Leading US real estate broker Darren Kittleson issues Mexican timeshare resale scams warning video

Wisconsin native Darren Kittleson has been a leading figure in the US real estate industry for 33 years. He is the Operating Principal at Keller Williams Realty Madison, a brokerage with more than 160 real estate agents. Over his career he has sold property and trained others internationally, including in the USA, Canada, Dubai, Serbia and South Africa.

Now 53, Darren has won multiple industry awards and is, by any standard, highly switched on. He is also acutely aware of how important due diligence is when entering into property-related deals.

Even so, his experience shows how convincing Mexican timeshare resale scams can be. Darren was first approached about buying an upmarket timeshare in 2011 while eating with his family at a restaurant in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. A representative from the resort’s sales operation offered discounts on events and activities in return for attending a presentation the next day.

"It was promised we would be done by 11:00am, but they weren't letting us go. In the end I finally acquiesced and said 'ok I'll buy one'."

Darren barely used the timeshare. "In the time we've owned it from 2011 until now we've used it one time."

Late last year, he was therefore pleased to receive an email offering to buy his timeshare at a healthy profit. The sender claimed to be a real estate broker from Phoenix, Arizona. "They knew everything about the week I had, the amount of points it was, what we paid for it, all of that." That inside knowledge helped convince Darren the ‘broker’ was connected to his resort.

The details of how Darren was defrauded for $24,000 have been thoroughly documented in US national media. The fake Phoenix broker had every angle covered, with the phone numbers he provided answered by co-conspirators. The fraudsters even used an address in the same building as the genuine brokerage whose identity they were stealing.

A succession of demands for increasing sums followed, supposedly for taxes, currency conversion and other invented fees said to be required for the sale to complete. Each time, Darren verified the details in every way he knew how: searching the broker and brokerage online, calling the number shown on bank statements, and even setting a Google alert for the Phoenix firm. Despite his misgivings, everything appeared to check out.

"This pattern of asking for more money to be wired kept going on and on... It was almost $25,000 where I finally said: 'this is it'.

"Then they disappeared, and so did all my money."

With hindsight, what does Darren advise other timeshare owners to do to avoid a timeshare resale broker scam?

"If you get any documentation from anybody, don't respond to that documentation (including emails or phone calls) instead go and find that company's information (on the internet) and approach them (via their website)."

Follow that approach and you will quickly find out whether you are dealing with the genuine company or, as in Darren’s case, imposters posing as that firm.

In his warning video, Darren also notes that there are companies that can give you advice if you receive an offer that sounds too good to be true.

"I want to say a big thank you to Timeshare Advice Centre for putting the word out about this. If (I had known about them) when I bought into that scam I know that I would have saved my money."

Darren points out that while the names, properties and locations vary (including Puerto Vallarta timeshare scam approaches), the method is broadly the same. Scammers exploit an owner’s desire to get rid of a burdensome timeshare. They often have enough personal information about the victim (typically from stolen data) to sound credible, then keep requesting larger payments until the victim stops.

Darren ends the video with another nod to the TAC team for helping to spread his message, in the hope of protecting others.

"Again a big thank you to Timeshare Advice Centre on this because I just don't want anyone else to lose money at all to these scammers. Once the money is wired, it's gone."

Second-hand timeshares do not generally have any resale value, largely because of the ongoing commitment to annual fees and the difficulty of securing preferred accommodation.

If someone is offering you a profit on what you paid for your timeshare—or even offering to pay you anything at all—there is a high chance you are being targeted by fraudsters.

If you’re unsure, get in touch with our team for free, confidential advice.