Considering purchasing Las Vegas - newbie

[Julian926]

I'm considering purchasing a 1br unit in the Las Vegas HGVC unit.

Can someone tell me if it'll be worth purchasing considering that HGVC purchased the Planet Hollywood building?

Is the inventory too high in this location?

Or, does it really matter? Trade value for other timeshares seems to matter more. But since it's a points system, it wouldn't mean much - I guess.

Thank you

 

[Remy]

It's a good place to purchase to use the points throughout HGVC and RCI due to the low MF.

Some things to keep in mind when buying a 1br. I assume you're getting a platinum season worth 4,800. In that case, consider that many of the new Hawaii resorts have higher point requirements for a week there. You may end up needing to borrow frequently to obtain a full week. Some HGVC resorts do not have 1 br units, so you would need to reserve there for less than a week, during a low season, or through borrowing points from a future year to stay at those locations. And finally, the difference in MF between a 1br and a 2br isn't great. While the purchase price may have more distance, many find it worthwhile to add flexibility to their vacation options.

If you're looking at a gold or lower 1br, it will severely restrict your options in HGVC and you will be paying the same MF as a platinum week.

 

[PigsDad]

You are only considering purchasing resale, right? Direct purchases from the developer will cost you 3x or more over resale.

Kurt

 

[Ron98GT]

It's a good place to purchase to use the points throughout HGVC and RCI due to the low MF.

Some things to keep in mind when buying a 1br. I assume you're getting a platinum season worth 4,800. In that case, consider that many of the new Hawaii resorts have higher point requirements for a week there. You may end up needing to borrow frequently to obtain a full week. Some HGVC resorts do not have 1 br units, so you would need to reserve there for less than a week, during a low season, or through borrowing points from a future year to stay at those locations. And finally, the difference in MF between a 1br and a 2br isn't great. While the purchase price may have more distance, many find it worthwhile to add flexibility to their vacation options.

If you're looking at a gold or lower 1br, it will severely restrict your options in HGVC and you will be paying the same MF as a platinum week.

So if you have 4800 points (platinum 1 BR) but need 5000 (2 BR gold) for a reservation, the ONLY WAY to get 200 points is to borrow from a future year?

 

[Julian926]

The more I read, the more it seems like I might have to do a resale. The economics of it is amazing.

If I did resale, do I still get HHONORS transfers and Silver HHONORS?

thanks!

Julian

 

[UWSurfer]

Yes, resale purchases of HGVC include these & resale is a much better value.

One "rule" of mine is to buy someplace where you actually would want to stay, and preferably can drive to.

I have two weeks in HGVC (Flamingo & LV Hilton), one week I actually use for trade shows there. HGVC is one of the most friendly systems to resale owners and offers quite a bit of flexibility. MF's in Las Vegas tend to be the lowest in the system & offers quite a bit of value.

It should be noted that a transfer of HGVC points into HHonors is generally considered a poor exchange given the conversion rate and what HHonors points can deliver, but it is a feature that some take advantage of & frankly it's nice to have the option available.

 

[Julian926]

Yes, resale purchases of HGVC include these & resale is a much better value.

One "rule" of mine is to buy someplace where you actually would want to stay, and preferably can drive to.

I have two weeks in HGVC (Flamingo & LV Hilton), one week I actually use for trade shows there. HGVC is one of the most friendly systems to resale owners and offers quite a bit of flexibility. MF's in Las Vegas tend to be the lowest in the system & offers quite a bit of value.

It should be noted that a transfer of HGVC points into HHonors is generally considered a poor exchange given the conversion rate and what HHonors points can deliver, but it is a feature that some take advantage of & frankly it's nice to have the option available.

Thanks!!

What is the conversion rate, if I may ask?

 

[Julian926]

It's a good place to purchase to use the points throughout HGVC and RCI due to the low MF.

Some things to keep in mind when buying a 1br. I assume you're getting a platinum season worth 4,800. In that case, consider that many of the new Hawaii resorts have higher point requirements for a week there. You may end up needing to borrow frequently to obtain a full week. Some HGVC resorts do not have 1 br units, so you would need to reserve there for less than a week, during a low season, or through borrowing points from a future year to stay at those locations. And finally, the difference in MF between a 1br and a 2br isn't great. While the purchase price may have more distance, many find it worthwhile to add flexibility to their vacation options.

If you're looking at a gold or lower 1br, it will severely restrict your options in HGVC and you will be paying the same MF as a platinum week.

Thanks for the reply. I had thought 4800pts for one platinum week for 1br is the same for 1br plat week in Hawaii.

I guess I was wrong.

 

[Asl18940]

If I had to do it all over again, I would definitely, absolutely buy resale. You may not get Gold status in HH, and it won't count toward Elite status, but those are small considerations in the long run. You can buy resale for about 1/3 off or better from what they offer through HGVC.

 

[UWSurfer]

Some properties, particular the newer ones have higher point values for certain features like views or simply for a high demand location. Some of the Hawaii locations are like this.

The value of club points to HHonors points convert a the rate of 1:25. Many who do the math find a week of HGVC points may only work out to 3-4 nights stay at a comparable accommodation in a Hilton branded hotel. Your mileage may vary.

For all the nitty gritty, you can consult the members guide on-line at

http://multimedia.hiltongrandvacations.com/mg/Book_Reader.cfm?BookId=3

The club rules begin on page 140 and it's all mapped out for you there. Again, HGVC is very flexible and most members really appreciate that, but it can be a bit confusing at first to wrap your mind around.

 

[Remy]

Thanks for the reply. I had thought 4800pts for one platinum week for 1br is the same for 1br plat week in Hawaii.

I guess I was wrong.

It's the same at the Lagoon Tower and Kalia Tower, but not at the new Grand Waikikian or likely the several new buildings planned there. If you look at availability, the ones requiring fewer points are the more difficult to reserve.

Check out the seasons and requirements. If new to HGVC, turn to page 138 for rules and page 151 for fees.

http://multimedia.hiltongrandvacations.com/mg/Book_Reader.cfm?BookId=3

 

[Julian926]

Some properties, particular the newer ones have higher point values for certain features like views or simply for a high demand location. Some of the Hawaii locations are like this.

The value of club points to HHonors points convert a the rate of 1:25. Many who do the math find a week of HGVC points may only work out to 3-4 nights stay at a comparable accommodation in a Hilton branded hotel. Your mileage may vary.

For all the nitty gritty, you can consult the members guide on-line at

http://multimedia.hiltongrandvacations.com/mg/Book_Reader.cfm?BookId=3

The club rules begin on page 140 and it's all mapped out for you there. Again, HGVC is very flexible and most members really appreciate that, but it can be a bit confusing at first to wrap your mind around.

Thanks. This is really helpful.

Maybe I'm doing the math wrong.

If I were to buy a 7000 pt 2br plat unit, I would likely to spend only 4800 for a one br for one week. I'd still have 3200, which turns into 80,000 HHonors pts. That 80k points can get me another week (5 days) and probably more considering that it's about 10-15k per night (avd?) for a hilton hotel room.

So it's almost that the 3200 compensated for the missing room, and left some change.

Again, I'm just a newb at this. I might be overlooking something.

 

[UWSurfer]

Your math is good, but good luck reserving a room with HHonors points for 10 -15K points. My experience has run more like 25-40K points using HHonors.

25,000 HHonor points roughly equals $125 room. 30,000 a $150 room per night.

What you really have to do is establish a baseline of what the HGVC point is worth. This year the Maintenance fee of a 2 bdrm at HGVC LV Hilton (Karen) is $971 including the annual club membership fee. (This of course completely leaves out the purchase price of the underlying week entirely.)

So, $971 divided by 7000 points = 14 cents a point. So, in your scenario you have 3200 points left over @ 14 cents each = $448, generating 80,000 Hhonor points. Say you got a Hilton property at 25,000 Hhonor points, that means you get three nights for about $150 a night, where as if you pay cash you could have the same night for $125 (plus tax). Many times though a room is more like 40,000 points (or more) at which point you are only getting two nights stay. It just depends on where you stay and when.

Give it a go yourself at: http://hhonors1.hilton.com/en_US/hh/home_index.do

You also can't deposit unused points on the fly. Rather, you are to deposit that which you want to go in Hhonors a year ahead...in other words I'd need to deposit the amount of NEXT years points I'd want to use before the end of THIS year, and I can't use those HHonors points until next year. There are other scenarios where you can rescue points going unused into Hhonors points at a lower exchange rate (1:20) and for an additional fee & again this is where the flexibility adds to the complication.

What many of us do is get a VISA or MC that generates HHonor points with purchases and use that to build up our HHonors account, along with any stays for work at Hilton properties and such. Then we have a big trip planned in cities which aren't HGVC properties, we might consider bolstering our HHonors points with the conversion.

It all depends on what you are after and that will vary from person to person.

 

[Remy]

4800 + 3200 = 8000

 

[Julian926]

Lol.. Thanks for correcting my math.

I think this getting clearer to me.

So if I had 2200 points left over from using 4800 for a 1 br., what would be the most optimal way to use the leftovers? RCI? would RCI points expire if I just kept accummulating?

 

[UWSurfer]

Again it depends on the individual. RCI points are good for two years. Hhonors indefinite. If you want to do an RCI exchange and therefore it will get used, you are good. Frankly we did some large family vacations the first few years and ended up borrowing from the year ahead, keeping us in a slight deficit year to year. You can also rescue or deposit unused points into the next year for a fee.

The deficit model is good in that you never have to figure out what to do with left over points and it doesn't cost anything to borrow from the year ahead.

I use another (non-HGVC) property enrolled in RCI points for RCI exchanges so I don't have any experience with this & HGVC. Someone else here at TUG should be able to give you some perspective with that.

 

[Julian926]

Many thanks

 

[Remy]

You might use 5 to 6 nights at a resort rather than 7 and have more than 2200 leftover to have a whole other vacation with points. Sometimes I shoot for a two bedroom plus at Valdoro (8,400 per week) and eat them all up in less than a week.

You might also burn through them quickly by booking at one of the higher point value destinations in Hawaii or NYC.

When I go to Hawaii, I like to stay more than a week to justify the higher cost for flights and travel hassle from where I'm located, so I burn a lot of points for those trips.

If you are strict with using exactly 4,800 points then you can borrow at no cost from a future year to add another full week to your annual vacation schedule every now and again with your excess points.

Or, you could find a two bedroom is nice to invite others to share a vacation with.

Then again, maybe 4,800 is all you want or need and that's fine too. Open season offers some great deals within 30 days and some like to game that system for inexpensive vacations rather than deal with moving points around.

So far, I've stayed away from RCI deposits and paying to move points forward, opting instead to take a long weekend in Vegas or Breck to burn any excess points, similar to UWSurfer's advice on deficit vacations. There's nothing wrong with moving points around, but I'd rather borrow for vacations now than lock myself into a type of use in the future or pay fees.

I'm not against 1br, but I own them and if I had a rewind button on life I'd go back and get a 2br.

I also advise against HHonors conversion unless you have a place in mind overseas where the redemption is a good value. Domestically, it almost never, ever is. 2200 HGVC points will get you a week in a studio at HHV Lagoon or Kalia. It will get you two nights in a Hampton Inn in Tulsa through HHonors.

 

[Julian926]

You might use 5 to 6 nights at a resort rather than 7 and have more than 2200 leftover to have a whole other vacation with points. Sometimes I shoot for a two bedroom plus at Valdoro (8,400 per week) and eat them all up in less than a week.

You might also burn through them quickly by booking at one of the higher point value destinations in Hawaii or NYC.

When I go to Hawaii, I like to stay more than a week to justify the higher cost for flights and travel hassle from where I'm located, so I burn a lot of points for those trips.

If you are strict with using exactly 4,800 points then you can borrow at no cost from a future year to add another full week to your annual vacation schedule every now and again with your excess points.

Or, you could find a two bedroom is nice to invite others to share a vacation with.

Then again, maybe 4,800 is all you want or need and that's fine too. Open season offers some great deals within 30 days and some like to game that system for inexpensive vacations rather than deal with moving points around.

So far, I've stayed away from RCI deposits and paying to move points forward, opting instead to take a long weekend in Vegas or Breck to burn any excess points, similar to UWSurfer's advice on deficit vacations. There's nothing wrong with moving points around, but I'd rather borrow for vacations now than lock myself into a type of use in the future or pay fees.

I'm not against 1br, but I own them and if I had a rewind button on life I'd go back and get a 2br.

I also advise against HHonors conversion unless you have a place in mind overseas where the redemption is a good value. Domestically, it almost never, ever is. 2200 HGVC points will get you a week in a studio at HHV Lagoon or Kalia. It will get you two nights in a Hampton Inn in Tulsa through HHonors.

Thanks. So how much would a 8400 in LV would go for in resale?

 

[Talent312]

Others have addressed your questions, but here's my take:

Points are points. It matters not where you buy or what the inventory is, as long as you get the number of points you want for a reasonable price... which means do not pay retail. Resale buyers get every perk, except credit toward elite status. Where you own only matters for "home week" reservations (same size, same season unit, at your resort), but even then, you likely won't stay in nor ever see "your" TS.

RCI trades are not made by owners with their own units, but by HGVC on members behalf, using its corporate RCI account. 'X' points gets you a trade based on a special rate chart.

 

[Remy]

Thanks. So how much would a 8400 in LV would go for in resale?

They are only available at the Las Vegas Strip location which has ROFR. I don't see any in resale on Judi's site, but she can help you with pricing and availability. I'm guessing it's around $18k if they ever come up.

http://www.judikoz.com/Search.aspx

 

[Seth Nock]

You may want to consider the 2 bedroom over the 1 bedroom based on price. The 4800 point unit, in order to pass right of first refusal, you need to be at about $3,000 higher than a 5000 point unit. It would take many years of maintenance savings to make up for the difference in price.

 

[Remy]

You may want to consider the 2 bedroom over the 1 bedroom based on price. The 4800 point unit, in order to pass right of first refusal, you need to be at about $3,000 higher than a 5000 point unit. It would take many years of maintenance savings to make up for the difference in price.

Unless you're comparing Flamingo on eBay. Then you could get a 4,800 for just over $3,000 with no ROFR.

 

[bjones9942]

Just wanted to post a quick note since all the talk about Las Vegas might have people looking to buy there now.

There's an auction on eBay by a seller named Vavvy for a studio at Planet Hollywood. This seller has linked a property report for a different unit and is saying it's for the unit up for auction. When questioned they say they'll provide the real report to the winner of the auction. They also fail to mention that this is a m-f usage only (no weekends). Just beware as the price is decent on this unit and there's already a bidder.

 

[Remy]

Just wanted to post a quick note since all the talk about Las Vegas might have people looking to buy there now.

There's an auction on eBay by a seller named Vavvy for a studio at Planet Hollywood. This seller has linked a property report for a different unit and is saying it's for the unit up for auction. When questioned they say they'll provide the real report to the winner of the auction. They also fail to mention that this is a m-f usage only (no weekends). Just beware as the price is decent on this unit and there's already a bidder.

I'd stay away from buying PH until we know what the arrangements are, if any, for moving existing units into HGVC.

Another anecdote to question fully a seller on eBay and do your research before bidding. MFs are frequently misstated on eBay ads along with seasons (sorry folks, a silver season is not a "Red-High Demand" week).