# Well-run small eastern resorts?



## NKN (Jan 5, 2013)

I'm interested in buying another timeshare week.

Wishes:
* well run resort, small or large
* no large corporation ownership, such as Diamond Resorts, Blue Green, Wyndham, Marriott, etc.
* any location, east of Mississippi River
* good trader [earning more than 20 trading points, for a typical week, if on on RCI]
* respectable maintenance fees


Which resorts would you recommend?
Personal knowledge?

Thanks.
nkn


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## SailBadtheSinner (Jan 5, 2013)

I would suggest Harbor Ridge Resort, Southwest Harbor, ME and Brewster Green Resort, Brewster, MA on Cape Cod.

Both are:
* well run resorts
* no large corporation ownership, such as Diamond Resorts, Blue Green, Wyndham, Marriott, etc.
* east of Mississippi River
* respectable maintenance fees

Can't comment on whether either is a good trader.


SBtS


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## legalfee (Jan 5, 2013)

We love Foxrun in Lake Lure North Carolina. Well run great amenities and run by a small company Vacation Resorts International.


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## theo (Jan 5, 2013)

*Great resort suggestions, but...*



SailBadtheSinner said:


> I would suggest Harbor Ridge Resort, Southwest Harbor, ME and Brewster Green Resort, Brewster, MA on Cape Cod.
> 
> Both are:
> * well run resorts
> ...



I've been to and certainly like both of the above resorts, *BUT*....

What I don't see in either the initial OP inquiry or in the subsequent responses is any mention of *season*, which is a critically important factor for either use or trading value in the *north*eastern U.S., any and all other criteria aside. 

The "value" of a coastal New England week in the dead of winter is in the eye of the beholder / owner. 

I visited a friend in Maine the other day. Temperature was just below zero --- and it's only early January.  

Moral of my story --- Consider not just the resort, but the "value" of available *weeks* at that resort.


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## NKN (Jan 5, 2013)

Understood.   But my goal was to find a well-run resort, first, and then focus on the best weeks for trading.


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## timeos2 (Jan 5, 2013)

A fixed summer week at the Cove at Yarmouth, Cape  Cod. Independent for over 25 years, 60 TPU's, $535 annual fee. Not a motel or apartment conversion but built as a real timeshare so it is a true resort with year round amenities. Recently renovated. Great value.


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## tschwa2 (Jan 5, 2013)

A well run east coast resort also has to have a plan to give some value to the off season owners.  Most places can be rented for less than the MF's during 5-6 months a year (in the northeast) so that gives off season owners little reason not to default.  If you have 1/3-1/2 of owners not paying MF's that puts an awful strain on those that do to cover all the maintenance.


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## timeos2 (Jan 5, 2013)

tschwa2 said:


> A well run east coast resort also has to have a plan to give some value to the off season owners.  Most places can be rented for less than the MF's during 5-6 months a year (in the northeast) so that gives off season owners little reason not to default.  If you have 1/3-1/2 of owners not paying MF's that puts an awful strain on those that do to cover all the maintenance.



Absolutely correct. That is why I mentioned the year round amenities - rare for a northeast resort. The Association is financially strong there.


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## janej (Jan 5, 2013)

Suites at Hershey in Hershey, PA, all two bedroom units sleep 8, MF $569.

Lake Placid Club Lodge, Lake Placid, NY, MF under $700

The ones that meet your criteria probably won't be widely available for free.  You will have to be patient and also on the lookout for the right price.


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## stugy (Jan 5, 2013)

I second Suites at Hershey (not Bluegreen points but a fixed week)  Awesome trading power and well run.
Pat


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## e.bram (Jan 5, 2013)

Surfside Resort in Falmouth, Ma. ON THE BEACH(not near or close to), indoor and outdoor pools and FULL kitchens. Summer months (wk 25 -34) great, if you can find one for sale.


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## rrsafety (Jan 5, 2013)

timeos2 said:


> Absolutely correct. That is why I mentioned the year round amenities - rare for a northeast resort. The Association is financially strong there.



Resorts in the Northeast should all have built AWESOME indoor pools and AWESOME hot tubs. The Cove has a good pool.


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## Sullco2 (Jan 5, 2013)

*Villa Roma*

Here's a sleeper for you--Villa Roma near Callicoon, NY has enjoyed a totally rebuilt main resort due to a fire several years ago.

While the timeshare units are not particularly modern, the angle here is that it seems more real than ever that the former Concord Resort redevelopment is going forward.  The Concord site is twenty five minutes away from Villa Roma--unless you hit a deer on the road.

The NY Governor is pushing big time for gambling and the Concord will be one of the casino locations.  The fear of fracking in the region is real, but my guess is that NY will only permit it on the Southern Tier where it's right across from the gas fields in PA.

Villa Roma has a very decent golf course and is not far from the pristine Delaware River.  It has never been a typical timeshare resort and the sales team has been in place since roughly the Civil War.  As simple and straightforward as you can imagine.  None of the Points nonsense.

Just a simple family resort with a great upside.


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## e.bram (Jan 6, 2013)

The Ocean Cove is not on the beach, and has no full kitchens. Good for area restaurants, not your pocketbook.


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## tonyg (Jan 6, 2013)

Acadia Village Resort in Ellsworth, Maine and close to Acadia National Park. Run by HOA with fees and taxes under $ 500 for 2 bedroom phase 1 and 2 units. Phase 2 and 3 are lock-offs. Trades with II with talk of dual affiliation. Weeks 23 through 40 (and perhaps more) get a bonus week with II deposit.
Webpage at: http://www.acadiavillageresort.net


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## ahdah (Jan 7, 2013)

*I would recommend Brewster Green*

We own three weeks at Brewster Green on Cape Cod. (22,23 and 24) We looked at most of the timeshares on the Cape and decided to buy at Brewster Green.  It is very difficult to trade into Brewster Green, so I would guess it has good trading power.  We use our three weeks every year. It is well run and the fees are reasonable. The best way to buy a week is to call the resort and speak to Michelle. (508-896-1998). We bought our three weeks from her and a friend bought one from her last year.  We had traded into other resorts on the Cape that were like staying in a motel room. BG has two and three bedroom units.  The staff is wonderful to deal with and they know you when you come back each year.

We got a great week at Fox Run at Lake Lure two years ago by just paying the closing costs and fees.  It is week 34 with a great few of the lake and the mts. It also meets all of your requirements. Lake Lure Realty (800-693-4926) has a list of the available property as well as the cost. They were very helpful in helping us find our week. 

I don't think you could go wrong with BG or FR. Good luck.


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## Steve NH (Jan 8, 2013)

ahdah said:


> We own three weeks at Brewster Green on Cape Cod. (22,23 and 24) We looked at most of the timeshares on the Cape and decided to buy at Brewster Green.  It is very difficult to trade into Brewster Green, so I would guess it has good trading power.  We use our three weeks every year. It is well run and the fees are reasonable. The best way to buy a week is to call the resort and speak to Michelle. (508-896-1998). We bought our three weeks from her and a friend bought one from her last year.  We had traded into other resorts on the Cape that were like staying in a motel room. BG has two and three bedroom units.  The staff is wonderful to deal with and they know you when you come back each year.
> 
> We got a great week at Fox Run at Lake Lure two years ago by just paying the closing costs and fees.  It is week 34 with a great few of the lake and the mts. It also meets all of your requirements. Lake Lure Realty (800-693-4926) has a list of the available property as well as the cost. They were very helpful in helping us find our week.
> 
> I don't think you could go wrong with BG or FR. Good luck.



Definately need to get an in season week on the Cape.

My wife has family that lives there and when she goes to visit off season she gets an off season week at Brewster Green thru the RCI Bonus week,  2 or 3 bdrm. (Exchange fee only) - They seem to be plenty available off season.

I've never been but wife says Brewster Green is a nice place, nice setup

Peak season - definately a different story.


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## chapjim (Jan 9, 2013)

legalfee said:


> We love Foxrun in Lake Lure North Carolina. Well run great amenities and run by a small company Vacation Resorts International.



VRI has well over 100 properties, maybe doesn't meet the "small" test.

If it does, consider Lake Placid Club Lodges, which doesn't feel like it is run by a large corporation.


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## amycurl (Jan 9, 2013)

I would second Harbor Ridge. Contact the resort directly for resale weeks. Any summer/fall weeks are usually excellent traders (I pulled a 3-bedroom Easter week at the Marriott in Marbella, Spain outside of flexchange.) The resort is the closest to Acadia (you can walk into some pieces of the park from the resort) and, in the off-season, attracts cross-country skiers (the carriage paths are groomed for them during the winter.) There's also a good indoor pool and hot tub. The resort (there's only 50-some units, all two-bedrooms) stays full from April to early Dec. 

Independent board and locally managed. Feel free to ask me any questions you might have about them. I have yet to see many of their weeks show up on e-Bay, but the resort will periodically offer weeks during a foreclosure auction once a year. (And they informally help market weeks for owners looking to sell--it's not a full-service sales operation by any means.)


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## legalfee (Jan 10, 2013)

chapjim said:


> VRI has well over 100 properties, maybe doesn't meet the "small" test.
> 
> If it does, consider Lake Placid Club Lodges, which doesn't feel like it is run by a large corporation.



You are correct but they have a small company feel at least in Lake Lure. They are very hospitable, we get newletters, and the Board President posts on this forum.


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## theo (Jan 10, 2013)

*Sometimes, size doesn't matter...*



chapjim said:


> VRI has well over 100 properties, maybe doesn't meet the "small" test. <snip>



I own a few weeks at several of the (125+) VRI-managed properties. Each one of my ownerships is at a very small, independent HOA resort with an on-site manager --- who just happens to be employed by VRI.

The size of the management company (VRI itself was actually bought out by even bigger Interval Group just last year) is essentially completely transparent (invisible, actually) on site. 

In other words, don't necessarily equate the size of the associated management company with the size or feel of any given resort, as there is often no discernible "connecting of those dots".


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## mdurette (Jan 10, 2013)

timeos2 said:


> A fixed summer week at the Cove at Yarmouth, Cape  Cod. Independent for over 25 years, 60 TPU's, $535 annual fee. Not a motel or apartment conversion but built as a real timeshare so it is a true resort with year round amenities. Recently renovated. Great value.




Are you saying you get 60 TPU's for a deposit with this resort with RCI weeks.  That is pretty darn good.

Did I read somewhere they have been through an extensive remodel recently also?


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## janej (Jan 10, 2013)

I also like VRI.   One of the timeshare I owned transferred management to Diamond last year.   It is so much worse, huge hassle to deal with the bulk deposit process.


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## tschwa2 (Jan 10, 2013)

timeos2 said:


> A fixed summer week at the Cove at Yarmouth, Cape  Cod. Independent for over 25 years, 60 TPU's, $535 annual fee. Not a motel or apartment conversion but built as a real timeshare so it is a true resort with year round amenities. Recently renovated. Great value.




RCI might charge 60 tpu's to get into one of units but the most I see them giving any unit is 37 tpu's and that is for weeks 28-34 only.  Weeks 25-27 get 32 tpus and Early June weeks and  September early October drop off to 22 tpus.


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## JudyS (Jan 10, 2013)

theo said:


> I own a few weeks at several of the (125+) VRI-managed properties. Each one of my ownerships is at a very small, independent HOA resort with an on-site manager --- who just happens to be employed by VRI.
> 
> The size of the management company (VRI itself was actually bought out by even bigger Interval Group just last year) is essentially completely transparent (invisible, actually) on site.
> 
> In other words, don't necessarily equate the size of the associated management company with the size or feel of any given resort, as there is often no discernible "connecting of those dots".


I agree with Theo and second the recommendation for a resort managed by VRI. VRI is not a developer--they are a company independent HOAs bring in to do the managing for them. Is the HOA is dissatisfied they can fire VRI when their contract is up. 

Many of the resorts mentioned on this thread are run by VRI.


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## stugy (Jan 14, 2013)

I want to add another resort, Foxhunt in Sapphire Valley, North Carolina.  It is managed by SPM who is one of the best management companies.  The area is lovely and the resort area is not real big either.  The units were all refurbished a few years ago and they are so beautiful, top quality furnishings and linens.  If you are lucky enough to get one on the beautiful small Meadow Lake, you'll love sitting out on one of the decks .  This has become one of our favorite resorts.  Lovely.
Pat


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## Gophesjo (Jan 14, 2013)

I'll second the recommendation for a resort managed by SPM Resorts.  I am a real fan of many of the resorts they manage, and an owner at one.


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## kwelty (Jan 14, 2013)

Gophesjo said:


> I'll second the recommendation for a resort managed by SPM Resorts.  I am a real fan of many of the resorts they manage, and an owner at one.



SPM has my support as well.  They do a great job at the Outer Banks Beach Club II as does the staff and the HOA directors.


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## BocaBum99 (Jan 14, 2013)

NKN said:


> Understood.   But my goal was to find a well-run resort, first, and then focus on the best weeks for trading.



I would add a criteria.  Either, resort takes deedbacks.  Or, the resort rents well relative to its maintenance fees.  That's because trading is not a good long term strategy for timeshare ownership.  At best, it's a few year proposition.  So, you want to make sure you have your exit strategy already determined before you make your purchase.


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