Today we were alerted to a new RCI Timeshare Scam and want to share it with our readers in hopes they don’t fall prey to this new scam.  A subscriber of Timesharing Today wrote to the publisher the following:

“This company (Resorts Professionals in Florida) called me 3 times trying to get me to pay $2550 to rent out 12 weeks/yr of RCI Extra Holidays.  I hung up the phone since they offer little evidence they are legit plus they tried to steam roller me to pay them up front. Have you ever published any articles on them? They are in Orlando Fl. I am not aware that RCI will allow me to rent out 12 weeks/yr. I subscribe to your magazine.”

The states that are now pursuing scams are having difficulty keeping up with the new crop that are opening faster than they can be shut down and/or prosecuted. What is now needed are congressional hearings on racketeering in the timeshare industry. If any of you have an interest in supporting this idea, please let me know.

Shep Altshuler, Publisher

Timesharing Today

Since receiving this notice earlier today, we have received additional alerts from Dan Murphy of  Timeshare Liquidation Services who reported the following:

“I got this call this week, too. The “liner” was a sweet young thing who inquired about my RCI bonus weeks…did I know I was going to lose them. I haven’t had an active RCI membership for a few years, so I played along and said I may be interested. Without a word I was handed off to a sleasel (sleazy weasel) who tried to slam me. He wasn’t set back in the least when I told him I wasn’t an RCI member…he just tried to close. I told him to “buzz” off, and hung up.”

Saundra Mock, a resale broker from the state of Washington reported the following:

“I have had the same phone call. These people are from St Pete area.

Here is a new one: I had a client tell me today that some organization is calling RCI members (called her) and telling them if they give them access to their bonus weeks through the members RCI account and pay them (the company) $125 per week, this company will rent the bonus weeks they have access to through the members account and get them $750-$1000 in rent for them. But they have to give them $125 X 12 bonus weeks first. They are evidently very convincing because my client really wanted to do it but thank god she called me first. I told her that if some company wanted access to rent weeks from RCI all they would have to do is contact RCI for them, that this smells like a scam, sounds like a scam, and looks like a scam.  It must be a scam. Have you heard of this one?”

Advantage Vacation is a licensed time share resale broker that never charges up-front fees – only a commission that is paid from escrow at the time of closing.  We are a BBB accredited business with an A+ rating.  Know you are doing business with licensed time-share resale professionals that have your best interest in mind!  If you are interested in selling your timeshare, it would be our pleasure to give you a market analysis.