• The TUGBBS forums are completely free and open to the public and exist as the absolute best place for owners to get help and advice about their timeshares for more than 30 years!

    Join Tens of Thousands of other Owners just like you here to get any and all Timeshare questions answered 24 hours a day!
  • TUG started 30 years ago in October 1993 as a group of regular Timeshare owners just like you!

    Read about our 30th anniversary: Happy 30th Birthday TUG!
  • TUG has a YouTube Channel to produce weekly short informative videos on popular Timeshare topics!

    Free memberships for every 50 subscribers!

    Visit TUG on Youtube!
  • TUG has now saved timeshare owners more than $21,000,000 dollars just by finding us in time to rescind a new Timeshare purchase! A truly incredible milestone!

    Read more here: TUG saves owners more than $21 Million dollars
  • Sign up to get the TUG Newsletter for free!

    60,000+ subscribing owners! A weekly recap of the best Timeshare resort reviews and the most popular topics discussed by owners!
  • Our official "end my sales presentation early" T-shirts are available again! Also come with the option for a free membership extension with purchase to offset the cost!

    All T-shirt options here!
  • A few of the most common links here on the forums for newbies and guests!

Deciding on HGVC contract

simba7

newbie
Joined
Aug 21, 2011
Messages
9
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
NJ
Hello!
I just went through a HGVC presentation in Orlando last week, and ended up signing on an every other odd-year 3400 points, 1-bedroom in gold season for $11,840. They said it was discounted by nearly $6000 (for a total of $11,840) and gave us 6800 bonus points. I had been reluctant going into the presentation, as I don't know much about timeshares. My husband however, felt that this would be a great way for the family (us and 2 kids) to enjoy vacationing more often. We signed the contract, but only after I realized we had 10 days to rescind...hence my current search for info!!! It seems many users have good things to say about Hilton's program, but I still have some questions.

1) They said the maintenance fees don't usually go up often, and in rare cases have gone down....any input?

2) They gave us a unit in the Las Vegas Strip property...not a place we were thinking of going with the kids, but they said the maintenance fees would be much lower there. It seemed kind of strange since the whole time we were discussing trips to Orlando or hopefully Hawaii. Does the location truly matter?

3) Do you get charged a fee for making reservations during the open season? They mentioned the reservation fees for club reservations, but don't see anything about fees for open season rentals. Just wondering if these rates are actually going to be lower than just using my AAA discount rate for a room.

4) They talked about maintenance fees and the club reservation fees, but did not mention the annual club dues until we were signing the actual contract. At that point, I almost backed out but figured we went this far, and $114 wouldn't be too bad. However, I just read over the guide book and now see it also mentions a "first year activation fee" listed on page 151 for $399. Is this yet another upfront fee they did not mention in the sales pitch? Are there alot of these types of hidden "fees" with this program?

5) They gave us 6800 bonus points and said they could be spread over the first five years making it feel like an "annual" plan. After reading the fine print, it seems the bonus points are only good for 2 years after being awarded. It seemed kind of shady to me, but if we need to use them sooner rather than later...maybe we can use them to take a really nice trip to Hawaii. As far as availability, is this being realistic?

6) As for occupancy restrictions, if we could only find a studio room available somewhere, would we be able to stay with our 2 children? The booklet says studios have an occupancy restriction of 2 people, but I was wondering if they are including the kids. Any experience with this situation?

Also thinking of buying "re-sale" as well now after reading many other posts, but worried that Hilton wouldn't approve the re-sale if they see we had rescinded. Our credit is decent, but not great....do they use that as a factor for re-sale? We would probably just pay cash if they are truly that much lower in cost. Just trying to figure out if we really found a good deal or if it's just a scam! Sorry for the lengthy post and thanks for any input!!!
 

rickandcindy23

TUG Review Crew: Elite
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
31,898
Reaction score
8,999
Points
1,049
Location
The Centennial State
Resorts Owned
Wyndham Founder; Disney OKW & SSR; Marriott's Willow Ridge,Shadow Ridge,Grand Chateau;Val Chatelle; Hono Koa OF (3); SBR(LOTS), SDO a few; Grand Palms; WKORV-OF (2),Westin Desert Willow.
You should rescind and buy resale for much less.
 

loafingcactus

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2011
Messages
419
Reaction score
1
Points
0
Location
Raleigh, NC
Your bonus point expiration date will be in your purchase summary document.

Good deal or no can be debated on several different variables, but it doesn't really sound like you necessarily bought something that is a good match for you and your family.
 

ricoba

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 7, 2005
Messages
6,272
Reaction score
2
Points
323
Location
Metro Los Angeles
If you are still within the 10 days rescind and buy resale. For what you spent you should be able to find a 2 bedroom, every year 7000 points unit

And no, you can't put 4 into a studio, they only have 1 bed.

Judy K and Seth are two resale agents well respected here on TUG.
 

Blues

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
2,482
Reaction score
496
Points
443
Location
Monterey County CA
Agree with Cindy -- definitely rescind. Then, take your time to research the types of deals available on resale.

I'm a big believer in HGVC. I own two weeks. But the price you paid was way, way over market. By buying resale, you could get 3400 points every year for less than $3000. Better yet, a 5000 point 2 BR Gold every year for around $4000-5000. For the money you paid, you could buy a 7000 point 2BR Platinum every year.

I know that they sell you on the benefits of buying from HGVC direct. But one of the beauties of the HGVC program is that resale buyers get everything, every privilege, of direct buyers, except one. You can't get Elite status with resale points. While there are some benefits of Elite, it's not worth anything near the price it costs.

Oh, and of course, by buying resale, you won't get your bonus points. Your 6800 bonus points will get you 2 weeks in a 1 BR in Gold time. That may be worth about $2000 or so.

-Bob
ETA - I see Rick got in ahead of me, while I was typing this. I agree - Judy K and Seth are both highly regarded on this forum. You can't go wrong dealing with either one of them.
 

simba7

newbie
Joined
Aug 21, 2011
Messages
9
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
NJ
Thanks for all the input! We originally thought that by going with an "every other year" program we would be able to get a feel for the how the points work before committing to a yearly maintenance fee, but could always upgrade if we were happy. Now that I see what we could get for a fraction of the overall price, guess it wouldn't really make sense. We also liked the fact that we could leave the timeshare for our children/grandchildren. Does anyone know if this is still possible when buying re-sale? If the Elite status is truly the only benefit in buying direct, it doesn't make much sense. Thanks again!
 

Remy

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 10, 2011
Messages
666
Reaction score
49
Points
239
Location
Kansas
Resorts Owned
Hilton Grand Vacations Club on the Boulevard, Hyatt Residence Club Wild Oak Ranch
Elite isn't something you're even close to achieving with a 3400 point EOY. The lowest level Elite requires 14,000 points purchased direct (10s of thousands of dollars). You are paying more for no additional benefit.

http://www.hiltonloyalist.com/hgvc/hilton-grand-vacations-club-hgvc-elite-status-breakdown/

1. They go up. Taxes go up. Fees in the club go up. Open season rates go up. Guest certificate fees go up. etc.
2. It can matter, but probably not in your case. Unless you are in a high-demand property where you want a booking advantage at that specific resort, a low MF makes sense. A silver week probably doesn't. 3400 points severely restricts your vacation options for the fee you are paying. To get 7 nights at many resorts you'll need 3,500 to 4,800 for the smallest rooms.
3. There are no fees, but there are taxes.
4. $399 is the enrollment fee for HGVC.
5. Depends on when you want to go.
6. I've seen people sneak kids into a studio. Occupancy is a rule and I advise following them.

They can't stop a resale. They can buy it back in your place at a resort like the Las Vegas Strip, but while spite can be a strong motivator, it isn't likely they will overpay just to keep you out.
 

Talent312

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2007
Messages
17,461
Reaction score
7,277
Points
948
Resorts Owned
HGVC & GTS
I concur with all those who said RESCIND.
When you do, follow the instructions in your Contract to the letter,
even if you think that there's a better way. Deviate and it won't count.

As others say, resale could net you an every-year TS for 1/3 the price.
Its a very flexible, consumer-friendly system, but do not allow yourself
to be bamboozled by cretinous salesmen who infect every TS program.
 

timeos2

Tug Review Crew: Rookie
TUG Lifetime Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2005
Messages
11,183
Reaction score
5
Points
36
Location
Rochester, NY
Absolutely rescind ASAP. This is not a good deal, doesn't really fit your use plans and you can get far better with a resale purchase.
 

siesta

TUG Member
Joined
Aug 12, 2010
Messages
3,514
Reaction score
57
Points
283
Rescind and buy resale, you are needlessly throwing away thousands of dollars.
 

chriskre

TUG Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2006
Messages
4,608
Reaction score
259
Points
468
Location
South Florida
Resorts Owned
DVC- SSR, Poly,
Wyndham Las Cascadas
HGVC Tuscany Village
Bluegreen CMV UDI
RCI pts at VVParkway
Enchanted Isle resort.
I agree with everyone to rescind.
I also don't think it's a bad idea to just purchase a biennial resale.

I bought a gold 5000 EOY resale and to be honest with you, I've used the open season rates more than my points. I still have 2000 points leftover that I'll be saving to use next year. I've taken two vactations with those 3000 points and 3 other open season vacations including 3 bedrooms in Orlando and 2 bedrooms in Ft. Myers.

I know that I was discouraged from buying such a small package but it has totally been enough for me. Of course that could be because I own 6 other timeshares in other systems so if you're considering owning other TS systems you may want to stick with a biennial.

I bought from Seth and I believe he gave me a good deal. He was also very easy to work with. All done by email. :)
 

Aquaman55

TUG Member
Joined
Aug 22, 2011
Messages
71
Reaction score
0
Points
0
A lot of well-meaning people are hurling advice at you like rescind, rescind, rescind. In short, only you and your family can decide if it is worth it. I have purchased HGVC points from the developer (will buy some resale in the future,) and am very happy with it. Hilton is a good organization. However, there is a learning curve to properly using the points. If money is an issue, you can also use bonus points to pay MF. You can do this over two years. Good luck!
 

loafingcactus

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2011
Messages
419
Reaction score
1
Points
0
Location
Raleigh, NC
In general, I agree that "rescind" is a bit too much of a reflex and I also bought from a developer.

However, in this case there are two problems. First, it doesn't sound like the purchase was a good match for this family.

Second, buying a lower tier item from the developer really doesn't make sense. A Flamingo 3,500 point just went without a buyer on eBay last night. If one is going to buy from the developer, at least buy a higher tier item where you can get a good percentage of your money back. Not mention I can't see paying the same mf's as someone with a high demand week who is getting more points. And then you've got the restricted choices about when/where to go. Three strikes on the item, retail or resale.
 

alwysonvac

TUG Lifetime Member
Joined
Sep 11, 2005
Messages
15,915
Reaction score
3,744
Points
848
Location
New Jersey
Resorts Owned
WORLDMARK, HGVC, VISTANA

SOLD (DVC, FSRC)
Rescind And Research

You can always buy from the developer again but you will only have one opportunity to rescind.

Give yourself time to research and learn what is best for you and your family.

Here are examples of current asking prices for HGVC Las Vegas Strip for 3400 points.
from Judy Kowloski's website (http://judikoz.com/Search.aspx)

$2,000 Biennial-Odd
$2,500 Biennial-even
$3,400 Biennial-Odd
$3,500 Biennial-even
$4,750 Biennial-Odd
$5,000 Biennial-even

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you change your mind after the 10 day period, these are the prices you will have to sell your week for. It's a buyers market (more sellers than buyers).

Good Luck and Welcome to TUG :hi:
 
Last edited:

simba7

newbie
Joined
Aug 21, 2011
Messages
9
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
NJ
Thank you all so much for all of the advice...I am so glad I found this website and the wealth of knowledge everyone shares! We signed last Tuesday so I am still within the 10-day period. The only "perk" we received was that they allowed us to add-on a day to our trip using the HGVC "open-season" $80 rate, which hopefully won't complicate the rescission process. Saving thousands of dollars is well worth paying full price for one night!!! I am drafting my rescission letter right now...still excited about the prospect of HGVC timesharing, but will definitely do so more research to see what type of point-package would best suit our needs. Thanks to all again!!!
 

siesta

TUG Member
Joined
Aug 12, 2010
Messages
3,514
Reaction score
57
Points
283
Thank you all so much for all of the advice...I am so glad I found this website and the wealth of knowledge everyone shares! We signed last Tuesday so I am still within the 10-day period. The only "perk" we received was that they allowed us to add-on a day to our trip using the HGVC "open-season" $80 rate, which hopefully won't complicate the rescission process. Saving thousands of dollars is well worth paying full price for one night!!! I am drafting my rescission letter right now...still excited about the prospect of HGVC timesharing, but will definitely do so more research to see what type of point-package would best suit our needs. Thanks to all again!!!
fyi, rescission period for florida is 10 days and nevada is 5 days.
 

simba7

newbie
Joined
Aug 21, 2011
Messages
9
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
NJ
Ohh!! The contract is for a Nevada property, but was signed in Florida. The recission paragraph says the agreement is governed by Florida statutes and states under Florida law we have 10-days. Since the contract says "10-days" we should be fine, right? I hope that's not going to be a problem.....:confused:
 

siesta

TUG Member
Joined
Aug 12, 2010
Messages
3,514
Reaction score
57
Points
283
Ohh!! The contract is for a Nevada property, but was signed in Florida. The recission paragraph says the agreement is governed by Florida statutes and states under Florida law we have 10-days. Since the contract says "10-days" we should be fine, right? I hope that's not going to be a problem.....:confused:
you should have rescission documents provided with the contract, if that says 10 days, then you should have 10 days.
 

Remy

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 10, 2011
Messages
666
Reaction score
49
Points
239
Location
Kansas
Resorts Owned
Hilton Grand Vacations Club on the Boulevard, Hyatt Residence Club Wild Oak Ranch
You can always buy from the developer again but you will only have one opportunity to rescind.

Give yourself time to research and learn what is best for you and your family.

Here are examples of current asking prices for HGVC Las Vegas Strip for 3400 points.
from Judy Kowloski's website (http://judikoz.com/Search.aspx)

$2,000 Biennial-Odd
$2,500 Biennial-even
$3,400 Biennial-Odd
$3,500 Biennial-even
$4,750 Biennial-Odd
$5,000 Biennial-even

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you change your mind after the 10 day period, these are the prices you will have to sell your week for. It's a buyers market (more sellers than buyers).

Good Luck and Welcome to TUG :hi:

I'd add to this sage advice by noting that those prices are only as high as they are because Hilton exercises Right of First Refusal at this resort. That could change in the long-term. When it does, the week will be worth hundreds (maybe), not thousands.

For comparison sake, in the past 6 months eBay has had two HGVC Las Vegas Flamingo Annual Platinum weeks (4,800 points) with a $740 MF that went for about $3,000.

Rescind isn't just the knee-jerk advice, it's the best advice.
 

kool_kat

TUG Member
Joined
Sep 3, 2008
Messages
208
Reaction score
7
Points
228
Location
Knoxville, TN
Resorts Owned
HGVC at Tuscany and HGVC at Flamingo; DVC at Bay Lake Towers
I was in the same situation you were in when I went to a presentation at the Las Vegas strip in 2008. I also bought an EOY through Hilton for this property for around $10k. As soon as I got home, I found TUG & received the same advice you are getting now. I immediately rescinded and never looked back.

I contacted Seth (one of the two recommended resalers on the board) & ended up buying an every year at Flamingo for nearly half the price (& it can be found for a lot cheaper than this now).

I still wanted to be part of the HGVC family and don't regret buying resale for a minute, but I would have regretted the thousands I would have wasted by buying retail.

Rescind, read, & then decide...you won't be sorry.

P.S. Some of my favorite advice you've been given is that you can buy from the developer anytime (& that "great" deal will always be available) but you can only rescind once).
 

robertr55

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Aug 16, 2007
Messages
202
Reaction score
1
Points
378
Location
Northern California
One more reason (that someone else might have mentioned and I might have missed:eek: ) to buy HGVC resale rather than from the developer is because I think it's the only group that offers you the same support regardless of how you initially made your purchase. Specifically, for a small fee you can convert any HGVC points you don't use in a year to non-expiring HHonor points...I believe all of the others (Hyatt, Marriott, etc.) require you to buy from the developer to get this priviledge.
 

simba7

newbie
Joined
Aug 21, 2011
Messages
9
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
NJ
Thank you all again for the input....I actually sent out the letter this morning via USPS priority mail (certified, return receipt just to be sure). I sent it to the exact address listed in the last paragraph about the rescission. After searching some older posts on the forum about this subject, it seems that this should be enough to get out of the contract (as well as all of the finance papers we signed!). I did notice a few people mentioned faxing the letter as well, is this something I should do as well? The paragraph only says to send written notice to the specified address. Also, the only fax number provided in my documents is on the business card for the QA manager who had us sign the paperwork. Well, now on to the next step of doing doing plenty of research here on TUG! Thanks!!!
 
Last edited:

Talent312

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2007
Messages
17,461
Reaction score
7,277
Points
948
Resorts Owned
HGVC & GTS
It may take some time for HGVC to unwind the deal, but do not worry.
Per reports we've seen, if you did as instructed, they will do the right thing.

I have not heard of HGVC giving anyone a problem, but you should know
that, if anyone does try to contact you, you have no duty to talk to them.

Aside from the Sales Division, HGVC is otherwise fairly consumer-friendly
and its customer reps quite helpful. All in all, its a fine system, once you
get thru the gate.
 

Zac495

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
3,108
Reaction score
104
Points
448
Location
Philadelphia, PA
Glad you rescinded!!! You will find this so cheaply. I just sold 5000 EY points for 4500. Also, read around - make sure HGVC is the right one. I love Hilton, but there are other good programs like Marriott (not as good lately in my opinion) and Hyatt. Take your time and read and make the decision that is right for YOU.
Good luck!
 

rgong

TUG Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2011
Messages
79
Reaction score
4
Points
218
Location
NJ
Thank you all again for the input....I actually sent out the letter this morning via USPS priority mail (certified, return receipt just to be sure). I sent it to the exact address listed in the last paragraph about the rescission. After searching some older posts on the forum about this subject, it seems that this should be enough to get out of the contract (as well as all of the finance papers we signed!). I did notice a few people mentioned faxing the letter as well, is this something I should do as well? The paragraph only says to send written notice to the specified address. Also, the only fax number provided in my documents is on the business card for the QA manager who had us sign the paperwork. Well, now on to the next step of doing doing plenty of research here on TUG! Thanks!!!

Sorry to jump in here late. You ABSOLUTELY did the right thing by rescinding. I made the *exact* same purchase as you did at the end of January after a presentation at the Parc Soleil - same package (3400 pts EOY) at the exact same price (scary). I rescinded after finding TUG. Did about another 4 months of research (the mods of this board recommend that you do 6 months research before doing anything - oh well) and ended up buying HGVC resale at a fraction of the retail price. Alwysonvac is correct - in your research, go to Judi Kozlowski's website and take a look at the prices of the listings for 3400 pts EOY packages for the LV Strip. The lowest price in the bunch is likely Judi's best educated guess as to the minimum price that will pass Hilton's right-of-first-refusal (yet another topic for another post). By the way - Judi Kozlowski is one of the highly respected brokers on this msg board for HGVC resales and her website has more HGVC resale listings than just about any around. Someone also mentioned Seth Nock who also as a number of HGVC resale properties listed on his site.

Bottom line, you should be able to end up with the exact same package at about 20-25% of the retail price. I ended up buying a resale annual package with more points at about 1/3 the retail bucks I almost spent on a lower point EOY purchase. And as far as home resort - I purchased resale at the Flamingo (Las Vegas) but it's a coin-flip as to whether I will ever visit there. You'll hear it more than once in the HGVC forum that "points are points" and unless a home resort is really important to you (and often it is), you usually try to maximize the number of points for the lowest maintenance fee, as long as the initial purchase price isn't too out of hand. Again, another topic entirely which has been discussed multiple times in the past on this forum.

Back to the rescission - I rescinded on day 9 of the 10 day window according to the instructions in the contract, and about 10 days after that I was credited the complete deposit on my credit card. As Talent312 mentioned, HGVC will do the right thing and you shouldn't expect any problem as long as you followed the rescission instructions as outlined in the contract.

Good luck and welcome to TUG!
 
Top