We seriously hope you would never make such a mistake, but one Singapore businessman has.

The February 13, 2006 edition of The Singapore Electric Newspaper reports that a Singapore man paid $84,000 in fees to a timeshare resale company promising to help him end his timeshare membership—a timeshare he initially purchased for $9,000. While we aren’t certain, I would assume that this news story uses Singapore dollars as the rate of currency discussed. So, if it makes US readers feel any better, Mr. K. B. Ong, was really out about $51,600 dollars, depending on the prevailing exchange rate on each of the days he wrote checks to the timeshare reseller.

Sounds like a crime, doesn’t it?

The authorities in Singapore don’t seem to think so. Police are treating this case as a civil dispute, while the Consumer Association of Singapore looks into the matter. Worst of all, it does not appear that Mr. Ong’s timeshare membership has even been terminated. Which in the end, may be his only good news. If the company failed to provide the services promised, Ong’s attorney doesn’t have to argue the ethics or legality of how much Ong paid, only that the services for which Ong paid were never provided.

If you think that timeshare scammers aren’t good at what they do, consider this: Mr. Ong has an engineering degree and an MBA and presently works in sales management. 

Of course he should have known better, but he said he was pressured into signing checks on the spot, with him thinking each check was the last one. In all, Ong wrote checks for $6,000; $3,000; $5,000; $15,000; $15,000 (again), and two final payments of $20,000 each.

Mr. Ong’s timeshare membership is in the Asian Travel Club (ATC). Because of the ongoing lawsuit, the name of the timeshare reseller has not been released. I however, can assure you one thing: it is NOT SellMyTimeshareNow.

What’s the #1 reason why Mr. Ong wanted to sell his timeshare? According to the article, due to “hectic work commitment” he has not been able to use his timeshare once since purchasing it.

See if you know the correct answer to today’s brainteaser; also know as, “our-research-department-has-too-much-spare-time.”

Question: What (or who) is Cherokee Park?

1. A legendary power forward for Duke basketball (’91-95) who was a first round NBA draft pick by Dallas in 1995.
2. A 400-acre city park in Louisville, Kentucky, as well as the name of parks in cities and towns across America.
3. A residential area in Madison, Wisconsin, primed for timeshare development.

Answer: All of the above, if you allow Cherokee Parks (the person) to add the “s” to his name.

College basketball fans, will no doubt remember Duke’s somewhat bohemian, power forward, Cherokee Parks. Or perhaps you caught this shaggy-haired, tattooed California boy during his playing days with the Mavericks, the Timberwolves, or one of the half-dozen other NBA teams for whom he played between 1995 and the 2004 playing season.

And if you grew up in central Kentucky or southern Indiana, you most likely have spent a few pleasurable days picnicking, chasing Frisbees, or enjoying an outdoor concert in Louisville’s beautiful Cherokee Park. Even if you haven’t, it is such a common name, you have probably visited a Cherokee Park in some city in the United States.

But if you are familiar with the lovely wooded neighborhood on Madison, Wisconsin’s north side, known as the Cherokee Park Development, you already know that the area includes a golf course, country club, condominiums, townhouses, and single-family dwellings. Moreover, golf pro and developer Dennis Tiziani and other partners are working on plans to add retail shops, timeshares, and additional recreational facilities. 

Tiziani has been named by Golf Digest to the list of Best Golf Instructors in Wisconsin in numerous years and was formerly the golf coach at the University of Wisconsin. He has long been involved in the growth and development of the Cherokee Park area.

The January 17, 2006 edition of the Wisconsin State Journal reported, “…City officials are pleased that a master plan with an emphasis on preserving open space is being prepared for the area, (Cherokee Lake and Cherokee Marsh Conservation Park) which has been under development for about four decades.”

The State Journal quoted City Planning Unit Director Brad Murphy as endorsing the project with this comment, “We view this as a very positive step,” and added that the towns of Burke and Westport’s involvement will be needed to complete the effort.

New website helps to coordinate search and rescue efforts

Here’s an update on last week’s post about the disappearance of Jennifer Kesse, a 24-year-old Orlando woman employed by Westgate Resorts.

Police released two photos taken by a surveillance camera on the day of Jennifer’s disappearance. Police are asking for help identifying the person in these photos. Visit http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_local_orlandocrime/2006/02/police_want_to_.html for more information.

Family and friends of the missing woman have created a website to help with search and rescue efforts. Please visit this site at http://www.jenniferkesse.com.

See Also

• Orlando Sentinel News Blog – Jennifer Kesse
  Police want to speak with the person in these surveillance photos
• Jennifer Kesse
  Website created by Jennifer’s friends and family to help find her.

Tiny Bahrain must put in place legislation to regulate timeshare sales, because the scams have already begun.

East of Saudi Arabia, in the Persian Gulf, lies the archipelago of Bahrain. This semi-arid country, with 161 kilometers (100+ miles) of coastline, draws 60% of its national income from petroleum and petroleum related products, but like so many countries in the Middle East, Bahrain is seeking to increase tourism as it looks toward a time of reduced dependence on the oil market.

In 2004, Bahrain signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United States, the first agreement of this type between the US and a Persian Gulf state. And as we in the timeshare industry have seen, when the door is opened for commercial relations between the US and any country, development of timeshares can’t be very far behind.

While there are presently no timeshare properties in Bahrain, timeshare hustlers have already made their presence know. According to a January 28, 2006, article in the Gulf Daily News, a leading periodical published in Manama, Bahrain, “A new law regulating the sale of timeshare properties in Bahrain has been proposed…The move follows some alleged incidents by Bahrainis who purchased properties that did not exist…The MPs (Members of Parliament) want clear rules which would prevent such incidents from occurring in the future and which would clearly regulate all contracts.”

Good for them. The Bahrainis have put out the welcome mat for timeshare developers in their country, but are making the smart move of putting laws in place to regulate it even before the first developer has broken ground.

Keep your eye on Bahrain. The United Nations World Tourism Organization reports that tourism in Bahrain increased by 11% to 4.8 million visitors in the first nine months of 2005, with most of the visitors coming from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan, Egypt, the United Kingdom, the US, and Ireland.