Monarch Grand Resorts aka Diamond Resorts International Ripoff Alert - Worst Financial Decision of my Life multiple cities Nationwide

Purchasing a timeshare was the worst financial mistake of my life. In this case, we chose Monarch Grand Vacations, subsequently acquired by Diamond Resorts International.

The resort where we had our initial vacation and bought our timeshare - Cabo San Lucas - was nice enough. Whenever we inquired about subsequent availability - nothing nothing nothing. Unless, of course, you'd like to go to desert-hot Cabo in August. Which we did not!

Over the next three years, I paid the steadily increasing quarterly maintenance, but never went back to any of their resorts. (I did manage to sell one of our annual slots to another vacationer for a modest sum). Finally, after four agonizing years, I managed to re-sell the timeshare for about one fifth of the total money we had spent to date. That's right, less than 20%.

The following comments reflect our specific experience with Monarch and Diamond but may apply to many other timeshare companies as well.

1. We were deceived in the initial sales process. Many of the benefits described did not come with our package, but could only be obtained by anteing up a lot of additional money. There were other sleights of hand, well covered by other reviewers on many other reporting sites, so I won't repeat them here.
2. A timeshare is NOT an investment. It is NOT an asset. There is virtually no chance that it will increase it value, just like a new car immediately loses most of its resale value when you drive it off the lot. Any company that promises to re-sell your timeshare for you at a profit (after you pay an up-front fee!) is just.plain.lying!!!!!
3. There are some people who are, in fact, happy with their timeshares. Before you sign on the dotted line (and you will be pressured to do so, and quickly), be sure that you are interested in their locations and can GET to those locations without expending a fortune in travel costs. If you live in southern California, you can easily drive to Palm Springs. If you live in New Hampshire, for example, it's a whole different order of magnitude.

Be VERY careful in considering a timeshare purchase. The sales pitch is slick and high-pressure, the costs are steep, and (like a drunken bar pickup) it probably won't look as good when you wake up the next morning! For the price you'll pay (both up front and ongoing) you can probably take yourself on a luxury vacation of your choice - twice as frequently.

I wish I could spend the time recounting every detail of this miserable misadventure. But I promised myself, if I ever sold my timeshare, I would warn other people about this deceptive and deceitful industry. You've been warned!