What The Salesperson Said

 I’ve covered this topic before, but since I keep receiving so many emails and read so many social media posts about “what the salesperson said”, it’s time to talk about it again.  

If you are required to attend a timeshare sales presentation, and you are required to do so if you’ve accepted any type of bribe/incentive, you’re going to talk to a salesperson. Not a vacation counselor, not someone from corporate wanting your thoughts on their new program, or anything else they may call themselves. This salesperson who may or may not be licensed, is working for the developer, not you. 

This is important to remember because they won’t divulge this except in the mounds of paperwork generated should you decide to purchase. 

Why is this important?   

The salesperson has no fiduciary relationship to you at all. If they’re licensed, they are the seller’s agent, not yours. Read that again. They’re the seller’s agent. 

Now, granted this does not give them permission to lie to you. It also doesn’t give them permission to leave out material facts. But what qualifies as material?  For some people, information about the ability to resell is material. For others, information about exchanging is all they care about. I can tell you from personal experience as a salesperson and manager, it’s impossible to cover everything about a timeshare; which is why I wrote 2 books as well as co-authored a college level textbook on the topic. 

All of this is to remind you that the only things that you can count on is what’s in the contract and accompanying paperwork. Even ARDA-ROC, in a document that we wrote together last year stated: “Finally, make sure to get all of the terms and conditions of your purchase in writing. You cannot depend solely on verbal representations made during the sales process. If something is important to you and is a major reason you want to purchase, then make sure to get it in writing.”