Shadowing Practice: Why Timeshares Aren’t Worth It - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Nearly 440,000 transactions and $10.5 billion in total industry sales in 2022, a 30% rise in prices in just five years.
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That's the timeshare industry.
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It was really a post-pandemic winning sector.
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It was not incentives or lower prices by any means.
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It was consumers staying at home and consumers having more money and willing to spend it.
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Nearly 10 million U.S households own a timeshare.
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But despite a massive industry and rapid growth in recent years, it all comes with a lot of controversy.
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They're not held accountable for what they tell you prior to closing.
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So they can boldface lie to you and do whatever they have to do to make the sale.
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And who cares if they hurt you?
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Websites like Timeshare Users Group and RedWeek.com list timeshares for resale, many of them for free.
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But few consumers know about them, and companies rely on that lack of awareness.
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The actual reality is that timeshare depreciates between 90 and 100 percent the moment you sign that piece of paper.
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And if that were true and common knowledge, or the salesman presented that in the sales presentation, not a single person would buy another timeshare.
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This is Sheila Wagner.
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She took her first vacation in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee in May of 2020.
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During her trip, she was invited to a timeshare presentation with Capital Vacations, one of the largest privately owned timeshare companies in the U.S.
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We loved the place we were staying and it was 2020.
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So we were told
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that they were offering a deal where they would give you double the amount of points for signing up.
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For $31,000 and $1,700 in annual maintenance fees, Shilla got 300,000 annual timeshare points.
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Traditionally, timeshares have been sold as fixed or floating weeks.
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Today, it's mostly a point system.
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The industry has made it very, very clear that today's consumer wants flexibility, wants the ability to go different locations each and every year,
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and the point model that almost all major developers have adopted reflects that.
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Shortly after going back home, Shilla tried to book a trip, and soon realized the destinations that she had hoped for weren't an option.
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After many calls with Capital Vacations, she was told she had to upgrade for another $42,000 to be able to use her points in the way that she wanted.
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She says Capital Vacations even promised to buy back her points to cover the cost of the upgrade
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if she put it on her credit card.
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She later found out that wasn't true and had to resort to other measures to pay off her new loan.
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Interest rate being 15%, as you can imagine, that's huge.
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So the only thing I could do was borrow money from my 401k,
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my retirement, to pay off the $42,000 loan.
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Her maintenance fees have now surpassed $5,000, well above the national average of nearly $1,200.
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I even told Capital if I won the lottery, the first thing I would do is buy their company and fire all of them.
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I could retire if I had my money back from this, but I can't retire right now because of this situation that I'm in.
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Capital Vacations manages 170 of the roughly 1,500 timeshare resorts nationwide.
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Nearly half of the just over 200,000 units in the United States are in Florida, Hawaii, and California.
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Some of the biggest hotel brands like Marriott and Hilton have been in the timeshare business since the 80s and 90s.
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The timeshare piece of the business, it was smaller, it was arguably less profitable,
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more capital intensive, and had a lower growth rate than the hotel business that we know today.
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So in 2011, Marriott International spun off its timeshare business.
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And in 2017, Hilton and Wyndham followed suit.
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Basically, the hotel brand company said, we are the franchisor, we own the brands, let's let someone else, in this case the timeshare companies,
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grow our brand on our behalf and they pay us a license fee or a royalty fee to do so.
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In 2021, Wyndham Destinations acquired Travel and Leisure, which is now its parent company.
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This is just one of the many consolidations that's occurred over the past decade.
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Wyndham is going to make about $90 million from TNL,
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and that's about 13% of Wyndham's adjusted earnings profile as a combined company.
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Hilton, the license fee that HGV pays, is going to be about $140 million,
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all variable, and that's about 4.5% of Hilton's earnings.
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The largest privately owned timeshare company, Westgate Resorts, has an annual revenue of $1.5 billion.
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The 2012 documentary Queen of Versailles spotlighted Jackie Siegel, the wife of David Siegel, founder of Westgate Resorts.
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I'm a 43-year-old mother of eight.
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...who lives in a 90,000-square-foot home in Florida, modeled after the Palace of Versailles.
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I got the private jet experience here in my living room so I could enjoy my cab near our first bus.
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According to a study out of the University of Central Florida, 85% of Timeshare owners regret their purchase.
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But getting out of one is not easy.
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Even when paying off a loan, the owner is perpetually accountable for an ever-increasing maintenance fee fee.
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The Better Business Bureau has received over 3,000 complaints for Hilton Grand Vacations, Wyndham Destinations and Marriott Vacations worldwide.
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Typically a mortgage company will say sure
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if you pay off the loan then you can get out of the timeshare
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but the timeshare companies sometimes are also the lending entities
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so they own the mortgage and that gives them more flexibilities to
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find a way for you to curtail your exit and pay off the mortgage or not all at the same time.
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When the housing crisis hit in 2008, Americans owning timeshares felt the pressure.
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In a 2009 quarter one earnings call, Marriott said it had $28 million worth of contract cancellations.
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Industry-wide, owners defaulting on payments more than doubled from 2007 to 2009.
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This pressure gave rise to the timeshare exit industry.
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LLCs formed, allowing owners to transfer their unwanted timeshare deeds over for a few thousand dollars.
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But many of these exit companies that formed at the height of the financial crisis turned out to be empty shell companies.
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The resorts didn't catch wind of this until maintenance.
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They realized they were sending 2,000 maintenance fee bills to the same address in Delaware.
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And no one's answering the phone.
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And so that really just rocked the industry that they've closed
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that loophole because it just got absurd and it's actually crippled some of these companies with thousands and thousands of defaulted ownerships.
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Timeshare exit companies are still found all over the internet.
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But nowadays, Rogers says that the strategy of these exit companies is often just telling owners to default on payments.
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And the owner is overjoyed, oh my goodness, I finally got out of my timeshare.
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This company did exactly what they told me they were going to do and getting me out of my timeshare, not realizing that all they did was stop paying and roll the dice.
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The U.S.
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Department of Justice has made efforts to curb exit company scams, like this in November of 2022, or this in Washington state.
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Between 2015 and 2021, personal finance author and radio host David Ramsey allegedly received more than $30 million to promote Timeshare Exit Team,
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a company later known as Reed Hyde & Associates.
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I've been recommending these guys for the past three years, and I am so confident that they can get you out of your timeshare.
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Hein & Associates shut down in 2021.
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In April of 2023, Ramsey was sued by his listeners.
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And the case is still ongoing.
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The major timeshare industry itself did not address this problem early enough to create responsible exit programs for their customers.
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This is Tom and Kelly Shriver.
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They bought two timeshares in Tennessee.
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One in May of 2022 and one in October of 2023 that they soon wanted to get out of.
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When contacting a timeshare broker, they were told that their points were worth a fraction of what they paid.
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The rescission period where you can cancel a timeshare is dependent on state laws or outlined in the contract itself.
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The Shriver's contract with Windham was 10 days.
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They took out about $34,000 worth of loans between the two contracts.
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The only solution that Windham's exit program offered was I had to pay my timeshare off.
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I had to pay $15,500 to them and then whatever else other fees they charge for us to exit out of it.
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There are generally three ways to exit a timeshare.
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The first, either give it away or sell it on resale websites like Timeshare Users Group and RedWeek.com.
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Timeshares are often listed for free, as owners are looking to unburden themselves from the maintenance fees.
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No situation where buying a new timeshare from the resort is the best choice for you.
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It became common knowledge that the resale market existed, and not only that, but the resale depreciation is almost 100% in so many cases.
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The industry would just, I don't want to say it would collapse, but it would certainly fundamentally change overnight.
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The FTC warns of timeshare resale scams, where owners are contacted by a company offering to sell their timeshare.
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They collect an upfront fee and then disappear.
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The second option for exiting is a deed-back program, where certain timeshare companies will work with you to take it back.
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I'll use Disney as the gold standard because that's what I think it is.
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They're so brand conscious.
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Hilton is the same.
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Marriott is the same.
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They want to get rid of the clutter on the internet reduces their brand value.
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The older legacy resorts have a different set of economic problems where if they let you out of a timeshare,
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I'm going to have to pay more to offset your loss of income.
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If you have paid off the loan and only owe maintenance fees, a final option could be defaulting on payments.
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But this comes with risks like foreclosure.
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And I know sometimes timeshare companies will talk about, well if you do that we'll send a letter ruining your credit.
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That sounds like a good scare tactic.
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It works with a lot of older couples because they grew up in a depression era where they didn't have credit.
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So when they got it, they want to keep it.
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Very, very rare and almost unheard of for a timeshare, whether deeded or not, to come after an owner for unpaid maintenance fees.
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It's a coin flip whether they'll report it to the credit agencies.
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If you're defaulting on a loan, that's a much different matter.
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And the person coming after you for the loan is the lender.
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The Shriver said that they were ready to default on their Wyndham loan entirely.
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I've even thrown around the idea of bankruptcy.
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But the thing is, is this, is the, it's the principle of the whole thing.
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I'm not giving them money because of the way they went about what they did.
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That's when they decided to contact the Attorney General's office in October of 2023 as a last-ditch effort.
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About two months later, Wyndham sent them an email to confirm the cancellation of their contract, releasing them of all financial obligations.
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Hilton Grand Vacations, Marriott Vacations Worldwide, Wyndham Destinations, and Capital Vacations declined or did not respond to CNBC's request for a comment or an interview.
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If you do decide on attending a timeshare presentation, the FTC recommends researching the company before going into it
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and asking the salesperson why today is the only day they can offer you that deal.
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Understand your ability to cancel the contract and read through the paperwork on your own before committing.
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It's hard enough to make your living now with the cost of everything
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and just paycheck to paycheck and living in this world right now,
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let alone having people like that take advantage of you.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 137 sentences and 1963 words to shadow. The speech runs for 11:57. The speaker talks at a natural 164 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. Only 80% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| exit noun | /ˈɛɡzət/ | An act of going out or going away, or leaving; a departure. |
| resort noun | /ɹɪˈzɔɹt/ | A place where people go for recreation, especially one with facilities such as lodgings, entertainment, and a relaxing environment. |
| default noun | /dɪˈfɔlt/ | The condition of failing to meet an obligation. |
| destination noun | /dɛstɪˈneɪʃən/ | The place set for the end of a journey or to which something is sent; place or point aimed at. |
| mortgage noun | /ˈmoɹ.ɡɪd͡ʒ/ | A legal agreement in which a borrower pledges real property as collateral for a loan used to purchase or refinance that property. |
| presentation noun | /ˌpɹɛzn̩ˈteɪʃn̩/ | The act of presenting, or something presented. |
| earnings noun | Wages, money earned, income. | |
| deed noun | /diːd/ | An action or act; something that is done. |
| upgrade verb | /əpˈɡɹeɪd/ | To improve, usually applied to technology, generally by complete replacement of one or more components. |
| cancel verb | /ˈkæn.sl̩/ | To cross out something with lines etc. |
| retire verb | /ɹəˈtaɪɹ/ | To stop working on a permanent basis, usually because of old age or illness. |
| flexibility noun | /ˌflɛksɪˈbɪlɪti/ | The quality of being flexible, whether physically or metaphorically. |
| privately adverb | /ˈpɹaɪvɪtli/ | In a private manner. |
| scam noun | /ˈskæm/ | A fraudulent or dishonest deal. A swindle. |
| accountable adjective | /əˈkaʊntəbl̩/ | Obliged, when called upon, to answer (for one’s deeds); answerable. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| pay off verb | To bribe, especially to deter oversight. |
| get out of verb | To leave, exit or escape from; to become free of. |
| buy back verb | To purchase (something already sold, misplaced, destroyed, or given away). |
| find out verb | To discover, as by asking or investigating. |
| go back verb | To return to a place or state after having been there at a previous time. |
| read through verb | To thoroughly read something to check or proofread it. |
| sign up verb | To add a name to the list of people who are participating in something. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Conditional sentences if + clause, will/would + verb — a condition and its result | if you do that we'll send |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | have been sold · has made · have adopted |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | was invited · were told · have been sold |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 19 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, didn't, I've. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: destination /dɛstɪˈneɪʃən/, presentation /ˌpɹɛzn̩ˈteɪʃn̩/, cancellation /kænsəˈleɪʃən/, shortly /ˈʃɔɹtli/, ownership /ˈoʊnɚʃɪp/
- Long words — get the stress right: destination /dɛstɪˈneɪʃən/, flexibility /ˌflɛksɪˈbɪlɪti/, cancellation /kænsəˈleɪʃən/, documentary /ˌdɒk.jʊˈmɛn.tɹi/, controversy /kənˈtɹɒv.ə.si/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like exit, resort, default.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.