Craigendarroch Lodges Purchase

[GT75]

What is the difference between the Craigdarroch Lodges and Craigdarroch suites?

Both Craigdarroch lodges and suites are RTU (right to use) but lodges are in perpetuity (forever) and suites have an end date (like 50 years but I think can be extended). Obviously, these aren't deeded properties which makes the transfer fees much less.

 

[JimmyQ]

And no guest cert fees, 30% discount on OS, conversion to HH isn't terrible since the MFs are currently cheap because of the exchange rate, and potential for unit upgrades...I have gotten some...

When you convert to HH do the HH points have an expiry, or do they just sit in your HH account until you use them on hotels?

 

[HuskerATL]

When you convert to HH do the HH points have an expiry, or do they just sit in your HH account until you use them on hotels?

No expiration date, as long as the account stays active.

 

[escanoe]

No expiration date, as long as the account stays active.

It’s like a 401(v) vacation plan as the sales agents say! And it is not protected from inflation/devaluation over time.

 

[spdhanr]

From what I've seen on some of the various timeshare resale sites, these contracts are pretty competitive with the overall resale market. That's before you take into account they are direct sales from HGVC and count towards Elite status. I asked about HGVMax and was told that, officially, Craigendarroch sales don't count towards that program. However, Andrew said that other owners have received emails welcoming them to HGVMax and I also received a similar email after we put in our purchase order. We'll see what happens with that (we have not paid anything extra towards HGVMax).

This is what I got from Andrew:
Some Owners gained HGVMax earlier this year which was subsequently taken away as it was in error. Purchases at Craigendarroch count towards Elite, whatever tier you are (presuming you mean Premier rather than Platinum).

 

[HuskerATL]

This is what I got from Andrew:
Some Owners gained HGVMax earlier this year which was subsequently taken away as it was in error. Purchases at Craigendarroch count towards Elite, whatever tier you are (presuming you mean Premier rather than Platinum).

This is correct. They don't count toward Max but do count toward elite status. We didn't get into Max with our purchase but are elite premier now.

 

[spdhanr]

How do we get to Max from here then? Being in Calif, I see value in using these points into Diamond Resorts

 

[HuskerATL]

How do we get to Max from here then? Being in Calif, I see value in using these points into Diamond Resorts

You can either wait for the $7k fee to join, upgrade an existing deed with HGV, or buy a new retail deed.

 

[Lodemia]

How do we get to Max from here then? Being in Calif, I see value in using these points into Diamond Resorts

Or buy a resale deed from the diamond collection you want. They are given away for less than $500 regularly.

 

[HuskerATL]

Or buy a resale deed from the diamond collection you want. They are given away for less than $500 regularly.

The only problem with this is that you would end up with two buckets of points.

 

[Lodemia]

The only problem with this is that you would end up with two buckets of points.

True!

 

[frank808]

But save $6500.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

 

[HuskerATL]

But save $6500

But you would need to have enough points in each bucket to be worth having

 

[1Kflyerguy]

But you would need to have enough points in each bucket to be worth having

Exactly, That does not seem like a good strategy for our needs. It may work for others, but I don't really really want to add an additional system to my portfolio..

 

[HuskerATL]

Exactly, That does not seem like a good strategy for our needs. It may work for others, but I don't really really want to add an additional system to my portfolio..

I like the idea of it and Corrina Chen has a lot of points in each bucket so she can work the system but for me, I would rather stick to one bucket and wait and see what Max does. So far, nothing too exciting until more properties are online and the system is live.

 

[Lodemia]

I like the idea of it and Corrina Chen has a lot of points in each bucket so she can work the system but for me, I would rather stick to one bucket and wait and see what Max does. So far, nothing too exciting until more properties are online and the system is live.

There was a diamond US collection on eBay like a week ago. If memory serves me, it was 26,000 pts at $2k maintenance fee. It sold for $200. i decided to do a lot more education on diamond before I bit off on that one. I’m also considering other systems rather than being so invested in HGV.

Like anything in this resale game, it’s knowing exactly what you want and buying at an opportunistic time. I personally think that resales are going to increase so now’s a time to be a buyer.

 

[HuskerATL]

26,000 pts at $2k maintenance fee. It sold for $200.

That isn't bad. I thought DRI MFs were higher than that.

 

[1Kflyerguy]

I like the idea of it and Corrina Chen has a lot of points in each bucket so she can work the system but for me, I would rather stick to one bucket and wait and see what Max does. So far, nothing too exciting until more properties are online and the system is live.

No single solution is right for everyone... So far i have found a few locations / resorts that look interesting, but don't think there are ennough with interest in repeat visits to merit adding a second bucket of points...

I would probably more open to the idea if I did not also own with Marriott.. Our primary destination remains Hawaii and between HGV and MVC they cover all the islands... We do travel to other locations, but we can use hotels or just rent / pay cash for T/S stay.

 

[Lodemia]

That isn't bad. I thought DRI MFs were higher than that.

eBay

 

[CrazyAsian]

For those of you who have bought Craigendarroch - given what happened at Coylumbridge do you have any concerns? I had a pending contract at Craigendarroch and wasn't sure if I should still go through with it. Have you heard anything?

 

[HuskerATL]

For those of you who have bought Craigendarroch - given what happened at Coylumbridge do you have any concerns? I had a pending contract at Craigendarroch and wasn't sure if I should still go through with it. Have you heard anything?

We have some there and not worried..... At the moment. It sounds like this was an isolated incident, I think, Craig is a bit more shielded since there is also Craigendarroch Suites that are owned by HGV.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

@CrazyAsian I own at Craig and visited last summer. I am also not worried for several reasons below.

1) At Craig there are Inter-dependencies. As stated above, HGVC owns the main hotel building where the Craig suites are located. There are shared common amenities for the hotel site and lodges with the indoor pool, fitness room, restaurant and game rooms in the HGVC Building and a tennis court in the middle of the lodges area which are available to suites hotel guests. The check-in desk is also in the building and shared. These common amenities spread the overhead costs across the lodges and suites. If the lodges were eliminated and the lodge owners opted to not pay for the amenities, the suite owners/HGVC would have much higher MF to maintain these amenities.

HVC/Coylumbridge did not have such synergies with the onsite hotel which is apparently in poor repair and not part of the Hilton or HGV brands. With only 8.5% of Lodge owners in the HVC, reported disagreements with the Coy ownership committee, reported issues with maintenance reserves, and no hotel ownership, one can see that there were few strategic reasons for HGVC to continue to manage this property.

2) Following is a note on the Craig owners website:

From your Chairman
"It was announced by HGV on 1 November that it will end its management agreement with Coylumbridge with effect from 1 February. This note is to reassure owners that there is no cause for concern at Craigendarroch. The news arises from circumstances that are unique to Coylumbridge – which I understand – and does not affect or change HGV’s management relationship with other Scottish resorts.

I sought specific assurance on this from Neil Hutchinson, Senior Vice President at HGV, and he replied as follows: ‘Please rest assured that HGV is fully committed to continuing our relationship with Craigendarroch Lodges. We are pleased with the continued improvement in our working relationship with your committee and owners’.

Peter Drury
Chairman"

Could something happen? Maybe, but in the meantime the dollar is strong, MF are really low because of it so I am ahead for now. If HGVC drops (unlikely for the reasons below), then we can trade Craig in Interval International. YMMV based on your appetite for risk.

 

[bizaro86]

For those of you who have bought Craigendarroch - given what happened at Coylumbridge do you have any concerns? I had a pending contract at Craigendarroch and wasn't sure if I should still go through with it. Have you heard anything?

If it were me I'd cancel. The people who are staying with Craig have mostly already bought so don't really have a choice, for them worrying adds no value. For you, you can choose.

There are 2 possibilities:

1) nothing changes, and Craig remains in HGVC
----this is the best case scenario, and you won't lose by buying now. But if you're not in a rush you can almost certainly get the same deal later once a renewal or two has gone by.

2) Craig gets dropped
-----in this case you'll have a big loss, as using it as an II trader it has a value of ~$0 imo. You can get similar quality II trading TS for free, so while that mitigates the loss of HGVC somewhat as a backup plan, losing hgvc would still be a big loss.

If it was me I'd rescind. Lots of contracts are getting cancelled right now for Craig, so even if you do decide to go ahead in a couple of months you're likely to get a better deal by waiting.

 

[HuskerATL]

If it were me I'd cancel. The people who are staying with Craig have mostly already bought so don't really have a choice, for them worrying adds no value. For you, you can choose.

I would say that you need to weigh your decision based on your need and acceptable level of risk. I don't think Craig is going anywhere but, as we saw with Coy, it can. If you are able to get a inexpensive purchase with low MFs that meets your needs, then it is a lower risk since you make up the cost pretty quickly and can dump it later, if need be.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

What II resort with trading power can be bought for $0?

There is no risk-free solution. Including buying resorts in the U.S. We own both.

Risk of waiting:

* The GPB per USD is at an all-time low. Even if prices decline, the actual cost may be the same or more if the dollar weakens. While MF will fluctuate, you only get one chance to lock in a purchase price. I don't know what the poster has offered but you can always go back and negotiate with the seller now to ease your perception of risk. That's what I would do.

* My MF in Craig for a 2 Bdrm (with GBP to US conversion) is at least $250/year less than my "inexpensive" Vegas 2 bdrm. Count that up over 4 years and I have saved $1000 in MF. That's almost a quarter of the price of my Craig investment recouped vs. Vegas. Approx. one free Craig MF for every 3 years owning Vegas. Plus Vegas will have about $1000 - $1500 in closing fees that the RTU in Craig does not. And you will need to wait months to close your resale with a potentially risky seller. In addition to II, one can rent out the Craig summer units for more than MF to recoup the remainder of the purchase price then move on.

* The Elite benefit may be taken away from future purchases. Possibly with the next rule book in 2023. (We will be grandfathered as long as HGVC offers elite benefits because it is written into our contract.)

* IMO these prices are already at or near rock bottom with < $6k US purchase. If potentially losing this amount of money keeps you up at night you should not buy a timeshare (or play in the stock market. Have you looked at your stock portfolio recently?)

Just to compare: we lost 3x our Craig investment in a single developer retail purchase over the past 5 years - that's real dollars if we sold today resale. Now consider which of these option has less risk?

YMMV based on your tolerance for risk and financial situation.