Spotlight on Thousand Trails (TTN/Naco)
“Attend a special meeting…”
“
Get a new Photo ID…”
“
Upgrade to get access to new campgrounds…”
ALL SCAMS to dig more money out of your pockets!
December 2004 - It is important that you read and understand
your membership contract. You will be asked to sign an agreement
to replace that contract with a new one that may very well omit
some of the provisions that are important to you.
This “smells” to us like someone is attempting to
separate existing members from the rights they were guaranteed
when they paid their initiation fees in exchange for a membership
contract.
NAM is in the process of coordinating with the US Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) concerning this and other schemes in the membership
camping industry.
After their bankruptcy a few years ago TTN survived as a camping
club that treated its members fairly, even though they were among
the most expensive in the industry. We (NAM) even had occasion
to recommend them to campers who didn't mind the price tag.
This club was recently sold to new people (Kolberg) who apparently
do not have proper respect for existing membership contracts
nor for members’ concerns. The new TTN seems to be in the
process of selling the land and buildings to MHC, the company
that owns and operates Encore RV parks.
Kolberg will then lease back the use of the land for 15 years.
There are two 5-year optional extension periods on the leaseback,
but they are at Kohlberg’s option so the likelihood that
the membership will exist beyond 15 years is not good. TTN salespersons
are using a 25-year figure, but this includes the two optional
periods and should not be relied upon.
SAD NEWS
ABOUT
THE “NEW” THOUSAND TRAILS
by Janet R. Wilder
June 2005 - About a year ago, Thousand Trails, a publicly traded
corporation, was sold to Kohlberg & Company, an investment
group, who purchased up all of the outstanding publicly traded
stock and made it a privately held company. Within a few months
of their purchasing Thousand Trails (Thousand Trails, NACO, Leisure
Time Resorts and RPI), Kohlberg sold all of the land to what
is now called Equity LifeStyle Properties Inc, the company that
owns, among other things, the Encore RV parks. Some undeveloped
land was irrevocably sold but the campgrounds were leased-back
by Kohlberg for a 15 year term. The lease can be renewed for
two additional 5 year periods at Kohlberg’s option. At
the end of the lease Equity LifeStyle will possess the physical
property. Nothing has been shared with the membership as to what
happens to their ability to camp, transfer their memberships
or will it to their children at that time.
There are two campgrounds, one in California and one in Florida,
that Kohlberg purchased after the land deal that are not included
in the lease-back program, but there is no assurance that they
will not negotiate another lease for these. Besides these two
properties, the only thing Kohlberg owns is the membership roster.
With the change in ownership has come a radical change in commitment
to the member. Since Kohlberg does not own any of the physical
property, including buildings, electrical lines, water lines,
etc., there is absolutely no incentive for improvements. There
are very few 50 amp hookups in the preserves and most of those
that are available cost an additional daily fee or are reserved
for long-term lease programs. Most of the preserves have sub-standard
electrical systems and low voltage is so endemic to TTN that
the company owned convenience stores on many of the preserves
sell Autoformers to boost the voltage. A recent situation in
a Texas preserve is an example of Kohlberg’s business philosophy:
This property had a bridge over a culvert that was necessary
to cross to enter and leave the preserve. The bridge was rapidly
deteriorating and needed to be repaired. Kohlberg knew of the
problem before the summer of 2004. The preserve is closed in
the summer as it’s too hot in that area to attract campers.
It would have been a perfect time to repair the bridge, but Kohlberg
was waiting until Equity LifeStyles took over the ownership of
the land and it became their responsibility.
They dumped some dirt on the side of the bridge, opened the preserve
and required campers to drive across the culvert. In November,
heavy rains washed out the dirt access and campers were trapped
in the preserve for several days. To their credit, as soon as
Equity LifeStyles became the official land owners, they released
the funds to repair the bridge and it is now complete. Kohlberg
showed their true nature to the campers by placing their profits
before the safety of their members. If there would have been
an emergency while the bridge was out, there would have been
no way for an ambulance or fire truck to enter the preserve.
True, they could not predict the rain, but they had knowledge
of what would happen should the dirt road wash out and did nothing
about it.
Kohlberg has been reinterpreting member contracts to their benefit
and the detriment of the members since taking over the company.
Since Kohlberg, through its ownership of Thousand Trails, also
owns RPI, the RPI “home resort” rules have been secretly
altered to punish NACO members who did not purchase the Leisure
Time Resort upgrade. A complaint to the Good Sam Club Action
Line about this practice was ignored by Kohlberg. Though they
responded to a filing with the Dallas Area Better Business Bureau,
their response did not address the complaint. Instead, Kohlberg
complained that the member was a “high user” of their
campgrounds, something that was well within the member’s
contract with Thousand Trails.
By its own business plan, Kohlberg’s Thousand Trails will
not last fifteen years, yet it continues to aggressively market
the system to new members with no explanation as to what will
happen to their membership at that time. It is strongly suggested
that potential members think carefully about purchasing a membership
that is supposed to last longer than the company selling it will
own the property. When the land is gone, most members looking
to “protect their investment” will be vulnerable
to whatever the next owner of the membership roster wants to
sell them.
Janet Wilder has been a member of Thousand Trails since 1990
and is NAM’s advisor for Thousand Trails related questions.
Mrs. Wilder is a long standing associate of NAM and has been our
liaison with TTN for most of that time. She is known on the internet
as the “Road Princess” and refers to herself, her
husband, and her puppy as “residentially challenged” since
they live and travel full-time in their RV. We at NAM note and
respect her compassion for and eagerness to help others.
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