Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona is warning of “Timeshare Reseller” scams- which have been ubiquitous since the housing crash in 2008.

“There are almost endless variations of timeshare resale fraud,” warns Kim States, BBB president. “Timeshare owners need to be wary of companies promising to market and sell properties on their behalf.

Detect fraud red flags:

• Upfront Payments: Be cautious of advance fees. Opt for a company that charges fees only after the property is sold.
• Cash or Wire Transfer Only: Scammers will oftentimes demand that buyers pay with cash or wire transfer so that it makes it next to impossible to get the money back. Use a credit card so that it’s easier to dispute the charges.
• Failure to Disclose Information: Watch out for unlicensed companies and ones that refuse to provide a phone number or address.
• Unqualified Guarantees: Be wary of “money-back” guarantees and promises that a timeshare can be sold within a certain period of time.
• High Pressure: Ask companies to provide paperwork. Get all promises, fees and obligations in writing. Don’t be pressured; think it over and seek advice from an unbiased legal professional.

Check with BBB for complaints and alerts, or visit www.tucson.bbb.org for more consumer news and tips.

Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona is warning consumers about Midwest Timeshares, a Wisconsin-based timeshare reseller that has racked up 70 complaints, including two from Tucson consumers.

The company, which has also done business as National Timeshare Resale (“NTR”) and Integrated Advertising Solutions, has an “F” rating with the BBB, the lowest grade possible. Complainants tell the BBB that the company charged them upfront fees, claiming they had a waiting buyer, but the buyer never materialized and promised refunds were never received.

BBB has sent several requests to the company asking it to verify its techniques in finding buyers for timeshares and to provide name and contact information for customers whose timeshares were sold. However, Midwest Timeshares has not responded to BBB’s requests.

“If you want to sell your timeshare, contact a real estate agent”, says Kim States, BBB President. “Do not pay money to a stranger that you have only spoken with over the phone that you have never seen nor met.”
States says, “I understand that our economy has been struggling, and some timeshare owners may be desperate to rid themselves of their investment and make some money. Unfortunately, scammers are capitalizing on this desperation. And by the time they realize that they were scammed, it may be too late to get a refund through their credit card company.”

If you are interested in selling your timeshare, BBB offers the following tips:

• Be wary of too-good-to-be-true resale claims. The company’s salespeople may claim that the market in the area where our property is located is “hot” or that they have already received a buyer request. Be skeptical of these claims.
• Be careful if you’re asked to pay a large fee upfront. Smaller fees for appraisals, etc. are customary for a real estate transaction. However, if you’re asked to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars up front, this should be seen as a red flag.
• Check with the Better Business Bureau to see what type of a report it has on the firm.  Also check to see if any complaints have been processed and, if so, how did the company respond?
• Request a written contract and read it. What cancellation rights do you have? If you were promised the company would sell your timeshare, but you don’t see that clause in the contract, don’t sign it.
• Check with your state to see if the salespeople are licensed to sell timeshares or if they are licensed real estate brokers and whether there are any complaints on file against them.
• You may want to try to sell your timeshare “by owner” by placing an ad in a newspaper or magazine. Or, list your timeshare with a licensed real estate broker.

For more information or further inquiries, please contact the BBB at (520)888-5353, or visit www.tucson.bbb.org to find a business you can trust. For more consumer news, follow BBB on Twitter or like them on Facebook.

Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona is warning timeshare owners not to do business with U.S. Financial Trust of America- a company claiming a fictitious Tucson address- which is scamming timeshare owners across the country.

BBB has received three complaints alleging that US Financial Trust contacted them via telephone, claiming that they had found buyers for the consumers’ timeshares. Consumers say that US Financial Trust told them that they would charge an opening and closing fee for the sales of the properties, then wire payment for the properties into the consumers’ bank accounts. In each case consumers tell BBB that the company disappeared after they had paid the opening and closing fees.

Kenneth Anderson, a consumer from Illinois, told BBB that U.S. Trust Financial called him on a daily basis for weeks with new details about a supposed deal to sell his timeshare, but once he paid the fees with a credit card he never heard from the company again.

A Tennessee consumer paid US Trust Financial over $5,000 in fees for the supposed sale of five (more…)