A friend of my recently came across a company called IBD Marketing and was in contact with them regarding selling an RCI affiliated timeshare unit in Orlando, Florida. After offering them a sum about 3k higher than what they had assumed they would be able to sell their timeshare for, they called me for assistance. I was unfamiliar with their organization and decided to do some investigating before giving my friend the go ahead to try to list and sell with them. My first search was a simple Google query for “IBD Marketing”, and I have to say I was mildly shocked when I realized that the first 10 listings were all negative commentary on the company, and not one of the links was to the actual company website itself! That was only the beginning of the bad omens…

The first problem with IBD Marketing is that they charge an exorbitant amount just to take on your timeshare and list it with their service. The amount they were asking from my friend was equal to one year’s maintenance fees, but I have read on other websites that the amount required for listing can range anywhere from half of a year’s maintenance fee upwards into the thousands of dollars (I even read once instance where the salesperson based the listing fee on the projected sale amount for the time share). The representative at IBD told my friend that they did not charge any fees for selling the timeshare, and that only upon a successful sale would they take a commission - which is absolutely untrue. I believe they are telling customers they do not charge a fee for selling, then once the paperwork is signed, slap them with a fee for listing and marketing the timeshare (which is different than selling it).

Second, they have no problem giving out false information. I contacted a representative of the company myself that basically told me I would be unable to sell my timeshare using any other resource like Ebay, Craigslist or Redweek, even if I was willing to drastically lower the price. They made me feel absolutely helpless and that I truly had no choice other than to beg them to help me get rid of my timeshare - actually trying to badger me into providing them with my credit card information to start the process immediately. It was all a bunch of mind games, trickery and deceit. After the rep had formulated an asking price (which was much too high) and plan of action through which to sell my time share, I told him I had to confirm everything with my husband before proceeding. The IBD salesperson said he would call back the following day to check in, but it has now been one week, and I have not heard back from them.

The people at IBD-Marketing are all just a bunch of talk and are excellent at telling people what they want to hear in order to collect their upfront fees used for “marketing” your property, only to disappear and never to be heard from again. You do not need these people to sell your timeshare for you, no matter what they say. You can just as easily list your timeshare for sale on free/low cost listing sites such as RedWeek ($50) and Bidshares (see link on right hand side - absolutely free) and get just as much, if not more exposure to potential buyers. Real estate agents do not collect upfront fees for showing, marketing and listing your house for sale, so why should timeshare resellers?

Unfortunately, IBD Marketing ranks among the growing number of web-based timeshare companies that are only out to make a quick buck and take advantage of timeshare owners looking to get out of their purchase.

For more information visit the following sites:

TUG Forum - http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34342

RedWeek Forum - http://www.redweek.com/forums/messages?thread_id=12138;page=3;query=

Rip Off Report - http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/224/RipOff0224286.htm

Rip Off Report - http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/270/RipOff0270219.htm

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