# Is Castleburn worth keeping?



## owen1521 (Jan 9, 2013)

Hi everyone, I have owned Castleburn for about 15 years. I bought a 2 Br unit for about $1,000 US. I've been everywhere with it. Currently getting 19TPU's from RCI with about a $400ish MF. Arrowwood has stated they will buy it back from me (they sold it to me all those years ago) for a price of $425 US. I'm wondering if I should hold on to it, but I just bought into worldmark where my fees are around $625 but can trade into any unit that rci has available no matter the TPU's. Is Castleburn still a good deal?


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## khalil (Jan 9, 2013)

What week, unit number and size is it ?


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## owen1521 (Jan 9, 2013)

khalil said:


> What week, unit number and size is it ?



Its a 2br floating red week


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## MuranoJo (Jan 10, 2013)

When I first got a SA (another resort) about 10 years ago, the broker threw in a freebie Castleburn week just for exchanging.  I was able to get an Aruba timeshare @ Casa del Mar and loved it there, so not too shabby.  I also noticed at the time that it had fairly good trade power.

That said, with RCI's current TPU setup (and the fact that they've devalued SA resorts in general), 19 TPUs isn't that great--ok, but not great @ $21/TPU.

So it just depends more on if you can continue to find value with it:  Are you still able to find exchanges you want? How is the resort management with customer service?  It's a nice plus that the broker is willing to buy it back should you want out.


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## owen1521 (Jan 13, 2013)

muranojo said:


> When I first got a SA (another resort) about 10 years ago, the broker threw in a freebie Castleburn week just for exchanging.  I was able to get an Aruba timeshare @ Casa del Mar and loved it there, so not too shabby.  I also noticed at the time that it had fairly good trade power.
> 
> That said, with RCI's current TPU setup (and the fact that they've devalued SA resorts in general), 19 TPUs isn't that great--ok, but not great @ $21/TPU.
> 
> So it just depends more on if you can continue to find value with it:  Are you still able to find exchanges you want? How is the resort management with customer service?  It's a nice plus that the broker is willing to buy it back should you want out.



I might hold on to it. The problem with Worldmark is even if you book a 2Br at a 7TPU resort it still takes my 10,000 points. The plus side of that is I can book a 70 TPU for the same 10,000 points. my trade power is unlimited. I book alot for family and freinds that travel off peak for low tpu units, so my 19 tpu's will sometimes get me 3 units. I like helping out but they're not paying the MF. I don't know how long that  Arrowwood buyback will be on the table.


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## Rmelnyk (Jan 23, 2013)

Owen, I have yet to receive this years levi for my week 7,-2 bedroom unit.

But I have always used it for the points it gives me for trading.

It has traded well for me 10 years.  So at $300/$400 dollars it works out fine per night.
Roman


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## owen1521 (Jan 27, 2013)

I have decided to sell it back to Arrowwood for $425. My math is this:
I bought it for $1,000. Traded for Manhatten club twice and rented it out for $1400 both times. I also recieved 10 years of RCI with the purchase.

Maintenace fee = 400ish  which gets me 19TPU's (not terrible) That leaves alot of resorts off the table for me

In Worldmark for $500 I can buy 10,000 credits from another owner and that will get me a 2 BR anywhere that RCI has available. 

For an extra $100 it will give me more flexability and get anything I could want except multiple resorts at low TPU's. I still have 28 TPU's in my account for another 2 years so I am getting out while I have an out. A lot of recent rules are making it difficult for non South African residents to sell and get out of their Levi obligations. Thanks for everybody's input


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## Allypet (Jan 31, 2013)

owen1521 said:


> I have decided to sell it back to Arrowwood for $425. My math is this:
> I bought it for $1,000. Traded for Manhatten club twice and rented it out for $1400 both times. I also recieved 10 years of RCI with the purchase.
> 
> Maintenace fee = 400ish  which gets me 19TPU's (not terrible) That leaves alot of resorts off the table for me
> ...



I also have had a Castleburn 2 bedroom week 32. I only use it to trade for Florida. I find that my 19 TPU's usually gets me something decent if I book far enough advance. Should I be looking at something else to maximize my vacation experience? 


What recent rules were enacted in South Africa about Levies?


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## owen1521 (Feb 4, 2013)

Allypet said:


> I also have had a Castleburn 2 bedroom week 32. I only use it to trade for Florida. I find that my 19 TPU's usually gets me something decent if I book far enough advance. Should I be looking at something else to maximize my vacation experience?
> 
> 
> What recent rules were enacted in South Africa about Levies?



The new rules I have heard about is you cannot sell your South African timeshare to anyone that does not live in South Africa unless you are a dealer. That makes getting rid of it alot harder than it already is. The rules are about sales, not so much about levi's


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