Considering buying an EOY HGVC for 8000 points

[sherakay]

We are a family of 4, soon to be a family of 6. We just sold two DVC properties but own Worldmark and Vistana. Looking to purchase HGVC for Honolulu locations, Marbrisa and possibly Orlando. If we buy an Odd 8000 point EOY contract for around $2k (I want to keep maintenance fees as close to or under $1k a year) at Elara, Blvd or Paradise, and the ad says points available 1/1/23, but I need to book an April 2023 stay in Honolulu, would I have access to those 2023 points this year after closing in order to make the booking?

We would need to book 2 bedrooms wherever we went but only would do 4-6 night stays. Our oldest would only be going into 1st grade next schoolyear so I'm still fine with pulling her for a Sun-Fri stay if necessary for an annual vacation.

 

[seagila]

As long as the transfer is complete and you have access to your HGVC portal and points 276 days prior to your planned check out day in April 2023, and the unit you want is available, you should be fine. But since you want Oahu, you may need to walk the reservation if Spring Break competition is stiff in April, in which case you need access to your points at the time you decide to start "the walk".

Good luck!

 

[escanoe]

I would recommend slowing down and getting what is best for you instead of getting it quick so you can make a booking.

Considering your family size, in my view 8,000 EOY points is likely not enough for what you want.

You can get a Vegas property that will get you 11,200 (EOY if that is what you want) for about the same total maintenance fee.

 

[Nowaker]

8k pts Marbrisa or Orlando cost a lot in MFs. Find a Vegas 2 BR Gold - it's almost half the MF, and same number of points. I was able to acquire two Vegas 2 BR 8 pts Gold properties for free (I paid closing) in November, and one Vegas 1 BR 5,440 pts property for free (seller paid closing). I also have one more 8k pts Gold lined up for free (and I pay closing). If you're not a good deal finder, you can always acquire it from a broker for a little more to cover broker's work. (Typically, broker takes $1000-$1500, so you can see 2 BR Gold are effectively given for free by the sellers)

https://www.sellingtimeshares.net/category/listings/hilton/hilton-las-vegas-strip/ - look at 2 BR Gold
https://www.sellingtimeshares.net/category/listings/hilton/hilton-las-vegas-on-paradise/ - look at 2 BR Gold
https://www.sellingtimeshares.net/category/listings/hilton/hilton-elara/ (nothing good listed now - in 1 BR department, only 1 BR Grand are acceptable when it comes to MFpp)

 

[WORLD TRAVELER]

I would recommend slowing down and getting what is best for you instead of getting it quick so you can make a booking.

Considering your family size, in my view 8,000 EOY points is likely not enough for what you want.

You can get a Vegas property that will get you 11,200 (EOY if that is what you want) for about the same total maintenance fee.

I second this opinion! The amount of points you're looking at would only get you a 1 bedroom in Platinum Season or 2 bedroom in Gold Season at Lagoon Tower EOY in Gold Season or a 1 bedroom at Kalia Tower but because the points are not based at Lagoon Tower or Kalia, it would be extremely hard to obtain a reservation at these resorts! 8000 points are not enough to book the Grand Waikikian or Grand Islander where there is more availability due to their higher point structures. If you want Lagoon Tower for the 2 bedroom units, you should plan on owning at Lagoon Tower.

For comparison in DVC, it would be like owning at Old Key West in Florida and trying to book the Grand California resort at Disneyland when the all club season opens for all to book the different resorts within DVC.

 

[Mongoose]

We are a family of 4, soon to be a family of 6. We just sold two DVC properties but own Worldmark and Vistana. Looking to purchase HGVC for Honolulu locations, Marbrisa and possibly Orlando. If we buy an Odd 8000 point EOY contract for around $2k (I want to keep maintenance fees as close to or under $1k a year) at Elara, Blvd or Paradise, and the ad says points available 1/1/23, but I need to book an April 2023 stay in Honolulu, would I have access to those 2023 points this year after closing in order to make the booking?

We would need to book 2 bedrooms wherever we went but only would do 4-6 night stays. Our oldest would only be going into 1st grade next schoolyear so I'm still fine with pulling her for a Sun-Fri stay if necessary for an annual vacation.

Are you talking 8,000 old points or new points.

 

[Nowaker]

Are you talking 8,000 old points or new points.

There's hundreds of 5,000 new / 8,000 old pts units in HGVC system, and only one 8,000 old / 12,800 new pts unit (Ocean Enclave, 3 BR Premier, Gold season).

So it's pretty clear we're talking 8,000 (new) points, because new points are implied based on the date of the post (post-1.6x).

 

[Mongoose]

There's hundreds of 5,000 new / 8,000 old pts units in HGVC system, and only one 8,000 old / 12,800 new pts unit (Ocean Enclave, 3 BR Premier, Gold season).

So it's pretty clear we're talking 8,000 (new) points, because new points are implied based on the date of the post (post-1.6x).

Aren’t you special!

 

[letsgobobby]

Not enough points for desired locations, season, and size of family. You want 2 br spring break in Honolulu you want Lagoon and that means you need to own a 7000 old/11200 new at Lagoon which is around $8000 plus $2100 MF. GW/GI has a lot more availability but rooms are a lot more points. If you are very flexible you can own Vegas and get into Lagoon but not necessarily at spring break and not necessarily a 2 BR and not necessarily for an entire week, and you shouldn't buy into HGVC counting on being able to do that.

Marbrisa I actually own EOY 7000/11200 there because I got a great deal and I use it for points but have never stayed there.

Orlando isn't too hard to get into.

 

[sherakay]

I would recommend slowing down and getting what is best for you instead of getting it quick so you can make a booking.

Considering your family size, in my view 8,000 EOY points is likely not enough for what you want.

You can get a Vegas property that will get you 11,200 (EOY if that is what you want) for about the same total maintenance fee.

I have actually been mulling over buying HGVC since last year, but ended up buying Worldmark last April and Vistana last May instead. We just got our funds from selling our DVC but with our two ownerships we no longer have an Oahu TS location so I wanted to replace that. I also REALLY want Marbrisa as an option lol.

I would love to have 11,200 points but the buy in is much higher.

 

[sherakay]

8k pts Marbrisa or Orlando cost a lot in MFs. Find a Vegas 2 BR Gold - it's almost half the MF, and same number of points. I was able to acquire two Vegas 2 BR 8 pts Gold properties for free (I paid closing) in November, and one Vegas 1 BR 5,440 pts property for free (seller paid closing). I also have one more 8k pts Gold lined up for free (and I pay closing). If you're not a good deal finder, you can always acquire it from a broker for a little more to cover broker's work. (Typically, broker takes $1000-$1500, so you can see 2 BR Gold are effectively given for free by the sellers)

https://www.sellingtimeshares.net/category/listings/hilton/hilton-las-vegas-strip/ - look at 2 BR Gold
https://www.sellingtimeshares.net/category/listings/hilton/hilton-las-vegas-on-paradise/ - look at 2 BR Gold
https://www.sellingtimeshares.net/category/listings/hilton/hilton-elara/ (nothing good listed now - in 1 BR department, only 1 BR Grand are acceptable when it comes to MFpp)

Thank you for this info! I've been scouring Redweek, Ebay and atimeshare.com but have yet to find anything for free!

 

[sherakay]

I would recommend slowing down and getting what is best for you instead of getting it quick so you can make a booking.

Considering your family size, in my view 8,000 EOY points is likely not enough for what you want.

You can get a Vegas property that will get you 11,200 (EOY if that is what you want) for about the same total maintenance fee.

I second this opinion! The amount of points you're looking at would only get you a 1 bedroom in Platinum Season or 2 bedroom in Gold Season at Lagoon Tower EOY in Gold Season or a 1 bedroom at Kalia Tower but because the points are not based at Lagoon Tower or Kalia, it would be extremely hard to obtain a reservation at these resorts! 8000 points are not enough to book the Grand Waikikian or Grand Islander where there is more availability due to their higher point structures. If you want Lagoon Tower for the 2 bedroom units, you should plan on owning at Lagoon Tower.

For comparison in DVC, it would be like owning at Old Key West in Florida and trying to book the Grand California resort at Disneyland when the all club season opens for all to book the different resorts within DVC.

I definitely understand your DVC comparison lol. We owned Poly and Saratoga, but had no issues booking at Bay Lake Towers, Beach Club, Animal Kingdom Lodge or Grand Floridian. We live in Seattle though and use our Worldmark Anaheim for Disneyland cause I had no desire to pay so much for the Grand Californian point chart even if we could get in.

I am fine with only getting a Sunday-Friday stay in a 2bedroom for $949 yr plus $193 club fees. But won't pay in $4-5k for 11,200 points.

 

[Mongoose]

I have actually been mulling over buying HGVC since last year, but ended up buying Worldmark last April and Vistana last May instead. We just got our funds from selling our DVC but with our two ownerships we no longer have an Oahu TS location so I wanted to replace that. I also REALLY want Marbrisa as an option lol.

I would love to have 11,200 points but the buy in is much higher.

You can find very affordable Bay Club units for 11200.

 

[sherakay]

Not enough points for desired locations, season, and size of family. You want 2 br spring break in Honolulu you want Lagoon and that means you need to own a 7000 old/11200 new at Lagoon which is around $8000 plus $2100 MF. GW/GI has a lot more availability but rooms are a lot more points. If you are very flexible you can own Vegas and get into Lagoon but not necessarily at spring break and not necessarily a 2 BR and not necessarily for an entire week, and you shouldn't buy into HGVC counting on being able to do that.

Marbrisa I actually own EOY 7000/11200 there because I got a great deal and I use it for points but have never stayed there.

Orlando isn't too hard to get into.

We have no desire to stay for one week. 4-5 days is fine. I'm a flight attendant so have no desire to travel during school break times as we're using my flight benefits to get to where we gotta go. I will pull my kids for that week from school. Because we own other timeshares I'm just adding on to add location options, not relying on it as my sole source of vacationing.

 

[SteelerGal]

We are a family of 7 and own an EOY Bay Club and annual Vegas. Because we own Marriott and Vistana, it’s enough points to go to Hawaii every 3/4yrs while going to MarBrisa at least 3/4x/yr…

 

[Nowaker]

I would love to have 11,200 points but the buy in is much higher.

FYI, buying 11,200 pts Flamingo for $4k + closing = $5.5k pays for itself within just three years compared to getting 8,000 pts Blvd/Paradise for $2k (incl. closing).

Here's what you could consider. Get a HGVC getaway deal, and attend a presentation. You'll pay $200 or so for 3 nights in continental US, or $600 or so for 5 nights in Hawaii (check their website for deals). Once you're there on the presentation, reject their advances to sell you a unit, but accept the retention offer - the VIP package (or whatever it's called) - 12,000 points, 8 nights max package for $1,700 (and must attend a presentation again). This gives you two HGVC vacations (say, in 3 months, and in 9 months) with no hard commitment. Meanwhile, start saving money for a 11,200 pts deed like Flamingo/Boulevard/Paradise/Elara, so you can have it ready to use in 15 months from now.

 

[SmithOp]

I definitely understand your DVC comparison lol. We owned Poly and Saratoga, but had no issues booking at Bay Lake Towers, Beach Club, Animal Kingdom Lodge or Grand Floridian. We live in Seattle though and use our Worldmark Anaheim for Disneyland cause I had no desire to pay so much for the Grand Californian point chart even if we could get in.

I am fine with only getting a Sunday-Friday stay in a 2bedroom for $949 yr plus $193 club fees. But won't pay in $4-5k for 11,200 points.

Sun-Fri at HHV is do-able for 8000 points since weekday nights are half the point cost of weekend nights.

Here is a 1 br Vegas platinum deed, $2750, 7680 points with low annual fee.

Buy 7680 Points at Hilton Las Vegas on Paradise - 1 Bed Platinum HGVC Timeshare

Get 7680 Points at Hilton Las Vegas on Paradise for just $2,500. Find huge discounts on HGVC timeshares in Las Vegas, NV by buying on the resale market!

www.sellingtimeshares.net

It's possible to reserve Waikiki once you learn the club season booking tricks. MarBrisa can be had also. Both are tough to get prime summer weeks. We really like Sept or Oct in either place.

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[letsgobobby]

We have no desire to stay for one week. 4-5 days is fine. I'm a flight attendant so have no desire to travel during school break times as we're using my flight benefits to get to where we gotta go. I will pull my kids for that week from school. Because we own other timeshares I'm just adding on to add location options, not relying on it as my sole source of vacationing.

Only you know you but this is not sustainable for most kids once they get out of elementary school.

Anyway, you should be able to find 4_5 days off peak season in HNL if you are flexible with dates. You have to plan quite a bit in advance, how does that work with your flight attendant benefit?

 

[HuskerATL]

Thank you for this info! I've been scouring Redweek, Ebay and atimeshare.com but have yet to find anything for free!

Don't forget to look at these also. They are typically inexpensive and lower MFs plus count for Elite.

Craigendarroch lodges for sale - Craigendarroch Owners' Club

A second home at Craigendarroch Winter Offers From as little as £900* you can own a week in the heart of Royal Deeside. Spend time in your own lodge, surrounded by stunning woodland walks, glorious fresh air and use of the Country Club including swimming pools, restaurant and spa . . . what’s...

www.craigendarroch.com

Sales - Coylumbridge Highland Lodges Club

To list your week for resale with Coylumbridge Highland Lodges Club please email sales@coylumbridge.info to register your interest (more detail outlined at bottom of page). Time to enjoy! If a week near popular Aviemore in the heart of the Cairngorms National Park sounds like the perfect...

www.coylumbridge.info

Sales - Dunkeld House Lodges Club

How to buy or sell a week at Dunkeld House Lodges Club. Lodge owners can list their weeks for sale at Hilton Grand Vacations or can sell privately.

www.dunkeldlodges.co.uk

 

[sherakay]

Only you know you but this is not sustainable for most kids once they get out of elementary school.

Anyway, you should be able to find 4_5 days off peak season in HNL if you are flexible with dates. You have to plan quite a bit in advance, how does that work with your flight attendant benefit?

Works well. We bid for our vacation for the following year all at one time the previous fall. I have a full month of vacation every year that I spread out in one week intervals.

With DVC I had to book 7 months out so used to that. Because I like to use standby travel I always plan vacations AWAY from when other folks are normally vacationing. In the summer we go camping with our trailer, not flying anywhere.

Never fly during spring break or Dec 20-Jan 5th. Try not to even work those days either lol! We also avoid flying around holidays unless we use a positive space ticket then maybe do an extended 4 night stay around MLK Day since that’s one of my kiddos birthday 1/14.

But I’ve been in the travel industry a long time and know the best time to travel is shoulder season. One of the reasons I strategically planned our wedding at the end of September almost a decade ago to avoid holidays, school breaks, and great availability at resorts. We almost always do a trip at the end of September for 5-7 days for our anniversary.


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[sherakay]

Don't forget to look at these also. They are typically inexpensive and lower MFs plus count for Elite.

Craigendarroch lodges for sale - Craigendarroch Owners' Club

A second home at Craigendarroch Winter Offers From as little as £900* you can own a week in the heart of Royal Deeside. Spend time in your own lodge, surrounded by stunning woodland walks, glorious fresh air and use of the Country Club including swimming pools, restaurant and spa . . . what’s...

www.craigendarroch.com

Sales - Coylumbridge Highland Lodges Club

To list your week for resale with Coylumbridge Highland Lodges Club please email sales@coylumbridge.info to register your interest (more detail outlined at bottom of page). Time to enjoy! If a week near popular Aviemore in the heart of the Cairngorms National Park sounds like the perfect...

www.coylumbridge.info

Sales - Dunkeld House Lodges Club

How to buy or sell a week at Dunkeld House Lodges Club. Lodge owners can list their weeks for sale at Hilton Grand Vacations or can sell privately.

www.dunkeldlodges.co.uk

I see a lot of people talking about buying the first one. What’s the catch with owning a TS based out of the county though?


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[dayooper]

I see a lot of people talking about buying the first one. What’s the catch with owning a TS based out of the county though?


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2 issues. The Scotland properties are not deeded. You purchase a Holiday Certificate that gives you a certain week in a certain lodge. You then release that week to get your points you use in the system. The second issue is the MF’s fluctuate with the value of the US Dollar vs the Sterling Pound. If the Dollar is week and the Pound is strong, you can pay more in MF’s.

The fees to put the week in your name and enroll in HGVC are less than a deeded week, roughly half. The issues aren’t a huge deal for me, though. I would purchase there if I needed more points.

 

[sherakay]

2 issues. The Scotland properties are not deeded. You purchase a Holiday Certificate that gives you a certain week in a certain lodge. You then release that week to get your points you use in the system. The second issue is the MF’s fluctuate with the value of the US Dollar vs the Sterling Pound. If the Dollar is week and the Pound is strong, you can pay more in MF’s.

The fees to put the week in your name and enroll in HGVC are less than a deeded week, roughly half. The issues aren’t a huge deal for me, though. I would purchase there if I needed more points.

Thanks for that info! I will add that to my list of Vegas properties to keep an eye out for!

 

[HuskerATL]

2 issues. The Scotland properties are not deeded. You purchase a Holiday Certificate that gives you a certain week in a certain lodge. You then release that week to get your points you use in the system. The second issue is the MF’s fluctuate with the value of the US Dollar vs the Sterling Pound. If the Dollar is week and the Pound is strong, you can pay more in MF’s.

The fees to put the week in your name and enroll in HGVC are less than a deeded week, roughly half. The issues aren’t a huge deal for me, though. I would purchase there if I needed more points.

The trend has been a stronger dollar to GBP but it could reverse, the MFs are about half as much, you can cancel your reservation like any fixed week deed via the HGVC portal, and the purchase prices are less, so it can be cheap points, and they are elite eligible for now but you are correct, you get a certificate versus a deed. When I bought it was 1.25 USG to 1 GBP.

 

[Nowaker]

2 issues. The Scotland properties are not deeded. You purchase a Holiday Certificate that gives you a certain week in a certain lodge. You then release that week to get your points you use in the system. The second issue is the MF’s fluctuate with the value of the US Dollar vs the Sterling Pound. If the Dollar is week and the Pound is strong, you can pay more in MF’s.

The fees to put the week in your name and enroll in HGVC are less than a deeded week, roughly half. The issues aren’t a huge deal for me, though. I would purchase there if I needed more points.

+1. The big picture is, once you "invest" more into HGVC, it makes sense to diversify your points across different resorts to reduce the risk. For example, I heard Orlando used to be cheap in terms of MF-per-point but now it's not. Currently, Vegas is king, as well as Scotland (due to USD-GDP conversion rates). Things can change. Special assessments happen (e.g. post-hurricane, post-flood, post-fire reconstruction - because insurance doesn't cover everything, there's deductibles, operational costs, etc). Political changes happen (e.g. some states/counties get more regulations and extra taxation, which dramatically increases the MFs compared to other locations - e.g. Oahu properties). World changes (and currency conversions). Spreading your points across different properties in different states is simply a smart thing to do.