting a state of ill-health, to one with opposite meaning or denotation, at least in the world of slang. How or why this happened is anyone's guess. Occasionally, however, changes to the nomenclature of something is deliberate. For example, sometimes things with a negative connotation will be renamed, even 'repackaged', in order to improve the image. Thus, 'problems' have become 'issues' or 'challenges'. Remember when a used car was just a used car. Now they're 'pre-owned', or even 'certified pre-owned'. This very thing has occurred with regard to timeshares. Over the years, for reasons discussed Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

34. extensively in these pages, the word 'timeshare' has taken on a pejorative connotation. I recently heard a sportscaster on t.v., while plugging the merits of an idea, say it with the caveat that "I'm not trying to sell a timeshare, after all," or something to that effect. In any case, he was clearly trying to distinguish whatever it was that he was selling from something that you'd rather not buy. At least not if you know what you're buying. Thus, in recent years timeshare developers have re-denominated their product as 'vacation ownership'. The concept of 'vacation ownership' is one that, during sales pitches, is often described in such abstract terms, solely to avoid saying the 't' word, that people literally have no idea what it is that they're being pitched. The concept is peppered with watch-words to like 'resort investment', or 'real estate investment', to help create the proper image. You will rarely, if ever be told that you have to sit through a 'timeshare sales pitch' as an inducement to receive whatever incentives they're offering. Instead, it will be packaged as something like 'a hospitality industry investment'. At the end of the day, though, it's a lot like tying the proverbial pink ribbon around the pig's tail. It's still an oinker. The moral of the story, know what it is that you're getting into. Never buy it without reading the fine print. Whatever else it is, chances are it's a lot different than what you're being told. If you don't have the time or willingness to read it, simply don't buy it. Uravelling the Pink Ribbon There are a number of words euphemistically describing the concept of a 'timeshare'. These have been conjured up in recent years by crafty marketing types trying to avoid the increasingly negative connotation of the word. "Vacation Ownership" is one of them. As though you could actually 'own' a vacation. Think about it. The concept of a vacation is totally abstract - abstract as Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

35. time itself. There exists absolutely ​no​ tangible aspect of it. You can no more 'own' it than you can own your time whittling wood, whistling Dixie, or sitting on the toilet. You're allotted a discreet number of days on earth, you know not how many. They're given at the behest of your Creator. At best, it's a kind of rental arrangement, or perhaps a stewardship. Anyone who thinks they 'own' their time on earth should try subleasing to someone more qualified to spend it. Another timeshare euphemism: ​Fractional Ownership​. Okay, so not only is it totally abstract - but you own only a ​fraction​ of it. A ​fraction​ of an ​abstraction​. Kind of like owning only a percentage of some thought that occurred to you. Perhaps you can stake a claim to three percent (3%) of that daydream you had during lunch break. I'm thinking that this one might backfire on the developer's marketing man. It's fracking stupid. And yet it's still considered less pejorative that the word 'timeshare', otherwise it wouldn't be out there. And another one, courtesy of the Brits: ​Seasonal Ownership.​ This is British-babble for a European timeshare, usually somewhere in the south of Spain. The Brits are already notorious for beating around the bush. Leave it to our cousins across the pond to come up with some denomination so lame and vacuous that it's almost totally divorced from reality. We already discussed and dismissed the notion of owning anything of a ​temporal​ nature. But now they would have you owning not just a minute or two, not even just a week, but an entire ​season​. I have to admit that this sounds better than owning a ​fraction​ of something. And I kind of get the thing about staying there during a certain time of year. This one gets a C-. Regardless, what actually happens when you tie the proverbial pink ribbon around pig's tail? Maybe he gets a little more attention at the county fair. If he's in the show, maybe you'll even pin another ribbon on him, perhaps a blue one this time. Farmer Brown starts to swell up with pride. Heck, don't even call him a pig anymore, call him something else. A swine, perhaps, or a hog, better yet. But at the end of the day, even if you drape him in garments of the gods, or dress him in sartorial Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

36. splendor, you still don't have a horse, a cow, or even a goat. And your seasonal ownership is still just an oinker. And you'd be better off sending it off to the butcher. Case Study - Ryan and Kiersten Ryan and his fiancé Kiersten were vacationing in Cancun. Their relationship had been off-and-on for years, and they could never seem to commit to an actual wedding date or locale. Ryan, it seemed, had begun to take his appearance for granted. Kiersten was beginning to carp about little things that irked her, and petty disagreements would sometimes evolve into full-fledge fights. This vacation was to be a 'make or break' milestone in their relationship. After getting in late and sleeping in at the Playa de Sol on the Caribbean, the couple brunched on huevos rancheros​ at a resort cafe'. And then while Ryan was relieving himself in a lobby restroom, Kiersten preened over her compact mirror. Suddenly, an American couple accosted her, exclaiming what a 'coincidence' it was to see another American in such a remote place. Bob and Gerty were from Mississippi. They appeared to be well-meaning, perhaps a little bit too effusive in their gladness to see other yanks, since the place seemed to be crawling with them, but still harmless. Once Ryan came from the bathroom, he tried to brush them off, but not before they had convinced he and Kiersten what a great deal they had gotten on free tickets to a local water park, and how she should do the same. Coincidentally (there's that word again), the tickets were available right there in the lobby. Bob and Gerty wisked our friends off to a lobby kiosk where the 'concierge' gave them the tickets. There was just one little caveat: They would have to sit through a brief presentation about the relative merits of some local real estate investment. Ryan tried to beg out again, but Kiersten convinced him that they would 'never' fall for whatever it was they were selling, and the free tickets would be well worth the hour-long inconvenience. And so later that day they met a man named Carlos, who took them and about a dozen other Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

37. couples on a shuttle bus from the resort to a local construction site, and some modular offices erected there. No cranes or heavy equipment yet, but ground was broken, and the work would begin in earnest 'in the next week or two', Carlos said. The couple surmised that this was to be the 'real estate opportunity' touted. They were a little inland of the Playa, and with no sea breeze the heat was stifling. Beads of sweat burnished Ryan's brow. Not to worry, it was the middle of summer, and most of the year it was very 'temperate' Carlos assured. And once they got inside, at least the offices were air conditioned, if a little stark. Led by Carlos, all the tourists ambled their way through the hallway to find themselves in a presentation area, of sorts, complete with a black board and projection screen. Glossy literature lined the tables, each facing the front of the room. And there were Bob and Gerty, too, though Ryan had never noticed them on the shuttle over. Gerty seemed as giddy as a school girl in anticipation of the dog and pony show about to start. Bob, for his part, took on the air of the shrewd business man as he played with an unlit cigar. "It's all about positioning yourself...cash flow is paramount...we'll see what they come up with...". Several attractive young Mexican women shuffled in and out, actually waiting the tables, offering tapas, finger food, and yes, even ​cocktails​. And best of all, it was totally 'complimentary'! Kiersten acquiesced, and began to munch and sip away. After all, it was free. But Ryan, with iron clad resolve, declined everything. He wasn't about to fall for any of this, and would simply sit for an hour and then walk out, washing his hands of it all. Their waitress was "Conchita", a voluptuous young woman, and rather scantily clad. She began to dote over Ryan. "Aaaww... you no like our service...we make eet very nice for jooo...everthing free...." Kiersten was becoming a little irritated by now, and the couple began to squabble. "Why can't you take your eyes off of that woman?" Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

38. "Why do you start drinking so early? "Why can't you just relax, we're on vacation, after all..." And on it went. Even Gerty noticed, and was beginning to impose. "Now don't tear up the pea patch, honey..., let's just wait 'till they get down to the licklog,..." and other southern homilies. Ryan was becoming increasingly irritated, and the show hadn't even started. He began to wonder how he was going to get through even an hour of this. Finally, he capitulated, and ordered a drink. Conchita seemed ecstatic, hovering over him to make sure he savored every drop of the sweet and salty margarita, while Kiersten furrowed her brow, and threw down the rest of her cocktail. Eventually, Carlos introduced "Frank", a plump, clean shaven man, with slick black hair, dressed in an expensive looking dark suit. Finally, he began to speak with a curious accent, a combination of Brooklynese and Mexican: "What is the dream of every man...every woman... everyone who ever worked, worked, worked their lives away yearning for their own little piece of paradise, a place to relax, a place to unwind, a place to get away from it all, and most of all, a place that they actually can call their own​, that no one can ever take away, their own little slice of heaven...and best of all, an investment​ in the future, that they can enjoy forever with their family...Sound too good to be true, well my friends, soon it will be if you don't jump on it, .... as God is my witness, there are people waiting in the wings for this opportunity, we're selling this real estate so fast that it'll may well be gone tomorrow.. and all because it's the hottest concept to come along in many years -- vacation ownership​! You don't just rent it and just forget about it, you don't just dream about it..., you ​own it, ...you have ​title​ to it..are ​invested​ in it...​ it's there for you any time you want..." On and on he went, with this onslaught of salesmanship, this ​tour de force ​presentation, buttressed by an impressive slide show of the resort's opulent amenities, exotic features, and so Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

39. on. Ryan decided to look around the darkened room. Kiersten was downing another cocktail. He looked back at Bob, who seemed to acknowledge him with a resolute nod, as if to say, "go for it". Gerty was almost swooning, apparently overwhelmed by the sheer, brute force of Frank's sales rhetoric. And after a while, mercifully, it was over, for even Ryan was becoming soft. He had heard stories about this kind of thing before, and knew that they were playing him. The lights came on again. He got up, and was about to walk out, tugging at Kiersten, when he noticed that there a peculiar looking fellow at their side, "Arturo", a swarthy, sweaty little man with a brushy mustache, and a slow, drawling Mexican accent. Arturo, when introducing himself, shook Ryan's hand so emphatically that it seemed he literally would not let go. He insisted that they accompany him in to a side office, and discuss the details of it. Ryan, finally freeing himself from Arturo's iron clad grasp, began to fight back. He wasn't about to buy a 'timeshare'. He would have no part of this. He had stayed on, fulfilled his part of the deal, and it was time to go. But wait, 'Seńor', this wasn't a 'timeshare' at all, no, no, no...far, far from it... this was ​vacation ownership ... infinitely different, infinitely better…. he wouldn't be 'investing' in this particular resort, he was buying ​points​ in a whole ​network​ of resorts, each one more exotic than the next, all over the world... "…can you only imagine (?), come on, I geeve you the details..." By now, Kiersten was really sauced, and was in no condition to resist. And suddenly, there was Conchita, tugging at Ryan's shirt sleeve, beckoning him along, with Arturo, to the quiet little office on the side. For what seemed like eternity, Arturo finessed Ryan, often stepping out to confer with his 'manager' to address the issues with some new proposal, some new enticement, some new sweetening of the pot. While he did, invariably Conchita would show, plying him with more alcohol, while she hovered over, cleavage clinging - pure feminine guile. (Kiersten was all but Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

40. passed out off to the side). And so it went on, hour after hour, they tag teamed him, trying to wear him down. But Ryan was no wilting lily. In a last ditch act of defiance, he announced that he was ready to leave, got up, and stumbled across the room where he tried to rouse Kiersten. She came to herself a little, and also stood up, tenuously, but then staggered backward, and bashed her head on the wall. Now she was really out like a light. "Call an ambulance, ​for crying out loud​, we have to get her to a hospital!" But Arturo's beady eye's seemed to narrow to little slits: "Seńor, you don't understand, the ambulances don't come out here….now we can get jooor wife back to town, ​no problema​, but first you have to sign on the dotted line…" And the rest, as they say, is history. Suffice it to say that Ryan became the not-so-proud owner of a Mexican timeshare. He would pay on it for many years, religiously, for fear of ruining his credit, though he never actually went there. Kiersten never became obligated on it, of course, because she was almost brain dead. All in all, the vacation didn't exactly 'make' their relationship. Kiersten would eventually leave Ryan for a Hungarian stock boy. But not before they sat there in the Cancun International Airport, waiting for their flight, a seat between them, sulking. And then Ryan thought he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. It was Bob and Gerty, in the airport lounge, drinking some kind of toast with a beady-eyed, peculiar looking fellow. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

41. CHAPTER SIX TIMESHARE ADVERTISING (Or lack Thereof) Normally you don't notice the absence of something unless it's a very prominent part of your life. So you would probably never have noticed the fact that there are no ads for timeshares, at least not in the mainstream media. We've noticed it, simply because we're involved with timeshares on a daily basis. Think about it. Timesharing is a multi-billion dollar industry, and extremely lucrative. You would expect to see extensive advertising. But this is simply not the case. So why are there no ads for timeshares? It really all comes down to one simple issue: Credibility. Or the lack thereof. To be clear, it is simply impossible to tell the truth about a timeshare, and then expect the customer to actually purchase one. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

42. A little background is necessary to appreciate this. Once upon a time, marketing types engaged copiously in a practice known as 'puffing.' Puffing was just a euphemism for ​lying​, created by legal apologists for the advertising industry. And although the term 'puffing' was never intended as a pun, it was perfectly exemplified in the advertising and marketing of the tobacco industry prior to about 1960. Until about that time, ads touting the relative merits of cigarette smoking - including its ​health​ benefits - could be seen on network television. Even commercials with phony doctors plugging smoking as some kind of elixir were relatively common. More recently, however, consumer protection statutes and FTC regulations have reduced flagrant puffing to a considerable extent. So would-be puffers now run the risk of civil litigation by private parties, competitors, or an attorney general, if they are caught prevaricating. And all of this has led to an interesting media marketing dynamic that has really evolved only in the past decade or so -- on-air disclaimers. You cannot help but notice all of the verbal disclaimers that you will hear, if you listen at all, during waning seconds of a car commercial, for example. The manufacturer or dealer will trumpet the blockbuster financing deals on its car. But then toward the end of the ad the narrator, reading the proverbial 'fine print', begins to talk faster and faster about the ​actual​ terms and conditions of their lease or finance agreement, so fast that he is virtually unintelligible. Much faster, even, than a cartoon chipmunk. This concern about legal exposure has curtailed false representations in pharmaceutical marketing to such an extent that you can't help but wonder who would ever ​dream​ of actually taking these drugs. Surely you've seen it. The television ad effusively presents the incredible benefits of some new wonder drug. Imagery includes happy, healthy looking people doing some wonderful, active things, like jogging down a sunny tree-lined road. Even the music sounds healthy. But then something odd happens. The cheerful, upbeat background music continues, and the people keep jogging down the same road, but the narrator takes a turns down the dirty back road. He begins to disclose, under compulsion, the numerous drug 'side effects'. And these Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

43. 'effects' almost invariably seem to include debilitating maladies, chronic illnesses, and even death. Remarkably, doctors still prescribe, and patients still take, these medications. In light of all this, now consider a product that is so inherently flawed, so bereft of meritorious benefit, that it literally can't even be advertised. ​At all​. But this is precisely what you get with a timeshare. Simply put, no sane, reasonably informed individual would buy into a timeshare obligation. But you won't catch any TV ad man reading the fine print, so you're going to have to do it yourself. And chances are you're already home, and it's a little late for that. You'll notice that the timeshare developer may or may not let you access '​your' ​ unit, once a year, its discretion, assuming that it's not overbooked, and provided that you have enough 'points'. Read on, and you'll choke - you can't ​re-sell​ that unit after all - not like the nice salesman said - not without the ​consent​ of the developer. And what's this(?), further down, some disclaimer about 'no resale market'? But you will ​only​ find this out if you read the fine print of the contract. Don't expect the salesman to shout it from the rooftops. And don't look for it on TV. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

44. CHAPTER SEVEN TIMESHARE POINTS The Reality behind the "Points" System of Timeshare Ownership The concept of a timeshare 'point' is an interesting one. The 'points' system was created in order to circumvent certain innate restrictions on timeshare sales created by the necessity of recording deeds as a matter of public record. This public disclosure effectively prevented developers from Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

45. selling a given unit more than 52 times in the average case. Thus, once a given resort was sold out, the developer had no choice but to build new facilities in order to keep on selling. Undeterred, the developers, particularly ​Diamond​ Resorts International and ​Wyndham​, came up with a brilliant if disingenuous notion. Market the timeshare not at a specific location, but rather as a generic 'ownership' interest in all of their resorts. This concept, on the surface, can be made to sound far more appealing than a single deeded interest in a specified unit to which one must return time after time. Indeed, they are selling ​vacation​ ownership, not timeshares. Posh, opulent destinations all over the world. Thus, this was a brilliant marketing coup. And ​voila​, in the ultimate serendipity for the developer, they are now free to overbook with impunity, selling the same 'point's interests in the same resorts again and again, because the developer doesn't have to record deeds anymore. No building required. Some dissembling, perhaps, but no building. Now, for a moment, try to imagine these points as a kind of currency. After all, that's how they're being touted. So now, many or most developers have gone to the points system. There even exists points 'exchanges' or 'networks', concepts implying a free market trading environment where points are bought and sold at arm's length like other investment securities with intrinsic value. But this notion is fundamentally flawed, for many reasons: Initially, RCI, Interval, and other points exchange networks, unlike an actual exchange network in investment securities, do ​not​ trade interchangeable 'points' given through other developers. Thus, there exists no financial mechanism to convert the value of a ​Wyndham​ 'point' to that of an Diamond, Bluegreen, or Silverleaf 'point'. Also, the value of a 'point' with any given developer is almost completely arbitrary, and thus cannot be commoditized. Moreover, these 'points' lack positive innate value, i.e., they involve a liability component (financing costs and annual dues) that generally exceeds the value of whatever benefit that they confer. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

46. This is apparent from the fine print of RCI's disclosure statement, revealing the following: Network privileges may be suspended, terminated or denied, or a Confirmed Exchanged cancelled at the Network Administrator’s sole discretion if a Member’s Vacation Ownership Expenses or other charges have not been paid when due. Thus, unlike other investment securities, which are generally bought and paid for, you must continue to pay for your points. If you don't, you'll simply lose them. There are a number of unofficial 'exchanges', run by third parties, which purport to broker RCI and other points like stocks and bonds. These carry no sanctioning by RCI or any other entity of any kind, and are generally rife with fraud. Another piece of information from the RCI disclosure statement: ​Because vacation exchange is used intermittently as an adjunct to Vacation Ownership, potential Vacation Owners should select a Resort that best meets their ongoing vacation needs. A Member’s decision to purchase Vacation Ownership should be based primarily upon the benefits to be gained from the ownership, use and enjoyment of the Vacation Ownership and not upon the anticipated benefits of the RCI Points Exchange Program. RCI is not responsible for the financial viability or the quality of accommodations, facilities, amenities, management and services at any Resort, Inventory provider or Points Partner. In other words, the points don't represent an 'investment', properly speaking. Nor are the points necessarily going to get one anywhere else in the 'network', so he or she should really like the 'host' resort. Finally, and perhaps most damningly, the very reason for the invention of the 'points' system involved the inability to easily overbook while on a deed system. Needless to say, the practice of selling potentially unlimited points in a finite number of resort units is incredibly dilutionary. It's like minting money arbitrarily, with no backing, no standard to adhere to. Or issuing unlimited Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

47. stock backed by a company's limited assets. That is why the ten thousand points you bought just a few years ago can't get you to Maui anymore. Heck, you can't even get to Hoboken. And at the rate they're selling them, in a year or two you'll be lucky to get to the outhouse. Case Study - Rick and Bonnie Rick and Bonnie were empty-nesters living in Philly. The 'kids' were grown now, Rachel and Tommy, out in the work force, with lives of their own. But your children are always your kids, and Bonnie missed them terribly. She kept leaning on Rick to arrange an extended family vacation. "Our door's always open. They're welcome to come see us any time," was Rick's standard retort. "It's not the same. They don't want to come back here and be treated like kids again. We need to get out somewhere together on a ​real​ vacation. What about that timeshare we never use?" Finally, Rick gave in. Bonnie called the kids, and they coordinated their schedules. Rick had been paying forever, year in and year out, for that timeshare they hadn't used since the kids were still in their teens. He went online to look at his list of resort options. Finally, he called his developer to try and arrange something. "We'd like to stay in Carlsbad, California at the Playa del Sol" "I'm so sorry, but you don't have enough points." "Points? We have a deed." "I apologize, but that resort was bought out recently. It's under new management, and we're now on the points system." Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

48. "Does my deed convert to points?" "Yes. 10,000 points." "Okay. Well, that sounds like a lot. I can't get back to Carlsbad for that?" "No sir. That would require more points?" "How many more? "Two hundred thousand more." "Well where can I go with 10,000 points?" "Destinations include the Salty Dog Inn located in Yellow Knife, the Truncheon Club Hotel located in Saskatoon, and the Motel 7 located in Fargo." "How much do I have to pay to get 200,000 points? "Ten cents a point". "That doesn't sound so bad, but wait, that's ….$20,000 - this is highway ​robbery​…you take my deed away, and now you want $20,000 just to give me back what I already bought and paid for…?" " We do have available wonderful upgrades for only 70,000 more points." "Upgrades? I had a deed. A deed. I want my deed back." "You would have to take that up with our legal department Sir." "What, and hire a ​lawyer​ to deal with them? Where can 70,000 more points get me? Somewhere warm, I hope." "The Rainwater Resort on Monsoon Bay, the Himalayan in Altoona, the …" Eventually Rick settled on Monsoon, if only because it was supposed to be warm there. Little did Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

49. he realize at the time that it's located in India. And so the family vacation turned out to be more expensive than Rick had hoped. In fact, he almost had to take out a mortgage to pay for the 70,000 points. Plus, airfare to India, for the entire family, set him back another $10,000. Suffice it to say that Rick is not about to retire any time soon. And as the name would imply, it turned out to be monsoon season, raining continually through the family stay. But at least they got some quality time in at close quarters. So close, in fact, that the 'kids' began to squabble, just like in old times, when they'd cram into the car for weekend road trips to Atlantic City. On the flip side, Bonnie no longer badgers Rick to take a family vacation. She seems to have gotten over it. On a lark, Rick recently decided to try and book another vacation through the developer, by himself. A vacation from his vacation, in essence. "Your 80,000 points can get you to the Salty Dog Inn located in Yellow Knife, the Truncheon Club Hotel located in Saskatoon, and the Motel 7 located in Fargo. "What about the Himalayan in Altoona, or even the Monsoon? We just stayed there…." "That will require another 50,000 points." "​Aughhh​…What else can I get with the points I own? Somewhere warm, at least?" " Summer season options include the Hardscrabble Hostel in Waco, the Swamp Lodge in Okeechobee, ...the Cactus Tavern in Laredo, …." Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779

50. Aaronson Law Group 2180 W. State Road 434, Suite 6136 Longwood, FL 32779