For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for March 11, 2025

What if they don’t want to go to the same place for vacation every year?

And the property remains with your family FOREVER! With increases in your yearly maintenance fees FOREVER!

John is a rich dentist. He can afford it.

RUN………..AND NEVER LOOK BACK ! ! ! ! !

What a creep. But then, I hate to be “sold to.”

time share = fly paper

That guy is scary. John and Elly…run.

If the Patterson’s said, “Sorry, not interested”, would they be kicked out of that “free” luncheon? Or be forced to pay for it? Seems that scams like that get by more in Mexico than in the US and Canada!

Geez. this guy is pushing harder than one of those Japanese people who shove people on to subways to make sure that they’re fully packed.

Okay Dr. Patterson, it’s time to go full bore on this slimy weasel. Give him both barrels and make sure he doesn’t accept any other answer than “NO!”

The more they push something the less of a good deal it turns out to be. Those warranties are the biggest scam. If I buy an appliance that doesn’t last 90 days you’re going to hear about it.

We actually loved ours. It was only after Dale passed and I didn’t want to go alone…so glad to finally be rid of it. It was on the hill in Carlsbad CA overlooking the flower fields. We had the same unit every year. Almost like it was our own Condo. We also stayed at the one on the Strip here in Vegas when we visited the kids, and stayed at the one in Honolulu.

That face in panel 4 is a good argument against and 2 both of his faces in panel 2. His face in general.

Don’t do it

I thought modern-day dentists could afford anything, especially by middle age?

How can John and Elly not know The Truth about timeshares?

Figures don’t lie, but liars will figure. DON’T believe anything a timeshare operative tells you. >:-(

This is what happens when you’re trapped in a “free lunch,”

eat and run

That guy should run for office. He would fit right in.

They’re caving too soon, look at that guy’s face, run!!!

be wary of vacation clubs too

Don’t do it, John and Elly. Better have your pepper spray at the ready.

My in-laws had a timeshare in the US Virgin Islands. When they tried to sell it, we discovered that the deed to them had never been signed. I had to get the US Attorney’s office involved to get it straightened out. They told me that stuff happens all the time. It’s a very sleazy business.

These timeshare companies like Wyndham… they have spent literally millions of man hours on sociologists, psychologists, behavior experts, etc., to train their salespeople on how to tap into certain emotions within folks to get them to sign up. For every reason why you might say “no” to their timeshare, they will have at least 10 “yes” responses as to why you should. They will come at you from every mental/emotional angle there is… happiness, pride, fulfillment, jealousy, the fear of “missing out”, even shame and self-loathing. I’ve sat through a few of those presentations. In one, I had a guy even ask me: “What kind of a man goes running to his wife for permission for something as important as this is? You know what’s best, and she should understand that!” They are trained to drag it out and run you down for as long as it takes for you to sign up. They will cram 40 people into a small room for the 90 minute presentation, so it becomes really hot, to physically get you tired and worn down. You have to be very mentally tough to stand up to these people. The intimidation factor is a huge part of it too. They know that they’ve got you in their own space. And although they can’t physically stop you from getting up and leaving, they make you feel trapped and vulnerable. And it isn’t just when you go to a resort like this. If you ever go to the mall and see a car that’s being raffled off, and you enter the drawing, some weeks later you’ll get an invitation in the mail saying that you’ve won a prize and that you need to go to a certain location/time in order to collect it… but you have to sit through a “short presentation“ first. That’s how I initially got roped into sitting through one of these. My big question was “who won the car?”, but I could never get a straight answer…

They are extremely predatory, and they don’t care whether or not you can afford it, or if it financially destroys your life. They just want your money. And don’t expect any help from the government to pass laws clamping down on this crap, because this so-called “entertainment industry” does whatever they can to keep politicians at all levels well-greased and taken care of.

The look of disgust and disappointment on the pitchman’s face when I said no was almost palpable.

one nasty item in may time share scams is that they are set up to pass on to your children, so they have to deal with it after your death.

My niece and her hubby have one. I do worry about all of this for them.

RUN AWAY RUN AWAY!!!!!

Timeshares are a nightmare

Ugh.

Old saying , This smell many day Dead ! ( Like the cologne the scam artist using )

Find it, and say NO to this schmazza!

From Lynn’s Comments: There is an art to the timeshare sales pitch and there are several layers to the “sell.” No matter how hard you try to argue against it, you can be coerced into believing you are making an investment.

The cartoonist has absolutely captured the ****centric facial characteristics and spiel of the grin*** sales personnel in touristy Mexico beach areas.

This gives me nightmares. I got conned into one of these presentations at Branson MO> They used two salesmen on me and my wife. The only thing we could do was get up and walk away. They were mad because we had two donuts apiece and did not buy.

He’s all teeth! BEWARE!!

you’ve been smiling like that too long haven’t you. is that why your face froze like that ya creep. :j

Just No! That guy is creepy.

I miss the time share salesmen. The wife and I attended a couple of the “Free Dinners” that were usually at a really good restaurant. We would go, eat dinner, and then leave, over their protestations. It only took two or three free steak dinners and the word go out. We’ve never been pestered by time share salesmen, or investment counselors since. It’s amazing how their sales pitch changes and fades when they find out the wife is a Sr. V.P. at a financial institution in charge of the wealth management division.

I saw these as scams right from the git-go. Took the free offering, said we’d think about it and never get back to them. Both time share outfits in our area at the time went bankrupt in a couple years.

When the sales guy said “yes you can” afford it, John should have told him off! One kid in college, another going in a couple years (assuming Elizabeth gets accepted), doesn’t leave $$ for the time share scam.

It’ll be convenient for Smiley there if John puts his lights out. He won’t have far to go to the dentist to get his teeth fixed.

Blair looks like Rhetta’s brother Lorne.

John, Ellie, run – don’t walk, run fast – to the nearest exit.

This initially entertaining arc has become verypainful.

Lynn must have had a really bad encounter with the timeshare world. She definitely likes to poke fun at the foolish/dumb parts of the world but this arc is really dark and evil for her!

Try switching times with someone else. Never happen. Glad I never got caught up in that scam.

What a sleaze ball……..

Don’t forget tax, tip and service charge. And there’s probably an HOA.

EVIL TRASH.

The sales pitch we got was they try to make you excited about traveling. They didn’t even discuss finances, and didn’t even mention the annual dues

You don’t need to make a convincing argument, though. “I’m not interested” is more than enough.

Another shady tactic timeshares use is similar to the old “bait and switch”. For example, they will offer three different options for you to buy in… green at $3k, yellow at $8k, and red at $15k. You resist the red, but you can accept the green. So, you sign up. Then you go to book a vacation, and you quickly find out that there are all sorts of restrictions and blackouts for green members. You have, maybe, a 30% chance of getting what you want. So, you call the member hotline to complain. They explain about the programs and tell you that your odds are better if you upgrade to yellow, and much better if you upgrade to red. And since you’re now a member and you can’t easily leave, you have a few options: 1. Pay more money to upgrade, or 2. Suffer in your current level, or 3. Pay a lot of money to a lawyer to get you out. Either way, you’re going to be paying those creeps a whole lot more money.

I have the best argument, Get out of my face before I break your nose!

In Cabo years ago there was so much competition among the time share vendors that they promised and delivered on enticements beyond lunch to get you to attend. They tried to sell us by saying they had locations everyplace we wanted to go. Then they asked where our next trip was planned. Zambia. Checked their guidebook. No – how about past destinations? Bolivian altiplano – no. Bulgaria – no. (Solar eclipses typically don’t occur near resorts.) I did get a half day excursion to the gray whales lagoons out of the deal.

BUY BUY BUY!!

Instead of a week in paradise we get a week of obnoxious instead, what, no Mexico stereotypes ? Ugliest thing to get rid of after the fact is a Timeshare, but you knew that , right ? ;-)

Ohmygosh, so creepy, his ‘smile’ would make me want to say mo and leave immediately

One little word with a big impact. NO! Then run away. And don’t trip over those strings.

And there is almost never availability when you want to use it. Friends had it where there was a selection of properties to choose from for your week but the one you actually wanted was never available.

This guy’s face just cracks me up. And I’m surprised John is falling for this!

can we get back to our “free” lunch, please?

Ten years ago, my brother and his wife wanted us to buy into a time share. Went to a dinner and listen to their speech. Then they separated the couples and begin the sales pitch. I said, “No.” My wife wanted to think about it. That caused the salesman to go into full blown hard sale. I said, “There is no way in, you know where”. They even said they would reduce the price and throw in exta. I told my wife to come one. I went to get my brother and he had already signed.

Ten years later, my brother has a lawyer and trying to get out of the time share. It has done nothing but cost him money. It’s a hole that you throw cash in. My wife tells me how smart I am.

Run. NOW.

Don’t do it! Easier to get into Fort Knox than out of a time share deal.

Remember to count your fingers after you shake hands with him…….

Wow! I did not realize this scam was as old as this comic strip…

Just punch those teeth in John then offer to fix them.

I once told a travel agent that I couldn’t afford to travel. He told me, “At these prices, you can’t afford NOT to.” I hung up.

A shyster…

It’s very easy to come up with an argument against it…“You said ‘no strings attached.’ We’re going to the beach. This will be the last we see of you, and if you persist, you might need to find a new dentist. Oh, by the way…”

They can’t kick anyone out for not buying the timeshare. They misled their guests with a fake brunch activity. Not guests’ fault. They hoped to guilt them into buying because their brunch was free. The guests are not obligated to buy. Hope John and Elly realize that.

Watch it ,toothless!!

John has a drill and a pair of pliers and he knows how to use them!