My recent ebay experience

So I thought I would share our recent ebay purchase to see what other experiences people had, good or bad.

This year my husband and I decided to buy our 2nd timeshare. We were considering and later did, enroll in the MVCDC program with our Cypress Harbour that was also an ebay purchase from 2005. We really love Marriott but, we did consider Hilton and Disney. We decided that with a child getting married in the next year or so, we could purchase a lockoff and use the studio for the two of them. Then we could use the one bedroom for a second vacation. We choose Grande Vista because we are within driving distance of Orlando and we really enjoy traveling there.

Then began the hunt. We watched ebay to see how things were selling and I have to say, we were surprised at how low things were selling since our 2005 purchase. We eventually won at an amazing $200 plus fees bringing our total to $771. We were so excited....

June 2nd: won bid
June 4th: paid through paypal
June 6th: faxed copies and mailed
June 18th: received update from title co

So far so good. I waited till July 20th before I reached out to find out how things were progressing....This is where things get crazy.

July 23rd: paperwork has not been sent for ROFR!!
Aug 7th: nothing
Aug 23rd: we (title co) put a rush request on ROFR

This is where I decided to call Marriott resales for help. I explained my situation and claified that I mainly was double checking my title co and make sure I had been not been duped. Marriot did confirm that they knew my title co and had worked with them before but, noyhing was received concerning my unit # and week. I began sending FIRM but, polite emails. We did have to say that if things did not resolve soon we would request a full refund, file a complaint with ebay, contact our state attorny general, and the BBB of their area.

Sept 13th: passed ROFR (don't ask how we passed because I really can't explain)
Sept 20th: could view deed online

By October I felt like I could breath my 1st sigh of relief because it showed in my MVC account when I logged in. I am sharing my story because I am now wondering would I do an ebay purchase again knowing how stressful this whole process was? It's hard to say that I am angry or anything negative now that I am finished but, would I be crazy and go through all of it again just for a great deal? Probably so....:rofl:

i think the stress is something you laid on yourself. This stuff is not easy to get closed. especially since your title compamy may not even be in direct contact with the seller (Im thinking a pcc is involved)

In any case the title company needs the sellers signature on a contract to present to Marriott. and by your timeline Im guessing thats where the problem was. The seller may have had second thoughts.

Just be happy you got what you wanted at a good price. And now that you know what can happen there's no need to be stressed by the next deal. If you cant help yourself, find a broker that specializes in Marriott to help you.

I would say that your experience is not unlike many of the experiences of others. You really have to stay on top of the closing companies affiliated with the eBay buyer. If you scan around the buying/selling area, you will read the same story from many people who bought off eBay.

Its kind of the price we pay to get such a cheap deal. These outfits are not the most organized or on top of things. You did the right thing by being on top of them so they know you are going to be checking up on them.

ronparise said:

i think the stress is something you laid on yourself. This stuff is not easy to get closed. especially since your title compamy may not even be in direct contact with the seller (Im thinking a pcc is involved)

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My guess is that if it was a PCC, they should have had a POA for the seller and it should make for a rather quick transaction. Since in many cases the PCC and closing company are in a fairly close relationship. It should never take over a month for ROFR to be submitted to the resort developer.

OP: Your experience sounds like a perfectly normal or average eBay buying experience. IMO, the buyer really has to play a big role in these eBay purchases from performing due diligence before bidding to staying on top of the closing process. The companies that sell timeshares on eBay are selling tens if not hundreds at a time. It's like a flea market of timeshares - and the buyer really does need to research first and help manage the process later.

dioxide45 said:

My guess is that if it was a PCC, they should have had a POA for the seller and it should make for a rather quick transaction. Since in many cases the PCC and closing company are in a fairly close relationship. It should never take over a month for ROFR to be submitted to the resort developer.

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Please explain what a PCC is. They did have a POA for the seller but, not for us the buyer.

massvacationer said:

OP: Your experience sounds like a perfectly normal or average eBay buying experience. IMO, the buyer really has to play a big role in these eBay purchases from performing due diligence before bidding to staying on top of the closing process. The companies that sell timeshares on eBay are selling tens if not hundreds at a time. It's like a flea market of timeshares - and the buyer really does need to research first and help manage the process later.

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I think you are right. I just had such an easy going experience the first time that I was surprised when things went a little crazy. Now that I've had this experience it will help me in the future when I'm ready to buy again.

youcanfly said:

Please explain what a PCC is. They did have a POA for the seller but, not for us the buyer.

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Post Card Company

youcanfly said:

.

I began sending FIRM but, polite emails. We did have to say that if things did not resolve soon we would request a full refund, file a complaint with ebay, contact our state attorny general, and the BBB of their area.

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In today's world many things take more time than we would like. Checking with Marriott seems reasonable. Making threats seems like over kill.

George

youcanfly said:

Please explain what a PCC is. They did have a POA for the seller but, not for us the buyer.

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The buyer doesn't really ever have to sign anything, so POA for the buyer isn't really necessary. A PCC is otherwise known as a Post Card Company. They get the name because they solicit people by sending out post cards to get people to come to a presentation about how to unload their timeshare. When they will be coming to an area and setting up a a local hotel conference center for a couple days, they send out post cards to mailing lists that they have purchased.

They get people to believe that their timeshare is worthless and has $0 value. Thus getting them to pay the PCC thousands of dollars to unload their week. People sign a POA so when the PCC has a buyer, they don't have to go back to the seller/owner to get them to sign a deed. This can help the PCC hide the real value of the timeshare from the seller. Do you think the seller would have be happy to know they paid thousands of dollars to the PCC to get rid of their "worthless" unit if they knew that the PCC found a buyer for $200? The POA isolates the seller from the final transaction.

bogey21 said:

In today's world many things take more time than we would like. Checking with Marriott seems reasonable. Making threats seems like over kill.

George

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Sometimes threats are what works. When we were buying our first unit (not an ebay sale) the seller was dragging their feet. We had to threaten to cancel the whole contract before we got action. With the OP waiting almost two months before the ROFR is even submitted, I think that is grounds for making threats to go to the AG or BBB. That seems to get their attention.

Sorry but over 3 months for an ROFR answer is in no way normal. The other posters saying it is the norm are nuts. Your biggest mistake was not asking for an update on at least a weekly basis. These sellers are so sloppy that your paperwork could have been sitting on a desk collecting dust.

I recently had a closing with a PCC where everything went wrong. It was basically a double closing that got rejected and then became a triple closing. The original seller had transferred a deed to a trust a few years earlier but never submitted it to the resort so they rejected the Trust as a seller. They had to submit that original transfer to the resort, then it was transferred to the PCC, and then to me. That ended up being 2 ROFR requests, 3 transfer requests, and it still was completed before your single ROFR. It might not have been as quick if I did not pester them for updates continuously.

I have done deals like that one that is a double transfer but I have also done a traditional broker deal which is much more legitimate but not shorter on time. I recently did a deal where the PCC filled in my name as a buyer on dated paperwork from the seller so it looks like I bought it a month sooner than reality. They had the deed recorded in less than 3 hours. I'm like "huh?". That seems like fraud but as long as it goes through I don't care.

Saintsfanfl said:

Sorry but over 3 months for an ROFR answer is in no way normal. The other posters saying it is the norm are nuts. Your biggest mistake was not asking for an update on at least a weekly basis. These sellers are so sloppy that your paperwork could have been sitting on a desk collecting dust.

I recently had a closing with a PCC where everything went wrong. It was basically a double closing that got rejected and then became a tripple closing. The original seller had transferred a deed to a trust a few years earlier but never submitted it to the resort so they rejected the Trust as a seller. They had to submit that original transfer to the resort, then it was transferred to the PCC, and then to me. That ended up being 2 ROFR requests, 3 transfer requests, and it still was completed before your single ROFR. It might not have been as quick if I did not pester them for updates continuously.

I have done deals like that one that is a double transfer but I have also done a traditional broker deal which is much more legitimate but not shorter on time. I recently did a deal where the PCC filled in my name as a buyer on dated paperwork from the seller so it looks like I bought it a month sooner than reality. They had the deed recorded in less than 3 hours. I'm like "huh?". That seems like fraud but as long as it goes through I don't care.

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Moral of the story? Always write into the contract that if the transaction isn't completed within "X" amount of time then you get to walk away and you money is 100% refunded......

Unless of course you're willing to wait :hysterical:



.

Saintsfanfl said:

Sorry but over 3 months for an ROFR answer is in no way normal. The other posters saying it is the norm are nuts. Your biggest mistake was not asking for an update on at least a weekly basis. These sellers are so sloppy that your paperwork could have been sitting on a desk collecting dust.

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I agree. We became concerned because they (title co) reassured us that everything was at Marriott but, I don't think they expected me to confirm that info. After several rounds of this type of misleading information we did explain what we were expecting from that and what we were willing to do. If anything, this experience has taught me that follow ups are so important.

dioxide45 said:

The buyer doesn't really ever have to sign anything, so POA for the buyer isn't really necessary. A PCC is otherwise known as a Post Card Company. They get the name because they solicit people by sending out post cards to get people to come to a presentation about how to unload their timeshare. When they will be coming to an area and setting up a a local hotel conference center for a couple days, they send out post cards to mailing lists that they have purchased.

They get people to believe that their timeshare is worthless and has $0 value. Thus getting them to pay the PCC thousands of dollars to unload their week. People sign a POA so when the PCC has a buyer, they don't have to go back to the seller/owner to get them to sign a deed. This can help the PCC hide the real value of the timeshare from the seller. Do you think the seller would have be happy to know they paid thousands of dollars to the PCC to get rid of their "worthless" unit if they knew that the PCC found a buyer for $200? The POA isolates the seller from the final transaction.

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This explains alot. I wasn't concerned when we signed our contract and the seller was a vacation co. However when we reached August and Marriott still confirmed that they had not received anything, I requested a copy of what the title co was still insisting had been been sent. I was told they could not send that type of info because the seller was protected. I asked, isn't the vacation co the seller? I then explained that I had purchased a resale with Marriott before and I knew that their names would be on the deed when it was recorded and I didn't understand the problem. I felt like I was getting the runaround type of answers. Now I know.

I have made three purchases via eBay. Two were great, one was a nightmare. Choosing the right closing company seems to make all the difference. My nightmare had similar experiences to what you reported. In the end, I had to take over the process and work directly with Marriott to get the deal closed. I got the seller involved and he (gratefully) forced the closing company to issue a partial refund to me for the closing fees.

Can you please share the id of the eBay seller and also the name of the title company used? Good to know for warning to any future buyers.