Timeshare Resale Scam for Playa Del Sol in PV, MX

WARNING! We were called and told by a real estate co., Holiday Property Management, Inc from Ohio, that they had a buyer for our timeshare at Playa del Sol Grand in Nuevo Vallarta, MX that would pay us $25,900 US. Were we interested in selling? We said we were and they emailed us a proposal for the sale. Then we were contacted by the "escrow company" out of Texas handling this for the buyer. They went over the details and how it would be handled. In order to proceed we had to sign a contract with the real estate company. Before signing, luckily the agent went over some of the details in the contract that he had emailed us. All of a sudden it was stated that we had to pay the timeshare title transfer fee of 10% of the price before the escrow company could wire transfer the money to us.
The escrow company stated that they had the sale price money, plus a reimbursement of the title transfer fee in an account from the buyer. Therefore we would get that money back. So we told the escrow agent to go back to the buyer and just take that reimbursement money out of the account and send it to MX for the title transfer. They refused to do that. We got suspicious then and had this proposal checked out by an online group at www.justanswer.com which gives you advice from lawyers.
They came back with the news that the web site was new and the address for the real estate was either a vacant lot or another business. FALSE in other words.
We are sure that what this scam wanted was for us to send the 10% title transfer fee - $2,590 - and then we would never hear from them again. We also found in the real estate contract a statement that said if the seller backs out of the deal after signing the contract they still have to pay the fee. If the buyer backs out, the seller will get half of the sales price. You know that is not going to happen, but it makes it sound like they are an honest company. The best thing is to NEVER sign the real estate contract because then they can take you to court. We did not sign it and we are sure that we saved ourselves from being taken in this scam.
Again the real estate company is Holiday Property Management, Inc (which has a web site and looks official [link removed] out of Ohio and the escrow company is Reliance escrow out of Texas (which also has a web site [link removed]. Right now they seem to be targeting Playa del Sol Grand in MX, but that might change.
Hope this helps someone not to get scammed.

Sorry to say this is a very common scam nowadays.

The fact they said they had a buyer willing to pay $25,900 for a MX timeshare which probably couldn't sell for $1 on eBay is a big yellow (neon) flag.

Congratulations for being cautious and not getting into this.

Cass said:

We were called and told by a real estate co., Holiday Property Management, Inc from Ohio, that they had a buyer for our timeshare at Playa del Sol Grand in Nuevo Vallarta, MX that would pay us $25,900 US.

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That should have told you that this was a scam from the get-go.

Legitimate brokers do not do cold-calls claiming to have a buyer.
Legitimate brokers offer a contract signed by a buyer, not them,
take a commission from the proceeds, and the price does not emit
such an odor of greed, designed to make one lose their senses.

Congrats on sniffing this one out.

I too got a similiar call on my Playa Del Sol timeshare, different companies then the ones mentioned above. They did offer us the same amount $25,900, I laughed at him. Got the standard bogus story of some company is buying them up for a retreat and wants to pay more for a tax write off.

I've been playing along - and was just contacted by the so-called escrow company saying funds are there. Now they want to have a recorded conversation to go over the contract.

I expect this is where I'd be asked to fork over the closing costs or the 8% commision they want.

Reseller is Vacation International, INC, out of Grand Rapids MI [link removed]

Escrow compnay is Alliance Title out of Eugene OR [link removed]

I did some searching on the domain names using who.is

Both were registered in April of this yr and both days apart, and they both use the same server.

I also did some checking on the company listed above, also registered in April on the same server as the 2 companies that called me..

Just want to get a warning out to others..

Cheers

Just got one too

This guy was from globalmarketsolution.com for my PDS, the offer was $17,950. All they want is a 5% handling fee to be paid after the money is received. The bit about the up front fee for the sale will probably be in the sales contract which has yet to arrive

cobourgladdie said:

This guy was from globalmarketsolution.com for my PDS, the offer was $17,950. All they want is a 5% handling fee to be paid after the money is received. The bit about the up front fee for the sale will probably be in the sales contract which has yet to arrive

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I received one also. It was originally for Club Regina, but I told them I didn't want to sell that one, but would consider my Playa del Sol. THen they sent me one for Playa del Sol. It looks pretty convincing. No fees (5%) until after I get my money. Yikes!:hysterical:

More on timeshare resale scam for PDS

FYI,
After I posted my first information, I received an email from PDS saying the below.

____________________________________
Dear Members:

It has being brought to our attention that several "Ghost" companies have being contacting Members for this and other Vacation Clubs within Mexico... even though this professional scammers change their tactics and the companies names (So people cannot find their frauds on line) we have identified three different name for this "Ghost entities"

International Properties (Supposedly based on Chicago)
Holiday Property Management (Supposedly based on Ohio)
Dallas Resale Group (Supposedly based on... Dallas)
Vacation International Inc (supposedly based on Michigan)
Luxury Property Management (Suppossedly based on Dallas)
Typical Scams:

One of the current scams that we have received a significant number of complaints about is the resale scam. Timeshare owners are being targeted by fraudsters who are offering to sell their weeks for them.
The victims are being asked to pay upfront fees for any number of reasons and then hear nothing more from the scammers - no sales, no refunds. Others are duped into parting with upfront cash - often hundreds or even thousands of dollars - only to find that the supposed buyer has dropped out of the deal. They are then lured to a foreign country to meet a "corporate buyer" who is interested in buying their week.

How to stay safe
If you receive an unsolicited contact i.e. a cold call
If someone requests any form of upfront payment. Common reasons for an upfront fee are: Escrows, deposits, administration fees, bonds of trust, surety against withdrawal, insurance cover, validity survey, land registry tax, certificate charge and VAT
If someone assures you your payment would be fully protected under laws governing the use of Credit Card
If someone asks for your credit card, debit card or bank details but assure you they will not take any payment.
If someone suggests they can obtain an unexpected or unrealistic high price.
If someone says they have a buyer waiting to buy your particular timeshare product.
If someone asks you to send them your Ownership Certificate.
If someone applies undue pressure for a decision within a short time period.

These people have unlimited imaginations when it comes to stealing your money so don't trust them - no matter how convincing and reassuring they may seem.

Contact your resort when receiving a "Cold Call " (Unsolicited).
____________________________

Just last night I got another one of these calls. They wanted to know if I wanted to sell a timeshare I got rid of several years ago! They need to update their information!

I am so stupid

I was taken by paying off the balance of my timeshare so they could sell it. How stupid can I be. They still think they are getting mor eof my money next week when I send them the VAT fee or whatever they call it. I need to know How I can file a legal claim againist them urteam@sbcglobal.com

Vacation International Playa del sol scam

I was ready to pay an attorney $500 to check this out since they were using what appeared to be a legitimate Title Company. but I did a little more checking and discovered quite by accident that the CEO of Alliance Title is also the CEO for Vacation International.

I contacted the FTC and filed a complaint. I have a report number 31006732. I don't know what the FTC will do, but if they continue to receive complaints, they may do something.

I am not completely unhappy with my PDS membership, probably wouldn't do it again. It is nice to know I can spend a month down there for about $300/week. I'd sell it in a heartbeat for a lot less than I paid for it though.

Another three phone calls and no request for money yet, I have signed the contract they offered and am waiting to hear for the request for money - none yet.

cobourgladdie said:

Another three phone calls and no request for money yet, I have signed the contract they offered and am waiting to hear for the request for money - none yet.

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Have they requested any credit card or banking information yet?

I still smell a rat for someone who calls you out of the blue claiming (s)he has a buyer ready to lay down over $17000 for a timeshare in Mexico.

Yep they called me to go over the contract - I flat out told the guy I wasn't interested if any money ever had to come from me - and not from the escrow account. He got quiet and said there was a 10% closing cost fee or something that needed to be paid by me. I told him I wasn't interested in his scam and I was reporting him.

Last I have heard from him...

Global Marketing Solutions

I received a call from Global Marketing Solutions asking if I want to sell my timeshare. They said I will only pay them a commission of 5% after I received the money for the timeshare. Well, it was an offer I could not refuse.

So far, they have sent me:
- a contract
- a letter from the escrow company confirming that the buyer has deposited the money
- a transfer form for Change of Ownership
- a tax form from the Mexican government that says I owe $3,200 in property sales tax
- options on how to pay the tax
- a letter that guarrantees they will refund the $3,200 in taxes if the deal does not go through

I have signed the contract, now they are asking me to give $3,200 USD to the escrow company - Banamex for SAT tax that I owe to the Mexican government. They have sent me all the banking information to deposit the money to the escrow company.

They are insisting that I need to pay the Mexican taxes before the deal can proceed. Is it true? I am afraid to give them money and never receive anything for the sale of the ts.

I have already read the warning of TUG regarding giving money away before receiving any. But is it true that the Mexican government must receive tax money first?

crazycat said:

I have signed the contract, now they are asking me to give $3,200 USD to the escrow company - Banamex for SAT tax that I owe to the Mexican government. They have sent me all the banking information to deposit the money to the escrow company.

They are insisting that I need to pay the Mexican taxes before the deal can proceed. Is it true? I am afraid to give them money and never receive anything for the sale of the ts.

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No it's not true. The Mexican tax payment is pure fabrication and has become one of the most prevalent stories used to pry money from owners.

Thanks for the info Steve.

Holiday Property Management, Inc from Ohio [SCAM]

man the scams are coming hard and heavy..
thanks for the heads up.


Playa del Sol Grand in Nuevo Vallarta, MX


just getting some of the names in the post.. google will get info from title as well.

T_R_Oglodyte said:

No it's not true. The Mexican tax payment is pure fabrication and has become one of the most prevalent stories used to pry money from owners.

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SO how do you know that Steve?

cobourgladdie said:

SO how do you know that Steve?

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Good question! Steve?

cobourgladdie said:

This guy was from globalmarketsolution.com for my PDS, the offer was $17,950. All they want is a 5% handling fee to be paid after the money is received. The bit about the up front fee for the sale will probably be in the sales contract which has yet to arrive

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Any up front fees yet?

cobourgladdie said:

SO how do you know that Steve?

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crazycat said:

Good question! Steve?

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From having personally bought and sold timeshares in Mexico on the resale market.

**********

There are some significant taxes for transferring real estate in Mexico (cf.) The scammers will reference the real estate tax to create an impression that tax is due. However, virtually no timeshares in Mexico are real estate; they are all either trust memberships or right-to-use memberships in vacation clubs.

****

There are frequent discussions of closing costs and requirements for various Mexican timeshares here and TS4Ms. If this truly were required, it would be broadly and generally discussed. The only context in which mention of this tax ever occurs is in connection with the upfront fee artists.

However, virtually no timeshares in Mexico are real estate; they are all either trust memberships or right-to-use memberships in vacation clubs.

This is why they are targeting "Deeded" TSs and by the way no upfront money asked for yet.

cobourgladdie said:

However, virtually no timeshares in Mexico are real estate; they are all either trust memberships or right-to-use memberships in vacation clubs.

This is why they are targeting "Deeded" TSs and by the way no upfront money asked for yet.

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Being ocean front, I'm pretty sure there is no way that Playa del Sol can be deeded property, since it is illegal for foreign nationals to own ocean front property in Mexico. That's one reason, among many, why deeded timeshares are rare, if they exist at all, in Mexico.

The scam is obvious.

Want to see my deed Steve? There's one for each timeshare sold at PDS, so when did you sell TS in Mexico?

Do you have a deed or Fideicomiso (bank trust) registered in your name? Or please explain how you got around the law prohibiting foreigners owning land within 50 km of the ocean?

My guess is that you have a Fideicomiso, since that is the vehicle almost always used to sell "deeds" to gringos.