2019 Portfolio Changes/Divesting and Gaining

[SteelerGal]

We finally have divested all of our Westin’s. As much as I loved the Westin’s, we realized that we needed more SOs, our children’s taste was more simplistic and the MF were to high for EOY. We eventually want to add an Annusl WKV Platinum but won’t execute until I find the right deal( Thrifty Mom here)
We did decide to join the Borg(MVC) w/ our latest purchase since we are tied to school schedule.

So looking at 2019, how have your portfolios changed?

 

[jabberwocky]

Interesting question - especially seeing what stage people are at in life.

We had a big year in expanding our portfolio. We added a 2BR EOY WKORV-N OF week early in the year. Realizing we might want a slight bit more time on Maui we added a small 67,100 WFlex package which also ended up re qualifying our 2BR EOY SDO week now worth 148,100 SO. Our MF's have climbed significantly (up from $1700 to $3800) but it's well worth it for what we are now getting.

I think we'll be done for the next bit. I'm considering adding a HGVC week to get access to Oahu or the Big Island, but I want to see how things settle out with the potential merger there. I can't see us adding much more Vistana in the near future.

 

[VacationForever]

We made most of our changes in 2016 and 2017. 2016 was the year which we retired and I felt that we should downsize our portfolio due to financial commitment of escalating MF.

We sold a couple of Vistana weeks in 2016. I was also in correspondence with Marriott resale department to sell our 2 weeks through them in 2016 but I was told that the queue was very long ahead of us.

In Sep 2017, something changed and we ended up buying a bundle through MVC to get us to Presidential level. The interesting thing was in Oct 2017, the Marriott resale department reached out to me to sign documents to sell the 2 weeks which I had put on their waiting list the year before. With the purchase, we were committed to wanting to be at Presidential level which meant we weren't going to sell anything that was MVC. It then made sense to sell our Worldmark contract. We now only own Vistana and MVC timeshares and still have more than we can use. Between a sick cat at home and rejoining the country club here and playing lots of golf, we are struggling to use all that we own. I figure we will divest in about 10 years' time as we get older.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

We are in a holding pattern for now with 3 TS (2 HGVC annuals and 1 WKORVN EOY). We were considering adding an SVV Mandatory EOY to get an SO trader, and another HGVC 7 k unit, however with changes pending in both the MVC and HGVC systems we have decided to wait and see.

 

[Markus]

We just sold our St John 3 bed pool villa, and are considering selling our 2 bed WKV platinum week as well. Too many weeks to own. We will still be 5 star post these transactions and that is plenty for us. There comes a time when you look at all that you own, and you realize what you really need. We still love the Westins, and find that we are able to book and get what we want in terms of reservations.

 

[PcflEZFlng]

Recently retired and downsizing since our travel patterns are changing. Still looking forward to occasional TS stays (Westins are great), but they'll be done as rentals, and we won't be tied to MFs. Recently sold DVC BCV, which I divested first because we almost never went to Orlando, and it was easy to sell due to the high demand. Working on the Westins next.

 

[JohnPaul]

First timeshare in 1988. Bought and bought and bought but have never sold anything. Making great use of everything in our retirement. Probably on the road (mostly timeshares) 6 to 8 months of the year.

 

[Grandma2016]

Last year added a couple week 52 units to our portfolio. We are in our early 50s so not quite retired yet although we do spend about 5 to 6 weeks on Maui. Love our timeshare at KOR south and north. Best part our 3 week 52s provide almost enough rent to cover all 8 weeks of MF. We use our ownership, our kids and now grandbabies come as well. Very happy with it.

 

[jmhpsu93]

Added two Marriott Grande Vista gold season and two Vistana Villages 2BR lockoff platinum season voluntary weeks. Paid around $1500 for all four of them and got 2020 usage free on three, rented two of those weeks and netted about $1000 (after the $1500 noted above and rental fees on RedWeek) plus a free week at Marriott Ocean Pointe in June (traded through Florida Club). We also own Destination Points and a TS in Mexico that is paid off with no MFs.

I think we're good for now - the MF bills are tamping down the acquisition budget and I'm maxing out my vacation time anyway. We're hitting up Florida hard in 2020 before my daughter goes to college and we'll use up our Universal Annual passes.