Misleading Developer Sales Claims about Cypress Pointe

Stu · Aug 15, 2008

Reprinted with permission from Cypress Pointe Resort Condo Ass'n Board of Directors President John Chase:

"SPECIAL NOTICE 8/14/08:

There have been reports that Cypress Pointe Resort Phase 1 Owners are being told by sales personnel that a $2,500 Special Assessment is planned for 2009 for the planned renovation work in 2010. THIS IS NOT TRUE! The money for the major renovation planned is being collected in the annual reserve fee and all money should be in the bank prior to the start of the project. If anyone tells you there is a Special Assessment for Phase 1 take the name, number and let us know by phone or email. We do not want owners tricked by this unfounded rumor. And note that the 2009 annual fee is up by only $7 which includes the reserves for the renovation work."

The Board is investigating this matter thoroughly to protect its owners and the integrity and reputation of its Association, and is already attemping to contact a Developer representative to discuss this serious matter.

These sales personnel are NOT employed or affiliated with the CPR Condo. Association, but rather by the Developer. The owners reporting these recent practices have stated to CPR resort management that these false claims are apparently being made by both on-site and call center Developer sales personnel as a scare tactic to get unsuspecting CPR Phase 1 owners to tender their deeded CPR floating weeks to the Developer as part of Developer's effort to sell its undeeded club vacation point system and reclaim outstanding deeded inventory.

Best regards,
Stu Schwartz, Treasurer & Director
Cypress Pointe Resort Condominium Association Inc.

JudyS · Aug 15, 2008

Why is the developer even still involved in Cypress Pointe?

timeos2 · Aug 15, 2008

No Special Assessment

JudyS said:
Why is the developer even still involved in Cypress Pointe?

While Cypress Pointe Resort is sold out the developer still holds on site sales rights until 2017. As they no longer sell weeks the focus is on new sales of the multi-resort club or conversions of weeks owners to a points based/trust system. If that is a value to the owners its not a problem, but if they try to use deceptive claims regarding the current owners resort it is a big problem.

We are in contact with the proper representatives and hopefully will have this corrected ASAP.

We want to assure CPR owners that there are NO PLANS for any Special Assessment and in fact CPR may be one of the most financially solid and prepared timeshare resorts in all of Florida.

JoeMid · Aug 15, 2008

Are there ever any 'plans' for Special Assesments?
What might be the name of the Develper...

timeos2 · Aug 15, 2008

JoeMid said:
Are there ever any 'plans' for Special Assesments?

What might be the name of the Develper...

Absolutely there are plans for specail assessments. It can be painfully obvious when a resort is in trouble and an SA will most likely be the answer. We suffered through 2 in the past and vowed never to let poor planning or management let that happen again. Yet when our roofs were exposed as defective we had to consider yet another to fund the $3.5 million replacement. Fortunately our past SA had placed us in a favorable financial spot and we were able to obtain a loan for the roofs thus spreading the cost out over 10 years and avoiding another SA. It also allowed us to continue our aggressive reserve funding that will fund renovations and upgrades on a schedule to 2030 and beyond.

Our sister resort planned on a special assessment for over a year before actually doing it. One we had came up in a matter of a few weeks in 2001 (resort was practically bankrupt and needed operation funds). So it can happen almost anyway.

AwayWeGo · Aug 15, 2008

Were The Timeshare Sellers' Lips Moving ?

timeos2 said:
We are in contact with the proper representatives and hopefully will have this corrected ASAP.

Meanwhile, CPR's sister timeshare resort right across the street, affectionately known by owners over there as Phase Two, does have a big whopping Special Assessment that was just laid on this year-- so jynornmous that owners were given the option of coughing up the funds in annual installments over 3 years (or paying off the whole thing by mid-July 2008).

Even so, humongous as the Phase 2 special assessment is, it's nowhere close to the bogus $2,500 figure that the timeshare sellers apparently have been using to spread fear & uncertainty & doubt among current owners at Phase One.

Shame on'm -- the timeshare sellers, I mean, not the current owners at Phase One.

However that may be, have you noticed that Cypress Pointe resale availability at Phase One and Phase Two is diminishing?

I haven't seen any eBay offerings for either phase for ever so long -- not even those mini-UDI Phase 2 offerings which used to show up on eBay that might have been OK for off-season exchanges within T.H.E. Club but that by themselves are hardly good for much more than an afternoon in the pool at Cypress Pointe Grande Villas.

Sure, Cypress Pointe resales are still out there if you know where to look, including some at bargain prices. But in 355+ Florida timeshare resale offerings on eBay yesterday there were zero Cypress Pointe timeshares for sale on either side of the street.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

AwayWeGo · Aug 15, 2008

Timeshare Company Goofs Up & H. O. A. - B. O. D. Takes The Heat.

timeos2 said:
One we had came up in a matter of a few weeks in 2001 (resort was practically bankrupt and needed operation funds). So it can happen almost anyway.

OK, the buck always stops with the HOA-BOD & rightly so.

But didn't that 2001 Special Assessment happen right about the time the independent owner-controlled HOA-BOD initially took over from the developer-controlled puppet HOA-BOD that had let renovations & owner rolls & reserve funds all slide ?

That is, the new independent, owner-controlled HOA-BOD had to clean up the timeshare company's mess, no ?

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

AwayWeGo · Aug 15, 2008

Secret Code.

JoeMid said:
What might be the name of the Develper.

Don't know if that is allowed to be revealed.

Hint : The timeshare company named itself after a precious gemstone often featured in solitaire engagement rings.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

AwayWeGo · Aug 15, 2008

Anything Wrong With This Picture ?

OK, as a practical matter the timeshare resort is sold out. Units remain unsold from the timeshare company's original inventory, but the timeshare company is making no special effort to move those because it has moved on to selling pricey memberships in its newer & better fancypants timeshare exchange club.

So far, no problem.

But then the timeshare company's club sellers start talking up their club by talking down the timeshare resort. They go so far as to start spreading fear & uncertainty & doubt in the form of planting with current owners at the resort the idea that they are about to be smacked bigtime with a major serious Special Assessment.

"Horrors !" the owners say. "How on earth can we get out of that?"

"Easy," the timeshare club sellers say. "Just sign here. Pay us a bunch of money & sign over your deed to our club & you're good to go. And from now on you never need to worry about Special Assessments ever again."

I realize I'm old school & a semi-doofus to boot, but by me the timeshare club sellers (a) should be making good faith efforts to sell the remaining company-owned units at the timeshare resort and (b) should not be running down the very timeshare resort where they are conducting their sales presentations -- specially not with phony-baloney made-up scare stories.

Sheesh.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

JudyS · Aug 15, 2008

JoeMid said:
Are there ever any 'plans' for Special Assesments?

What might be the name of the Develper...

It may be that the Cypress Pointe Board is not allowed to discuss the name of the developer, I'm not sure. However, since I have no affiliation whatsoever with Cypress Pointe, I can tell you that it was developed by Sunterra, which was recently sold to Diamond Resorts.

As for plans for special assessments, one of my resorts was debating a special assessment for a while, although they ended up not having one. So, while special assessments do imply poor planning by definition, they do get planned sometimes, up to a year or two in advance or so.

AwayWeGo · Aug 15, 2008

It Didn't Start With SunTerra.

JudyS said:
However, since I have no affiliation whatsoever with Cypress Pointe, I can tell you that it was developed by Sunterra, which was recently sold to Diamond Resorts.

Yes, SunTerra was the official Developer Of Record there for a while, but I don't think SunTerra was the timeshare company that actually developed Cypress Pointe -- developed as in bought the land, got the financing, hired the architect, built the condo buildings & installed the resort amenities, & got started selling the units & I don't know what-all.

That is, I think SunTerra took over Cypress Pointe from some other timeshare company way back in the mists of semi-forgotten memory -- way before my time.

Full Disclosure : I am not on any timeshare HOA-BODs, though not for lack of trying. Earlier this year I got whupped good & proper in the voting for an open spot on the Cypress Pointe Phase Two HOA-BOD. My only current connection with Cypress Pointe Phase One is ownership of a Floating Diamond 3BR lock-off EEY unit there that I bought resale for next to nothing -- not that there's anything wrong with that.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

JoeMid · Aug 15, 2008

Maybe Signature Resorts or MMG Development Corp?

JudyS · Aug 15, 2008

AwayWeGo said:
....I think SunTerra took over Cypress Pointe from some other timeshare company way back in the mists of semi-forgotten memory -- way before my time....

Could very well be. But at any rate, it's Diamond who is the developer involved in the "club sales" now, and is the developer relevant to his discussion -- right?

AwayWeGo · Aug 15, 2008

A Bright & Shining Name In The Timeshare Biz, Gleaming Like A Jewel.

JudyS said:
Could very well be. But at any rate, it's Diamond who is the developer involved in the "club sales" now, and is the developer relevant to his discussion -- right?

Click here for a clue.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

AwayWeGo · Aug 16, 2008

That's A Relief.

timeos2 said:
Absolutely there are plans for specail assessments.

I mean, I would hate to think that timeshare Special Assessments just get laid on willy-nilly.

HOA-BOD Member: Mr. President, I move we hit all the owners with a surprise Special Assessment.

HOA-BOD President: Another Special Assessment? Why on earth? The budget is balanced & the reserve fund is in sound condition.

HOA-BOD Member: I know. I just thought it would be a good idea to keep the owners from getting too complacent -- you know, shake'm up & jangle'm good with another Special Assessment just for the hell of it.

HOA-BOD President: I never thought of it that way. All in favor, say Aye.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

tombo · Aug 16, 2008

Quote:
Originally Posted by JoeMid
What might be the name of the Develper.

AwayWeGo said:
Don't know if that is allowed to be revealed.

Hint : The timeshare company named itself after a precious gemstone often featured in solitaire engagement rings.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

I have never heard of a developer called Cubic Zirconia. :whoopie:

JoeMid · Aug 16, 2008

tombo said:
I have never heard of a developer called Cubic Zirconia. :whoopie:

I knew it, looked at the corner of your post and you're from Mississippi.

Talent312 · Aug 16, 2008

JoeMid said:
I knew it. Looked at the corner of your post and you're from Mississippi.

and a 'Bama fan, which suggests there's more he hasn't heard...
"The Bear Bryant era is over and it ain't comin' back." -- a Florida Gator

taffy19 · Aug 17, 2008

More timeshare developers getting greedy and starting rumors so they can make a sale. Unbelievable what I read all today about uncertainty in timesharing and the sales staff of big developers. No wonder timeshare owners are getting so dissatisfied with what they own. :annoyed:

timeos2 · Aug 17, 2008

iconnections said:
More timeshare developers getting greedy and starting rumors so they can make a sale. Unbelievable what I read all today about uncertainty in timesharing and the sales staff of big developers. No wonder timeshare owners are getting so dissatisfied with what they own. :annoyed:

The truly sad part is they (most developers) HAVE a great product to offer. How many here are happy timeshare owners who actively promote the concept & the lifestyle it can bring? Yet they seem to insist on going on the low road of deception, high pressure and rumor to get sales rather than the high line of look at what you get, what a value for the dollar and at such beautiful places as most used to do.

Somehow always trying to make owners think what they bought yesterday isn't good enough today has become the main rally call for timeshare retailers. Perhaps the true market is tapped out and now they feel all they can do is recycle past buyers into new plans. Too bad as we enjoy or 10+ year old resorts and the various trade/exchange/internal systems they give us access to. No desire to spend another nickle to buy more or "upgrade" what we have when we can get those exact same places by leveraging our original purchases. That's what it was supposed to be about - not never ending pushes to buy more of what you already have with a new name.

We will be watching to be sure what is said is truthful and representative of how at least Cypress Pointe Resort is owned and operates. Asking our family to give up a deed to a resort we feel is a second home is never going to work. Trick us out of it and there would be h*ll to pay.

Speaking as a proud owner at Cypress Pointe Resort and other resort systems.

AwayWeGo · Aug 18, 2008

Cubic, Shmooobick.

tombo said:
I have never heard of a developer called Cubic Zirconia.

The timeshare company I was thinking of is named after the Real Deal, not some synthetic copycat -- not that there's anything wrong with the artificial wannabees.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

AwayWeGo · Aug 21, 2008

Did The H. O. A. - B. O. D. Get To The Bottom Of This ?

Stu said:
The Board is investigating this matter thoroughly to protect its owners and the integrity and reputation of its Association, and is already attemping to contact a Developer representative to discuss this serious matter.

Did the timeshare company promise to straighten up & fly right ?

Did the fibbing timeshare sellers get taken to the woodshed ?

Is the matter finally resolved once & for all ?

Just wondering.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

Lawlar · Aug 21, 2008

Take Appropriate Action

Rather than just complain to the developer, I would recommend that the HOA do he following:

1 Send a letter to all TS owners advising them of the problem.

2. Send a complaint to the Attorney General's office in Florida telling them what has occurred.

3. Send a complaint to the BBB so that the BBB can warn consumers.

4. Advise TS owners who believe that they were defrauded to file complaints with the Attorney General's office and the BBB.

None of the above actions will involve substantial costs. But if the damages warrant it you can always call in the lawyers (and you know I hate lawyers, but sometimes they are necessary).

timeos2 · Aug 21, 2008

special board meeting tuesday

AwayWeGo said:
Did the timeshare company promise to straighten up & fly right ?

Did the fibbing timeshare sellers get taken to the woodshed ?

Is the matter finally resolved once & for all ?

Just wondering.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

There is a Board Meeting scheduled for 2pm Tuesday 8/26 with the sole adgenda item being Sales Practices.

timeos2 · Aug 21, 2008

Great advice

Lawlar said:
Rather than just complain to the developer, I would recommend that the HOA do he following:

1 Send a letter to all TS owners advising them of the problem.

2. Send a complaint to the Attorney General's office in Florida telling them what has occurred.

3. Send a complaint to the BBB so that the BBB can warn consumers.

4. Advise TS owners who believe that they were defrauded to file complaints with the Attorney General's office and the BBB.

None of the above actions will involve substantial costs. But if the damages warrant it you can always call in the lawyers (and you know I hate lawyers, but sometimes they are necessary).

Wise man. Great advice for anyone who may have been exposed to this type of issue.

Misleading Developer Sales Claims about Cypress Pointe

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