Preston Green / Vacation Homes Only FRAUD Warning

Hii, I just this morning went into the option period for my very first investment property and it happens to be a vacation rental. I don't have much information regarding the process and experiences down the road so I am interested in following the journey from the very beginning. Any Help?

What are u asking?

kirons3 wrote:

I just this morning went into the option period for my very first investment property and it happens to be a vacation rental. I don't have much information regarding the process and experiences down the road so I am interested in following the journey from the very beginning. Any Help?

The subject of this thread is Preston Green and a (apparently California based) business called Vacation Homes Only. Personally, I have absolutely no use whatsoever for Mr. Green or Vacation Homes Only. Sue me for saying so, Preston Green; I am every bit as comfortable in any courtroom as I am in my own living room.

No offense or disrespect intended kirons3, but your (mostly incoherent) post above doesn't actually seem to have anything at all to do with the topic of this thread.

We had an experience like the others on the page. We booked three timeshares at Hilton Hawaiian Village for a week beginning on a Sunday. We couldn't get the confirmation number number in advance, as is Preston's m.o. When I checked in I was told when we checked in that 2 of our 3 units actually started on the previous day (and ended a day early). I called Preston, he acted like this was no big deal. I, of course, was stressing out about it throughout the whole trip. All week I called and texted them and got no response or was told "we're working on it, don't worry about it."

Finally on Friday night I was getting nervous. We were planning an all day excursion the following day and I needed to know if we were able to go on it or not because I didn't know if I was going to be packing up and moving rooms the next morning instead. He told us one of the units was reserved for the next day, but he was still working on the other one. As of midnight, I still hadn't heard from him. I woke up at 9 am to a message telling me to enjoy my morning and call him once I had had my coffee. I assumed all was okay... which was the wrong assumption! I called him and got no response, then got a text saying we needed to pack up, we were not going to be able to stay in that unit that night. I texted him back and asked what was going on and asked him to call me because I didn't want to try to work this all out via text. He wouldn't call me, but told me that they were moving us out of our two bedroom unit in the Rainbow Tower to a one bedroom unit in the Kalia Tower. I told him we needed two bedrooms and he said that he could only get us the one. I said okay, and then he said that the Kalia Tower unit was now gone. Now he told us he was moving us into a regular hotel room. I told him we needed at least two bedrooms since we had a two bedroom unit and he said no, this was all he could get for me. I agreed since I had no choice... I was afraid my next option was going to be a cardboard box in the alley.

Needless to say, that day's excursion was shot, we had to hurry and pack everything we had into our suitcases (and only had an hour to do it since he took so long getting back to us). I had to go down, stand in line, check into the new hotel room, our entire family that had previously been in a 2 bedroom timeshare now crammed into a single hotel room. By the time this was all done it was after noon. Not the way I wanted to spend my final day in Hawaii!

We did request a refund of $542 (1/7 of what we had paid since they didn't deliver on the 7th day). They approved it in July, but still hadn't been paid as of September so I sent another could of emails and they responded that my check wasn't mailed due to an admin oversight, and they sent me the check in late September.

Bottom line... if you choose to use VHO, understand that you will not have any confirmation of your unit ahead of time, your "week" could be cobbled together from multiple units, you might have to move units partway through your week and the whole week might not be in the same type of unit (i.e. getting moved from a 2 bedroom timeshare into a standard hotel room).

I had a similar fraudulent experience with Vacation Homes Only earlier this year and I am at the point of pursuing legal action. Can anyone provide legal company address for VHO? The listed company address ( 269 South Beverly Drive, Suite 566 Beverly Hills, CA 90212) is a PO Box.

Thanks

We rented a beautiful apartment for 7 people for the week of the 29th of December of 2019, rented almost a year in advance. The day we were getting on the airplane to fly to Hawaii we received an email telling us that due to an administrative error the apartment we had rented was no longer available. We were then offered a studio apartment as a replacement. There was no way 7 people could sleep in a studio with one bathroom, and we found ourselves heading on a vacation of a lifetime, one that we had planned for years, with no where to stay. It was the busiest week of the year. We ended up bouncing our family around to any vacancies we could find and paying a lot more because we were desperate to have a roof over our head. This company had a contract with us that we could not break, and the contract said they could not break it either. They did exactly that, the day we were getting on the airplane. We had done the unthinkable, as outlined in the contract, we paid them a year in advance with a wire transfer. They stated that they would continue to look for a place for us, yet we did not receive any additional communications during our trip. Today, after our trip, when we try to contact them they text us agreeing that it was their error and they owe us a refund, even agreeing to pay us more because of all the added expense we had to pay. They also agree by text that they owe us the money, but they are not sending us any refund. By text they tell us it’s a process, and it takes time. They only communicate by text because they seldom actually answer the phone. We have explained that all the additional monies that we had to spend are on a credit card. It has now been over 40 days since they broke the contract and yet they have not refunded any of our money. We have more than $7000 outstanding, not including the additional money we had to spend securing a place to stay during the New Year’s Holiday. I strongly recommend not renting from his company, if it actually is a company. We are now left with getting an attorney and filing charges of wire fraud and suing for the all the extra expenses that have been caused by them not full filling our agreement. Beware. Others need to also secure an attorney so we can stop this fraud.

Can you tell me where you are in the process. We are also seeking legal help as they are refusing to return our money.

Did you get anything resolved they are cheating us out of our money as well

Next time Google the party you are dealing with and see how many complaints they have against them . If you had Googled Preston Green you would have seen this subject and probably many more . Now file a complaint with the Attorney General in the state where you live and the state he does business out of . Complain to anyone who will listen and most of all learn from your mistake .

This story sounds almost identical to what happened to us year's ago. I felt so foolish for not doing research and booked in a rush because I was so busy at work. Live and learn. Serious legal trouble should come to this guy and the company for there are far too many similar stories. Live and learn.

I started this thread back in 2016 after PRESTON GREEN and his company VACATION HOMES ONLY ruined our Christmas vacation in Maui. I cannot believe he is still ruining people’s vacations with false promises and failure to meet paid for accommodations. Like so many of these other complaints he knows ahead of time of possible complications and chooses not to inform the affected parties. He should be forced out of business and made to pay restitution with interest for all the harm he has caused. It goes way beyond just the financial expense. Many of you, like me, had planned vacations of a lifetime. Plans are made way in advance only to be ruined with the horror of no place to stay at a time when everything is completely booked. I will keep spreading the word about his fraudulent business practices. The only compensation I received back was a $500 deposit paid by a credit card that I disputed the charge on and the credit card company returned the $500. The majority was lost, so I have no good news for those who are hoping for reimbursement.

I started this thread back in 2016 after PRESTON GREEN and his company VACATION HOMES ONLY ruined our Christmas vacation in Maui. I cannot believe he is still ruining people’s vacations with false promises and failure to meet paid for accommodations. Like so many of these other complaints he knows ahead of time of possible complications and chooses not to inform the affected parties. He should be forced out of business and made to pay restitution with interest for all the harm he has caused. It goes way beyond just the financial expense. Many of you, like me, had planned vacations of a lifetime. Plans are made way in advance only to be ruined with the horror of no place to stay at a time when everything is completely booked. I will keep spreading the word about his fraudulent business practices. The only compensation I received back was a $500 deposit paid by a credit card that I disputed the charge on and the credit card company returned the $500. The majority was lost, so I have no good news for those who are hoping for reimbursement.

Agreed. Same story for us. I cannot understand how the state of CA allows this company to remain in business. Everyone should report this.

Preston Green (if there is actually any such person in the first place) must have some iron clad contracts (and / or some very good lawyers) to apparently be able to repeatedly "stiff" people for what appears to have been a number of years now. Hopefully, the Internet will eventually reveal, report and circulate enough information regarding bad experiences with VHO from enough dissatisfied "customers" that others will avoid Vacation Homes Only just as they would avoid a communicable disease.

On the other hand, don't people even bother to first do some research into references and ratings (or the lack thereof) before paying thousands of dollars to some highly questionable clown show operation in California???

Vacation Homes Only is also using other names besides Preston Green now. I responded to an ad posted by an Anna C and she texted me to respond and it came from the number I had saved for VHO. I was like "oh hell no!" They tend post listings that have a 1 year variable date range, so then you contact them about the specific dates, and they are like, yes, we can do that. They take your money whether or not they actually have the units, then they try to obtain the units before you need them, sometimes failing to do so.

Preston Green & Vacation Homes have rightly been accused of scamming. Why Red Week has not banned them from operating here at Red Week is what’s baffling to me

I’m not sure what has happened to Preston Green during the past few years, but my vacation rental was purchased through Nick Stewart, the managing director. January 2022 I booked a 2 bdrm/2b (handicapped accessible) vacation condo in Hawaii. Nick wouldn’t provide a contract so this was a red flag. Next I was informed that the owner had rented out that week. Nick said he would find a replacement but it never happened. The excuses were similar to other complaints on this website. Though this vacation rental was listed as non refundable, Nick texted that I would receive a 100% refund. Needless to say, it’s now Dec 2023 and I’m still waiting for my refund. I filed with BBB and my case is “unresolved”. I filed in small claims court, and Nick was a no show, so I was awarded the judgment. Nick denies being served and he was very upset that I was awarded more than the original booking and is refusing to pay. He said he will take me to court for slander, libel, etc. I recently filed with the FTC

This fraudulent business practice needs to end. Hopefully, someone will read my text and get back to me.

russm39 wrote:

Vacation Homes Only is also using other names besides Preston Green now. I responded to an ad posted by an Anna C and she texted me to respond and it came from the number I had saved for VHO. I was like "oh hell no!" They tend post listings that have a 1 year variable date range, so then you contact them about the specific dates, and they are like, yes, we can do that. They take your money whether or not they actually have the units, then they try to obtain the units before you need them, sometimes failing to do so.

Did you pursue legal action? I was thinking of doing the same. Please let me know. This has been a horrible experience. This guy should be out of the business. In addition to ripping you off and ruining your vacation with your family, he accuses you of harassment and paranoia when you do ask for your money back. Not sure why he is still in business.

I am so glad you got your refund. I am still awaiting my full refund. I have been hounding him for 2 months straight. I have also contacted my attorney.

Yes, he is using other names. I booked in December 2023 2bedroom/2 bath in oahu. Last minute, he told me I would not be getting my place. He connected me to another agency where i paid more for the same place - i did get that one. I am still awaiting my full refund from Nick (or whatever his name is). To be honest, my friend used him and recommended him. There is no way i would have used him otherwise.