Reporting Cheaters

[az-dan]

Dan, you seem like you are more concerned about arguing and trying to be the moral compass for everyone than reading what I wrote. The post was regarding Las Palomas, I did not cite anything about any of the Sonoran properties.

Read my post again, I did not condone any behavior that you or others have labeled as “cheating”. I specifically stated that I would never do such a thing..

What I think is outright insanity is that a complex that has been riddled with problems since its inception can ask anyone to point out how someone is else is cheating. Last I checked, the “owners” of Las Palomas did read their contracts and placed their faith in the HOA and the rental pool. Many of these owners were then robbed blind by the very people they were legally obligated to “trust”.

I am fine with rules and regulations, let us not forget this a two way street and the developers and HOA also have an obligation to the people they represent. If you live in a complex where things are run in a proper manner, then this argument does not apply to you.

My position remains unchanged, maybe Las Palomas should first seek a way to refund the countless people who had their money stolen and then concern themselves with how they will PROFIT going forward.

My post specifically provided reporting Cheaters for 3 resorts, Las Palomas, Sonoran Spa and Sonoran Sea. If we keep bring up problems in the past how can we move forward? This is an attempt by the present owners, HOA’s and management companies to get control of a problem that if not solved or reduced could have devastating effects on them and the Rocky Point community. Please don’t criticize those of us that choose to live in these communities and try to police ourselves. My post was not made as a moral compass it was provided as information to inform someone who may not be aware of by not following the rules it effects all of us and for those who choose to help correct the problem have the means to do it.

“My position remains unchanged, maybe Las Palomas should first seek a way to refund the countless people who had their money stolen and then concern themselves withhow they will PROFIT going forward.”

I don’t think you understand “Las Palomas” referred to in my post (I believe) is the present owners, HOA and management company, at least it is at my complex. And they recognize that for them to succeed they must get control over the Cheaters.

 

[az-dan]

There hasbeen a lot of misinformation about what limits we have on the use of our units at these resorts. The facts are I can let anyone stay at my unit at any time for free or for whatever I want to charge, I just need to communicate it to the management company. Every year several of my employees and family members stay at my unit some pay and some don’t and I have total control over it. Even family members or employees who stay for free should pay impact fees, cleaning fees and the management company should get a few bucks for managing it. I have never had someone complain about the small cost of those fees.

 

[rockyptjoe]

OK....this is for you condo owners....please explain "impact fees" to this "dense" trailer trash...in light of the fact that the owners are paying monthly HOA/maintenance fees to begin with, that SHOULD be covering everything in terms of wear and tear of the resort (the common areas)...as if you were using your condo 365 days of the year...at the occupancy level of that specific condo (since the monthly fees are based on the size of the unit)......am I to believe that some of the rental fees that are paid thru the rental company are "added" to the maintenance pool?????

Seriously, this is not a stir the pot question....I just don't understand why this keeps getting brought up.

 

[jerry]

Joe the owners of these things that have no faith in the future of Puerto Penasco make a buck by grabbing the customers by the ankle and shaking every last dime out of their pockets.Builder/Business men with faith in a better city know this short sighted grinding is bad for business///Good guys like Jim are in short supply

 

[moore_rb]

I find it real hard to blame the developers for policies and procedures effecting ownership of a property that the buyer agreed to in the first place. Read the damned contracts, understand what they say, if you don't like it, don't buy.

It is pretty simple, isn't it...?

 

[dwig222]

The rental fees need to be restructured before I would rent from the rental pools. The perception is "nickel and diming" you to death. What is an impact fee? What is the Administration fee? What is the damage waiver. When you look at the web sites for rental condos they advertise a "bait" price and then tack on all these fees. A typical vacation rental in the U.S. invovles the daily/weekly/monthly rate, a cleaning fee, taxes and a damage deposit that is refunded. Most people don't understand impact fees, administration fees or non-refundable damage waivers so they turn to private renters. Yes, we are thinking like Americans so maybe the renters should cater to our way of thinking if they advertise in the U.S.

Dan, have you ever gong on Craig's List and called some of those people from the rental agencies? I have and I can tell you first hand it's a nightmare. First of all they will flat out tell you they are the owner of the condo. They will tell you they only own one and if you don't rent from them they give your phone number to someone else who calls and says they are a private owner. 99% of them are bait and switch. It's no wonder people like me seek out private renters. For me, I would rather pay a higher nightly rate than to deal with those people and their undefined fees. Keep it simple and it will work.

 

[marybna]

I have owned at serveral places on Sandy Beach and I have never had a problem giving my condo as a prize for a fund raiser. I do rent my condo out but I pay the HOA impact fee and I pay the room tax. I go thru my property manager. There are many people who own and let their family use their condo for no charge. That is not the problem. There are many owner that rent their place below the going rate and then do not charge HOA fees or room tax. We all knew this upfront when we bought. I have been at the pool and have been asked by people if I rent my place. Yes, I say and then they tell me they would like to rent it and pay no fees or hotel tax. Hacienda now understand VRBO and craiglist and have caught some owners. I do not want them to put a lien on my resort because some other owner is rentling under the table and not paying fees. I beleive that every property manger and HOA knows this is happening but for some reason does not address the problem. Las Palomas is the first HOA that I have seen take this on.

 

[az-dan]

Great questions.

Impact fees. At our complex there is a $7.00 per day charge for each rental day booked which goes directly to the HOA to help maintain the common areas due to the additional wear and tear of renters. I understand the perception and would rather have the list rates increase by $7.00 to eliminate it all together.

Damage wavier. It is insurance that covers your responsibility if you were to damage something. I’m sure if you would rather put up a cash deposit and take the risk the management company would be fine with not charging you but for $30.00 why take the risk and maybe the hassle?

Administrative fee. I have never heard or seen this one.

Taxes are self explanatory.

Bait and switch. I have heard this described many times but don’t understand it. Again I am discussing my management company RPR at sonoransea and FYI most of the other companies use the same software. When you search for a unit you are given the complete list prices, weekends, holidays and peak times are more. From there you pick your dates and you have the total price of your stay with everything included and spelled out clearly. If you wish to use a discount code just enter it in and then you have the revised price with the discount. If you are satisfied then you can book it from there if not look foranother one. At no time do you provide any personal information before you have the complete and accurate price.

Craigslist is where Cheaters pose as legitimate rental companies so please don’t confuse the customer service you received or lack ofit as what the legitimate ones do.

 

[marybna]

Not everyone that use Craigslist or VRBO is a cheater. I use both but always go thru Seaside. They allow me to sometime give a free night or 50% a third night but I pay all the fees and they are included up front. There are no surprises. Yesterday I had a call from a guy that had booked a unit directly from the owner and paid a deposit. His daughter was coming to town and they were going to RP for the weekend. The owner just called him and told him that they had decided to go down this weekend so they would send his deposit back. When you get booked thru and management company that would never happen. When my one bedroom got flooded from the unit above, they moved my renters to a 2 bedroom in the same building.

 

[dry heat]

my reference to things are great at las palomas over the last 2 years is more of a comparison to how things were prior (a complete mess). sales have picked up tremendously and it is a work in progress fixing many of the issues that were created over the years. remember this is the big dog in penasco and we should all want every resort to succeed because it helps the community.

prices at las palomas are clear and simple (rate plus 7.9%). the 7.9% covers taxes, fees, pool towels, daily cleanings, minor damage, etc. (whatever you want to call it). so for a 2 bedroom the rate is $160 weekday/$195 weekend plus 7.9%. some 2 bedrooms are 2000 sq ft in size. I don't think the pricing is unfair? does anyone think the above "fixed" rates are unfair?

 

[rockyptjoe]

my reference to things are great at las palomas over the last 2 years is more of a comparison to how things were prior (a complete mess). sales have picked up tremendously and it is a work in progress fixing many of the issues that were created over the years. remember this is the big dog in penasco and we should all want every resort to succeed because it helps the community.

prices at las palomas are clear and simple (rate plus 7.9%). the 7.9% covers taxes, fees, pool towels, daily cleanings, minor damage, etc. (whatever you want to call it). so for a 2 bedroom the rate is $160 weekday/$195 weekend plus 7.9%. some 2 bedrooms are 2000 sq ft in size. I don't think the pricing is unfair? does anyone think the above "fixed" rates are unfair?

Sorry...but :rofl::rofl:....I remember hearing horror stories from my friend who owns at Las Palomas as recently as a year ago, and some of your post within the last 6-12 months or so.....I guess your "great" is a relative term!!!

Please explain to me "impact" fees...Az-Dan gave somewhat of an explanation....but I still don't see it, since the owners pay a monthly HOA/maintenance fee (or whatever it's called) that is based on the size of the unit...(1 BR, 2 BR, etc.)....and should be based on occupancy 365 days a year with as many occupants as the unit is sized for. Dan indicates that at the Sea, it's $7 per day for rentals....how does that cover wear and tear when there may be 4 occupants in a 1BR unit (or during Semana Santa...6-8 people LOL).....versus someone renting it with 2 people? Using wear and tear, shouldn't it be based on the number of people in the unit? And aren't the owners already paying for wear and tear in their monthly fees? Isn't it just another pot of money that goes into the pocket of the management company? BTW...is Las Palomas still charging a daily fee for the bracelet to use the facilities for renters?

 

[Hooch]

Las Palomashas recently created an Email report address called:[email protected] to help in combating the deleterious effects whichthis practice brings to owner based vacation resorts. The unscrupulous ownerwho engages in this practice brings nothing positive to the property and in thelong term is actually working against his/her own best interest through thecontribution of the decrease in property values combined with the acquisitionof a less than stellar reputation as a vacation destination. RPR is alsoadopting the policy of requesting the reporting of these transgressions byintroducing two Email accounts for the purpose of accumulating actionable data.The addresses are: [email protected] and [email protected]. Somefacts to consider in your decision to participate, or not:
1. Theproperty becomes less competitive due to price undercutting.
2. Thesecheaters often participate in legal renting as well and it dilutes the pool forlegally renting owners.
3. Impact Fees, sales taxes and property taxesdecline because of cheaters then everyone else pays more. Even those that havenothing to do with these complexes pay more due to the lost income from taxes.
If you don’tlike the rules please sell and go somewhere else and if you are renting don’trent from cheaters because it’s not fair that everyone else that plays by therules pays more just because you want to save a few bucks. Please participate.

Hahaha what a crock o ****, HOA fee's get paid Palomas can suck it

 

[dry heat]

guest impact fees are nothing new. its a fee that is paid often across thousands of resorts across the world. the fee for las palomas is roughly 2.5% of the total paid by the guest (out of the 7.9%). it is a way to offset the hoa fee's for all owners (in a way, an incentive to non rental owners to be happy with renters at the resort since they contribute to the hoa). As an example the contribution by a resort guests can amount to $40k or so in a year (this could be used to keep hoa fees down or pay for extra repairs or unique projects). yes, things are greatly improved over the last 2 years or so. Las Palomas has over 800 units and it will never be perfect in every owners mind (however I can't see anyone thinking that the development has improved in almost all areas). the only ones I could see upset are owners who rented under the table because now the resort is actually tackling this problem- some owners were pocketing 2-4k each month by keeping all the rentals (I could see this being a huge impact on such owners who ran it as a business).

no las palomas does not charge a daily bracelet fee to use facilities. the 7.9% total fee covers bracelets, pool towels, 24hr hotel service, daily maid service, taxes, etc. no additional fees above this. owners who rent under the table will charge additional fees in order to sneak in a guest (however many of these guests are having problems at the resort due to extra measures in stopping this problem).

Sorry...but :rofl::rofl:....I remember hearing horror stories from my friend who owns at Las Palomas as recently as a year ago, and some of your post within the last 6-12 months or so.....I guess your "great" is a relative term!!!

Please explain to me "impact" fees...Az-Dan gave somewhat of an explanation....but I still don't see it, since the owners pay a monthly HOA/maintenance fee (or whatever it's called) that is based on the size of the unit...(1 BR, 2 BR, etc.)....and should be based on occupancy 365 days a year with as many occupants as the unit is sized for. Dan indicates that at the Sea, it's $7 per day for rentals....how does that cover wear and tear when there may be 4 occupants in a 1BR unit (or during Semana Santa...6-8 people LOL).....versus someone renting it with 2 people? Using wear and tear, shouldn't it be based on the number of people in the unit? And aren't the owners already paying for wear and tear in their monthly fees? Isn't it just another pot of money that goes into the pocket of the management company? BTW...is Las Palomas still charging a daily fee for the bracelet to use the facilities for renters?

 

[az-dan]

Sorry...but :rofl::rofl:....I remember hearing horror stories from my friend who owns at Las Palomas as recently as a year ago, and some of your post within the last 6-12 months or so.....I guess your "great" is a relative term!!!

Please explain to me "impact" fees...Az-Dan gave somewhat of an explanation....but I still don't see it, since the owners pay a monthly HOA/maintenance fee (or whatever it's called) that is based on the size of the unit...(1 BR, 2 BR, etc.)....and should be based on occupancy 365 days a year with as many occupants as the unit is sized for. Dan indicates that at the Sea, it's $7 per day for rentals....how does that cover wear and tear when there may be 4 occupants in a 1BR unit (or during Semana Santa...6-8 people LOL).....versus someone renting it with 2 people? Using wear and tear, shouldn't it be based on the number of people in the unit? And aren't the owners already paying for wear and tear in their monthly fees? Isn't it just another pot of money that goes into the pocket of the management company? BTW...is Las Palomas still charging a daily fee for the bracelet to use the facilities for renters?

Impact fees go directly to the HOA to help the additional wear and tear of the common areas, nothing to do with the inside of our units. If the HOA didn't collect those fees then people like Rob who doesn't rent would have to pay more in HOA fees. We pay for the wear and tear of the inside of our units out of money recieved from renting. Again the impact fees doen't go to the management company it goes to the HOA, and the HOA is every owner.

 

[rockyptjoe]

Impact fees go directly to the HOA to help the additional wear and tear of the common areas, nothing to do with the inside of our units. If the HOA didn't collect those fees then people like Rob who doesn't rent would have to pay more in HOA fees. We pay for the wear and tear of the inside of our units out of money recieved from renting. Again the impact fees doen't go to the management company it goes to the HOA, and the HOA is every owner.

That is...if the management company actually pays anything to the owners or HOA.....like at Las Palomas????:rofl::stir:

Sorry, couldn't resist, but thanks for the clarification Dan....

 

[dry heat]

if we are talking about the past then we can talk about the past. today we have all parties paying what they should pay. it helps that the owners control the HOA- life is better

 

[El Gato]

Impact fees go directly to the HOA to help the additional wear and tear of the common areas, nothing to do with the inside of our units. If the HOA didn't collect those fees then people like Rob who doesn't rent would have to pay more in HOA fees. We pay for the wear and tear of the inside of our units out of money recieved from renting. Again the impact fees doen't go to the management company it goes to the HOA, and the HOA is every owner.

In some (too many) cases renters do not respect the property as much as owners do. The owner knows that if something outside his/her unit is damaged his HOA fees will go to repair/replace it. If this happens enough times his/her dues will go up. The renter, however, is out of there. So therefore, the impact fee helps the owners do do not rent their units - they are not paying for the damage renters do to the complex.

 

[dwig222]

my reference to things are great at las palomas over the last 2 years is more of a comparison to how things were prior (a complete mess). sales have picked up tremendously and it is a work in progress fixing many of the issues that were created over the years. remember this is the big dog in penasco and we should all want every resort to succeed because it helps the community.

prices at las palomas are clear and simple (rate plus 7.9%). the 7.9% covers taxes, fees, pool towels, daily cleanings, minor damage, etc. (whatever you want to call it). so for a 2 bedroom the rate is $160 weekday/$195 weekend plus 7.9%. some 2 bedrooms are 2000 sq ft in size. I don't think the pricing is unfair? does anyone think the above "fixed" rates are unfair?

If the prices at Las Palomas were published that way they would get a lot more renters. Instead they have gotten a bad reputation for publishing a flat rate and then adding numerous fees that no one understands. It's a wonderful property if you have children so I think many families would pay that rate if it were simple. As a renter, I can tell you that the perception is to rent anywhere but Las Palomas. They need to turn that around with some kind of "specials" so that people will rent there, love it and come back. Why can't the owners rent for what ever daily rate they choose and then charge the $12+ per day fee for the taxes and amenities? We used to go down with as many as 5 kids. We would have paid the $12 per day just for use of those pools.

 

[dry heat]

every resort has their market and Las Palomas is not the discounted market. I think $160 weekday for a 2 bedroom that can be as large as 2000 sq ft is more than fair. if a guest wants a cheaper choice, then another resort for that market may be the answer. 7.9% is the flat rate that is advertised on the resort's site and is the advertised price on units that are renting appropriately. units that rent under the table are the ones that have to tack on added fees in order to sneak in a guest (more hurdles).

 

[Disneynut]

every resort has their market and Las Palomas is not the discounted market. I think $160 weekday for a 2 bedroom that can be as large as 2000 sq ft is more than fair. if a guest wants a cheaper choice, then another resort for that market may be the answer. 7.9% is the flat rate that is advertised on the resort's site and is the advertised price on units that are renting appropriately. units that rent under the table are the ones that have to tack on added fees in order to sneak in a guest (more hurdles).

The issue with the set rate is that you have to resort to quoting square footage as the selling point. The units are individually owned and they are not all equal. I have been in several that are maintained and are furnished appropriately and I have been in others that are destroyed with Kmart level furniture. This is just one example of why this business model does not work. Renting a condo where the interior is an unknown is nothing more than gambling with your money. I understand that Las Palomas does not desire the discount market but at least through individual owners, you have some concept of why things are different in each unit. With direct rentals, the market usually dictates what these owners can charge. If I went into a restaurant that had a prix fixe price of $30.00 and one trip I get steak and the next hamburger, I would not be in a great rush to return.

You clearly are making a great effort of turning your lemons in to lemonade. I don't mean that sarcastically. It takes a lot of effort to right a sinking ship and I commend you for the effort. For long-term success, there has to be a business plan that actually works. I am not a discount person, I always seek out the high-end option. What I get for my money at premiere properties is great service, consistent levels of service and uniformity in their rooms, amenities and their offer. I don’t think that can be achieved with any of the properties where units are individually owned.