Monday, July 20, 2009

Pueblo Bonito Timeshare Lies



"Pressured" into buying a Timeshare at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach Resort and Spa.






My husband and I were on vacation in Cabo San Lucas for our anniversary. We attended a timeshare presentation and we were subjected to a high pressure, and very convincing presentation, by a salesman called COREY LOWE.

We felt manipulated in believing that we were making a great financial investment even after we expressed to Mr. Lowe that we already had a Timeshare and we were in no position financially to purchase another Timeshare. We were told that we had to make a decision as we would not be able to purchase at this price in the future or execute the contract at a later date without traveling back to Mexico to sign the necessary paperwork.

Seeing that we were still hesitant, Mr. Lowe decided to show us around the resort by pointing out the amenities such as the spa, restaurants, pools and floor plans. After the tour, we were escorted once again to the patio where the high pressure presentation began. After being pitched to for over, Lowe assured us that we were making a sound financial decision and stated that we would be missing out on a a chance of a lifetime because Cabo San Lucas is the most popular destination to vacation in the world and that not only could we rent our unit for a substantial fee we would have no problem renting it out because there is a waiting list for Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach.

I have numerous times tried to rent and sell my Timeshare. In desperation of getting out of this contract payed listing companies (companies that Mr. Lowe said are the best) who promised us they could help us, only to find that they too were scamming us. This purchase has caused us financial hardship and no longer is we able to pay the maintenance fees.

If someone have information about this business, please contact me back, I will appreciate it.

Vig.

93 comments:

  1. Yes, my husband and I were similiarly duped at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach after a talented and gifted sales manager, Dirk Meyer, convinced us this was a great financial decision while we were on vacation in June of 2008. It turns out that he told us many lies. 1) We were told that a "real estate agency" that he worked with could sell our existing RCI timeshare for 13K thus offsetting our purchase price to a simple 5K deposit. He said this could happen in as little as 10 days to 3 months (conveniently when the first payment would be due!) but never more than that unless we mishandled the sale as in "pilot error." 2) We were told there were no maintenance fees. Ever. Turns out when we questioned him on that he said that he was accounting for the rental of additional units/weeks were figured into that so that this rental income would more than cover our maintenance fees.

    These are the major ones...we did list our previous RCI property with his suggested "real estate" company and of course, over a year later there has not been one bite. We've found he completely fabricated the resale value of our exiting RCI timeshare--we could maybe sell it for $3000 if lucky. Also, we have since found that rentals of these weeks come at a loss for the owners, not a gain. People are trying hard to just get $500 for their weeks at Sunset Beach on e-bay.

    Disappointment abounds. We have been contesting this with Concord Services, their financial arm. We have refused to pay further and have placed it under dispute, first with our credit card company and now with Concord. We are working with an agency for this, but are also finding we have to be the ones doing most of the work. They have broken federal law twice so far by defacing our credit with reports to two of the three big credit reporting agencies. It's illegal to do this for an item "under dispute" and they know this but are using scum techniques to intimidate.

    There's always MESCAM and Profeco, as well. That's our next step. We have email threads between us and the sales manager.

    We'd love to join with others who have similiar complaints. Possibly create a website to create a firestorm, or expand this blog. That you have over 4000 hits so far speaks volumes! Keep at it! This will take tenacity.

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    1. How do you get the credit card companies to put it under dispute?

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    2. Same here, but the sales man was Manolo Carus. This was in July 2013. Definitely stay away - we held an option to the contract via a non-refundable $200 deposit. But after we cancelled our CC got charged with the down payment of nearly $4k. Unbelievable!!

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    3. I hope my two cents is still up, as there IS a way to get out of it, but you HAVE to do it THERE! They don't tell you about the 5 day time to change your mind and when you do, be repared to be treated like a criminal. They are ALL Sharks, doesn't matter which one, but especially DIRK. DO NOT BELIEVE a word that comes from his egocentric lips. If they are moving, KNOW you are being LIED to !!! I went through MESCAM and Profeco, but calling your credit card company immediately did help. Please see my comments, as to WHO you should talk with. If gone, I'll repost. Loved many of the people there....stay away from the SHARK TANK !!!!!

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    4. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    5. really sorry but a timeshare is NOT an investment, these people lie too much and it kills my business selling real tangible real estate. Click here for latest
      Cabo San Lucas houses for sale

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  2. hola amigos. this is dirk meyer.. i am sorry for your disappointment. truly. the company we work with is a very honest and ethical company located both in the US and here locally. we called the associate on speakerphone and determined the market value of your existing timeshare. we try to be conservative. keep in mind that we have an economy that has tanked in the US and might be affecting your resale. we are always here to help you make adjustments both up and down... also, its such a beautiful property with increasing demand that it can offer you so much... you have my email.. saludos dirk

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    1. Dirk. The stuff you say. Wow. I'm still ashamed that we fell for your smooth talk and lies. You and the company that you worked or still work for are not honest and not ethical. Words do not create reality. Reality is reality. Everyone knows that timeshares are worth zippo on the resale market. Do you think we are all stupido? Your words above are such that I can still see you saying them with complete conviction and assurance...while you know they are untrue. Shame on you. And shame on us for putting our trust in you. Is the property beautiful? yes. That's the only thing you say that is true and ethical. Come clean like you did with Costco. If you can call that coming clean when it was really about being caught. You have been caught over and over on blogs and rip off reports online as you have been telling others the same lies you told us. You could have overseen the refund of our $5000 deposit and I would have never written another word about you or the resort other than to post an update that we received the refund. Done. Over. As it is your slimey, slippery, silver tongued methods continue.

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    2. Pueblo Bonito is full of shit. I've been an owner for years and mysteriously every time I try to book a room for the last several years there is nothing available. Interestingly enough someone can call and book like a hotel for triple the price with no problem. Nice - since you already have my maintenance fee. Hundreds of dollars wasted over the last four or five years. We are now looking for legal ways to take action against the corrupt Pueblo Bonito.

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  3. My husband and I also just purchased our timeshare at Pueblo Bonito last October 2009 when went for our anniversary. Our salesman Ian Collins guaranteed we would be able to use rental program to rent out our timeshare and make a profit. Our plan was never to stay but to rent it & use our Bonus Weeks. We have been in contact with them regarding this immediately upon our purchase. I tried to call Pueblo Bonitos customer service so many times and I cannot even get hold of our salesman. They lied , I am very upset and I'd like to do something to get this resolved.

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  4. Interesting that Dirk Meyer would respond. Indeed, the economy tanked, but this is about multiple misrepresentations. Neither you nor Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach have done anything to make this "right", or make "adjustments up and down".

    We'd like our contract cancelled and our deposit back.

    Truly, I am not sure what you are speaking of in terms of "helping" as we have had our credit maligned by Concord. Is that helping us? Verdad? Tell that to our son as we try to secure college loans.

    We know NOW that there is no "Market Value" of an existing timeshare, "conservative" ($13,000--conservative?) or not...not before the economy took a dive or after. This was your excuse in 2008 and I guess still is. Resale value of timeshares has always been low. You know this and knew it when you were selling us your pitch. That is one of the myths in your business. You are a good salesman. We believed you and your associate that we paid to "sell" our RCI timeshare. Now- 1.5 years later--still not one offer, not even a lowball offer--and no contact from your "associate" whom we paid to sell it.

    We also know NOW that a week or weeks at a timeshare property is NOT an "investment" that can be rented out for profit, and that will increase in value over time, golf course or no golf course. That is another of your myths.

    This has nothing to do with the beauty of the area. Certainly, it is lovely. But we'd all be better off buying someone else's week on Redweek or any number of other sites where OWNERS are desperately trying to rent out the units they have already bought but can't get rid of. Puelbo Bonito is aware of this as well, as the complaints of difficulty renting out their units are on the internet. Owners take a loss on rental. And this was before the economy tanked.

    We bought into "the dream". Potential buyers at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach need to be aware of the deceitful methods used in the sales pitch, and not be taken in as we were. Better yet, avoid the salespitch. Enjoy the beauty and leave.

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  5. Pueblo Bonito:

    Our contract has now been cancelled. But it's not complete. We want our deposit money of $5000 refunded. This is no small sum for us.

    Due to the misrepresentations in the sale and false promises made, we received nothing in return for the money we paid to Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach, or to the said ReMax real estate agent who we paid to "sell our timeshare." We trusted the above mentioned sales representative.

    A WARNING to those looking to buy at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach: Make sure EVERYTHING the salesperson says that makes the purchase sound appealing is written down, signed and dated by the salesperson. If it sounds too good to be true, or sounds like this would make a "great investment" and "pay for itself over time"---get it in writing.

    If you have a video camera, record the entire sales presentation. They most likely will not welcome this, or the "in writing" part. They just want your downpayment then they have what they want and you are into a hefty contract.

    In writing, recorded....then leave having enjoyed a week in paradise, but without your pockets empty. That's the best way to enjoy Cabo!

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    1. I have also just purchased on Aug 22 and would like to know how to cancel my contract. i have read so many bad things and all these promises were made to me as well. anything you have that may help me i would appreciate.

      M

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    2. I signed a contact with Hector Humbert, I couldn't contact him, and the people talking to me told me i sign in a timeshare, totoally different than what they promised me before. I pay 2000 and now they are asking for 5k, Please let me know how to cancel my contract. Wheverever i call they just transfer me from different department to another department.

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  6. Update:
    The timeshare resale/REmax agency, Elite Retreats, has recently contacted me and refunded the fee we paid to them in full, $199, for the listing price we paid to them after Dirk put us in touch with them. They,Elite Retreats,seem to be an honorable company. The owner insists that the client (us) have contact with one of their agents "at the point of sale" to avoid this sort of misrepresentation or inflation of price by a Pueblo Bonito Sales Agent. Apparently there have been conversations with their sales department to that extent.

    Of course, our sales agent, Dirk Meyer did not allow us direct phone contact with Elite Retreats until AFTER the recision period was up.

    Again--Buyer Beware. We are still waiting for Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach to refund our deposit of $5000 in full. We maintain that we made a financial decision to purchase a Sunset Beach timeshare based on misinformation of the value of our existing timeshare and potential resale. I have complete email threads of Dirk Meyer's assurances of both price and timeliness of resale. Even while the US economy was tanking he was assuring us that the "Mexican virgin market" was immune.
    Can he and Pueblo Bonito now just admit that they lied to us (misrepresented information, gave misinformation, however you want to say it)in order to acquire yet another sale?

    We will not disappear. $5000 does matter.

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    1. can you please send me the contact info for hey,Elite Retreats. Would these be the people i call to cancel contract?

      Marisol

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  7. You are all lucky as my wife and I lost $86,000 after our contract was cancelled after we weren't able to pay the maintenance fee. We tried to sell the unit within 2 months of buying for cash after we determined ever sales pitch they gave us turned out to be lies. And, our questions were not answered within the timeframe for cancelling the purchase.
    These guys are all crooks that hide behind the "small print" found on the back of the contract. What reputable company would have a clause in the small print stating that nothing the salesperson told you should be taken as being valid unless what they told you is in writing and signed by two authorized people. Even if you got it in writing how do you know they are authorized? It was a very expensive decision that I will regret for years, as we are still making interest only payments on the $86,000 and having paid a penny toward the principle.

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  8. Some friends and I were recently duped by Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach sales manager Dirk Meyer and we are in the process of trying to get out of this mess.

    We already own a timeshare in Cabo San Lucas and we were lured by Pueblo Bonito’s offer to utilize the perks of the RCI Black Diamond membership. We contacted a RCI representative who stated RCI has received several complaints regarding Pueblo Bonito’s bogus sales practices.

    It was all a SCAM. Paperwork was switched during our contract signing process. The fraud was not discovered until after we received our initial contract via snail mail. Since then, we’ve sent countless emails and made several phone calls to Pueblo Bonito’s so-called Sales Administrator. We have yet to receive a response. We did receive a few infantile emails from sales manager Dirk Meyer and we were shocked at his unprofessional, angry rantings.

    The bottom line is sales manager Dirk Meyer has the last word on whether to dissolve the contract or not. The workers at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach are underpaid peons who barely speak the English language and they do exactly as they are told. American buyers beware! Stick with the American owned timeshares and leave Pueblo Bonito alone!!!

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    1. Our paperwork was switched (doctor'd/ photoshopped) after we signed too!
      Any recourse?

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  9. It sounds to me like some of you weren't paying attention. We bought a time share at Sunset Beach 1 1/2 years ago, have been there 3 times since and love every minute of our time there, it was worth every penny we spent!! If you could not afford it you should not of bought it!! Don't blame someone else for your bad financial decisions. We were never pressured and had a wonderful sales experience. Believe me I have been to some of the other timeshare sales pitches and Pueblo Bonita was far and away the most honest, non threatening and best buy for your money in Cabo!!

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    1. Josh,
      Great. how about i give you For Free my Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach Timeshare?
      Pay the $300 transfer fee and it is yours.
      Let me know
      Stu

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    2. Stu, I am interested at the 300 dollars if you are still thinking of getting rid of it. My email is cfb8960@yahoo.com

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  10. Single women staying at at any of the Pueblo Bonitos - BEWARE - unless you want a fun-filled day of being lied to, humiliated, lied to again , which can eventually lead to a good laugh. Dirk the Jerk, as we fondly call him, is the Supreme Coordinator of this duping. As single women, if you are approached by any representative of this company - run like your hair is on fire. Being told by a company representative, in this case, Barbara, to go to the Sunset presentation as single women would help her out and her " sick relative", give them 2 hours of your precious vacation time and in return they will give you some freebies was the tactic. All right - we bit. We went - spent 2 hours of our time and then were told that they knew some of us were married, how dare we waste their marketing dollars and time because as women, single or married, we were incapable of making a financial decision on the spur of the moment. Not only were we told that we could not make these types of decisions but we were LIARS! It did not matter that their company representative duped us in believing we were helping her out. Our mistake! I guess that we women have no worth. We have no influence on our own or our family's financial decisions, nor are we capable of telling someone else what is beautiful or not! The intimidation and the mortification was a tactic to make your feel so bad you wouldn't take their "gifts" - hell, you just gave them 2 hours of your time and if they played their cards right - you might even have told someone else about this property. So if you go, are approached by a representative - and decide to "take" their offer - be prepared to be called names - take their "gifts" for wasting your precious vacation time and laugh like we did. Keep track of all the lies dear Dirk will tell you of his personal contributions to the locals - if we didn't know better - you might think he built Pueblo Bonito Rose and Sunset Beach stone by stone and to the locals, he is a god! Yes, they will also tell you that Barbara will be fired - that also is a lie. We stayed for 4 days after our duping and there was Barbara happily duping others. Happy travels.

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  11. Hahaha. Wait. You come into our resort lying at you are married, and I sit with you the whole time knowing you keep insisting you're not married... And finally as a good piece of humor, I show you your facebook wedding picture and tell you that you look beautiful in your wedding dress... Lmao! Busted! And now I'm a jerk.. And when you told me you were mortified that you all got caught I told you not to worry about it so much and just enjoy our beach... And I'm the jerk? How about when you told me that someone had told you to lie and i asked you what you did.. That one of you was a school teacher for elementary kids.. And I asked you, so if my son comes to you and you catch him in a lie and he says "Tommy made me lie", that makes the lying ok? Come on, you all agreed ... And you lied to get gifts from my developer. That's stealing. But, we forgot sly about it other than a good laugh... You should have seen your faces when I showed you your wedding picture! "mike" the groom looking all dapper... As far as foundations we have here, careful, don't knock Amigos de Los Ninos.. We help kids with cancer and other ailments get US care... Maybe you should donate some money to them instead of knocking them.. Meantime, it's sunny and warm and we are at capacity and our guests and owners are enjoying their time..

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  12. This is for "Sun" above... Rci and black diamond are two different entities. That might be your confusion. We enrolled you into black diamond. There was no switching paperwork. Thats just ridiculous There are no angry emails from me, please feel free to write anytime and we will answer your questions. Write member services and they will forward. We will write you promptly. As for complaints to rci about pueblo bonito, that's strange, because the top directors of rci were just here and said this is flat out the nicest timeshare in the world! And they have the highest scores on comment cards! Saludos

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  13. I bought my Pueblo Bonito Emerald Bay (Mazatlan)timeshare in 2009 and was told by my sales rep. that on the years I don't use my week, Pueblo Bonito could sell it on Expedia and only keep 30%. I was contacted by Pueblo Bonito Black Diamond 2 weeks ago. It was then that I asked about this 30% deal and the gentleman on the phone said "it saddens me to hear when the sales reps are making empty promises" as if he's heard a number of false statements. Today, December 9th, I went on the Black Diamond website, and called the toll free number with a smiling blonde woman on the right of the home page. The recording said "we are closed in observance of the Thanksgiving Holiday until Friday November 26th" and then it hung up on me...Nov. 26th was two weeks ago! I am now wondering if the whole thing was a scam, luckily I have not paid my Black Diamond deposit yet. I do have a direct # and extension to my agent, and will be calling her next week...sounds fishy! I will say overall, though, that I feel like I made a good investment in Emerald Bay, but I am still weary of Black Diamond. Any advice?

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  14. I visited Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach in July. My salesman was Keith Mair who assured me that he could sell my unit at the Rose for $8,000 within 30 days to offset the expense for the Junior suite at Sunset Beach. The draw was the Black Diamond program which he stated would allow me extra weeks. Also I could rent my unit without having to pay maintenance fees. Then I get a call from the Black Diamond Program trying to sell me their program again! Also I was advised that maintenance fees and reserve my 2011 week prior to depositing into their rental program. If anyone can give me some contact email for Sunset Beach I would appreciate it. I woulds like to hear from dupedbypueblobonito

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  15. My wife and I bought a PB timeshare about 6 years ago and were lied to about receiving a refund for each year we did not use the timeshare. That was the one main reason we bought. They also told us the maintenance fees would not go up. Another lie amongst several others I will not go into. These people are pirates, thieves and liars. PB has a PO box in Scottsdale AZ. I think this may qualify them for a class action lawsuit in the USA. Also, how about a mass email campaing maligning PB and the owner/thief himself, Ernesto Coppel? Also, contacting local news (print and tv) where all us victims live, and doing a live feature on timeshare thieves? Lastly, a general information blitz of some sort reminding people that the Narco State of Baja California is criminal in business as well dangerous.

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  16. Hi
    I see a lot of complaints about Pueblo Bonito and I'd like to add that the Pueblo Bonito Black Diamond scam is a dandy. They take your time share and rent it out, keep the profit and put a small amt into your account which mysteriously vanishes when you check back in. Simply amazing how the US govt. legalized thieves to operate in their country.

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  17. Hi there,
    How awful is selling your timeshare? I'm not in the same place financially as I was when I bought it. With a job loss and then taking one with a drastic pay cut, I just can't seem to justify the purchase anymore. Just looking for info from anyone on this process because it kind of sounds like a nightmare.

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  18. Selling your timeshare?
    Good luck with that. We visited in 07 and paid about 33,000 dollars for my unit. (a 2 bedroom suite).Though i don't feel like i was duped into the purchase, and i didn't own another timeshare i was CERTAINLY not made aware how high my maintenance fees would be. (currently 1100/yr). If they weren't to go up, my timeshare would ultimately cost me 65k dollars. I too listed my timeshare 1.5 yrs ago with a "reputable" company online as we had our wedding to pay for and haven't had one offer. I was willing to sell it for half of what i paid too. Which is ridiculous. The worst part about it actually is this, we use RCI as our company to trade and NOTHING is as nice as PB Sunset. We haven't been back to PB because of the current security concerns in Mexico (i know they're not that bad in Cabo) but my wife and I just thought there'd be more out there in terms of equal trading. I have a 2br suite and the best we can ever get at a decent clean place is a regular hotel room. Tho my financial situation is possibly not as severe as the others, it was a HUGE amount of money for me then, and is now, and we certainly regret spending that much money and being part of such a shady industry. I saw on the news a few weeks ago that timeshares were currently worth as low as 1/10 what they were purchased for. I guess the only thing i can hope for is that friends/family will use this time share and eventually when we have kids, we will want to travel to PB Sunset more. And oh yeah, getting them on the phone is a joke and Concord is AWFUL. I paid most of mine upfront and then financed for only one year. When i called to say i was out of work for a little while and could i get an extension on that 1 yr finance they blew me off and said there was nothing they could do, so of course my credit was hit hard. It's since recovered but that's after paying a credit repair company 1k to harass Concord.....
    Bottom line, PB is a beautiful resort but i think the timeshare business overall is a DISASTER. Especially in this company. They're laughing all the way to the bank......

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    1. you should have no problem trading like-for-like in Cabo. I just traded my 1-bedroom in Mazatlan for a 2-bedroom in Cabo through RCI.

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  19. I had the misfortune of wasting time talking to Dirk myself last year. That guy is a real piece of work. He made all these wild promises(LIES), and then when I got the contract, everything was totally different than what we talked about. Not even close. I find it amazing that a place so beautiful would need to lie and cheat people. If they just were honest they would do much better. Why hire such a dirtbag? I can't believe he came on here to defend himself when it's obvious they lie and cheat when there are so many different people complaining.

    I tell everyone never to buy a timeshare from Pueblo Bonito and I hope everyone gets their money back.

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  20. I first bought PB Rose' in 2001 and PB Sunset Beach in 2003, each for about $9000. PBPremiera was in the picture and we did get a good cruise deal for a PB Sunset week exchange but nothing with PB Premiera since.

    I have only two complaints with PB. The first time I tried to schedule a week with PB Rose in June, they had nothing available for the rest of the year. When I happened to go to Costco on-line I found they were renting PB Rose' weeks for $600.

    The second problem was when I banked a week with RCI. When I tried to use that week they did not have it. After much hell raising, PB Rose' clerk said they had banked it with ICE but by that time it had expired.

    Today, I investigated PB Black Diamond. What a total fraud that is. I can bank with RCI and used the exchange as weeks or credits like I have with World Mark, (the only honest time share going).

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  21. A bit of advice, when you arrive at the air port (any place in Mexico) or on the streets in town and get hit upon by the guys offering a variety of free gifts and with invitations to a breakfast meeting, keep saying "that's not enough, what else do you have?"

    One year I collected $690.00 US cash for car rental, a couple sarapes, 5 jugs of booze, 3 gift certificates and three great breakfasts during the week and all I had to do was say "NO" after breakfast..

    Sales people don't like me much but none of them sign my pay check so why should I care.

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    1. This is the best advice for anyone traveling to resort areas in Mexico. The culture encourages what Americans would view as fraudulent practices, but in Mexico getting as much personal gain out of a transaction as is possible is how business is done. So...you do need to negotiate for "more" in all cases and only sign contracts after you've had a reputable lawyer read and research every aspect. You'll never get this option when buying a timeshare in MX, but as I have discovered the rental prices in the secondary market make it financially prudent to rent from existing owners versus buying in. It is a rip off...plain and simple. As you said in the end, these sales types do not contribute to your income so what they say or think is of little concern. You just need to toughen up and work the timeshare to your advantage versus becoming a victim of some rather talented and aggressive sales people.

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  22. I’ve owned two (2) Pueblo Bonito timeshares for almost ten years now and have never regretted owning them for a minute. All of the PB Resorts have great facilities/employees/services and they have excellent trading power with RCI. However, I purchased on the secondary market so my initial cost was low. I’m sorry to hear of all the misunderstandings that so many people have had with PB timeshare presentations, but the bottom line is that you’re the only captain of your ship so don’t let other people make decisions for you. If you rely on basic common sense (i.e.; 1) always read the fine print, and; 2) get everything in writing) you would never be in this predicament. I’ve been to four (4) timeshare presentations in my life and they ALL operate the same way; used car salesman tactics.

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    1. Indeed...buyer beware...and don't be surprised by the used car salesman tactics. Learn to leverage them. For those who bought in (BTW I did), you either enjoy the property and can afford the associated fees or come to terms with the realities of the resale market. It is almost non-existent, but the global economy is having this affect on many luxury or non-essential items. I guess what amazes me is the prices of "new" purchases...they continue to go up with no relation to the secondary market. That is where I have heartburn with how Ernesto Coppel and his sales staff operate. ...but, I purchased my unit when all they had were four demo units and the property was largely undeveloped desert. I didn't get taken to the extent subsequent buyers have...I'm not 100% happy with the purchase, but I'm not 100% un-happy either. I just wish I was as familiar with Mexican business practices then as I am now. Don't hate these people for trying to maximize their take...just use your common sense and don't fall prey to pressure tactics. If they truly can't hold a deal for you past the week you're there, then the deal is just a ploy...I've walked away many times at this point when considering "upgrades" to my initial purchase. It's amazing how you will become pursued if you just walk away. Hold your ground...you are in control of whether you sign or not.

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  23. This is truly a scam. They lied to us from the minute we walked out of the airport. They switched the paper work on us and everything they told us in person was a lie.

    THIS IS A COMPLETE SCAM!!! Do not get fooled.

    I had purchased a shuttle to take us from the airport to our hotel. When we got out of customs, someone walked up to me and said he is from my cab company (he mentioned the name of the cab company because I was holding my reservation in my hand). He took me to the "desk" where someone else confirmed they were from my cab company and proceeded to give me a map and tell me that a representative would come collect us in ten minutes. In the mean time he proceeded with telling us we were "entitled to a free adventure" as long as we visited a new hotel they were building in town. He then collected $40 from me to ensure we would show up. What we discovered after was that he was indeed NOT from our cab company and from "pueblo bonito" but by then it was too late and we had given him $40. I wish i Had let the $40 go and never gone to the facility to listen to their lies. If you are victim to this scam, cut your losses at $40 and enjoy the rest of your vacation.

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  24. Just got back from Cabo and a delightful stay at the Pueblo Bonito Rose. We had the "airport cab company experience" mentioned above, but negotiated well over $600 of activities and cash for the 2 1/2 hour presentation at a beautiful new resort. After we told the sales staff we weren't interested several times after their presentation, they sent us to collect our rewards and we we done. We had a great week there enjoying the fruits of the presentation. I'm tickled to see that there are weeks available online for less than a $1,000, much better than the $35,000 they were selling for!

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  25. My husband and I just purchased Pueblo Bonito Premier Emerald Bay timeshare. Our salesman, Agustin Juarez said only to deal with him. We have had questions and inquired about reservations. We are not clear on how to proceed with reservations or using our weeks at other resorts. We haven't had answers to our questions. When I called the reservations number in our printed materials, the prices quoted us were nothing like we were promised in the presentation. Does anyone have a contact number/name that will answer questions?

    ReplyDelete
  26. My best friend and I purchased a studio at PBSB 2 years ago in July and we love the resort. We purchased from Peter, and he still responds to any inquiries we have and is very helpful. I do not feel like I was duped in any way. For us owning the timeshare makes a lot of sense, both of us love to travel, we have split the cost between two households, and seriously PBSB is beautiful and very relaxing. Neither of us have ever regretted the purchase and when we are done paying off the purchase plan to purchase a second week (we plan this time to buy from someone who wants to "unload" theirs though to pay less). We have also maximized using RCI and have purchased an extra week at PBSB as well as last minute travel deals at other resorts for so much less than we would have had to pay by going through Expedia etc.. Here is the thing... we bought because we love to travel - we weren't buying to try to figure out how to make money off of it but to enjoy it over years to come and be able to also go to many other resorts through the RCI program spending less than we would have if we didn't have the timeshare/RCI membership. If you are going to a timeshare presentation to try to make money then you better be the person selling! It is a long term investment in your travel, if travel is not a priority in your life then don't buy.

    Let's face it, the economy tanked in 2009 and 2010, so renting out your room would have been really hard. I see people now trying to rent their rooms on craigslist for $1000+ for their week - seems to me they are covering their maintenance fee plus some now. You have to expect the market to go up and down. We bought and will have the place paid off within 3 years, the initial investment will have paid for itself in the amount of travel that we both do within 5-7 years. Making money to travel? No. Paying less to travel? YES!!! Enjoying beautiful resorts in the process? ABSOLUTELY!!!

    And seriously... how many times must you be told??!!! DO NOT TALK TO ANYONE IN THE AIRPORT CLAIMING TO BE YOUR RIDE, your shuttle/car etc. is OUTSIDE. If you booked your shuttle I KNOW they told you this, and I bet they used all caps just like I did! If you do want to talk to them.. then it should be to sell 2.5hours of your time and getting $400-600 worth of cash/alcohol/excursions... and you better know how to say no at the end or have the right reason to say yes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. JOYCE,
      I have a week you may have at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach. I will give it to you for Free.
      I own a house in Cabo now.
      I think the current transfer fee is $300 and you dont have to pay that unless we do the transfer.
      Let me know
      Stu

      Delete
    2. I have a week you may have at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach. I will give it to you for Free.Two years of maintenance fees are due.

      Ken Johnson 8173135071

      Delete
  27. NO ONE can pressure you to do anything - it is YOUR choice. If you can't read and don't like what you hear or can't afford what you are buying then walk away. Trying to blame others for your decisions is silly. You read the contracts and you paid the money. Don't blame others. You thought you were getting paradise but you didn't read everything. Wake up people, do your homework.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. But don't forget those who READ and signed contracts that were later doctor'd !

      Delete
    2. You MUST work there! YES they can intimidate you AND have you physically thrown out when you finally find the REAL TRUTH !

      Delete
    3. They are playing a game of gotcha with unsuspecting visitors at their hotel. The idea seems to be "if our guests are foolish enough to trust us then they deserve to lose their money." In fact Pueblo Bonito acknowledges in writing that "many" of their clients experience "remorse" after signing away funds to Pueblo Bonito: "Many clients believe that buyer's remorse is a valid reason for them to withdraw...Our company does not accept this irresponsible point of view." -- Sales Administration Department, Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach

      If you are in a hospitality business and feel the need to put in writing that "many" (not a few) of your clients have remorse after doing business with you and you feel the need to call your guests "irresponsible" for asserting their legal rights to rescind a terrible contract well.......

      Business should be a win/win not a buyer beware proposition. BUYERS BEWARE of Mexican timeshares. Mexico, especially Cabo, has so much great going for it -- great people, great beaches, great weather, great location, great services. These timeshare scams are a plague on quality Mexican tourism.

      Delete
  28. My husband and I actually had a nice sales woman sell us our timeshare. We were there on our honeymoon in 2006 and did scrape funds together to put a down payment on what seemed to be a great investmest.

    HA!!!! Joke was on us!!!!! As we all know, the economy tanked and you could get an all-inclusive vacation to Mexico for LESS than we were paying in maintenance fees. When we tried to trade out our week we were informed that our RCI account was past due. Huh? That was a $200 ish payment that was required PLUS the $500 maintenance fee PLUS the trade-out fee. Oh my! We quickly realized we got scammed.

    We contacted PB in order to see if they would buy our week back. We recalled be told how EASY it was, not the case. PB gave us the run around.
    At this point we discovered a HUGE discrepency in what the contract we HAD (original) said and the contract PB had on file. Our copy was an original with original signatures. They emailed a copy of what they had on file, they had photoshopped/doctored an entirely new contract with different interest % and years we were paying on the contract. One would thing that is an easy lawsuit. But, since it was signed in Mexico, we were told we would have to fight it in MEXICO! Yeah, good luck with that.

    Our credit has been utterly defaced as we did stop paying. We had trouble securing a home loan due to this as well. Any advice anyone has would be helpful. We just want to be done with this, with NO MORE cost coming out of our pocket, we have WASTED enough $ on PB already! Thousands!!!!

    Suggestions????

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Contact Dept. of Consumer Affairs and also maybe a contractual lawyer. Contact Briselda Ahumada@pacificsun.com.mx. I was able to get total refund. BUT, the timing is bad as you really DO have a 5 day period of 'cooling off'. They are SUPPOSED to tell you that! Good Luck! Did you get CaboCarol? She physically removed me from presentations when my voice raised and her hubby Keith, didn't know WHAT to do with this ranting old lady ! Good Luck!

      Delete
  29. We bought a timeshare at the end of July 2012 and were told that because of my Mom's age she qualified for their "accelerated program" When I called to get information on the program because it did not come with our Owner's material I was told that they stopeed the accelerated prgram years ago! Very upset! Totally lied to and mislead!

    ReplyDelete
  30. I know this question has probably been asked but ...I'm gonna ask anyways. My mom is too old to go to her timeshare in Mexico, she hasn't gone for the last 2 years. She didn't pay her 2013 maintenance fees as she does feel she should if she isn't using it. She doesn't really care about her credit rating as she is done with borrowing money/ mortgages or anything like that. Is there a simple way to cancel her timeshare so that she doesn't get constant harassment from concord?
    Thanks for advice.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm in the same boat, did you ever find out what to do?

      Delete
    2. You HAVE to cancel within the 5 day grace period. But I also contacted the Department of Consumer Affairs, write a letter stating WHY and send your complaint to the real person that can help....Briselda Ahumada@pacificsun.com.mx . Hope you can win like I did! They are SHARKS and they bite!

      Delete
    3. Did you really get help from Briselda? We were given this e-mail address for Briselda Ahumada, bahumada@pueblobonito.com.mx. Hope we can get help. We are outside the 5 day grace period. Guess our next step would be to contact an attorney.

      Delete
  31. Why don't you sell her week on Craigslist. There are years that I don't go so I advertise the week to cover the maintenance fee.

    ReplyDelete
  32. 7º Aniversario = 70% de Descuento en nuestros honorarios

    Más de 2,000 ex propietarios coinciden que es mejor…

    “Un final con Dolor, que un Dolor SIN Fin”

    Si ya está listo ¡ Llámenos !

    Somos especialistas en desvincular a los Socios engañados de sus Clubes de Tiempo Compartido

    + info: 01 555 536-6997 * LADA sin costo: 01 800 558-8639 * www.hlmexico.com.mx

    ReplyDelete
  33. Bottomline on buying a timeshare from Dirk Meyer and Pueblo Bonito is that they lie to make the sale. You will never get a check in the mail. You will get duped because this is what they do for a living. They lie to make sales.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Andy & Eva.
    We have same problem after my wife bought TS at PB. We found out that all the benefit and many promised including upfront rent paycheck to cover the contract price, guaranteed buyback from PB at purchased price, are lies from sale rep. Jimmy Munoz. We cancelling the contract at last 4th, 5th day after contract date , talking to his sales manager, Javier Lopez promising the cancellation and refund. Hopefully, it will clear out soon. I got big help from my brother and friend who practice the law in my hometown, Los Angeles, California.
    Do all your best to get rid of PB scam by sales man's fraud, lies, misrepresentation under 3-5 long hours of pressure.
    We are standing strong to get our money back.. and wish you all do same to put down this bad scam.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Thanks to Briselda with Pueblo Bonito my concerns are being taken care of. Pueblo Bonito is stepping up and rectifying all my issues.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Common Complaints:

    Salesperson has client sign a waiver giving up their 5 day right to cancel as it is a special one-day only offer. This is illegal in Mexico.
    Salesperson promises to sell their old timeshare to offset the cost of the new timeshare. In the end the client is referred to a resale company that does not sell the old timeshare and the client is stuck with two timeshares and the maintenance fees for both properties. http://www.timesharescam.com/timeshare-complaints-resorts-black-list/4-pueblo-bonito-timeshare-complaints/

    ReplyDelete
  37. DO NOT BUY TIMESHARES WITH PUEBLO BONITO SUNSET BEACH!! They are frauds!!! My husband and I bought a timeshare in June 2013 - we were told many things by our sales rep Keith Mair. We were told we would get 3 weeks of which 1 week the resort would rent out and send us a check. The remaining 2 weeks we could either use or rent and make money off of. We were told we could also use the 2 weeks in any other resort with RCI. Everything was a lie!!! We called the resort and they said we don't have enough points to use our week. We called the " Premier club" and they said we need to call the resort to deposit our weeks. The resort again said they don't have in their records that we got 3 weeks in our contract. We are so fed up with these people and their is basically nothing we can do!! They will not get another cent out of us!!!

    ReplyDelete
  38. My wife and I just returned home from Cabo. We stayed at Cabo Azul and took the tour at both resorts. The tour at Cabo Azul was high pressured with the sales pitch. There was no pressure at PB. We had two friends with us that own two timeshares with Diamond and another agency. Andy was our sales rep and answered all of our questions. We even received his contact info if we had questions after we left. I have contacted him since we have been home and received an immediate reply. Our contract states that we only pay maintenance fee when we use PBSB. I pray that things don't change for us.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Your maintenance fee will shock you! They say you only pay when you use it...HA! It runs about $1,100.00 a year. Good Luck!

      Delete
  39. I too have been suckered by Pueblo Bonito timeshare Sunset in several different ways. Primarily is that when given the sales pitch they out right lie to you, or knowingly withhold information, even when asked a specific question. For instance, when asked if I could use any of the Pueblo Bonito’s for our purchased week I too were advised I could . They neglected to tell me that Iwould first have to deposit our week into RCI and then pay the exchange fee, just like I would with any other exchange. This is very unfair and I wish I could get out of my ownership at the Pueblo Bonito becuase of it. Although it is a beautiful resort, it is not where we want to be

    ReplyDelete
  40. Ted Patterson March 11, 2014
    My wife and I have been through all the Hell listed above and more. We just want to be done with it all. In 2003 we paid $32K for 2 Executive "red" weeks after being fed a cheap Mexican breakfast and a bunch of pretty good margaritas and of course the tons of lies We bought the farm. It was great for a year or two then the rules changed. RCI was a rip off. It was either save the weeks thru RCI or loose them. No longer could we "store" them. So I joined RCI and paid the fee for 3 years and saved away one of my weeks. We made the reservations for the whole family and when we got to Cabo, the RCI week was now a tiny 1 bath unit. "Oh, you want an Executive suite? well that's another $50 a night". The arguement went on for several hours at the desk. They got their way as they always do.
    I will admit that the place is great as we all know and the service is to die for, but I think we got screwed in one way or another every time we went to Sunset Beach.
    So, now we want to leave this bad dream behind and just move on. My kids don't want it or can't afford it. The rooms don't sell on EBay and "timeshare resales" are just another rip off. We paid cash, so the $32K is history and the maintenance fees have grown to where we feel like just ignoring them. Now the late notices and the collection threats.
    So, what to do? Has anyone else just walked away and survived?
    Comments please
    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
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  43. Total fraud- the guy that sold the Timeshare was JT. DO NOT get their preferred, premier, or any of their lame "new membership" program they try to sell. The website is horrible, the credit they offer to you is nothing but a discount and it does not apply to full purchases which is what JT had said when selling the timeshare to my wife and I. You can get better rates through travelocity or any other traveling website. Man, I get so angry when I think about these bastards. I have submitted a request with my credit card and I am hoping they can get my down deposit money back. Such a scam.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Did you cancel your contract ? I will have submit a request with my credit card tomorrow. Turn out what they offer to my on site is total different than what i actually bought. I bought on Sep. totally scam, I cant contact the sales person I called and email no reply.

      Delete
  44. If anyone is done paying off their Pueblo Bonito Timeshare and want out of the yearly maintenance feels let me know. cfb8960@yahoo.com. I am not a company would like like to get one or two of these for vacations.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have a 1br 2 bath super executive with a double ocean view. Fixed week 50. Paid for except last maintainence fee. Sunset beach. richeye@sbcglobal.net

      Delete
  45. My mother-in-law purchased a time share a long time ago at Pueblo Bonito Blanco. She loved it and used it annually, for her being retired it was a great vacation annually to take. She used it once at Sun Set beach and went to a meeting there once they got her in the meeting it was all over! She was 71 at the time and we feel she was taken advantage of she was told they would help her sale her timeshare at the Blanco so she could purchase at Sun Set Beach. Now she has 2 times share to pay for on her tight retirement budget. They did list her time share so they said and stated it would only be listed for a limited time with a ReMax company in Oregon. This was 3 years ago and we recently found out that she is still paying for both timeshares. She did not want to tell us she was on the hook for 2 maintenance fees in fear we would be angry, well we are not at her but at the Pueblo Bonito organization they have never sold her original time share and have taken advantage of an elderly lady coming in and buying their lies. We have tried to call several times and keep getting the run around on who can help and how to get out of the Blanco fees but no one helps. Now we are forced to seek legal help as she cannot afford all these fees and she just wants the whole ordeal over. Be ware of what your elderly parents are getting into, we regret not keeping a better tab on her finances sooner!!

    ReplyDelete
  46. Hello, For my own experience i can say that timeshare business is very tricky , dont waste money on that , i was scammed by Pueblo Bonito , luckily i cancelled at time Tnx to Mexican Timeshare Solutions, they was the only persons that REALLY help me with the task , with no upfront fees and with a free consultation , so if someone wanna try here is the link :

    http://www.timesharescam.com/blog

    kisses

    ReplyDelete
  47. I was scammed, lied to, misled, deceived, and defrauded. I want to express my sincere frustration and dissatisfaction with Pueblo Bonito and how they lie to their potential members and their unethical business practices. Nothing that they tell you is true.
    Be careful and try to be well informed about how they work. I recommend you this site that might be helpful:

    http://www.timesharescam.com/blog/190-pueblo-bonito-timeshare-common-lies/

    ReplyDelete
  48. Has anyone tried to terminate an aged contract with Pueblo Bonito? I have been told by their office ( woman named Marisol Garcia) that if I send notarized termination form sent by her with $1,000 check ($500 for each of my 2 weeks) my Pueblo Bonito Blanco ownership will immediately be terminated with ownership reverting back to them, and I will be relieved of all future maintenance obligations. I have 5 years left on a 25 year contract

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. i am in a similar situation. 14 years left on a 30 year contract and i would like to simply cancel so we don't have to pay maintenance fees going forward. have you made any decisions or progress? thanks for any help.

      Delete

    2. just wondering if you were able to get out of it?

      Delete
  49. I was also duped! Before I left the resort I canceled my contract but I was told they would not reimburse my $3295. deposit due to "liquid damages" but I would have lost a lot more had I not canceled. That is about 700 or 800 dollars an hour for the time I spent with them in the high pressure sale then the time spent getting out of my contract. Twice papers with different names were switched on me but I caught it. I filed a dispute with my credit card company and it is still not resolved.

    ReplyDelete
  50. I was scammed, lied to, misled, deceived, and defrauded. I want to express my sincere frustration and dissatisfaction with Pueblo Bonito and how they lie
    to their potential members and their unethical business practices. Nothing that they tell you is true.
    Be careful and try to be well informed about how they work. I recommend you this site that might be helpful:


    http://www.timesharescam.com/blog/190-pueblo-bonito-timeshare-common-lies/

    ReplyDelete
  51. I purchased a time Share in january (after much pressure and some misleading tactics) We sent written cancellation within 3 business days. Mexican Consumer Protection laws state you must do it in 5 bus days. It was all received and signed for by the resort. The sales rep emailed me and said they gave him a copy of the letter and he was blown away i would say those things. he did say they are cancelling contract and refunding money. I called me cc company immediately and the charges were initially taken off. The resort disputed it saying it's valid the contract is non cancellable. Which according to mexican law you can't do that, the 5 day rule must be adhered to. I called cc company back and am doing it again. I emailed resort asking for cancellation letter. They are supposed to give you one within 15 days of getting your letter. The sales rep said for me to reach out to accounting.

    Getting the run around and hopefully the cc company does research into the rules and decides to do the right thing? I will leave them to if they don't. I spend about $70,000 year on my cc card and will have no problem changing it.

    Any thoughts? Any suggestions?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chase told me they couldn't override the contract language. Hope you got your money back.

      Delete
  52. your article is contain off interesting information. nice job.
    timeshare law

    ReplyDelete
  53. In Pueblo bonito the people that sales you the memberships there are a f****** bunch of fhifs I bought a membership on September 2015 and it's nothing compared to what they told me f****** Liars be careful to get membership with them Pueblo Bonito its full of s***

    ReplyDelete
  54. We were also scammed in March of 2017 by Mark Biddle. We tried to get our $3500 credit card charge reversed but Chase the contract has a clause that says 'anything said to you has no bearing on this contract'. We canceled our credit card and contract but now they are saying that we can't cancel the contract. It was suppose to be a try before you buy with no timeshare involved. We would definitely join a class action lawsuit.

    ReplyDelete
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    ReplyDelete
  56. I have a time share @ pueblo bonito Rosa with 9 years on it anyone interested FREE just pay the transfer fees

    ReplyDelete
  57. timeshare cancellation I would like to say that this blog really convinced me to do it! Thanks, very good post.

    ReplyDelete
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    ReplyDelete