ComplaintsforBarefoot Resort

• Initial Complaint

  08/14/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I am writing to formally submit a complaint against Barefoot Resort due to their complete lack of response to my multiple attempts at communication regarding the cancellation of my timeshare ownership. I sent a letter outlining my request for cancellation and detailing various grievances, yet I have received no acknowledgment or reply. My decision to invest in this timeshare was based on misleading assurances made during a lengthy sales meeting, coupled with the belief that a resale program would be available should I ever need it. However, when I recently inquired about this program, I was informed that it is no longer offered. Additionally, the resort's maintenance fees have spiked with no prior notice and have become untenable for someone in my position, especially after the loss of my wife and at my age of 74. The continual issues with availability for travel dates and the resort’s subpar condition compared to initial representations have made maintaining this ownership increasingly burdensome. Given these circumstances and the lack of communication from Barefoot Resort, I urgently seek your assistance in resolving this matter and facilitating the cancellation of my timeshare ownership. Thank you for your attention to this serious issue.

  

  Business response

  08/19/2024

  I have attached email records, phone call information, owner use information since purchased along with owner notes in our system, owner purchase contract, copy of owner deed, his letter he sent Barefoot that he referenced in his complaint and the Barefoot Resort transfer policy and transfer document requirements for approval to transfer the deed to Barefoot Resort Association Inc.. Barefoot Resort Association Inc. became the owner of the physical property and any of the unsold weeks in 2014. *** ***. nor it's owner/members is not affiliated with the Association and is no longer a registered entity in SD.

   

  ****** ******** has been a deeded owner of a Timeshare week since 2005 when it was purchased from *** ***. This entity was the owner of his week at Barefoot Resort which can be seen on the deed. Barefoot Association Inc has never owned any of the deeded weeks prior to 2014. The Association is not required to have a deed transferred to it. It is Real Estate and follows the same guidelines as a house when it come to the proper listing and selling of a property.  With this in mine, I recognized, as General Manager, that owners may reach a point in time where they no longer can use their week, so I reached out to other resorts similar to Barefoot to see if they had any type of deed transfer policy. Many don't allow it, but I received information from a couple and created a Policy for Barefoot similar to those. I had it approved with the Board of Directors and then sent it out to the owners to vote on in the Annual Meeting, which was approved. It is the first thing attached. I referred to it as the "last resort" as there is a cost but it is far less than an owner going through a transfer company. These companies charge a large fee. They reach out to us for the owner. We don't work with the majority of them as there is a lot of fraud in that industry. The bad thing is if we agree to work with them they have to abide by our transfer policy and the owner ends up paying our fees now on top of the transfer company's fees. 

   

  This Transfer Policy has been discussed on the phone with me and has been sent to him 3 times. See the email chain next. At the beginning I gave him some information on a potential realtor to list it for him, which he requested ,as can be seen in the email also.

   

  The letter is next which I will reference to with various documents. 

  A Timeshare Promotional tour which was offered and he agreed to in the first paragraph can be lengthy but his was much shorter than many I have attended at various resorts. I have no knowledge of any information on his purchase from *** ***. except for his contract and deed and the resort timeshareware program being able to see his use of his ownership since purchased. The Purchase Agreement, Deed and the Timeshareware is attached next.

  I have read through the contract, seen his signatures and especially the "Acknowledgement of Representations" page. The mention of a resell program isn't mentioned and when I purchased in 2000 it wasn't mentioned to me. If there was one, there wasn't an active one and I wasn't aware there had been one, at the time of the transfer from Developer to Association. I informed him in our first phone call in 2020 that there wasn't one and explained the Association Policy. As mentioned, this policy was created because of the lack of one.

   

  The next point according to his letter is that Barefoot Resort's value has plummeted. The RCI Exchange Program went through changes which doesn't effect our physical value. There is still a waiting list for some RCI potential exchangers to get to Barefoot due to demand. As a matter of fact our physical vale has increased due to complete unit remodels in 2015-2017 and a number exterior upgrades have been done and are still ongoing. This assesment ended in 2017. It was not ongoing as can be seen in the timeshareware progam attachment. A new assessment was created to take care of special needs of the property that are above and beyond regular maintenance and operations. It is an ongoing fee that won't change but it is 1/3rd of the one in 2015-2017. This was voted on and approved in the Annual Meeting.

   

  He has been an RCI member since he purchased and has never stayed in his unit since his intial year to come stay. He has never seen the remodel done in his unit and can't speak on it's condition. I own a week in the same unit and it is in great shape. We get great reviews on it. When it comes to placing your week with an exchange company like RCI, you are searching for availabilty in their system and not ours. RCI guest that are wanting to come to Barefoot keep an eye for an opening through RCI that an owner gave RCI to use to get to Barefoot. Our family has gone to HI over a dozen times which is very high demand but we look ahead and give a fairly wide timeframe to find a time to go. My week I own in the same unit he has is getting me there the first week of January.

   

  Now on a very special note! He owns an every year 3 bedroom unit which at the time the maintenace fee was $435. If you note on the Timeshareware information his amount dropped to half as though it was an every other year. It appears to have been a computer glitch that our bookkeeper found in 2019. At that time it was corrected to $603 which was the correct amount he should have been paying. He was notified in his yearly invoice and he called about it which was the original call. This is his idea of a spike in the maintenace fee when in realty he under paid $2,991.50. We didn't charge him for this shortage. He sure didn't call in over the years about it going down so far.

   

  There has been numerous communications between him and the resort and he knows all about the transfer policy. This option is still available. There is an additional fee of $500 now from the attorney since his wife has passed as additional documents have to be prepared and recorded. 

   

  Hopefully I didn't miss anything. I'm sure this is more than you wanted to read and if I need to clarify any of it, please give me a call.

   

  Thank you,

   

  **** **** 

  General Manager

  Barefoot Resort

  605-584-1577

  307-620-5024 Cell

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