Anything in HGVC that you are not happy about?

[win555]

I think the difference between WM which are purely points based and systems that have underlying deeds at a particular resort with a point overlay (like HGVC) is that the maintenance fees can vary quite a bit between resorts. The points differentials at these new locations seem to help even out this imbalance.

For instance, our HGVC home resort is in Las Vegas ("the strip" location). Maintenance fees are around $900/year for the 2BR unit worth 7000 poins (fairly common). If I were to go to Kings' Land on the Big Island in Hawaii I'd likely stay in a 2BR there which needs 14,400 points to book; however, the MF for that unit are over $1800/year, so it somewhat evens out. This is not to say that there are not opportunities for arbitrage (there are many), but it's not like they are manufacturing points in low-value locations. Those who are getting those large point units are paying significantly for them (both for intial buy-in and MF).

The next question came to my mind is how is the occupancy for the resorts that generate a lot of points or resorts that generate points at a favorable $/point. This data can show if the club is healthy or not.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

I'm going to look for a HGVC week in these states: California, Florida, South Carolina. While HGVC seems to be overall positive, you never know if they decide to hire people who worked for Enron or Wells Fargo and take a direction not favorable to owners.

Good point. There was an announcement about a year ago that Diamond/Apollo was considering buying HGVC. However the Hotel brand must approve to continue the license and Covid happened. The hotel side was reported to have been considering blocking deal given concerns about negative effects on Hilton brand reputation. We haven't heard anything in quite while - no deal at this point. But this could dramatically change the direction of the company (or it may not if they are seeking HGV's management to run the entire operation.) Who knows?

Lastly, there may be other states that are favorable as well. Check out the excellent sticky in the buying section that @Grammarhero compiled on state by state TS laws. I believe Colorado is also under this for either mortgage or MF defaults. Each state has their own conditions. California is far and away the most consumer friendly.

 

[Ralph Sir Edward]

Always check out the exit strategy possibilities. Some are easier (and/or cheaper) to exit from than others.

MVCI, for example, charges a $3 a point transfer fee, to sell. That's around 20-25% of the retail price. (And it has gone up before. It started at $2 a point.)

 

[Angelpire]

So far, pretty much unhappy altogether Purchased at Central at 5th in NYC April 2019 - We knew the bldg would take a while to complete. When we purchased, we were told by the end of 2019. When that didn't happen we were told spring of 2020 - then pandemic came. The building is still not completed - obvious delays, but now we are being told that the project will not open until 2021 and will not have a complete year open until 2022. Have no idea when in 2021 it is currently slated to open - could be February, could be December. Can't get a straight answer from Hilton. Purchased in NYC because we go there to visit family and want to have a nice place to stay when we do. We were able to book at The Quin for this past May, but, of course, that was canceled due to the pandemic.

I realize it's not Hilton's fault the pandemic happened, but we're paying dues to not be able to vacation. We have moved our points to next year so hopefully the bldg will be completed. Not sure what's going to happen to our bonus points that we can't use right now either, but I guess we'll just hang on to them for now and convert them if we end up not using them. I just hope someday this all ends up worth it and we get to use it.

 

[brp]

I realize it's not Hilton's fault the pandemic happened, but we're paying dues to not be able to vacation. We have moved our points to next year so hopefully the bldg will be completed. Not sure what's going to happen to our bonus points that we can't use right now either, but I guess we'll just hang on to them for now and convert them if we end up not using them. I just hope someday this all ends up worth it and we get to use it.

We own at W. 57th in NYC and really enjoy it. I don't know much about Central, but the HGVC experience in NYC is very nice from what we've experienced. Yeah, it sucks at the moment.. We had an April trip there cancelled. Labor Day is in serious jeopardy as we're on NY's crap list. And Not even sure about October. it'll get better.

Cheers.

 

[Tamaradarann]

So far, pretty much unhappy altogether Purchased at Central at 5th in NYC April 2019 - We knew the bldg would take a while to complete. When we purchased, we were told by the end of 2019. When that didn't happen we were told spring of 2020 - then pandemic came. The building is still not completed - obvious delays, but now we are being told that the project will not open until 2021 and will not have a complete year open until 2022. Have no idea when in 2021 it is currently slated to open - could be February, could be December. Can't get a straight answer from Hilton. Purchased in NYC because we go there to visit family and want to have a nice place to stay when we do. We were able to book at The Quin for this past May, but, of course, that was canceled due to the pandemic.

I realize it's not Hilton's fault the pandemic happened, but we're paying dues to not be able to vacation. We have moved our points to next year so hopefully the bldg will be completed. Not sure what's going to happen to our bonus points that we can't use right now either, but I guess we'll just hang on to them for now and convert them if we end up not using them. I just hope someday this all ends up worth it and we get to use it.

I agree with your point about the pandemic not being Hilton's fault. Right now we are negative on ANYTHING HAVING TO DO WITH VACATIONS OR TRAVELLIING. So therefore, Hilton, Marriott, Hawaiian Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Hawaii, Miami South Beach, New York City, Las Vegas etc. comes with a less than attractive sentiment and we resent having to pay for them. Hopefully this does end and again we will look at all of these things as desirable and happy we have them to enjoy. HOPEFULLY!

 

[brp]

We have fared very well with the airlines. We've gotten full refunds in most cases or, at the least, full value toward extended future travel. So definitely no negative sentiments toward them at this point. They've done all that we could have asked and we're out nothing.

Taking my first trip since mid March in a couple of weeks to visit family near FLL. Will take all precautions and shelter at their place for the weekend. Cashed in a trip for a couple thousand dollars and used miles instead since we now don't have to requalify for status since all our airlines extended us for a year.

Cheers.

 

[frank808]

The nickle and dime fees that HGVC charges for reservations(club), banking, guest certificates, etc.

 

[Krysia]

Owner since 2010 (SoBe).

The only thing I don't like about the system is that some of the newer properties have point values higher than the property I own at (for the same room type and season).

So one week at my property is less than one week that some of the new properties even though they are the same room type and season. It wasn't like this when I purchased and seems to be a trend to get people to buy up.

Other than that very happy with my purchase and get a lot of use out of it. Buy resale only.

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Agree, when we purchased a gold week one bedroom was the same everywhere...So now we dont really get that week experience everywhere

 

[mjm1]

The nickle and dime fees that HGVC charges for reservations(club), banking, guest certificates, etc.

I agree with this.

We will have our first experience staying at a HGVC resort using points starting Friday. We have 9 nights at MarBrisa and are looking forward to it. Our only other experiences have been two two-night stays using open season cash rates. One was at Elara and the other was at Trump. Nice staycations here in Las Vegas. We are looking forward to a nice extended stay at MarBrisa.

Best regards.

Mike

 

[frank808]

I agree with this.

We will have our first experience staying at a HGVC resort using points starting Friday. We have 9 nights at MarBrisa and are looking forward to it. Our only other experiences have been two two-night stays using open season cash rates. One was at Elara and the other was at Trump. Nice staycations here in Las Vegas. We are looking forward to a nice extended stay at MarBrisa.

Best regards.

Mike

Have fun at Marbrisa, it is a wonderful resort and so close to Legoland and Costco. We haven't been back in over 4 years as my son has outgrown Legoland. Drove by Marbrisa on PCH going down to San Diego Zoo this past June. Next stay at Marbrisa for me will be when we go to the San Diego County fair in a few years. Missed it this past June as it was cancelled due to covid.

Have fun and see you again when you come back to MKO.

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[Sebastiantheibis]

DON’T BUY A TIME SHARE
It is a bad decision

I'm considering buying HGVC based on recommendations in another thread. I'm doing my due diligence. Is there anything in HGVC you are not happy about? Any reason I should not buy HGVC resale?

Your experiences with resale points systems

I'm curious which points system people recommend if you like locations in Hyatt, Wyndham, Vistana and HGVC. Which one is better for resale buyers? Constrained to school holidays but can book well in advance Prefer 2 BR or bigger units but 1 BR ok as well Flexibility for cancellations Value for...

tugbbs.com

 

[rjp123]

DON’T BUY A TIME SHARE
It is a bad decision

I bought mine 10 years ago and I've used it every year at both my home resort (SoBe) as well as others and I probably over the 10 years have saved at least $10,000 versus staying in hotel (I think it's closer to $20,000 but I don't want to be hyperbolic in my estimation).

Given the (at least) $1,000 per year savings, my break even was only a handful of years before I paid off the original (resale) purchase cost.

At this point every year I use my timeshare I'm actually saving at least $1,000 versus staying at a hotel.

Could this change? Absolutely, especially given the current travel restrictions. However I think I can continue to use my timeshare and probably save money versus a hotel and stay in rooms that are much more spacious and useful when you're staying an entire week or longer.

So, would I recommend someone buy a timeshare? Well, if you can buy a resale, for a reasonable initial price, and ensure that system you're buying into can drive savings versus staying in a hotel in the locations that you prefer, then yes a timeshare could be a useful thing and a thing that saves you significant money when you vacation (and you need to be able to plan your vacations in advance versus last minute, that's just the nature of time sharing in general).

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[Sebastiantheibis]

I bought mine 10 years ago and I've used it every year at both my home resort (SoBe) as well as others and I probably over the 10 years have saved at least $10,000 versus staying in hotel (I think it's closer to $20,000 but I don't want to be hyperbolic in my estimation).

Given the (at least) $1,000 per year savings, my break even was only a handful of years before I paid off the original (resale) purchase cost.

At this point every year I use my timeshare I'm actually saving at least $1,000 versus staying at a hotel.

Could this change? Absolutely, especially given the current travel restrictions. However I think I can continue to use my timeshare and probably save money versus a hotel and stay in rooms that are much more spacious and useful when you're staying an entire week or longer.

So, would I recommend someone buy a timeshare? Well, if you can buy a resale, for a reasonable initial price, and ensure that system you're buying into can drive savings versus staying in a hotel in the locations that you prefer, then yes a timeshare could be a useful thing and a thing that saves you significant money when you vacation (and you need to be able to plan your vacations in advance versus last minute, that's just the nature of time sharing in general).

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[rjp123]

Why would you quote someone without saying anything?

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[PigsDad]

Why would you quote someone without saying anything?

They're new to the board; could be confusion on how to quote/post?

Kurt

 

[rjp123]

They're new to the board; could be confusion on how to quote/post?

Kurt

Fair. Didn't mean to sound snarky.

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