TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Timeshare Assoc wants government enforcement

I think we have had this conversation before, I guess it was all talk and no action then also.

Nice that they’re dealing with this scratch-off vending and the OPCs, but IMO, far better if they were to deal with the few timeshare management companies and their slippery handling of timeshare management at some island properties with reference to their post Irma repair schedule and/or lack of information regarding the handling of same.

I happen to own time at one of those ‘slippery handler’ properties where, coincidentally a high ranking member of the SMTA is (or at least was.....) living with her significant other. More interesting to us, this is one of the few timeshares on the island not a member of SMTA and not mentioned at all in another timeshare article the Daily Herald ran a few months back.

As irritating as those scratch off people can be, and they CAN BE, there are at least a couple hundred timeshare owners at this one property being effected by this and we already support the island and have been, many for thirty plus years already.

Sour grapes on my part, I know, but there’s been no governmental help at all for our situation and possibly that of other owners at other properties?

You summed it up beautifully, as usual, Pat. Hubby and I agree 1000%!!!
It is "interesting" that The Towers is not a member of SMTA- not that it really matters!

Back in the '90s SXM was my first exposure to the timeshare hucksters.

My ex and I were driving back from Rouge towards the airport and in front of Saphire were a couple of huge speed bumps that forced you to drive at a snail’s pace. With windows rolled down in our non-AC car we were prime pickings for the ladies on the side of the road who were pushing you to do a Saphire pitch.

We stopped, did the tour and wasted an hour of prime sun tanning time. The price I recall was $30k a week which was beyond our means. I think we got a free dinner near the casino and it was walking into that area later that same day that we were approached by a pretty lady offering free cat sailing to Prickly Pear in exchange for sitting through a pitch for the building across the road from the casino, whose name escapes me but you all know which one.

This time I was not going to be tricked out of good beach time and wanting a sailboat experience we agreed but only later the next day at 4 PM. What an idiot I was to pick that time. In this huge sales office we were the only couple surrounded by about 8 pitchmen. The unit was $7K a week, $700 down.

There is a current TV ad by the guy who promises to get you and your family out of timeshare deals and in that ad he comments that timeshare sales people are the only realty people who cannot tell you what your ongoing costs will be on a never ending commitment. I remember pushing back and asking what guarantees are there that once the units are all sold that the annual fees will not skyrocket. Dead air.

At the time that we were visiting SXM it was late Nov just before the American Thanksgiving weekend. We explained to the boss salesperson that (1) we were there to listen, (2) we were not making a commitment on the spot (3) the upcoming weekend, when we returned home, was when we sat down with our friends to book and make a deposit on our Cape Hatteras rental the following August.

He countered with “its only $700”. I said it’s $700 plus monthly payments on the $7K and our $700 deposit is currently spoken for as the Hatteras deposit. He counters : include your friends. I say I cannot commit them without speaking to them first. He passes a big black rotary phone : “call them”. I say “they are at their remote cottage closing it down on Thanksgiving” . (the only lie on my part….Canadian Thanksgiving is in Oct).

He then pulls out the big RCI directory book, goes to the Hatteras section and says “do you know of the Barrier Station Resort in Duck” which was exactly in the area that we were renting at the time although we later moved north to Corolla. He said “I will give you and your friends access to 2 units for 2 weeks next summer and 2 weeks the following year”. In the 90s those 2 weeks were worth about $4k each year at market rates so the value was more that the SXM value.

That is when I really got nervous about a deal being too good to be true. Maybe I was wrong but this guy was shaking us down so hard that I finally told them that we were leaving because it was getting unpleasant and he could keep his free sailboat rides for someone else. He backed off and realized that we were not buying and to have us walk away “happy” he still gave us the sailboat tickets.

(Which in the end cost me more than $7k as I fell in love with sailing, we sailed the BVI’s 3x, I bought a small sailboat here in Toronto, yada, yada, yada)

I do like the mental challenges of doing battle with time share hucksters but my 2nd S/O will no longer accompany me on those battles. If I want to do timeshare pitches again I will have to find a 3rd wife which of course is going to cost me a lot more than a sailboat to make that change.

When it comes to timeshares over the years I've heard some positive stories from owners and a lot of negative.
I find a lot of times the management companies are remiss in proper upkeep of properties while at the same time quite diligent when it comes to fee collections.
Over the years we have stayed at the Sapphire, Ocean Club, Westin, Towers, Divi, Marys Boon, one opposite Sonesta Maho.
Of these I found only the Ocean Club and the Towers well kept as well kept as well as clean.
In others problems ranged from leaky pipes, faulty appliances, to cockroaches, dust and grime.

So definitely management companies need to do better.

Also the government of sxm needs to introduce some legislation to protect timeshare owners.
One of the worst horror stories I know of is where owners sold all units..then property had financial issues so in order to loose creditors and increase revenue ..owner did sale to his friend.. in no time original owners "bought back" property.
All the time share owners of course lost their rights and who cares no one, now supposedly they are given crumbs maybe a discount on bookings after ..maybe discount on inflated rate.

"I do like the mental challenges of doing battle with time share hucksters but my 2nd S/O will no longer accompany me on those battles. If I want to do timeshare pitches again I will have to find a 3rd wife which of course is going to cost me a lot more than a sailboat to make that change."

Funny 😂 iamcdn

But true divorce sure is costly.