Billionaire Warren Buffet advises, “Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.” 
 
Value is what Buffett focuses on when deciding to invest.
 
Read through the hundreds of complaints against Capital Vacations on file with the Better Business Bureau and you’ll soon discover why timeshares make such bad investments: they rarely provide owners the value they promise. 
 
Capital Vacations owner Tia knows that…now. 
 
Here’s how she described her Capital Vacations experience to the Better Business Bureau. 
 
“Worst decision we ever made.”
 
Now that’s coming in hot!
 
“What started as a free vacation turned into a financial nightmare that cost us over $10,500 with virtually nothing to show for it.”
 
In other words, high price, no value.
 
“We were promised a 90-minute presentation, but instead endured high-pressure sales tactics where we were fed lie after lie:”
 
“Your points will increase in value.” 
 
“You’ll easily cover six weeks of vacations.”
 
 “Points never expire.” 
 
“You can rent it out for profit.”
 
“ALL FALSE.”
 
Let’s take a step back for a minute. 
 
Because phrases like “increase in value” and “rent it out for profit” sound an awful lot like Capital Vacations was telling Tia that her timeshare would be a good investment.
 
And that’s a big no-no. Because Capital Vacations is a member of the American Resort Developers Association (ARDA) and it’s supposed to follow ARDA’s Code of Ethics, which says ARDA members shall “Represent that the purchase of a Vacation Interest should be based upon its value as a vacation experience or for spending leisure time, and not considered for purposes of acquiring an appreciating investment, nor assuming rental income from the Vacation Interest during any period of its usage or with an expectation that the Vacation Interest may be resold for profit.”
 
In other words, even ARDA recognizes that Capital Vacations shouldn’t be claiming its timeshares are a good investment! 
 
Tia explains why.
 
“Reality? Our points barely cover ONE week and expire every two years.”
 
“The hidden fees are outrageous. Maintenance fees started at $1,100 in 2023 and jumped to nearly $1,500 by 2025. We were told we’d only pay in odd years yet suddenly got hit with a $923 ‘special assessment’ in 2024.”
 
So, what Tia has to pay keeps going up. And the value?
 
“The ‘investment’ has been nothing but a burden we’re desperately trying to escape.”
 
Headed toward zero.
 
So, why does Capital Vacations keep violating ARDA’s Code of Ethics?
 
Warren Buffett has an answer: “Culture, more than rule books, determine how an organization behaves.”
 
And who’s setting the “high price, low value” culture at Capital Vacations? That would be Travis Bary, the co-president of Capital Vacations. Let’s email him at tbary@capitalvacations.com and tell him it’s time for a change.
 
We could also email Ken McKelvey, an executive consultant to Capital Vacations at klm@capitalvacations.com. He and Travis both sit on the board of ARDA’s Resort Owners Coalition, which claims to protect timeshare owners.
 
Now, if you’re skeptical that the Resort Owners Coalition is really going to try to reign in two of its own board members, you might want to email Jason Gamel, the President and CEO of ARDA, at jgamel@arda.org to find out what, if anything, he’s doing to change the culture at ARDA that allows this kind of conflict of interest to persist.
 
Tired of paying more and getting less value from your timeshare company? Use the contact information in this list of ARDA VIPs to let your company’s leaders know.
 
Paid too high a price for your timeshare? Tell us about it at info@timesharefacts.com. 
 
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